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2020-11-24
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A magnificent gastronomic lunch experience at Tate Dining Room themed around the humble yet sophisticated Tea. One could only appreciate how much thoughts, research and dedication behind the food and menu design. The progressive menu combining French style of cooking with Chinese culture flows seamlessly together with specially curated tea pairings. The featuring of tea goes beyond just incorporating tea elements into dishes, it’s much harder to combine flavors that complement the tea and highli
The journey begins with a delicate refreshing cold brew white tea with a hint of earthy wild mushroom scent to introduce you into the first course which is a beautiful tea brewed soft boiled mushroom egg. It’s also served with a incredibly crunchy lightly salted toast for egg dipping. The complementary sourdough bread is divine with perfect crispy crust and a aromatic fermented flavor, served with a mushroom butter.
Next is a longjing tea from Kyoto that brings a strong green tea aftertaste. It highlights the umami flavor of the Japanese sweet shrimp and crispy shrimp croquette. They’ve added fresh green tea leaf on the bottom as a salad dressed with a green tomato sauce that is refreshing and inspiring.
This third course takes the pleasure of fried food with sparkling drinks to a whole new level with a crispy and delicate kataifi wrapped grouper paired with a funky cold brew sparkling tea with a stone fruit undertone (the Oriental Beauty). The little salty tangy Kumquat sauce cut through the flavors in absolute perfection.
Hairy crab roe can be a strong rich ingredient to work with, but through pairing with the extremely sweet Tokyo turnip, enhances the umami flavor yet gives a sweet relief. Overall, it offers a clean delicate flavor that is smooth and mellow, while the Big Red Robe oolong tea gives it a soothing end.
Perfectly cooked duck breast, medium rare with airy crispy skin that is rendered nicely. The roselle with plum paste and the plum sauce provides a fine sweet and sour balance that cut through the richness of the duck. The taro croquette is a great snack that reminds me of the traditional fried taro dim sum in Chinese restaurant. Although it felt a bit misfit on the dish, it’s a tasty side I wouldn’t mind having. The main course pairs with a tea from 200-year-old oak tree that taste uniquely earthy while bringing a lingering honey aroma, providing great comfort after a rich dish.
Probably the most distinctive tea pairing, this aged pureh permeates and tastes with a prominent rice scent, complemented the dried seafood rice impeccably. Chef added clam sauce to infuse more moisture and extra umami flavor to the rice.
A decadent rich chocolate dessert with creamy chocolate pastry cream and a moist cocoa streusel as a perfect ending. The final tea pairing is actually incorporated in the dish with a aromatic smooth Masala chai tea ice cream gives a fine balance to the chocolate richness. We demolished the dessert in no time and still want more after all the courses, this speaks volumes.
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