As you know, I research dining options way ahead and I was thrilled I found BLACKITCH which stands for the chef's nickname (Black) and Kitchen!
We arrived to find a small room where some folks were seated and we were told to sit at a small bar and were served a fruit drink. After a couple of minutes and English chap sitting with two other men came over and said "Are you Alan Savada?" It was a gent in the opera biz I knew from decades ago!! So we were escorted upstairs to the intimate space with 6 tables and 15 people dining. What are the chances of bumping into someone you know in a place like this??
We perused the amazing menu and Will ordered a Jo-Lo Lime Zeppelin with limoncello, gin, lime and lemonade. I had the Nama Sake, made in house from sticky rice which was fruity (think white fruit) but great with the food flavors. we then ordered a superb Alain Geoffrey 2021 Chablis. The menu had an insert about sustainability and local sourcing as well as a map of Thailand where every ingredient's source was indicated. I LOVED this. A woman who was serving was very helpful in explaining each course and she turned out to be the chef's wife who owns the place with him as a team!
First came White bread like a Parker House roll with Chicken Liver Pate/Smoked (Trigger) Fish mousse mixed together (yes, an unlikely blend) with Caviar and Pine nuts. We were HOOKED!
The menu is only a tasting option here and worth the amazing price as well! Second came a Seaweed(harvested by the southern tribes) Cone filled with Raw cuttlefish, Fermented (Burmese) Tea Leaves (you know we love these) and persimmon. I have never had raw cuttlefish before and was so surprised at how tender it was! The third plate was a combination of many things: Whitefish(Snapper) that was raw and served with a sesame/miso dip(that had a hot mustard hint to it); Smoked (36 hours) River fish with Compressed Tomato; Hon Maguro Tuna with a soy, barley filling in mustard leaf. I was trying to keep up with each ingredient and the locations on the map, but it became overwhelming!
Taro Tuile was filled with Crab and coconut curry with shrimp past/tamarind/caviar and pineapple. The next course was a major production of Somen(noodles) with local Chicken roulade and crispy skin with Fish Maw(stomach), Quail Century(old) egg and a chicken broth poured over it all tableside with chili and tomato oil. Lotus stem and fiddlehead fern completed the amazing concoction.
Sheatfishes (a type of local catfish) was next fried and crispy with eggplant and okra all of which was hot and spicy as we love it. While the Local Duck was served as a larb(minced) with duckskin rinds, mushrooms, peas(edamame), fermented shrimp and holy basil with micro greens. Winter Vegetables with Shrimp miso, pickled vegetables, curry leaves and prawn head curry had yummy Thai beef with a chimichurri-style sauce. While our favorite new local dish River Prawn came with Local rice, wild vegetables(many carrots) and a prawn rice chip. The Prawn had a spicy mayo on it as well and a seaweed soup.
Yes, that was it for savory and we were happy to see the Strawberry/Peach/Passionfruit sorbet arrive--a palate cleanser from heaven. All the desserts came together so again I was overwhelmed with Pumpkin/Tea(black tea ice cream and pumpkin cream with syrup) and something called Rice/Rice as well as sweet potato and flour tea.
The place had almost emptied, and the chef and his wife joined us for a complimentary glass of Prosecco(or was it cava?) and we chatted for a while. I was sorry I did not get a photo of this amazing couple who have created an itch for us to return to their fabulous intimate dining space!
