Happy Noms

Author: Victor
Restaurant: Atera
Exec Chef: Matt Lightner

Date: December 12, 2012

Notes:
-I’m not adding any commentary on these dishes, at least for the time being. It’s a combination of my laziness + finals week!
-It’ll be useful to compare how the dishes have changed from the previous time we ate there in August. You can go to the review here.
-Overall, it was a lot of fun. The service is great at Atera, and it’s fun talking to Chef Lightner and the staff.
-According to Chef Lightner, they’re planning on changing a lot of stuff up in February. I’m excited!

Food:

Canapé 1:
Beer Macaron
-with caviar and crème fraîche

Canapé 2:
Pine Nut Cracker
-with flax seed

Canapé 3:
Lobster Roll
-with dry yeast meringue

Canapé 4:
Sunchoke Chip
-with strained buttermilk and buttercream powder

Canapé 5:
Pig’s Blood Wafer
-with smoked cheese and huckleberry

Canapé 6:
“Pickled Quail’s Egg”
-made using a milk gelée that was turned into pudding

Canapé 7:
Apple Pastry
-with foie gras

Canapé 8:
“Razor Clams”
-made by adding squid ink to an air baguette

Canapé 9:
Lichen Chip
-made from rock tripe
-with black milk purée and herb emulsion

Canapé 10:
Swordfish Belly
-salt-cured and smoked
-tastes like ham

Savory 1:
Oxtail Broth
-sea urchin

The uni was absolutely necessary in this dish. The broth really wasn’t great by itself (something felt off), but it was absolutely AMAZING when combined when the uni! Something about the texture and the rich taste of the uni worked perfectly with the broth…

Savory 2:
Diver Scallops
-cured in gin botanicals
-fermented cabbage leaf

Miner’s Lettuce (claytonia perfoliata)

Savory 3:
Fluke
-warm barbecued onion sauce

Emerald Ice Lettuce (aptenia cordata variegata)

Savory 4:
Lamb Tartare
-black malt cracker
-tartare includes smoked tomato

Savory 5:
Seared Duck Heart
-tender young vegetables, pastrami spices, sauce made from mushroom (I forgot the details)

Red Watercress (nasturtium officinale)

Bread 1: Salted Rye Bread
“Butter”: Cream that they basted in cheese for three days

Savory 6:
“Ramen”
-made from squid
-dissolving spice packet, pork bouillon

Oxeye Daisy (leucanthemum vulgare lam)

Savory 7:
Brined Hake
-wildflower honey, yogurt

Chickweed (stellaria media)

Bread 2:
Sourdough Roll
-basted in Mangalitsa pork fat

I… love this bread.

Quoting the Aug. 2012 post:
Victor: This bread was AMAZING. It tasted like it was fried, and I really would have loved to have more of it. (Though I guess my body is happy I only ate one… More carbs wouldn’t be good haha.)
Monte: All of Victor’s carbs are belong to me. Feed me more carbs. More carbs like this bread. This bread soaked in pork fat. Oh yes…*starts drooling as I redream the experience”

Savory 8:
Celeriac

Mushroom Meringue

Bread 3:
Seeded Multigrain Roll

Savory 9:
Roasted Quail
-fresh peanuts, “foie gras” peanut made from quail liver

Burgundy Cold (oxalis articulata)

Savory 10:
Beef Strip
-toasted wheatberries

Red Russian Kale (brassica napus pabularia)

Dessert 1:
Pear
-almond milk ice cream

Mead (apis mellifera)

Dessert 2:
Raw Cow’s Milk Ice Cream
-ice with Fernet Branca (Italian liqueur)

Dessert 3:
Banana Split
-spiced marshmallows

Candied Parsley Root (petroselinum crispum)

Dessert 4:
Churro
-salsify (root vegetable that makes up the churro), cinnamon
-chocolate-hazelnut ganache

White Cardamom (elettaria cardamomum)

Dessert 5:
Bourbon Cask Ice Cream Sandwich
-almond, vanilla

Oak (quercus robur)

Petit four 1:
“Truffles” (hazelnut butter rolled in cocoa)

Petit four 2:
“Black walnuts” (salted caramel)