We ended our two week vacation to Central America (cruise) and Florida at our hotel's signature restaurant, and one of the top rated restaurant's in the Orlando area, NORMAN's at the Ritz-Carlton Grande Lakes (www.normans.com). Both Will and I had anticipated this evening as we have had so many wonderful dining experiences at Chef Norman Aiken's first signature spot in Coral Gables (Miami) and this was his second restaurant, now open almost 4 years. Indeed, he recently opened a third spot in Key West, where he is apparently spending the bulk of his time.
At the Ritz in Orlando, Chef Clay Miller is in charge, and as he made his rounds through the intimate, warm and exclusive restaurant, we discovered that he had worked for an old acquaintance of mine, Chef Gunther Seeger (who is now Atlanta based and quite well known), amongst many others such as stint under our friend Eric Zieboldt now at CityZen in DC, when they were at the French Laundry together. His credits are pedigree and his inventiveness shows, as you shall see if you read on.
We arrived in the dining room having been told that shorts, jeans and sandals are not allowed, and jackets are requested (though not required). The gentleman in front of us was a "regular" of some sorts and insisted on a table for two even though he was in shorts, flip-flops and a polo shirt. When we got to the reception desk, I said that I hope he was being seated in the men's rooms with such an outifit! The hostess said that he had been there before (is this an excuse?) and he was seated on a banquette with tablecloth covering his exposed legs and feet. We, on the other hand, looking so elegant, were seated at a table with a view of the whole room, outside and a glance through to the open kitchen as well.
The dining room is a large octagonal shape with red and beige marble inlaid flooring (reeking of Ritz-Carlton, but quite nice I must say). The center of the room had a raised dark wood vaulted octagonal dome with four vertical wine cabinets setting off a table at the center. We were greeted by manager Pietro who spoke of Italy, the wine, and the food with great love. Speaking of wine, super kudos to the wine list with dozens of wines available by the glass, 250ml (1/3 bottle) and 500ml (2/3 bottle) as well as many half bottles and a wide variety of wines to boot.
We started with the NORMAN's Cuvee IRON HORSE BRUT 1998 from Sonoma Green Valley which was slightly yeasty and refreshing (it had been a sunny 83 degree day at the pool relaxing before our return home today). We were also glad to see Pellegrino on the water list as it had seemed that only that overly-gassy awful Perrier was available at so many Disney and central Florida spots!
We looked over the menu, but we both knew full well what we had come for - THE TASTING MENU, which our wonderful server Frank explained was available at 4 to 7 courses for approximately $20/course; guess what we chose? RIGHT- the whole 7-course shebang, and we left so full, we didn't need a bite today (even though we did eat). We mentioned to Frank that several items on the menu excited us and he had them all included in the tasting, which was really pretty fabulous save for one dish.
Course #1 was the CROQUETAS de BACALAO with MOJO MAYO dip which were rich, creamy and not amazingly more fantastic than those we had previously on this trip due to the chilis inside, the fab mayo, even if a bit salty (well, they are made from salted cod!). The wine was one we have always liked, but not had in some time as the WAIRAU RIVER SAUVIGNON BLANC from New Zealand has gone up a lot in price over the years, At Norman's it is a whopping $11/glass, but also available at $18 for 1/3 bottle, $36 for 2/3 bottle or $52 for the whole bottle (to give an example). It is an intense grapefruit citrus wine and worked perfectly with the salt, cod, richness and spice. Will liked dipping the excellent puffy and salty rolls (almost like sopapillas) in the mayo as well!
Course #2 was a highlight: CRISPY VANILLA BRAISED PORK BELLY with Fontina CHESTNUT Ravioli, Black Olive, SAFFRON pickled QUINCE & MANCHEGO FROTH. The meat was fabulous and I commented how nice it was to have pork belly with about 80% meat rather than 80% FAT! The wine pairing was Pietro's favorite rose, MAS DE LA DAME 2006 Les Baux de Provence, which while a nice wine, I felt was not quite right for this rich dish. Will thought the acidity of the wine was refreshing for the palate with the dish, while I would have liked a medium red a bit more.
At this point, as a father of a 4-1/2 year old I have to ask a question that might seem odd. While at Disneyworld the day before there were plenty of urinals for the kids (at low level) with often only one or NO sinks lower than the others. In the Ritz-Carlton restrooms, the same applied. In a place, where kids abound, why do bathrooms not have low sinks so we don't have to haul our kids up to wash their hands? Stepladders would be a nice alternative, and yesterday afternoon, I turned over a wastebasket, so I didn't have to hold Samuel up to wash his hands at the poolside men's rooms. Indeed, the decor of the Ritz bathroom closest to Norman's needs severe rethinking. It has the standard Ritz elegance with marbled floors and walls, but above this the wallpaper is so busy that it competes with the marble and honestly made me a bit queasy!
Back in the dining room, course number 3 was entitled "FIRE & ICE" New York State FOIE GRAS served cold (torchon), having been grilled and rolled and sprinkled with allspice and a bit to much (though I love it) salt. The opposite side of the dish was hot CARAMEL POACHED and was simply to die for--being the perfect piece of foie gras and so wonderfully prepared. On the side was KUMQUAT JAM and a slice of warm gingerbread as well as a slice of tasty duck prosciutto with a super smokey taste. The wine was a perfect CHATEAU RABAUD-PROMIS 2003 SAUTERNES Premiere Cru that I would be happy to drink with foie gras
any day.
Next came the ROASTED FLORIDA GULF POMPANO (we needed SOMETHING local) with Brussel Sprouts & Pork Cheek Hash, A "Ham Jam," Red Wine Bacon Jus & Bacon Tuille. This was another superb combination, if a bit overloaded with to many things and flavors. It sat on a Sweet Potato Puree with a piece of unneeded Pork Cheek as the fish was superb. A PRIORAT 2003 FONT DE LA FIGUERA was a big strong red wine that went well with the heavy flavors, but still needs a bit more time in the bottle.
The fifth course was the one that left us a bit confused: TAMARIND-SOY GLAZED SWEETBREADS were beautifully served with a paintbrush slash of tamarind across the plate and a magnificent CARAMELIZED CAULIFLOWER & CAULIFLOWER PUREE(really flan). The way to cloyingly sweet sweetbreads sat atop a crispy chickpea pancake that was not enough to tone done the tamarinds super sweetness; an accompanying almond tuille was almost rubbery. Luckily, we were getting quite full and di not mind skipping a bite here or there. The excellent LADERA 2004 NAPA CAB was a great pairing and along with the cauliflower did help a bit to tone
down the dish's sweetness.
CHEESE was a welcome sight as we had not had a good piece of cheese on this entire trip. It was served with a strawberry/balsamic.black pepper jam (quite tasty), nuts and breads: The mildest were the TOMME de SAVOIE and the P'TITE BASQUE from France with the FLEUR de MAQUIS Sheep following close behind with its rosemary crust. MONTBRIAC was right in there making our choice seem very mild but the PONT L'EVEQUE was a dream, even if Will did say it had the stench of Old Victorian urine (does anyone know what that smells like?). The strongest was the almost blue COACH FARM PYRAMIDES Goat with Green Peppercorn.
We specifically asked for red wine and a DUORO Portuguese DUAS QUINTAS 2000 Ramos Pinto came made from Touriga Nacional and it was a great wine for the final glass before moving to sweet.
The sweet wines were two not too impressive ones. For me a sparkling red BRACHETTO d'ACQUA to accompany MADAGASCAR VANILLA BEAN PANNA COTTA with Wild Mountain HUCKLEBERRY Puree and ALLSPICE CRUMBLE (really a crumbly cake underneath the panna cotta) which was a sensational dessert. Will opted for a super RHUM Ice Cream and okay Cocount Sorbet with a MARCARINI 2003 Moscato d'Asti which also was not a big hit; as you know we prefer sweet thick dessert wines.
Needless to say, we left full and do hope to return to Norman's in Miami, Key West or Orlando again soon, even with the way too sweet sweetbreads!
