Sunday, January 28, 2018

Cobaya Ariete with Chef Michael Beltran



Cobaya underground and experimental dinner #71 went down on December 18th, 2017 at Ariete in Coconut Grove.  Chef Michael Beltran treated the guinea pigs to a classically inspired delicious meal from start to finish.  His flavors were great and execution was solid.  Chef Beltran is a young rising star chef who has worked for some of Miami's best chefs including Norman Van Aken and Michael Schwartz.  Miami needs more home grown talented chefs like Michael so head to the Grove and support a local chef and restaurant doing things the right way.




Brioche
herb butter, truffle butter




Canapés
stone crab beggars purses, cherries and chicken liver, tostone smoked fish rilletes




Egg
Quintero Farms egg, malanga, sugar cane, herb, caviar




Terrine
foie gras and eel, confit plum, white bread



Pot au Feu
oxtail, carrot, zucchini, bone marrow, consommé




Bass
heirloom tomato confit, ravioli of tomato and salt cod




Crown of Venison
roasted stone fruit and sauce Diane




Tart
honey, apple, frangipane

Tea service (missed the shot) was courtesy of another great local product JoJo Tea

Tibetan tea, Ya'an city, Meng Ding Mountain

Ariete
3540 Main Hwy, Coconut Grove, FL 33133


Wednesday, January 17, 2018

Cobaya Rancho Patel with Chef Niven Patel 2/11/17





Chef Patel hard at work.  


Cobaya experiment #69 took the guinea pigs on a trek down to Homestead on a beautiful Saturday night.  The dinner was located at Chef Niven Patel's backyard farm where he prepared several courses of farm-to-table Indian cuisine.  It should be noted that he had serious help in the kitchen from his mother and mother-in-law.  
This was a great meal and a very fun night.  

Niven opened his first restaurant this year, Ghee in Downtown Dadeland which specializes in flavorful Indian fare.  He recently opened a second location in the Design District.  I highly recommend paying him a visit. 

Photo Recap Below



Rancho Patel in Homestead.








The calm before the Guinea Pig Storm...






Welcome Cocktail courtesy of the now open Edukos.

ghee wiz sake | basil infused mango juice | clove and coriander simple syrup





80 die hard Guinea Pigs made the drive down to Homestead and enjoyed a fantastic meal.


PASSED




chickpea roll up | black mustard  | cilantro


Florida shrimp toast | charred scallion | sesame






backyard pakora | taro leaf | sweet onion




Kid 'n Play in the house on the farm....





Foreshadowing





FIRST




roasted chicken samosa | peanut chutney | pickled garlic | green papaya




beet cured cobia | grapefruit | puffed rice | avocado | pickled turmeric







roasted green millet | red onion | heirloom tomato | sev | cilantro chutney

SECOND




dry aged ribeye | eggplant | heirloom tomato sauce





lamb kofta | fenugreek | plumped raisins | cashews




baby cucumber | green mango | radish | chaat masala




black eyed pea basmati | lentils | curry leaf




purple yam puran puri | cardamom | Florida strawberries | almonds







Spice of Life






Niven and family with his Ghee team.

Monday, January 15, 2018

Cobaya DK with David Lanster & Kelly Moran 1/12/17




Experiment #68 took place on January 12, 2017 at Pietro Morreli's fantastic loft space overlooking  Biscayne Boulevard in the MiMi District.  Big thanks to Pietro for his generosity and hospitality.  And for connecting us with  Paolo Dal Gallo of Zonin Wines for pouring some excellent pairings throughout the night.



The stars of the night were the aspiring young chefs who were home on college break.  David Lanster and Kelly Moran have been hosting tasting menus is Miami since 2013 called DK Culinary Adventures.  There style of cooking is experimental in nature and thought provoking.  Science is at the forefront of their techniques along with creativity.  At the time of the dinner they were both still teenagers.  I introduced them as "kids" because what they are doing at a young age is very impressive.  Plus I am more than double their ages... 

This was a fun night in a great venue with a good group and wonderful host.  oh and the food was good too.  


SNACKS
house salad | sunflower | macaron | mojito









DINNER



root vegetable antipasto
goat cheese gelato | rye crumble




chicken liver pâté
blueberry | pickle | sesame




pine nut risotto
youthberry | pumpernickel | basil

pulled pork in cubism
pullman texas toast | cole slaw terrine | bbq





this is not a strawberry
organic compounds | modified dna




fried strip steak
smoked carrot | quail egg




pineapple
bubbles




cellars at jasper hill
seasonal garnishes



date bread
toffee | cinnamon | maple



orchid
rooibos | bee pollen


Thanks to the guinea pigs whose interest and support makes these events possible.