Restaurant: The Manse
142 Tynte St North Adelaide
There are two restaurants in Adelaide that are institutional in that celebratory dinner. Chloe's and the Manse. In celebration of our 10th wedding anniversary, we chose the degustation dinner at the Manse.
The beautiful old mansion was built in 1822, and its open fireplaces and traditional fittings make the most wonderful atmosphere to indulge in a French style dinner.
There was one other table at the restaurant, and they were close to us, so I was reluctant to use the flash.. making for not the best of photos. As it was a Tuesday night, the Grande Degustation was not $135 but $125 per person.
There were some substitutions from the printed menu, so the descriptions of all the dishes may not be thorough. I didn't realise this on the night unfortunately.
This first dish, compliments of the kitchen had a snapper tartare and a fennel foam.. it was not on the listed menu, so I do apologise for not knowing all the ingredients. It was a beautiful light starter.
This was one of the two favourites of the night. Yellow Fin King Fish, Jamon Iberico (as the dehydrated pork crackling) buckwheat and corn mousse. So fresh and delightful. The flavours were amazing and a perfect combination. The crackling gave just enough texture to the dish... a tiny crunch. The King Fish was incredibly fresh.
My husband is not an oyster fan, so the kitchen came up with this for him. Not sure of all that was in there, leeks and watercress and tomato...
The oyster in this dish was fresh as can be.. tasting of the sea. Fantastic. Strawberry was an surprise accompaniment with the oyster and the avocado foam. However fresh the oyster was, the dish really lacked flavour. The strawberries were only edging on ripe, so didn't have the sweetness needed to pull this dish off. The avocado was just not strong enough to carry the subtle oyster taste.
According the menu, the fois gras should have been whipped with a grape emulsion. I was really looking forward to that, and was very surprised by the substitution. The fois gras was breaded in in a flaky crust and accompanied by baked pineapple. A huge disappointment. The pineapple was as expected, ridiculously sweet for the fois gras. The crumbing left nothing for the pallet. There was not even a hint of the rich liver taste of the fois gras. It reminded me of cheap schnitzel night at the local pub. A $20 supplement was paid for this, and I can honestly say it was a complete rip off.
This was the second of my two favourite dishes of the evening. Lamb sweetbreads, speck, pickled cabbage, and worcestershire gel. I couldn't find a single fault in this dish. The speck was cooked to perfection with a bit of a caramelised top, the pickled cabbage was JUST pickled. Not the strong pickled taste of traditional saurkraut. Amazing. I could have had this in a large main serve easily.
This was such a pretty dish. Served with the Snapper (was listed as Blue Eye Trevally and substituted) and fresh peas with red cabbage paint on the side... the red cabbage consomme was poured over on serving. Such a warm, comforting dish. The glass noodles was reminiscent of a comfy chicken noodle soup and the cashew nut was a great addition. I loved the red cabbage paint on side of the plate, very clever. The peas tasted like they were shelled straight from the garden. Just wonderful.
This was another addition to the degustation menu. Berkshire pork loin with fennel pure, spiced sago and peach. I only had a little taste of this dish, and perhaps that doesn't give it justice, as I just didn't think it was that memorable. No stand out flavours, and the pork was edging on dry.
I love beetroot so this dish was a complete knock out for me. Beetroot puree, roasted baby beetroot, lamb... just sensational. The flavours were simple, and frankly not original but still a wonderful dish. The McLaren Vale grenache was one of the best wines I have ever had. I made a point of asking about it.. in hopes of picking up a drop next time I am in McLaren Vale, but was informed they only made 1200 bottles, so chances are pretty slim I will be picking up one of those!
I was excited about this dish, as it had an aged goats cheese and nashi pear. One of those matches made in heaven that would taste wonderful with the last sip of my grenache. Unfortunately, the honey filo pastries served with those traditionally wonderful flavours were just not good. Although giving nice texture to the dish, the were just too sweet.
The final dish was a cheesecake meringue and lemon curd dessert. Lovely and light. A really nice way to end the dinner.
Although many courses to get through, we didn't leave the place feeling sickly full. The service was great, and the majority of dishes were sensational. My husband even ventured to say it was better than Tetsuya's degustation.......I think I will have to ponder that one. The disappointment over the fois gras really brings this down for me. It just wasn't consistent with the rest of the menu.
Very clever and engagine! Looking forward to new updates! Especially seafood as you can imagine.
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