Amsterdam, May 22—
ONE OF MY PLEASURES is listing a Top Five Restaurants. Two spots have been vacant for a number of years, since Stephanie closed her eponymous restaurant in Melbourne and Cesare Casella left Il Vipore, outside of Lucca, for New York. But I can now promote Restaurant As, in Lucca, to one of those spots. Last night we had the five-course menu:
antipasto: salume, prosciutto, radishes, olives, house paté, stuffed zucchini flowers, green salad
appetizer: grey mullet with diced cucumbers and celery, pickled onions and sour cherries, and pine nuts
intermezzo: whole rabbit chopped, marinated with artichoke and favas, flavored with capers and bay, and slow-cooked with lentils
main course: roast veal, grilled rib-eye, with braised greens, peas, and carrots
cheese: Gorgonzola
dessert: raspberry tartelettes with crème fraîche
blanc: vin de pays de l'Herault, "Les Granges de Félines", 2007; rouge de Chiroubles, 2006; valée d'aoste "Enfer d'Arvier", 2006; vin doux, "Implicito," "Le Due Terre", 2001; vin de pays de Méditerranée, Domaine de St. Bernard, "L'Esprit Libre"
One of the finest meals I've had in years; the best this year, I think; and the rabbit one of the finest dishes ever.
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