VIAJANTE - NUNO MENDES FOOD ART IN BETHNAL GREEN

I've been in somewhat of a food coma since my dinner last night. There have been two dinners in my life that have forced me to question whether I should bother or in fact whether I even could eat anything else ever again. This dinner was one of those.

For an amazing birthday gift to Nick from his brother and sister in law we went to Viajante a new restaurant I would describe as modern haute cuisine experimental food art. Viajante is the restaurant of Nuno Mendes a chef who seems truly passionate about the flavours and textures of food. His journey in the world of experimental cuisine has seen him working in many of the worlds best restaurants including El Bulli. He created The Loft Project, a supper club in Dalston which welcomes the best chefs from around the world to come and cook in the intimate surrounding of an East London supper club. 

The kitchen  at Viajante is completely open so we could watch the four chefs calmly preparing the mulitple courses with control, craftsmanship and perfect timing all the while under the watchful gaze of Nuno Mendes himself. Our waiters (I say waiters as there was always 2) brought wine before each course, telling us from which region, grape, year the wine was from.  This was swiftly followed by our dishes and an explanation of each course with specific detail. The waiters were extremely knowledable as if they themselves had made the dishes and equally as passionate about the meal as the chefs preparing them.

Here we've photographed course by course what we ate, including amuse bouche, palette cleansers and petit fours. The main dishes were accompanied with wines which we've listed below, dessert came with a refreshing thai tea to settle our stomachs after such a wonderful array of flavours.

The first amuse bouche -  Thai Explosion

Second amuse bouche - bread and butter 

(But so much more than that, burnt butter with hints of cinnamon, bacon bits and dusted in purple potato!)

Scallops, butternut squash and mustard

Adega de Moncao Vinho Verde 2009

Charred leeks, hazelnuts and milk skin

Birgit Eichinger Gruner Veltiner "Strausse Hassel" 2009, Kamptal

Braised salmon skin and fried aubergine

Domaine de Beaurenard Chateauneuf du Pape 2009

Sea bass toast, garlic kale and S. Jorge

G. Puiatti "Ruttars" Sauvignon Blanc 2009, Callio

Venison and raw mushrooms with smoked yoghurt

Domaine Cosse Masonneuve 2008

Sea buckthorn and burnt meringue

(a palate cleanser)

Chocolate with hazelnut and soil

Shan Lin Shi tea

Petit Fours 

Nuno Mendes at work

At the end of our meal, we stepped out in to the foyer of the old Bethnal Green Town hall and were received my Nuno himself, he opened the door for us, shook our hands and thanked us for coming. I felt a little over whelmed.
I certainly haven't been able to eat today. It was magical, I just ate dreams at Viajante.

Viajante
Patriot Square, London E2 9NF
+44 (0) 20 7871 0461 
info@viajante.co.uk


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