Qui

[malarkey]

It's been awhile since I've written up a review... so I thought I'd indulge here. Had dinner at Qui tonight.

 

Started with a cocktail called "The official drink of Austin" and apparently they won a contest with this and it truly IS the official drink of Austin, at least until next year when they hold the contest again and give the title out anew.

 

I liked it, very refreshing: tepache (fermented pineapple), balcones rumble (a local rum), honey, thai basil and mint. Over ice. Went down quickly sorry no pic!

 

1st course: kinilaw, a filipino ceviche: hamachi, chile, red onion, coconut cream, olive oil. Very nice, fish was perfect, just a titch of hotness from the chile. Nice flavors.

 

 

2nd course: kusshi oyster topped with oyster mousse, salmon roe, wasabi and seaweed. Very nice. Lovely presentation.

 

 

3rd course: grilled summer squash with corn miso butter and uni bottarga. This was, I thought, the weakest dish of the night. It wasn't bad, but it wasn't OMG good and I didn't finish it because I knew the proteins were coming up. Whoops, took the pic a bit late:

 

4th course: multi-grain seeded cracker with cheddar cheese foam. The cheese foam was actually a lovely shape but quickly started melting away. (foam was added tableside). cracker was warm from the oven. Slightly salty with an aged cheddar flavor. Interesting for a palate cleanser, I liked it.

 

5th course: Dinuguan: pork shoulder confit, gnocchi, coconut vinegar, nameko mushrooms, garlic blood sauce. sprinkled with crispy pork bits. This was an OMG dish. It came with a steamed brioche bun. It's an upscale take on a filipino stew. I'd go back just to have this again. Really, really good dish. Probably the best of the night.

 

6th course: Short rib: slow smoked for 7 hours, then sous vide for 5 hours, with pickled vegetables, fish caramel, wasabi, mexican mint and basil. The meat here was just over the top. Obscenely tender and rich, a bite of it with the pickled veggies & the herbes made a lovely combination. 2nd best dish of the night but some would rank it first :-)

 

Obviously from the picture this was a big UH OH because I kinda sorta forgot to take a pic:

 

finale: halo halo: shaved ice, ginger beer gelee, corn pudding, sesame, coconut milk. Now, usually desserts aren't that interesting to me, something tacked on at the end that is just... ok. chocolate this or fruit that. It's rare I come across something that makes me actually want to finish it. This was one of those times: This was refreshing, light, crunchy, soft, smooth and a delightful combination of flavors. I need to emphasize again how light this was. So nice to finish with something like this after the richness that preceded it.

 

Tasting menu is $65 per. IMHO, the pork & beef were the stars of the show. But everything else wasn't throw away either, and I loved the unique dessert. I'll be back. Oh, and had an excellent cappuccino from Austin Java on the way home. surprisingly good, gotta say I didn't expect that from them. Kudos to the barista.

[nuxvomica]

thank you, malarkey - looking forward to eating there in a few days! from the website, seems their beverage pairings are interesting and reasonable, too. i may go for the veg tasting - have you ever had it?