Chef Massimo Bottura’s Osteria Francescana in Modena, Italy took home the #1 spot again after being named the world’s best in 2016 (it was #2 on last year’s list). The three-Michelin-star restaurant features a 10- and 12-course tasting menu.
We started our tasting menu with Fish & Chips: a crisp, deep-fried sandwich with an Aula fish filling. The quenelle on top of the sandwich was made from Carpione ice cream with fresh herbs
Crunchy bread filled with tomato & olives.
Macaroon filled with rabbit stew.
Several varieties of bread were served – grissini and soft and crusty baked sour dough bread
Oyster came with verbena, green apple and a lemon ball.
The war of Greece: a Mediterranean open ravioli made of cucumber, filled with eel and finished with tzatziki. The ravioli was served in a broth with mint
The chef continued to serve dishes with a story in a creative way. A traditional fish soup was deconstructed. Mussel and clam puree was made with the soup ingredients. The puree was topped with a nicely cooked variety of fish and shellfish while the seaweed crackers gave texture to the dish. A delicious and intense soup came aside
While the restaurant music excelled in dullness we were served a simple dish that did not totally impress. A memory to a Mortadella sandwich was given by serving Mortadella foam with pistachio crumble and traditional Modenese bread. A cracker with lardo, black truffle and Parmesan was added
Foie gras served in a ice cream version as a bar showed the geniality of this chef. Nicely balanced flavours, perfect structures and refined richness made this combination of foie gras, balsamic vinegar from Modena, hazelnuts and almonds outstanding.
To make a special dish with only one ingredient is ingenious. Parmesan was the key to this success. The Five Ages of Parmigiano Reggiano was delicate in its presentation but rich, intense and overwhelming. In his book Never Trust a Skinny Italian Chef Massimo says it is no longer made with one ingredient, but two: Parmigiano Reggiano and time
• Don't insult other visitors. Offensive comments will be deleted without warning.
• Comments are accepted in English only.
• No swearing words in comments, otherwise such comments will be censored.
• Your nickname and avatar are randomly selected. If you don't post comments for 7 days, they both are reset.
• To choose another avatar, click the ‘Random avatar’ link.
