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| Menu with an odd mix |
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Published:
The Edge / Options |
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Date:
September 17, 2007 |
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Being invited to dinner is quite simply one of life's great
pleasures. And that pleasure is made more so when the hostess is the
amazing NHP whose generosity and beauty are legendary.
Sunday evening saw 12 of us out to dinner at the invitation of our
dear friend NHP. No one has ever been able to refuse her
invitations, knowing as we all do that her dinners are fun-filled
affairs punctuated with laughter, serious discussions and lots of
good food. She is the consummate hostess, allowing her guests to
relax and have a really good time.
The choice of Mezza Notte was quite inspired in that we were given
banquette seats which meant having to sit in nice little groups, all
cosy and familiar. Conversation flowed as we all studied the menu to
decide what to eat. And drink. The menu had an odd mix of Italian
and Japanese dishes. There was some attempt at fusion (foie gras
tempura) but generally the dishes stayed true to their cuisine.
I plonked for Bresaola (air-dried beef) with Rocket and sliced
Parmesan followed by prawn and lime Risotto. Some of my neighbours
were a tad more adventurous ordering air-dried tuna, scallops and
even sushi for starters. Bresaola is a delicious meat but for some
people it really is an acquired taste. It has a slight "off" flavour
to it, which melds with a strong olive oil. The dish was fine but it
was unmemorable. There was nothing to lift the ingredients out of
their ordinariness.
My neighbour to the left had pan-friend scallops with a lovely cream
sauce: the scallops were cooked just so and were succulent. This
dish came with sauteed mushrooms which provided a nice textual
contrast.
The Risotto, though, was very good. Living up to its name, it came
with just one prawn sitting in the middle of well-defined grains of
Arborio. The rice was cooked just so; it was rich and creamy with
the delicious tang of lime to give it added life. It's a really
simple dish, pretty much comfort food. Having said that, though, a
lot of Italian places here get it so wrong and completely overcook
the rice, sending a plate of mush to the table.
Next to me, a friend was having cod with squid ink sauce; it looked
a very interesting dish. The pan-friend fish sat on an island of
cubed vegetables in the middle of a black sea. The sauce was quite
delicious with an attractive but undefinable flavour: it was rich
and sweet with a slightly bitter aftertaste. It went well with the
sweet flesh of the cod.
Further down the table, another friend was having the Kobe beef with
Tempura. That looked good and I was assured with smiles that it most
certainly was. The beef (I had to try some) was tender and pretty
much melt-in-the-mouth. It was so good it really did not need the
sauces that came with it.
When it comes to dessert, Mezza Notte offers all the Italian
classics. The starter and main portions, though, are generous so
most of us did not have the space for dessert. But I have always
been a fan of canoli: stuffed pasta shells. These days, though, the
shells are more often wafer and the filling can be anything from
dairy cream to pastry cream. It's such a clever dessert really: take
a tube and fill it up. Just like a caneloni. Tonight's canoli was a
chocolate shell with a yummy creamy filling. Thankfully, they only
served two per plate. I don't think I could have eaten any more. But
I would have tried.
Mezza Notte has an extensive wine menu with a good selection of
grappa and other Italian liqueurs. Service here is attentive without
being obstrusive.
I would recommend making reservations as the restaurant is very
popular even during the week.
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