PRIORITY PRIORITY

MALE / DINING OPENER / MALE

9 MICHELIN house-made butters and 20 mineral water options.

STARS IN 3 DAYS
Parmesan ravioli, burrata and dried mozzarella
skin follows the amuse-bouche and leads into a
mix of braised vegetables with truffles (a Ducasse
mainstay). Sea bream is deboned table-side and
Naren Young slams his fine-dining foot on the gastro. served with gamberetti stuffed zucchini flowers
and the accompanying bouillabaisse sauce
might well have been ladled out of the nearby
Mediterranean. The texture in the tripe of codfish
(with a nicoise ratatouille) is unlike any sea
creature I’ve ever eaten.
The heaviest dish rounds out the main courses
with roast pigeon breast and an intensely
flavoured pigeon herb sauce alongside a mini-
steak sized piece of seared foie gras. An array
of trolleys complete what is, until now, the most
flawless meal of my life. Too often service at this
level is aloof, even arrogant, but our service was
quite jovial, never snooty or invasive. The food
is spectacular and the magical, almost surreal Ferran Adria
setting ties it all together. The
Finest dining: Le Louis
XV in Monte Carlo (top); bill might have run over 1000
Plaza Athenee in Paris Euros but it’s worth every cent. creative chef of his
(below); chef Ferran Adria
outside his famed elBulli
The experiences with (or any) generation.
Christophe restaurant in Spain. Ducasse may be about choice Adria welcomes us into
Moret but elBulli, on the other hand, his kitchen as we arrive,
but he is clearly in the
‘zone’. Nearly 2,000
dishes will be served
tonight to a mere 50
Paris diners. We shake hands
Plaza and I marvel at 50 chefs
Athenee
working in near silence.
is quite the We are assigned an English-speaking waiter,
Alain Ducasse
FRANCE opposite. There and I am in awe of a server addressing a table
is no menu, not in four languages. Sommelier Ferran Centelles
Monte Carlo in the formal does not pair wines with courses and they feature
Le Louis XV sense. This mainly whites with what is mostly very light
is perhaps food. We are asked for dietary restrictions and
the most the extravaganza begins: anything from sesame
unconventional cakes to clear vanilla chips, coconut sponge
restaurant on is eaten with the hands and disappears in the

I
’d never been escorted to the bathroom before. Culinary giants: Alain Alain Ducasse. Housed in earth, where mouth immediately. The flow is continuous and
Barcelona
Especially not by a man in a tuxedo, least of all Ducasse and his protege
Christophe Moret
SPAIN elBulli the Hotel de Paris, which many things the timing perfect. There’s no clear delineation
in a restaurant. So goes the level of service at (above, right) have opened in 1864, this don’t look, of when the meal begins, however portions
the world’s finest of fine dining establishments. become France’s most opulent hotel has played smell or taste progressively get a little larger.
famous chefs.
On this particular occasion, I’m sitting in the host to royalty and celebrities alike. Ducasse was like they should. An open mind is all you need. Perhaps most mind boggling is, despite such a
opulent and elegantly appointed dining room of treats such as Bellini popsicles and B-52 jellies. brought into the fold in 1987 with a contract that Visiting elBulli is a pilgrimage and probably diverse range of dishes, no table eats exactly the
Alain Ducasse au Plaza Athenee in Paris’ uber Steer clear of anything blue. stipulated he would attain three Michelin stars one of the only dining establishments in the same food. A green tea powder made of ground
wealthy 8th arrondisement. Over the next three The dining room, created by renowned interiors within four years. By 1990 (just under three years) world where you book your travel after you get chervil is prepared table-side like a Japanese tea
days, I am about to eat my way through nine of the man Patrick Jouin (former student of Philippe he fulfilled his contract’s demand and his was the a reservation. It’s not the easiest place to get to ceremony and awakens the palate while somehow
most high profile Michelin stars in the world.  Starck), is stunning. Crowned by an enormous first hotel restaurant to win this honour. either. Situated two hours north of Barcelona making the task of getting through another 25
Monsieur Ducasse has carved out a familiar chandelier, it’s Parisian bling. In the midst of The dining room is palatial with a balcony on Spain’s Costa Brava, the restaurant sits courses actually seem possible. Other highlights
name within the highest echelon of the the global economic crisis, it’s these rarefied overlooking the Place du Casino. The Champagne majestically on a small cliff overlooking its own included abalone with ham jelly, ginger and
culinary world. His growing empire includes establishments that are often the first to take cart offers choices of Louis Roeder’s Cristal, Dom beach in the tiny town of Cala Montjoi, outside shimeji risotto; peanut shabu shabu; rabbit offal
establishments in New York, Hong Kong, Tokyo, a hit. Corporate cards are not thrown down so Perignon ’88, Perrier Jouet Fleur de Lys and several Roses. Originally built as a miniature golf course with snail eggs; and a coconut ice sphere dessert
Las Vegas and London, to name a few. He can frivolously anymore, but Ducasse seems to be sublime of which is a hot dish served in its shell others worth more than a week’s salary. The in 1961, a beach bar came about in 1963 and that looked more like an ostrich egg, broken open
boast 14 Michelin stars among his restaurants. doing just fine. This season there are two menus with a crustacean foam. After that, lobster with cuisine is, of course, French, but proudly focuses in 1964, a kitchen and a patio were built. In and dusted with curry powder before being eaten
His Paris flagship attained its third star within – overseen by head chef Christophe Moret – for green mango, curry, crispy mint and tapioca – on the seasonal local offerings of Provence, most 1994, technique concept cuisine – or molecular with the hands.
eight months of opening in 2000. He’s the first 260 Euros and 360 Euros (plates range between another unconventional revelation completely out notably their wonderful vegetables and seafood. gastronomy – was developed at elBulli.  To most people, 37 courses seems silly. And
and youngest chef to receive three stars at three 55 and 175). Tonight, it’s packed. of left field. The roast chicken is carved tableside Even vegetarians can indulge in their own tasting The restaurant is housed in a quaintly it is. But most courses are bite-sized with very
restaurants and he was the youngest chef to Our seasonal shellfish tasting menu begins by a white-gloved waiter with the confidence and menu (for 140 Euros). A wonderful amuse-bouche decorated hacienda, a place my grandmother little red meat and, at the end, I’m perfectly sated.
receive three Michelin stars in France (at age 34). with langoustines and Beluga caviar with a hot dexterity of an eye surgeon, and finished with a of barely touched, raw, local vegetables with a might have enjoyed, had she been into eating sea There’s no doubt that for many people dining
The bar at The Plaza in itself is worthy of an ginger and lemongrass consommé. It’s light yet lobster reduction, chanterelles, black carrots and herb dipping sauce shows that in the right hands anemone with lemon foam, caviar and green tea at these three restaurants is a once in a lifetime
aperitif (at a mere 30 Euros). Bar manager Thierry decadent and the fusion with the flavours of the potatoes. Then it’s onto pre-dessert, dessert, post great food is all about using the best ingredients. jelly (course 28). There’s nothing ostentatious, a experience. The cost of the meal alone is enough
Hernandez has made a name for himself as Paris’ Orient are a change to the ubiquitous buttery dessert, a cheese trolley and a tea trolley. Creative? Not so much. Perfect? Absolutely. refreshing change from most restaurants boasting to turn away most.
foremost molecular mixologist and his cocktail richness associated with French haute cuisine. The culinary road trip continues as we tear Another theme that runs through both Ducasse three Michelin stars. We’re all here to be wowed Or perhaps the real thrill is in actually getting
list – displayed from a rather silly LCD screen – has Two preparations of spider crab follow, the most down the A5 towards Monte Carlo to Le Louis XV – restaurants is choice: 12 types of bread, two by chef and owner Ferran Adria, possibly the most a reservation in the first place. D

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