Dining Theatrics

Jul 31

I’m sorry to disappoint anyone, but, despite the title, this blogpost is not about Chanhassen Dinner Theaters or Tony n’ Tina’s Wedding (and I’m sure some of you have thought I’ve come down from my pretty little perch on a marble pedestal…uhmmm…no), nor is it about some loud, dramatic break-up scene I may have had with a mysterious lover from out-of-town over the caprese salad at Follia (a more unlikely event than the plopping from the pedestal). Nope, this is about a highly memorable, truly mind-opening, three hour dinner at Moto, that shrine to the progeny of science and gastronomy in the Fulton Market district, built by wunderkind chef Homaro Cantu (who, among many accolades, is probably most famous to the average person as the guy who beat Morimoto in Iron Chef, a feat in itself). Moto, together with Alinea, really helped create the reputation and stature that Chicago now has on the world map of boundary-pushing dining, a pretty exclusive map that includes Ferran Adria’s El Bulli in Spain and Heston Blumenthal’s Fat Duck in the UK. Without a doubt, its reputation for highly imaginative, unexpected, sometimes dumfounding, always thrilling, and yes, impressively theatrical dining, is well-deserved. Although I felt that some of the dishes were less successful than others in the 12 course tasting menu, the overall experience was uniquely wonderful and indelible, and for the most part, headily delicious. I can’t wait to go back!

I’ve been to Alinea and to Moto’s sister restaurant Otom, which also has begun to recently incorporate elements of molecular gastronomy, but surprisingly, I’ve never made the trek to Cantu-ville. I think most of it has been timing, and I think some of it is really having the right company to savor a mind bending, multi-hour culinary bungee jump. I think some people are intimidated to go to Moto - unlike Alinea’s Grant Achatz, who also had a reputation for fine classical cooking at Evanston’s now-shuttered Trio prior to being seen as a master innovator, Cantu burst into the world cooking scene like a rocket scientist with a spatula and continued to build on that scientific wizard-cum-chef reputation over the years (exhibit A: Fast Company’s cover story). I think people’s first two questions about Moto usually are: “what the hell will I be eating?” and, more importantly, “will it taste good?” - two questions that many people, foodies and non-foodies alike, have justly asked about molecular gastronomy, in general. Molecular gastronomy is the term that has recently been applied to the type of cooking that marries scientific concepts and techniques (think vaporizing, rehydrating, flashfreezing - read the ABCs of molecular gastronomy here, which also links to an article where Ferran Adria says, ironically, that it doesn’t exist), and I really think people are more open-minded about other things than they are about their food. We know that eating food usually evokes memories and experiential associations, and chemistry sets are just not part of anyone’s dining memories and experiences growing up. Many of us don’t want our food “messed with”, period. But for those of us who are seeking culinary adventures, molecular gastronomy is richly satisfying territory. My meal last year at Alinea ranks as one of the best dining experiences in my, uhmmm, late thirtysomething life (and that’s no hyperbole). And Moto last Saturday is on the list as one of the most memorable. Thank goodness BFF Debra and our friend Reva who was visiting from Atlanta were also willing to jump off the cliff with me.

We thought the ten course was the right amount of food and time commitment (we didn’t want to be rolled out of there by an ambulance after five hours, which was the effect we were expecting the GTM, or Grand Tasting Menu of 20 courses, to have on our, ahem, petite bodies). We started with that one singular thing that has defined Cantu and Moto: the edible menu. Ok, yes, the menu was very tasty - it tasted like a savory cracker. But I thought that more notable than the menu, which was, to be honest, a little gimmicky (I think he used edible ink to print the words), the asparagus, crème fraiche, and puree that it was served with wonderfully evoked the lazy freshness of mid-summer.

The Greek salads came next. On one side of the plate was a nicely cooked octopus trickily balanced between tender and firm, with a kalamata noodle, which tasted like a biscuit infused with olive flavor. I thought this Greek salad was ok. On the other side of the plate was the other Greek salad which was really a syringe containing the liquefied flavor of a traditional Greek salad. This one was phenomenal - amazingly capturing the flavor blend of olives, vinegar, feta cheese, and crisp iceberg lettuce in liquid form.

Then another signature dish came out- the nitro pineapple. These were two pieces of pineapple chunks which I guess was dehydrated, then injected with liquid nitrogen, then rehydrated, served on some form of an anti-griddle, strips of frozen metal that kept the pineapple frozen. I didn’t really care that much for the pineapple, but loved the perfectly cooked-moist and crisp-piece of halibut that came with it.

I wasn’t in love with the next two courses: a chile quail (I am not a big quail eater at all) which was not as well-done as I would have liked it to be, served with an edible picture of a chicken wing which had the surprising spicy/sweet flavors of great barbecued wings; and the mid-course palate cleanser of watermelon served two ways: rehydrated and in liquid with an aloe mixture, both really not very memorable.

Then the winners started coming out. I loved Cantu’s take on eggplant parmigiano: a gelatinous sphere that contained a liquefied version of, well, eggplant parmigiano. I thought this was creative, sexy, and truly delicious. The spot of 100 year old balsamic vinegar from Italy (one of three existing bottles in the world was in the restaurant), on the plate, was a nice touch. Then, a nicely-cooked piece of barbecued beef which was very tasty, and very rich, with “transmogrified” coleslaw came next. I’m not really sure how the coleslaw was transmogrified (I couldn’t follow what the server said but there was a lot of freezing, dehydrating, and re-freezing that was going on), but it tasted like coleslaw ice cream. Very unique and interesting.

Then the piece d’resistance, the highlight of my Moto adventure: the braised duck “roadkill”. No, the duck wasn’t run over in the middle of Fulton Market (well, at least I hope it wasn’t). I thought this dish epitomized the apex of Cantu’s cuisine: it was delicious, exceptionally-prepared, with the slow-braised duck so tender and full of flavor, and the plate creatively and playfully drawn, with startling elements such as beet sauce representing, uhmmm, a streak of blood, and miniscule rice krispies standing in for maggots. It was a multi-sensory experience: your brain, your preconceptions and expectations were telling you one thing and your eyes and tastebuds were telling you another thing. Fabulous!

Although I wanted another plate of the roadkill (and was ready to jump up and grab one from the other tables) , a succession of four desserts came out. Ben Roche, Cantu’s pastry chef, was almost as famous as the boss for creativity. The most conventionally-prepared dessert, the blueberry cake and ice cream (an extra course, thanks to the generosity of Moto’s owners, the deVitos) was actually the best: fresh blueberries, creamy ice cream, and light and fluffy cake would win me over any day. The grapefruit dessert which was a grapefruit-looking sphere but which actually contained gin and tonic-flavored liquid, served over grapefruit ventricles, was refreshing and dazzling. I liked the popcorn ball’s gooey, fudgey center, but really didn’t care for the pop rock-type crackling. I also liked the richness of the S’mores, and the attractiveness of the presentation (on a uniquely twisted metal plate) but as BFF Debra said, it wasn’t really evocative of roasting s’mores over a campfire, an association you would expect this dish to make, in an imaginative way.

So my deep dark confession is that I really didn’t think the Moto dining experience was as out-of-this-galaxy as I expected, based on just Cantu’s reputation and media and blogger reports (I actually thought Alinea had stranger flavor combinations and incorporated more implements and gadgets). But it was memorable dining: creative, fun, and yes, delicious, dining that I think everyone should experience at least once, culinary bungee jumper or not. Check out the pictures.

The edible menu/amuse bouche