622745 Tue May 26 12:52:50 -0700 2009 6 1 San Francisco Bay Area 0 4716072 That's it. For me, there is no restaurant that continues to thrill and excite me the way Ubuntu does. It has become a religious experience and after a 4 1/2 hour lunch on Sunday, I feel as though I am worshipping at the Temple of Vegetables with High Priest Jeremy presiding over the liturgy. U.E. and A Life Worth Eating and I drove up yesterday, having specifically requested a tasting menu before our arrival. You'll be able to see U.E.'s pictures later, but here is the recap (those items in caps are from Ubuntu's own biodynamic garden). Amuse - Vellutata Selvaggio, enriched with NETTLE - BORAGE condimento, foraged SORRELS, BLOSSOMS, etc... - stunningly composed soup spoon bite of creaminess goodness with a bit of crunch and the tease of the garden goodness we were about to explore. 1. Spring BRASSICAS and mushrooms a la grecque - LION'S RUN "bordelaise," BORDEAUX SPINACH, preserved lemon. The preserved lemon was barely detectable, but if that was the only complaint, than big deal. The bordeaux spinach was intense and paired well with the spicy brassicas. 2. 2x-shucked peas and GOLDEN SHOOTS in a consommé of the shells - white chocolate, 'CHOCOLATE' MINT, macadamia, PURPLE PEAS in the pod. This dish has changed a bit since I had it a year ago. Now with the consommé added tableside, there is a bit less of the clear broth to drench the fresh peas. Still studded with bits of chocolate and macadamias, the joy of this dish is that the specks of white chocolate melt in the back of your throat and provide a sense of creaminess without an overt chocolate flavor. Brilliant. 3. Seven degrees of 'FORONO' BEETS - hazelnut "soil," avocado, FICOIDE GLACIALE, rhubarb pickle. There is an cylinder of "tartare-looking" beets topped with what looks like a quail egg, but it isn't. And then there are quenelles and a dark gritty "soil." It is all so unctuous and rich and engaging. 4. Carta da Musica, our crisp Sardinian flatbread - topped with Ubuntu SPRING GARDEN, truffled pecorino. A standard dish, a beautiful hunk of paper-thin flatbread topped with all the colorful, bounty from the garden and long shavings of the pecorino, the truffled flavor from which gives a second layer of earthiness to the beautiful vegetables. 5. 'PURPLE HAZE' CARROT crudité with mimolette - spiced "crumble" of dried carrot pulp, peppery NASTURTIUM salad. A long log of orange carrot, topped with the beautiful Purple Haze carrots and bits of mimolette. The bit of heat from the nasturtium flowers gave a pleasant bite of heat which contrasted nicely with the sweet, sweet carrots. 6. 'REDHEAD' RADISH stew, roasted & raw - LEMONGRASS & creme fraiche broth, SOI RABE, sweet HERBS. Our first hot dish of the day and our second dish with a table-side pour of a broth. I thought the broth was based on coconut milk, but it was pure creme fraiche and the lemongrass which threw me. So intensely rich, the juxtaposition of the cooked and raw radishes not only provided complementary mouth feels, but showed just how varied the vegetable can taste in its different cooked forms. 7. A Savory expression of 'ORION' FENNEL scented with our vadouvan, 'DELFINO' CILANTRO, local citrus. Quite possibly my dish of the day. I am SUCH a fennel fan that to have it accentuated with their delicate vadouvan made for 8. Cauliflower in a cast iron pot - roast-purée-raw, our vadouvan, 'DELFINO' CILANTRO, brown butter toast. We asked to have this added as cauliflower is U.E.'s favorite vegetable. It was similar enough in taste to the fennel, but still well-loved and welcomed. 9. Arbuckle grits, our goat ricotta and the whey, "Midnight Moon" - Napa strawberry soffrito, FRAISE DE BOIS, assorted BASILS. First, we were happy to see that this was made with something other than Anson Mills grits. Not that Anson mills is bad, but Chef Jeremy told us that Arbuckle is being locally sourced (less of a carbon footprint) and ground to their specifications. Sitting on top of the bowl were beautiful little miniature fraise de bois but it was really when you scooped through to the bottom to pick up some of the strawberry soffrito did the richness of the creamy grits and cheese make one's head spin. 10. Strawberry Pizza "Margherita" - Napa strawberry soffrito, burrata, assorted BASILS, saba. A Life Worth Eating insisted on adding this in our tasting and we all wanted to taste the burrata. It had enough cheese and soffrito to be similar enough to the grits course, but it was still well-enjoyed and made me appreciate what a really good pizza could be. 11. A sweet expression of 'ORION' FENNEL - the garden's first 2009 HONEY, yogurt whipped with MEYER LEMON. Now I'm hard pressed to decide which fennel offering I liked more, the sweet or the savory. The shade of anise that exists in the fennel seemed more concentrated in the sweet version, but I have a feeling that it was because it was more on its own versus being accompanied by the vadouvan. 12. the SPRING FLOWER POT - LAVENDER custard, bee pollen crumble, rhubarb. A lovely version of Deanie's cheesecake -- instead of being served in a Mason jar, it arrives in a terra cotta flower pot and topped with fresh flowers. So amazingly beautiful and tasty. The service continues to excel but what cannot be described and only seen in person is just how stunningly beautiful each dish is; in color and composition. Take a look at Ulterior Epicure's FLICKR account later as he is the one who took pictures. But I am thoroughly convinced that if I had only one restaurant to choose from for a last meal, this would be it. Tue May 26 12:52:50 -0700 2009 16933 Carrie 218 1 4716097 This sounds wonderful. Was it a tasting menu, or did your group order a lot of items to share? Can I ask what the cost was, and how many were in your party? Tue May 26 13:00:45 -0700 2009 4716072 92823 milklady 2 4716311 There were three in the party and I specifically pre-ordered a tasting menu (which I believe is going to be a thing that is going to be more prevalent in the future). About $100 a person. Tue May 26 13:57:18 -0700 2009 4716097 16933 Carrie 218 1 4717652 STILL haven't made it to A16. How did the burrata compare? Tue May 26 22:57:56 -0700 2009 4716072 10264 rworange 2 4718103 Ah, me neither! Can't tell ya.... Wed May 27 06:28:41 -0700 2009 4717652 16933 Carrie 218 2 4718768 I had the strawberry pizza with burrata at Ubuntu last year, and the burrata at A16 sometime before that. To me, the burrata at A16 was better, but I think that's because I prefer it in a cold/room temp preparation. On top of the pizza at Ubuntu it was delicious, mild and rich, of course, but melting on the pizza it didn't seem much more special than regular fresh mozzarella. At A16, served simply with crostini, olive oil, salt and pepper, the burrata was a sublime experience. The only other burrata I've had that compares with A16's is at Redd in Yountville, where I had an heirloom tomato salad with crostini and burrata that blew my mind (note that I'm not promoting Redd -- the tomato/burrata salad was the only dish that was amazing, and it was probably the most disappointing meal of my life, due to high expectations, mostly mediocre food and one disaster). Wed May 27 09:44:37 -0700 2009 4717652 92823 milklady 3 4722089 Burrata on pizza is thoroughly different from burrata fresca. I'm fairly certain I prefer it fresh (or nearer to room temperature). Thu May 28 10:20:01 -0700 2009 4718768 81131 ulterior epicure