So, HR and I went to 25 Toorak Road last night for dinner.
Now let me remind you again that we are not connoisseurs we just know what we like and sometimes we make mistakes ( yes Theo I did get the cutlery wrong) and pair the wrong foods with the wrong wines etc.
We were welcomed by Theo and seated at our table.
The understated, elegant, decor has a lovely little quirk in that three chairs at the table are wooden dining chairs and the fourth is upholstered.
I opted for a glass of champagne (Laurent Perrier Brut L-P (Tours-sur-Marne France)) and HR ordered French Beer while we studied the Menu.
I knew I was going to have the Escargot (I had them last time I dined here) but there was the siren call of the Scallops. What was I to do? Theo and I decided I would have two entrees no main and we'd work out dessert later.
HR went with the daily special, entrée of Beef Carpaccio and a main course of Chicken Breast Fillet (another daily special).
Surrounded by the buzz of other diners enjoying their evening we eagerly awaited our entrees.
The Escargot and Beef Carpaccio arrived and we took a moment to savour the aromas and presentation. (You can see pictures of the delicious food at the web page 25 Toorak Road)
The Escargot are lightly sautéed in garlic, white wine and tarragon,topped with light fluffy puff pastry and are served in two small ramekins. This is such a lovely combination of flavours and textures and I even got HR to sample a snail!!! He was pleasantly surprised though not a convert. Of course I sopped up as much sauce as I could with the puff pastry (I am all class!)
HR enjoyed his Beef and the little taste I had was quite nice but I think the Escargot was the right option.
HR stayed with the French beer and I decided a little sparkling water was my preferred tipple for the main course.
After a suitable break, out came HR's chicken and my Scallops (entrée size). The Scallops are seared and served with cauliflower puree and truffle pangrattato and tasted divine and I supplemented them with the steamed green vegetables (lightly steamed with an agreeable crispness) HR had ordered to go with his chicken. I snared a bite of his chicken and it was delicious; moist and tender perfectly cooked served on a bed of potato and beetroot. There was not even a pattern left on the plate when we were done!!!
HR and I settled back with fresh drinks and chatted amiably about this and that before asking the lovely Kate to help us with our dessert selection (we settled on sharing a Soufflé to be followed by a cheese plate). I am not a red wine drinker at all but I thought why not ask for suggestions to go with the cheese. Kate was very knowledgeable and listened to my criteria before suggesting two Pinot's and actually bringing them out for me to sample! Having made my choice ( a light French Pinot I cannot recall the name of, yes I will write it down next time) We chatted the time away until the Soufflé arrived.
There are no words to describe the experience that was the Soufflé ... every time I try to type a description I get lost in the memory of the whole experience. Light, fluffy, lemony deliciousness that wafted across the taste buds in an orgy of flavour so perfectly awesome I almost didn't get to the Lemon Curd ice cream it was served with. I'm pretty sure HR enjoyed the Soufflé too, I forgot to ask :)
At some stage I returned from the euphoric state the Soufflé had placed me in and we asked Kate for the Cheese.
HR likes his cheese. There was Camembert, Blue Vein and a Cheddar served with quince paste, flat bread and fruit toast. I love a good Blue Vein and this one was particularly nice, even old grumble bum HR thought it was ok and he generally loathes Blue Vein.
We sat back replete....there was not a thing more we needed.
Over a period of two and a half hours we had experienced yet another perfect dining experience.
I congratulate Denis, the owner, on creating the perfect partnership of decor, staff and food!
I thank Theo, Kate (wait staff), Steven (bar), Julian (Sous Chef), Tom (Chef) and Rory (Chef). One day I hope to have David Kapay (Head Chef) cook for me, I'll keep going on the off chance ( I hope all is well with you and yours David :)).
I travel 1,561 kms to eat at 25 Toorak Road and it is worth every minute of travel!!!!!!!
As Molly Meldrum said 'Do yourself a favour..' and get to 25 Toorak Road and enjoy your own fine dining experience.
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