Wednesday, October 06, 2010

Espai Sucre

What a thing. Not only is it a restaurant that specialises in desserts, but it's a dessert restaurant that only does degustations (with matching dessert wine, of course). And it's a little fancy. I'd heard about Espai Sucre a couple of years back and knew that I had to go there one day.

A day like today.

The problem with this restaurant was that I wasn't sure if it was recommended to eat before going there, or if you were expected to only have dessert items for dinner that night. I'm a cautious guy. So, stomachs full after the earlier (just then) dinner at Lasarte, we walked into the restaurant.

We were presented with the menus and, oh, they do have some savoury dishes in the degustations, as well as dessert only ones. Wanting to compare the savoury dishes as well, I opt for a five-course tasting menu with two savoury and three sweet dishes. The dining companion opts for a more reasonable three-course, dessert-only degustation.

First the savoury. A scallop and mussel dish that's pretty good. Simple, good flavours. Then a piece of beef, slow roasted so you can eat it with a fork and spoon, with a grain and sweet nut sauce. The sauce is quite sweet and definitely gets you in the mood for dessert.

Dessert time and I'm ever so excited/full. The dining companion is in pain and is telling me what he wants done with his body when if something happens to him. I made a mental note of it and dig into my dessert.

I can't remember a lot about the dishes themselves--it had been a really long day--but I remember the expert way they controlled flavour, sweetness and texture. These were serious desserts, and they tasted seriously good. The use of sourness kept the whole meal somewhat refreshing, and even though I'd eaten dozens of things already today, I felt like I could still eat more.

While the savoury courses were okay, the desserts here are definitely top notch. A great restaurant concept, talented pastry chefs and great food.

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