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Saturday, October 23, 2004
Seaworthy
J.A.Bacalso fishes dinner from a tank and tells you why the sommelier can be your best friend.
My personal secret for a perfect meal is to make the sommelier your best friend. Sommelwhat? If you’ve never heard of this distinguished breed of gentlemen, listen carefully because I’ll be giving you sommelthis…
Arnold is the man whenever I come to the restaurant. He greets me with a flourish and remembers my face regardless of which incarnation of myself I come as. His job, traditionally speaking, is to match the restaurant’s wine with their food; he is the expert on what goes with which. If you suspect that only the French could come up with such a job description, you are absolutely right. Arnold did the Francophile in me proud.
“Let’s start with…,” he begins, touring us around the water tanks that contain the fresh seafood. Arnold teaches us how to hoist the pacific lobster from the water: hold both antennae firmly, one hand for each horny protuberance, and simply raise it from the tank. The lobster is unable (or perhaps has lost the will) to squirm, it just lays still for you to drop it into the net. He leads us to the Fanny bay oysters from British Columbia. Plump and sweet, they have the creamy taste that I love…plus the hint of cucumber to balance out the flavor beautifully.
But my mouth always waters for the salmon roe, the ikura. It’s an acquired taste, sort of like biting into juicy bubbles of saltwater that burst into your mouth. The nori’s seaweed taste is the perfect counterpoint, making this my personal favorite in their sushi moriawase.
The lobsters I have fished out myself come together with the other shellfish, drowned now in their own juices as well as the restaurant’s famous chili sauce. The bland white flesh becomes chef Kelvin Yeap’s canvas, layering the buttery and the sweetness, the sour and the spice, artful culinary moves learned from the young 27-year-old Singaporean’s years growing up around a family restaurant. Is he poised to change the way we eat food at the trusty Cowrie Cove? In small ways, yes. The buffet that everyone has become accustomed to is now gone, the a la carte menu, er, beefed up, and several offerings never before seen in these parts coming to the forefront. There are vegetarian meals: wild mushrooms and tofu frittata, as well as a spinach salad with toasted pine nuts.
Arnold comes around again, clueing me on the best of the desserts. A platter of their fruit sushi is a visual delight, much like any Japanese innovation.
Fresh fruits arranged like slices of meat wrapped in sweet sticky rice surround a mound of green tea sorbet (or was that ice cream?). The sorbet clears the palate and preps it for the next fruit-and-rice experience.
The place has changed in amazing ways, but I keep to my old habits. After the meal, we all ask for the leftover hardbreads, break them up, gather by the lapping waves and wait for the fishes to come. It’s their turn for a good meal; and I recommend the sesame buns like a good sommelier would.
(October 23, 2004 issue)
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