THE MEAL
Wine: Kung Fu Girl Riesling 2009
First Courses: Young Beets (with arugula, sweet almonds, fennel lemonade, and gorgonzola); Tender Beef Tartare (with mustard "yolk," caper, berbere sauce)
Second Courses: Vanilla Poached Lobster (with butternut squash tortelloni, lobster bisque, and pancetta foam); Diver Scallop (with bacon powder)
Third Courses: Lemongrass Cured Duck Breast (with gingered sprouts, fo-mole, and foie gras); Tandoori Spiced Salmon (with fermented yucca couscous and shrimp essence)
Fourth Courses: Filet of Beef (with porcini raviolo, roasted grape wine, and foie butter)
THOUGHTS
For Valentine's Day 2011, I made reservations at Farrah Olivia. Formerly located in Alexandria and routinely rated as a Top 20 restaurant by Washingtonian, I had never been before; however, Chef Morou's reputation (beating Bobby Flay on Iron Chef) and beautiful food (see the restaurant's website) precede him.
The menu provides options for a 3 course meal, a 4 course meal, or a 5 course meal. After ordering our wine, our server (who reminded me, bizarrely, of Mr. Magoo) brought out Chef Morou's amuse bouche for the evening: an oyster with a sweet yuzu-based broth and a vegetable empanada. As we considered our dining options, the amuse bouche was a lovely start to the meal.
I began my meal with the Young Beets, served with arugula, gorgonzola, almonds, and apples atop a fennel lemonade vinagrette. The vinaigrette, a vibrant seafoam greenish-blue, provided an abstract canvas upon which the other ingredients were artfully arranged. While I did not want to destroy this work of art, I found it in me to eat the entire plate -- a light and refreshing start to the meal.
For my second course, I ordered the Vanilla Poached Lobster. Chef Morou served this course in a deep bowl, with layers of flavor: a base of lobster bisque, a large (almost donut-sized) butternut squash tortelloni resting atop the lobster bisque, two hunks of vanilla-poached lobster claw resting on the tortelloni, and topped with a pancetta foam. While all of the flavors married well together, the sweetness of the butternut squash and vanilla-poached lobster was the star of this dish (balanced nicely against the richness of the lobster and creaminess of the lobster bisque). I immediately announced that I would have been happy have that course four times during the course of the evening.
While I did not anticipate it, my third course -- the Lemongrass Cured Duck Breast -- was even better than the Vanilla Poached Lobster. Cooked to a lovely medium rare, the tender and succulent slivers of duck was served with a "Fo-Mole" sauce (a spiced chocolate-esque puree) and what I would describe as a "truffle" of foie gras. This immediately jumps into the discussion for best dish I've ever eaten. And, as a finishing touch, this course was served with "gingered" brussel sprouts which had a pleasant sweet and spicy Asian undertone to the flavor.
For my fourth course, I ordered the Filet of Beef. Served with a rich and luxurious roasted grape wine sauce, atop a porcini mushroom raviolo, the plate was pleasing to the eye. And, resting astride the edge of the plate, a palette of Foie Butter rested on one side and a dusting of (what I would describe as) five-spice on the other side. While not as outstanding as the duck, the beef was a pleasant course with which to end the meal.
Given the various techniques employed by Chef Morou, I would be remiss if I didn't mention (albeit briefly) my companion's meal. She began with the Tender Beef Tartare. Served Stonehenge style (i.e., served in two towers with a lintel), Chef Morou served the tartare with four options. The most interesting was the mustard "yolk" (mustard chemically bound to appear like an egg yolk), but the best option (of those I tried) was the spices (which included curry). Certainly, a playful and unique take on tartare.
For her second course, my companion had the Diver Scallop. Due to a milk allergy, she couldn't have it with the "melon seed milk" described on the menu; however, they prepared the scallop beautifully with a cool bacon powder. For her third course, she had the salmon. Again, it looked beautiful, although my companion indicated that the duck was her preferred dish of the evening as well.
While my companion repeatedly noticed that Chef Morou's dishes were sweet (or emphasized the sweetness of the ingredients), I found his cooking style to be pleasing to my palette. Colorful, flavorful, playful, and imaginative, I would highly recommend a return visit to Farrah Olivia.
CONCLUSIONS
Food: 10/10
Service: 3.5/5
Errata: 4/5
Total: 17.5/20
$$$$
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