And here is the protocol of a one-night-committee meeting, participated by my partner and me
And the academy award for "most surprising meal we have had lately" goes to Kitchen Market! (Loud applause). Here are some of the judges' justifications: each and every dish of this meal was an untraditional composition of ingredients, colors, tastes and presentations. So surprising and exciting, each dish created anticipation for the next one, which, in its turn, was original and unique.
And here is the protocol of a one-night-committee meeting, participated by my partner and me. Our surprise started when we realized this restaurant's title is very modest. In fact, Kitchen Market is one of the best chef restaurants existing today. Chef Yossi Shitrit juggles fresh produce he gets from the Tel Aviv Port Market, turning them into enchanting dishes. On the other hand, there is a nice and cozy feel to this place, which is probably the reason why so many tourists find it appealing. Plus, the sea view and the lively port are, too, factors to be added to this very nice experience.
We admired this restaurant even more as the dishes were presented like small pieces of art. Take, for example, the tuna tartar inside a fan of dried tapioca; a black bowl painted with waves of goose liver mousse and cherry jelly and a micro mint leaves decoration; a tuna sashimi decorated like a colorful flowerbed with fish rolls and cucumber, carrot and kohlrabi rolls, with an ornament of aioli and wasabi powder; stone bass fish over mustard mashed potatoes and peas cream, with cherry tomatoes and Kalamata olives, served on a wooden platter that emphasized the yellow-white-red-green colors of the different ingredients.
But the biggest surprise of all was the taste. Almost all of the dishes were made of creative, innovative combinations. The most dominant example was the porcini crème brulee, which is one of Kitchen Market's flag dishes, and what we liked most about this meal: a concentrated cream of porcini mushrooms, with chestnuts and parmesan cream, crispy burnt sugar on top, a bitter-sweet contrast to the deep soil flavor of the mushrooms. Yet another example is the lamb terrine: a thick slice of lamb shoulder that was cooked for a long time, and then decorated with mushrooms, broccoli and cauliflower, and served with peas cream, chestnuts cream and reduced wine sauce, which created a fascinating combination between the lamb taste and the delicate sweetness of the cream and sauce.
Kitchen Market's desserts are like a sum of all its advantages: beautiful, original and surprising. One is homage to childhood gummy bears: a pink and white stripe made of vanilla and raspberry cream, with cheese sorbet on one of its sides and a pile of caramelized peaches on the other, decorated with tiny addable flowers, raspberry powder and micro-rocket leaves. We had one more dessert of an innocent looking chocolate scoop, served like a pearl in a shell lying on sea stones. Our knowledgeable waiter Roei guided us to just put this entire scoop inside our moth and then bite. This is how we learned that it was filled with Irish cream and chili powder. The chocolate and liqueur flavors, together with the chilliness filled our mouths with pleasure.
It was a unanimous decision.
