I dined at Next for the El Bulli months ago, but waited to post and I'm glad I did. In the past month, I also dined at é by Jose Andres in Las Vegas, and while I enjoyed the meal, I did not think it came anywhere close to matching the experience at Next El Bulli, in terms of food, service or plating. And until looking back and reflecting upon the meal, I don't think I quite appreciated Next El Bulli enough. Perhaps I was a little frustrated with the failure to score a reservation (and ultimately being lucky enough to be invited by a friend), or maybe the knowledge that I really wasn't eating at El Bulli (and never had the chance) and that maybe Next was just copying what someone else had done, but maybe with lesser talent.
In reality, I should have let go of my skepticism and just enjoyed the experience. Looking back on the meal, I can say it was outstanding, one of the best I've ever had, well paced and really delivered so many amazing flavors and was stunning in terms of delivery and amazement. Also, given the number of courses served, the fact that they change the menus quarterly (and even cooking techniques, which vary dramatically by continent visited), I am really at a loss for how they are able to deliver the quality they do. Could it be possible to say that the kitchen talent at Next is underrated? Maybe not, but in my opinions Next deserves all of the acclaim it receives.
The meal started with a nitro caipirinha with tarragon concentrate, a delicious and lightly tart and sweet palate cleanser.
Nitro caipirinha with tarragon concentrateThat was followed by the hot/cold trout roe tempura. I was impressed that they were beautifully fried, crisp and light, yet not at all greasy. And the cool roe and its flavor came through the breading loud and clear, all that I could ask for - delicious.
Hot/cold trout roe tempuraThe famous spherical olives were next, and these green olive spheres were terrific and exploding with intense and pure green olive flavor. At é, they offered a similar dish, but with black olives. And while the flavor was terrific, the presentation at Next was more graceful, more pretty.
Spherical olivesI enjoyed the coca of avocado, anchovies and green onion, but simply because the anchovy was terrific. I don't know that the other components helped me appreciate the anchovy any more.
Coca of avocado, anchovies and green onionThe Iberico sandwich featured Iberico ham wrapped around a hollow breadstick, and was great texturally. Would it be fair to have asked for more Iberico ham to be wrapped around the breadstick? Maybe not, and it was still delicious.
Iberico sandwichI never would have dreamed of a golden egg, and I loved the simple flavors (and the small size) - raw quail egg and caramel, and the crispy exterior. Beautiful to admire too.
Golden eggThe black sesame spongecake and miso was one of my favorite dishes of the night. Slightly sweet, it delivered a really wonderful sesame flavor and I love sesame. The miso was not only a wonderful complement to the sesame, but the proportion of sesame to miso was just right. The cake is cooked in less than a minute in the microwave we were told. They served a similar spongecake at é (microwaved spongecake that is, although flavor was different), but the version at Next was far superior.
Black sesame spongecake and misoChicken liquid croquettes reminded me in concept of the crackers with liquid cheese filling I remember tasting my first visit to Alinea. I still appreciate the concept, and the texture was great - a delicate, crisp coating with a warm, liquidy filling. I enjoyed this dish, even if I was no longer wowed by the concept, and the chicken filling was very tasty but really nothing earth shattering.
Chicken liquid croquettesWhat can I say about smoke foam. This course took me back to the Simpsons episode, when Homer was concerned that Bart might be gay, and though sitting him in front of a Virginia Slims billboard would "cure" him. When Homer asked Bart how he felt, he responded "I feel like having a smoke." Anyway, this course tasted like I was eating and smoking a cigarette at the same time, and it was alright in flavor, in addition to being so clever (although I could only eat so much of it).
Smoke foamThe smoke was followed by carrot air with coconut milk, another one of my favorite courses of the evening. You started off tasting the lightest and most delicate carrot air bubbles, although there was no mistaking the carrot flavor. At first you think, this is going to get boring after a while, scooping up nothing but air bubbles. Although as your spoon descended further into the bowl, you discovered a lightly curry scented coconut milk that blended with the carrot air. And when I discovered the blending of flavors, I was thrilled - delicious, surprising, perfection.
Carrot air with coconut milkWhat first amazed me about the cuttlefish and coconut ravioli with soy, ginger and mint was the perfectly textured ravioli, which in fact was the cuttlefish. More importantly, the combination of flavors was outstanding.
Cuttlefish and coconut ravioli with soy, ginger and mintThe savory tomato ice with oregano and almond milk pudding was fine I suppose in terms of flavor, impressing me more in terms of technique and texture, but ultimately not wowing me.
Savory tomato ice with oregano and almond milk puddingThe only course of the evening I did not like - in fact I really disliked it - was the hot crab aspic with mini corn cous-cous. I found it a little too salty, a little too fishy (and I love crab), and I did not like any of the textural elements - either the aspic or the couscous which I thought was too dry. Oh well, out of 29 courses, I suppose it's okay to hate one.
Hot crab aspic with mini corn cous-cousAnother one of my favorite dishes followed, the cauliflower cous-cous with solid aromatic herb sauce. This was probably the most beautiful course served. It was also delicious. I am not a cauliflower fan, and yet I thought the flavors here really exploded. The texture was terrific too in that you really believed it was couscous.
Cauliflower cous-cous with solid aromatic herb sauceSuquet of prawns was also outstanding, with perfectly cooked and flavorful prawns in a deliciously rich, buttery sauce.
Suquet of prawnsI suppose the potato tortilla by Marc Singla delivered the flavors of a Spanish potato tortilla, and probably with more intense flavor, but I prefer the traditional texture to that of this liquid version. Still, a delicious dish.
Potato tortilla by Marc SinglaThe trumpet carpaccio was another amazing dish, beautiful to gaze at, even better to eat. Mushrooms, pine nuts? (IIRC), herbs, etc. This might have been my favorite dish of the evening, if only because I was amazed at how they were able to build a dish that was so much greater in flavor and appearance than the sum of its parts (and the sum of the parts was pretty great on its own). Maybe the best tasting mushroom dish I've ever tasted.
Trumpet carpaccioMore beauty in presentation, the red mullet gaudi. You can't help thinking about the ocean and an art museum with this one, with the red mullet "plated" atop a vacuum sealed bag of sea shells and water. The red mullet was beautifully prepared, and served with some flavors that remind you of gazpacho - delicious.
Red mullet gaudiNasturtium with eel, bone marrow and cucumber again proved that with 29 courses, not every one can be a hit. It was fine, but probably not memorable, even with the tasty eel and bone marrow.
Nasturtium with eel, bone marrow and cucumberCivet of rabbit with hot apple jelly might have been the richest dish of the evening, and it was also both beautiful and delicious. I believe the sauce on the plate was foie gras, and overall, just a terrific blend of flavors.
Civet of rabbit with hot apple jellyAfter the rich rabbit dish, I expected something a little lighter in texture and flavor. Gorgonzola? The frozen gorgonzola globe was not only ingenious and beautiful and graceful in appearance, but a perfect follow-up to the rabbit. So thin in texture, frozen, dusted lightly with grated nutmeg and delicious, you could peel little bits off without feeling full. Fun too.
Gorgonzola globeAnother one of my favorite dishes of the night was the foie gras caramel custard - two of my favorite flavors. I was so impressed with the way they maintained the lightness of the custard while achieving the perfect caramel-foie gras flavor balance. I thought this dish was amazing.
Foie gras caramel custardThe spice plate was more a game than a food course, apple jelly suspending various herbs and spices, served with a piece of paper with two columns in which we were required to match the spices/herbs with their positions (12 positions on the clock) on the plate.
Spice plateAlso more interesting than tasty was the mint pond - peppermint, green tea, cocoa and sugar powders mixed atop a thin layer of plated ice. Fun to look at and play with, but not much else. Although, I supposed it cleansed the palate between the gorgonzola/spices/herbs and the true dessert courses. You used your spoon to crack the thin layer of ice and eat bits of ice with the flavored powder combination.
Mint pondThe first true dessert was chocolate in textures and it was outstanding. I can't recall all of the textures (mousse, crispy shell I think and maybe ganache?). In any event, very rich and delicious chocolate and of course magnificent in appearance.
Chocolate in texturesI wish someone had told us that the chocolate donuts had a coconut
liquid interior - tasty, but unfortunately messy with the lack of assistance.
Chocolate donutsCreme flute and puff pastry web, respectively, were both tasty and light, though nothing to get excited about at Next, although I'd be pretty happy to get pastries of this quality at any bakery.
creme flute (above), puff pastry web (below)The meal ended with the Ferran Adria hand waving goodbye and delicious passionfruit marshmallows.
Ferran Adria hand and passionfruit marshmallowsOverall, I absolutely loved the meal, although I needed time to reflect (and perhaps my experience at é by Jose Andres in Las Vegas) to completely appreciate how great the meal was. So much beauty, amazing flavors, and fascinating techniques and presentations. If I had to pick my favorites of the evening (no small task with so many terrific flavors), in order of service, I'd say the black sesame spongecake, carrot air, cauliflower couscous, trumpet carpaccio and foie gras caramel custard. Part of my initial unwillingness to heap praise upon Next was the fact that in the back of my mind, I was given the understanding that Next was only serving what El Bulli had once served, almost like simply preparing dinner from a cookbook. I've let go of much of that concern, simply because of the brilliant plating, the clever and thoughtful order in which the courses were served (and of course the particular El Bulli courses selected), and because they really prepared the food with amazing flavor and presentation, and that takes great skill. If not, everyone would be doing it. I now know the credit Next's staff deserves, and in retrospect, it was one of my favorite meals ever (although it took me some time to come to this realization).
Login
Register
FAQ
Search
