Continuing the recount of my gastronomical journey in Tasmania - this is my experience of going to a fine dining restaurant at Fico .
It is not something we regularly have, in fact my husband was opposed to the idea of us spending huge chunk of money for one meal, but I explained to him this will be a nice memory of our honeymoon, and I truly want the experience of eating good food.
We choose to be seated for the earliest session of dinner service and it was a 9 course meal.
Driving to the location was very straight forward, and we were lucky there was a parking spot right in front of the restaurant.
As we step in, we were welcomed with the warm deco and even warmer front-of-house. I immediately take notice of the seating arrangement being more accommodating for group of 4 and up rather than for couples. We were seated at the only round table in the whole establishment and had the table to ourselves for the whole time.
As we sat, we ordered our drinks, and both these two option jumped straight at me. Not wanting to spend for two drinks just for myself, I convinced my husband to order the second drink I wanted for himself, and he did not see my trick😜.
The first drink is a tea in a can. How it was describe on the can's label, is exactly how it tasted to me. I was wondering what is TINA. Is it the brand, or the drink line? Turned out it is short for this is not alcohol. I guess because its quite common for a cider or beer to come in cans here that the distinction need to be made clear.
The sour cherry juice was great too! I really enjoyed its tartness and its refreshing quality. It also helped to cleanse the palate in between courses.
This was our 9 course menu. The menu changes here based on what is in season, to 1) highlight that produce when it is in its best time 2) conserve resources and reduce waste of procuring off-season items.
When I was browsing about the place, I wanted to know what type of cuisine they serve from their sample menu, but they do not have one as it changes weekly based on what is available at their best quality. The unknown was thrilling and nerve wrecking for me. But, I was really impressed when we arrived and given the menu.
Our waitress also kindly go through the whole menu with us at the beginning and introduce them in more details as the food come out.
I watch a lot of MasterChef and frequently see contestant making gazpacho, and dreaming of tasting one despite it contradict the idea of soup I was instilled with - warm and hearty.
This carrot gazpacho was well rounded, light and had a few layer of flavour depths, which I was not expecting. The consistency was smooth with no lumps at all. If I could, I would have asked for a second and third serving of it.
I never tasted fig leaf oil before. I've only eaten fresh and dried figs.
It was served with house made bread and balsamic vinegar. Since I never have a register of how fig leaf oil should taste like, this is exciting for me, and I truly liked it. I am recalling how magnificent the bread was, arrived warm, crunchy crust on the outside, soft and pillowy on the inside.
At first when it hit my mouth, it coats as if you are dipping in a high quality olive oil, but then a soft nuttiness followed with a slight herb-ly taste. It was subtle.
This style of dish is another I see often on MasterChef and wanting to try - fresh fish tartare.
The king dory was slice to the perfect size and you can really taste its freshness. They didn't have to do much with the fish to make it delicious as its freshness stands out. We love the balance of the horseradish dressing as it wasn't overpowering, but complement well of the king dory's freshness.
When this dish arrived, it looked interesting with the usage of squid in to colour the pasta, giving it a lovely contrast to the whiteness filling of the calamari. It was a great size too, with the whole thing as big as my palm.
When I was sea urchin on the menu, I was very thrilled! It is another item MasterChef have introduced me to that I want to taste. In my head, there will be a luscious plop of sea urchin seating on top of the carnaroli rice, but no. They cooked the sea urchin into the rice. Awww...the creaminess of this dish makes me forget how disappointed I was not seeing a full piece of sea urchin. Not a single tough grain of rice either. I could see this being a fancy comfort food.
I believe this is the first time I had venison. Both my husband and I enjoyed this. When it arrived, the waitress asked if we would like truffle shavings on our mash, we instantly nodded to each other in agreement. At this point, I am very happy I could see my husband enjoying the experience as much as I do despite him being reluctant with the idea at first.
I understand we worked to earn this money, but what's the point of it if you don't enjoy the fruit of your labour every once in a while, celebrate your milestones? We do not just work to earned sustenance for surviving, it should be for thriving and living.
This panna cotta arrived with the jiggle that a good panna cotta should have. I remembered jiggling it a few times before eating because it is very pretty.
As it is made with goat curd, it has a pleasant sour tang with each spoonful you take.
We were both taken aback by how delicate this dish look when it was placed in front of us. There's like a jelly coating outside of the strawberry, and in the middle, it was stuff with strawberry cream and jelly.
I had to look up what cassis is as I'm not familiarise with the word. Cassis is a type of blackcurrant - thus explain the beautiful purple hue. This final dish resembles the experience of eating a macaron, but a more adult version for me. Instead of the typical sugary sweet hit when you bite into a macaron, this version was light, crunchy exterior with a subtle hint of blackcurrant, accompanied by a salty, sourish yogurt filling. Honestly, I prefer this.
We had a lovely evening together. The food all come out at a deliberate pace, so we neither waiting nor felt rushed. I wanted to pick out my favourite dish from the menu, but honestly, the get to share the experience with my most beloved is the best part.
Sayang, to many more (food) adventures together!
