Steve surprised me with a last minute reservation at Maha on Friday. It's been a long hard week so we both skipped Friday night drinks with colleagues and met up at home where Steve had a 2 hour nap and I had a rest before we headed out for dinner.
We had a quick drink before heading to Maha and enjoyed a second drink at the bar. I tried their specialty cocktail - a heady mix of rum, lemon, vermouth and a violet sugar crust. Not the best on an empty stomach!
We decided to go for the full shebang and braced ourselves for the 8 course degustation. It's a new menu so we wanted to give it full justice and attention!
Opening ceremony of hibiscus tea and a passionate "saha!" was followed promptly by smoked pork hock broth, silverbeet, beans and a quail egg. I love broth and consomme type dishes and this one was salty and smoky and really quite delicious. The beans added body and substance and took away some of the saltiness and the shreddlings of pork hock were delicious.
Opening ceremony of hibiscus tea and a passionate "saha!" was followed promptly by smoked pork hock broth, silverbeet, beans and a quail egg. I love broth and consomme type dishes and this one was salty and smoky and really quite delicious. The beans added body and substance and took away some of the saltiness and the shreddlings of pork hock were delicious.
Tuna kibbeh neya, yoghurt and wasabi foam, soy pearls, mint, cucumber and rice cracker came next; effectively a tuna tartare tian topped with a wasabi foam. I loved the concept and the soy pearls very clever. The tuna and cucumber were beautifully fresh. The proportions of the dish could do with a little tweaking for my tastes as I found there to be too many soy pearls and too much wasabi foam compare to the amount of tuna and cucumber. But lots of potential and on the plate and I can understand where this dish has come from and where it's going.
The poached rainbow trout, tapioca, dill, candied walnuts, salmon caviar, trout pashmak was a more mature dish I felt and I really enjoyed the clean flavour of the trout intensified by the pashmak which was reminiscent of the Asian pork floss and then bursts of sea flavour from the caviar.
The poached rainbow trout, tapioca, dill, candied walnuts, salmon caviar, trout pashmak was a more mature dish I felt and I really enjoyed the clean flavour of the trout intensified by the pashmak which was reminiscent of the Asian pork floss and then bursts of sea flavour from the caviar.
We then moved onto meat dishes and enjoyed the corn fed chicken tagine, broken egg, corn bread, saffron, Iranian figs, sucuk soil. Very rich and sweet it transported me to the spice markets of Marrakech. The egg added a creamy depth and the sweet fig flavours penetrated the tender meat. The sucuk soil was a little grainy and mealy for me but I guess it added more texture to a soft dish.
Roast duckling breast, leg malfouf, roots, onion crumble was another triumph. The duck confit wrapped in a cabbage leaf was simple and just full of duck flavour and the duck breast was pink and moist. The little balls of crispy potato were a delight to munch.
Roast duckling breast, leg malfouf, roots, onion crumble was another triumph. The duck confit wrapped in a cabbage leaf was simple and just full of duck flavour and the duck breast was pink and moist. The little balls of crispy potato were a delight to munch.
Lamb loin, tahini mousse, roasted eggplant foam, freekah, quinoa, fried cauliflower and shoulder cigar looked a lot simpler than it sounds! It was a lamb cutlet coated in tahini mousse that was reminiscent of scrambled egg. The lamb was cooked perfectly and the fried cauliflower and quinoa added texture. I loved the eggplant foam that was more substantial than a foam but still very light. The shoulder cigar reminded us of the cigar we had at Cutler & Co which was filled with a foie gras parfait and a pretty special cigar. This one did not disappoint but was certainly different.
Our final main course was David Blackmore rib eye cap marble score 9+, honey, coriander seed, roast garlic parfait, shaved roots. By this time we were pretty full but the beef was so delicious that in spite of full bellies it disappeared. Cooked rare it was just excellent and I loved the punchy garlic parfait and the stodgy potato croquette ball on the side. The was a hint of spice to it but the beauty of the beef came through most of all and rightly so!
Our final main course was David Blackmore rib eye cap marble score 9+, honey, coriander seed, roast garlic parfait, shaved roots. By this time we were pretty full but the beef was so delicious that in spite of full bellies it disappeared. Cooked rare it was just excellent and I loved the punchy garlic parfait and the stodgy potato croquette ball on the side. The was a hint of spice to it but the beauty of the beef came through most of all and rightly so!
The first dessert was beetroot sponge, beetroot ganache, milk chocolate peppermint crisp ice cream, watermelon rosewater ice. I loved the dollop of refreshing watermelon granita and the peppermint ice cream was light and fresh. The pink beetroot sponge was very pretty but not my kind of thing but Steve ate it all happily.
The second dessert was beautifully presented in a box and comprised of three components. There was a chocolate and pomegranate molasses souffle all toasty brown and fluffy. Not overpoweringly chocolatey I enjoyed the sweetness of it but it was just too big!
The strawberry ice cream came in a silver tin and was childishly delightful reminding me of the milky sweet candy like ice cream that kiddies enjoy. The best part of this dessert was the little shot glass of sumac meringue, candied pine nut mint salad and pomegranate jelly. More complex and grown up than the strawberry ice cream it was refreshing and light and tropical and I loved it!
Maha was maha-vellous. Service as always was personal and attentive. We were asked our opinion on the dishes and our thoughts listened to. The pace the dishes came out was good and our late sitting didn't feel dragged out. All in all great Friday night surprise. I'll take more of those hubby!
The second dessert was beautifully presented in a box and comprised of three components. There was a chocolate and pomegranate molasses souffle all toasty brown and fluffy. Not overpoweringly chocolatey I enjoyed the sweetness of it but it was just too big!
The strawberry ice cream came in a silver tin and was childishly delightful reminding me of the milky sweet candy like ice cream that kiddies enjoy. The best part of this dessert was the little shot glass of sumac meringue, candied pine nut mint salad and pomegranate jelly. More complex and grown up than the strawberry ice cream it was refreshing and light and tropical and I loved it!
Maha was maha-vellous. Service as always was personal and attentive. We were asked our opinion on the dishes and our thoughts listened to. The pace the dishes came out was good and our late sitting didn't feel dragged out. All in all great Friday night surprise. I'll take more of those hubby!
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