Friday, June 8, 2012.
Off She Goes. No Crank. Tamarind.
The Marys departed for the airport at 4:30 a.m., to put Mary Leigh on a flight to Washington, D.C. For the past few years she and her cousin Hillary have gone up there to hang for a week with their other cousins in Maryland. We've hardly talked about that, because this time Mary Leigh will also be meeting up with a school friend of the male persuasion, and that gets all the attention.
I didn't really want to go into town today--it's raining off and on. But I have some commercials that need to be recorded. So I was not happy that the car wouldn't start. The battery has shown signs of approaching death in the last few weeks. With ML gone, we have an extra car, but mine was in front of it. Fortunately, I have a portable battery (I use it to start the tractor), and that cranked the PT Cruiser's engine enough to catch. I took the portable unit (which I'd just bought a week ago!) in case I needed it in town. I didn't, but I will get a new battery tomorrow.
Dinner at Tamarind, where Chef Dominique Macquet is the creative genius. I don't know if that's a permanent deal; Danny Millan from Le Foret was also involved, but he has turned his attention to the upcoming new Dominique's on Magazine Street. There Dominique will go, too, when it opens.
Mary Ann had lunch at Tamarind with Danny Millan last week, and came home with surprisingly glowing reports. My wife doesn't cotton much to exotic cuisines. This is French-Vietnamese fusion. If she goes for it, the restaurant's food must be good indeed.
Tamarind is in the newly-renamed Hotel Modern on Lee Circle, in a location that has been the burial ground for at least three previous restaurants. Hip activity is heading in the direction of Lee Circle, but it hasn't arrived yet. But the Hotel Modern people are giving it a hard push. Certainly Dominique's presence is a plus, even though since the hurricane he's done a lot of moving around. So too is the bar adjacent to the restaurant: Bellocq, operated by Neal Bodenheimer, who created Cure. He is one of the major movers in the local cocktail craze.
Not a soul was in the dining room when I arrived at around six-thirty. This certainly had something to do with the rain. (I'm glad I came in with my umbrella, because I really needed it on the way out.) But this is a restaurant riding the trends, and the clientele for such eats shows up later. And did.
I began with a glass of Robert Klingenfus Pinot Noir. That's from Alsace, where Pinot Noir is the sole red wine, and a rarity. The waiter said that Dominique has been going on television with the confit of lamb, served enclosed in one of those shocking-yellow Vietnamese crepes. This sounded interesting and tasted even better. It was also very generous, and rendered my ordering a soup and an entree a big meal.
The soup was described as French onion made with Vietnamese pho broth and spices. Only the latter was discernable. The onions were caramelized lighter than they would be for a French version. There was, however, a floating crouton with melted cheese on its deck.
The entree consisted of a large fillet of black drum sliced from end to end into three pieces. They leaned against a mound of risotto with mushrooms topped by a mini-bush of micro-greens. A warm, tan vinaigrette completed the ensemble. It was delicious in every particular, from the vivid stove-heat of the fish to the creaminess of the risotto to the sharpness of the sauce.
And that's when Dominique discovered my theretofore hidden presence. He gave me the dope on Tamarind, which he claims is not a fusion restaurant. It's a straight Vietnamese place whose French aspects (there is quite a bit of that in Vietnamese cooking) are amplified. He praised his chef de cuisine, who is himself from Vietnam.
And he waxed eloquent about Bellocq, where he knew that Neal Bodenheimer was not only in residence, but had just develop a clear brandy milk punch. How could a milk punch not be milky? And why would one want such a thing? Answer to the first question: by using the whey only, and clarifying with with egg whites. Second: I'm still not sure.
I had already had too much to eat, and Dominique knew that. So he sent out as a dessert only a ball of lemongrass ice cream. Another new thing on me. But, fortunately, not clear.
Tamarind. Lee Circle Area: 936 St. Charles Ave. (Modern Hotel). 504-962-0909.
It's over three years since a day was missed in the Dining Diary. To browse through all of the entries since 2008, go here.
