Dinner

Tonight there are a total of 6 course featuring dishes from Japan, Italy, Spain, and Greece.

Time to sit down and start the meal!

Course #1 -Grilled artichoke with Isalata frutti de mare (seafood salad)

The first course is a chaud/Froid (hot/cold) dish where I combined a grilled artichoke, marinated in a garlic/butter and then grilled until fragrant, and a cold variety of seafood that are drizzled with fresh lemon, chopped parsley, and olive oil.

The first course is done and looks like a lot of conversation are going on...

The whole group together.

Course #2 -Grey sole crudo with blood orange, olive oil, chile, and pistachio

The colors are so vibrant....

This dish is from Jonathan Waxman, a famous chef known for his California-Italian food.

This is the first time I prepared this dish and I thought the sole has a strong fishy smell, however the texture is firm so I like it but I think I prefer to have Hamachi the next time.

The combination of blood orange segments and juice, orange zest, chopped chile (I used Jalapeno), and olive oil give the dish a nice citrus taste, a bit of heat from the jalapeno, and the crunchiness from the pistachio.

Phu our sommelier extraordinaire, opening a few bottle of red wine...

Trung also opening a bottle of wine while talking to Hoa.

Course #3 -  Grilled pork Belly, pork cheeks, chicken gizzards, chicken hearts, and chicken legs

A combination of grilled meat inspired by Izakaya.

Can't go wrong with these assortment of meat.  There is a bit of everything for everyone.

This is a portion for two people. I don't want our guests to get full right away so portions are controlled so there is room for the next 4 dishes.

I served the grilled meat with grilled shishito peppers and braised eggplants.

Course #4 -  Uni pasta with grilled squid

This dish is from Eric Ripert of Le Bernadin, the famous seafood with 3 Michelin star in New York.

I served this dish a few times and everyone seems to like it a lot.

It is a luxurious dish where the uni is blended with a lot of butter and then emulsify at the last minute to create a tasty sauce to coat the spaghetti. 

The spaghetti is mixed with the sauce and topped with a piece of fresh Uni (per person) and grilled squid.

This portion is for 2 people.

Course #5 - Grilled Iberico pork secreto, sautéed shitake mushrooms, French Fries, mojo verde sauce

OMG, this dish is so delicious!

We had the dish at Teleferic Barcelona in Palo Alto and we loved it so I am recreating it tonight.  Phu was able to get the meat online from a special source and he was able to get a really quality piece of meat.  I think that my version is even better that the one we had at Teleferic Barcelona.

The mojo verde sauce was also a hit.   The mojo verde is tangy, garlicky, velvety from the avocado, and a bit spicy from the Jalapeno and it was perfect with the meat.

The iberico was also perfectly grilled and we all love this dish.

 Course #6- BBQ lamb riblets, roasted broccolini, cauliflowers, and babaganoush.

The ribs are roasted in the oven at low heat for about 3 hours and then grilled at the last minute before serving.

I was going to do a gremolata and panko but decided at the last minute to replace it with a babaganoush (roasted eggplant).

I love lamb riblets but it does has a strong lamb smell.

DESSERTS

Loan and Minh brought some exotics fruits: Longan and Vietnamese Rambutan (chom chom)

Hanh brought a large patter of a variety of fresh fruits.

Maily made a beautiful limoncello cake.  She is testing a bunch of flavor and this is the first flavor on her repertoire so she can make a cake for Kevin and Kristie's reception in November.

Maily also make a panna cotta with fresh mango.

Hanh also brought a lot of Vietnamese che but we forgot to take a picture.

NEXT.. Al Fresco/Poker

Filed under: Dinner Parties