Showing posts with label vu restaurant. Show all posts
Showing posts with label vu restaurant. Show all posts

Wednesday, February 2, 2011

Molecular Gastronomy Meets Southern Cooking at Vu Restaurant (Marina del Rey)

Pork Belly, Root Beer Jello
Pork Belly, crispy grits, root beer jello -$9

Vu Restaurant, Chef
Executive Chef Kyle Schutte
Executive Chef Kyle Schutte calls it "progressive comfort food." His background of training in the South is apparent in his cuisine, but Schutte was also the first chef in North Carolina to incorporate molecular gastronomy techniques into his cooking before moving to California to head the kitchen at Vu Restaurant.

His pork belly dish is a good example. The pork belly is sandwiched by both sides: crispy grits on one and root beer jello on the other.

Marina del Rey seems an unlikely place for this type of restaurant and I probably wouldn't have paid much attention to it if it wasn't for a recent media dinner held there.

Our night started at the bar, where Luke the bartender made us some cocktails.
IMG_5760
I started with the Mojo ($12) made with Death’s Door whisky, Dimmi, peppermint, honey, fresh lemon. Now, a bit on Death's Door whisky: it's a white whisky. A what now?
Mojo cocktail at Vu
Death's Door Whisky comes from a Wisconsin-based spirit startup. It is double-distilled so it's clear and is 160-proof (that's 80% ABV btw). The Mojo had an herbal aftertaste - not sure if it was the white whisky or the Dimmi as I've never had either before.

The first "molecular" dish we had was probably my favorite: the“Reconstructed” Caprese Salad
balsamic-injected cherry tomatoes, basil-infused fresh mozzarella, red hawaiian sea salt, micro basil
Caprese
The cherry tomato is encased in the basil-infused mozzarella. Pop everything in for a nice little bite as the juicy tomato bursts inside your mouth.

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