Sunday 6 November 2011

Restaurant Review: Jacques Reymond

Location: 78 Williams Road, Prahran VIC 3181
Phone: (03) 9525 2178
Link: http://www.jacquesreymond.com.au/
Cuisine: French
Overall Impression: 10/10

Perfect. Jacques Reymond is awe-inspiring on every facet you could possibly imagine. The service, execution, and presentation of the dishes are faultless. Even the order that the courses come in is perfect.
Their 8 course degustation with matching wines is luxuriously sumptuous and designed to please. And please, it certainly does! This option will set you back a hefty $285 a head but is certainly well worth the experience. Each course is perfectly balanced and delicious. There is extraordinary attention to detail. It is apparent that everything has been intelligently designed. It is no coincidence but the work of mastermind, Jacques himself. Of course every good meal must be accompanied by good wine and in this instance; we were pleased to see that the wines perfectly matched the food. This truly added a whole level of enjoyment to the meal. I would liken the degustation to being taken by Jacques on a culinary journey. The following is a list of the courses we were privileged to devour and the matching wines we had, with pictures for your viewing pleasure.
Choux pastry on arrival
We were given several choices of bread to choose from.
Lemongrass, spinach and rock lobster soup, fragrant Tiger prawn, sweet potato and turmeric ice cream

Matched with: 2004 Tyrrell’s HVD Semillon, Single Vineyard, Hunter Valley, NSW
Sandwich of spanner crab, mirin and fresh wasabi jelly, lacquered Petuna ocean trout, black bean and sweetcorn dressing
Wild barramundi, almond and bush mountain pepper caramel, yoghurt and black garlic, kaffir lime and lemongrass espuma

Matched with: 2009 Toolangi Estate ‘Jacques Reymond Selection’ Chardonnay, Yarra Valley, Vic
Peking duck and Hervey bay scallops, peking juices, spiced marshmallow like a crêpe, ginger sesame and pandan oil

Matched with: 2007 Bass Phillip ‘Jacques Reymond Selection’ Pinot Noir, SE Gippsland, Vic
Highland venison like a warm carpaccio, horseradish mustard dressing, butternut pumpkin with honey and bitter chocolate beignet

Matched with: 2006 Dalwhinnie ‘Jacques Reymond Selection’ Shiraz, Pyrenees, Vic
Western plains suckling pig and tamarind, celeriac and bitter almond, dashi apple veil, dancing bonito flakes and rosella chutney salad, cavalo nero

Matched with: 2007 Châteauneuf-du-Pape, Clos du Mont Olivet, Les Fils de Joseph Sabon, Rhône Valley, France
Pacific Rim martini of pineapple, passionfruit and banana, liquorice ice cream and honeycomb
As far as pre-desserts go, this surpasses them all.
Millefeuilles of chocolate: white chocolate mousse, pure Caribbean chilli ice cream, dark chocolate mousse and praline ice cream

Matched with: NV SeppeltsField Grand Tokay (Topaque), Barossa Valley, SA
Coffee and petits fours
And I am still in awe.

The thing about dining at Jacques Reymond is that it takes dining to a whole different level. If you want to be awed and taste delicious flavours you never knew existed, this is where you want to go. Although some of the dishes are somewhat unconventional, the flavours ultimately match each component and what you get is one amazing dish after another. Expect everything to be cooked to perfection. And yes, everything will taste even better than it looks on the plate.

Jacques Reymond on Urbanspoon

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