RANKING: 14/20
DATE VISITED: Nov. 29, 2009
ADDRESS: p.zza risorgimento 4. Alba
TELEPHONE: 0173 366 167
SUMMARY: Chef Enrico Crippa is one of the most highly regarded chefs today in Italy, and he was recently crowned with the second Michelin star. While it is true that he is a promising chef, his cooking is uneven and sometimes it is too fussy and unfocused. On the other hand, the highs are also quite high and even the failed dishes attest to the intelligence of Crippa.
The restaurant consists of only five to six tables and its decoration may not be to everybody’s taste. The service is formal and attentive, but one is surprised by the absence of a knowledgeable sommelier. I ordered the 2005 Silex Dagueneau from the list, but the sommelier brought the 2006 and was genuinely surprised to hear that the difference mattered. He would have opened it had I not been careful.
I was also surprised by the lack of communication between the dining stuff and the chef. One dish, spaghetti cacio e pepe, did not contain a detectable amount of the promised cacio. I asked twice to the waiters to inquire the chef about it, but never got a response to my inquiry.
On the other hand, when the bill came, I noticed that the two glasses of Barolo we had ordered with the partridge and the cup of champagne we shared were offered by the restaurant.
This restaurant probably deserves one Michelin star and the two stars may have been a bit premature.
Please note that even though we visited this restaurant during the tartufi season, we ordered the menu creative to get to know better the restaurant.
FOIE GRAS
This is duck liver mousse, mandarine and campari jellies, green apple, corn, radish and greens. It pleases both the eye and the palette. It is quite complex, and the overall harmony between sweet, earthy, tart and bitter elements is noteworthy. It is a great beginning, following very good amuses (esp. the baguette with lardo) which are not pictured here.
SUNCHOKES
This is a masterpiece with sunchoke or Jerusalem artichokes, artichokes and licorice in multiple textures. The three elements are beautifully integrated and create super harmony. There are two complementary elements, and the third (licorice) is a well thought out contrast that works. This is a focused dish and the quality of raw ingredients shines.
GAMBERI
I consider the San Remo prawns to be possibly the world’s best (together with Denia and Palamos prawns) in the sense that they are very sweet and have a subtle refined taste. I prefer them to be slightly cooked to bring out the unique taste, but this is a matter of personal preference. What disappointed me in this dish is the way Crippa compromised the refined taste of the gamberi. He cut the prawn into three and then he paired it with a strong grape must and strawberry jelly. It was cloying to the taste buds and the inclusion of some agrumes (probably emulsified by agar agar) did not create a balanced dish but created a confused dish.
MACKAREL
Here, Crippa flirted with disaster, but mostly pulled it out. There are just so many elements in this dish. I could count mackarel confit, turnip, sesame seed, mandarine cubes, shisho, micro greens and various herbs, soya sauce. But somehow this mish-mash of cooked and raw ingredients worked. Crippa’s judicious use of the strong tasting ingredients (soya, sesame) and the careful balancing of fatty Spanish mackerel with crisp and acidic elements, worked together to create a unique dish. I can not say that I am looking forward to taste it again in the near future but I appreciate the conceptual power and technical virtuosity which underlied this dish.
MERLUZZO
In general I do not favor fish cooked sous vide (esp. delicate fishes become too soft and lose their distinguishing flavor), but sous viding the cod fish may be an exception. Sous vide or vacuum cooking worked here and the fish was flavorful. It was beautifully integrated with excellent quality broccoli puree and very fresh artisanal mozarella. The firm texture of the firm pasta was also a nice textural complemant to the fish. This is an excellent dish.
SPAGHETTI CACIO E PEPE
This is a glorious, if simple, pasta dish from Roman cuisine. The hard durum pasta shaped by trofila was superb. The cracked peppers were very fresh, but because they were not spread well, I swallowed to much in one bite and had tears in my eyes. I did not understand the use of chocolate powder in this dish (probably this was a visual gimmick). But the inclusion of lemon zest was subtle and worked. I could neither detect nor taste the pecorino cheese. This may either be because they forgot it, or because, as we were sharing the pasta dishes, Linda ate all of it before it came to me. I inquired about it, but never got a reply.
GNOCCI WITH SEIRASS
This super pasta dish more than made up re. our disappointment from the previous dish. It contained large gnocchi filled with fresh seirass (ricotta like, an excellent cheese), with fresh zucchini slices and beet leaves. This dish had great products, super gnocchi which melted in the mouth, and overall it was a very balanced and refreshing pasta. It is a pasta masterpiece.
RISOTTO
This is Carnaroli risotto with thinly sliced raw porcini and star anise. Porcini may have been cut too thin to properly taste it, and the risotto was quite starchy. It was cooked very al dente. It is good but not memorable.
SOLE FISH
This was a disappointing dish. The sole itself was just fine, but too thinly cut. Its pairing with cugna (cooked grape must) and skewered pumpkins created an overall imbalance. The strong-sweet flavors of pumpkin and cugna overwhelmed the delicate fried fish. The Brussel sprouts were nicely crunchy and fresh, and the capers were supposed to balance the dish by providing the necessary acidity. Somehow the execution fell short of the conception.
PARTRIDGE: Both the breast and thigh were cooked to perfection. The chef used the liver of the fish in the sauce. Excellent.
DESSERTS: A nice fall fruit and candied vegetable soup was followed by a crispy hazelnut tube filled with mascarpone cheese and hazelnut ice mousse-ice cream (probably made with Pacojet). This was not memorable but good.
WATER: LAURETANO.
The source is from Biella in Piemonte, and is very low in solids. One can drink three liters a day without feeling full. I wish this were my everyday drinking water.
WINE
2006 FRANCOIS RAVENEAU CHABLIS “LE CLOS”
This was tasted twice and my notes differ slightly. The first time I noted down unripe green plum and the hot stone aroma. The second time (at Piazza Duomo) I wrote about acacia blossoms and lemon peel and tropical, especially grapefruit, aroma. At any rate, the structural characteristics of this bottle remained uniform in both tastings. It is very dense but not heavy. It has great depth, a long finish and very impressive and distinguishing minerality. It is potentially explosive. At first it seems closed but begins to open up, and after two hours it becomes suave and elegant. This is a profound wine and each sip is a new surprise and never gets boring. Maybe it is not as structured as the 2005, but it is as interesting and complex. It would be very interesting to compare these two wines over the years. 19/20
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