I Got the Almighty Tongue - Chapter 85



Only Noblemtl

First guest (2)

“It’s an amuse bouche.”

The server brought the food.

“Oysters are lightly grilled over charcoal, then marinated with lemon juice and white wine to remove any fishy smell. Topped with California sea urchin and finished with shallots and green onions. Enjoy.”

The dish is served on a large spoon. The grilled oysters and sea urchins, with their sweet flavors enhanced, and the shallots and green onions sprinkled on top create a beautiful color combination.

“Oysters and sea urchins. It’s a classic. It’s served with a spoon, so eat it in one bite.”

Jennifer picks up the spoon and puts it in her mouth. Jimmy takes a sniff and takes a bite.

“Wow. This is delicious. I can feel the freshness. It leaves a refreshing taste in my mouth. The oysters and sea urchins go well together.”

Jimmy puts down his spoon with a look of disappointment at the small amount.

“This is a combination that is often used in other restaurants. This combination never fails. And it makes you anticipate what will come next. Usually, seafood is served as an amuse-bouche to show that the restaurant’s ingredients are fresh.”

Jimmy nods at Jennifer’s explanation.

“I see. I wish I could eat more of the same thing, but fine dining places like this always have insufficient food.”

“Haha. Don’t worry, you’ll be full when you go out.”

Jennifer laughs at Jimmy, as if he finds it funny.

“This is the second amuse bouche. The chef asked me to explain this dish to the guests after they have tried it. You can just pick it up with your hands and eat it.”

The two looked closely at the dish on the white plate. It was a deep-fried, bite-sized, geometric shape, topped with caviar.

“It seems like you’re asking me to imagine what the ingredients below are. Okay.”

Jennifer and Jimmy pick up food with their hands and put it in their mouths.

“What is this? It tastes familiar, but has a texture I’m trying for the first time.”

Jimmy, who is used to guessing ingredients thanks to the Tonight Show’s “Secret Ingredient,” closes his eyes and tries to figure out the ingredients by tasting.

“It’s crispy. It tastes like cream. I’ve never felt this texture before. But I can tell it tastes like this. It’s an egg.”

Jennifer looks at the server and smiles.

“It’s egg yolk mixed with cream and fried in high-temperature oil. It’s topped with homemade mayonnaise and caviar. Finally, it’s soured with pickled lemon zest and sprinkled with parsley.”

“Wow, you’re amazing. You’re using familiar materials in a completely new way. I can’t help but admire your creativity.”

Jennifer sticks out her tongue. She’s never even imagined frying an egg yolk.

“Jimmy, you don’t know this even though you’re running a show like that?”

Jennifer taunts Jimmy.

“It was delicious. The first taste was crunchy, but it was creamy and light. When they mixed with the caviar in my mouth, I couldn’t come to my senses. I forgot about matching the ingredients and just enjoyed the food.”

Jimmy chuckles, as if he finds it ridiculous even to himself.

“Come to think of it, it has something in common with canapés. I didn’t realize it because the shapes are completely different.”

While we were talking, the server brought out a plate.

“This is the last amuse-bouche. You also told me to explain this after you finish eating it. Again, you can just pick it up with your hands and eat it.”

The server places the last amuse-bouche in front of them, and the two stare blankly at it.

“What the heck is this?”

Jennifer looks at the server, but he doesn’t respond.

On the plate, there is something like a transparent film folded into a triangle shape. Inside are various colorful eggs. It looks like transparent ravioli or Chinese dim sum.

“You’ll understand once you try it.”

The two people picked up the food with their hands and put it in their mouths. And the moment they chewed, exclamations burst out.

“ah..”

The two people close their eyes and savor the food.

“The outer film is made by dissolving cornstarch, lecithin, and glycerin in water, boiling it, spreading it thinly, and then hardening it. Inside are eggs made by liquefying tomato and parsley pesto and then solidifying it in water mixed with agar-agar (a gelatin-like ingredient used to harden liquids) extracted from seaweed. There are also real caviar and salmon roe. You can taste four different eggs at once.”

The server finished his lengthy explanation, but Jennifer didn’t listen properly because she was busy tasting the food.

As soon as she puts it in her mouth, the transparent film melts and disappears. Then, various types of eggs burst inside her mouth.

Eggs with tomato and basil, eggs seasoned with parsley and lemon, and eggs with caviar and salmon roe burst together to create a unique texture and flavor.

The clear sauce inside the ravioli harmonized the four flavors of eggs together. Jennifer couldn’t come to her senses because she was experiencing a taste she had never experienced before.

“I’ve never heard of or seen molecular gastronomy of this level. It’s truly amazing.”

Jimmy gives the server a thumbs up.

“Jehee was originally interested in molecular gastronomy. It seemed like he was holding back before opening his own restaurant, but now he seems to be fully expressing his ideas. It was surprising and delicious.”

“Thank you. Our chef is truly amazing. Look forward to the next dish.”

The server smiles and takes the plate away.

“Was Jehee interested in molecular cuisine?”

Jimmy asks Jennifer curiously.

“I tried many things when I was at Luce de Sole. I think it greatly inspired Romeo’s molecular cuisine. But I was a sous chef at the time, so I didn’t do many experimental dishes.”

While the two were talking, the server brought the next dish.

“Antipasto (An appetizer for an Italian course) is a soup made with roasted tomatoes and soft cream, topped with pesto made with sun-dried tomatoes. The bread served with it is soft focaccia, spread with goat cheese, garlic, onion, and butter, and baked once in the oven.”

The server comes and serves the soup and bread.

“The color is really beautiful. It’s a rose color.”

Jimmy is impressed.

“That’s why it’s called Rosé. It’s a return to the classic from the unconventional menu of bread and soup. This soup tastes really healthy. It’s perfect for Jimmy.”

After Jennifer tasted the soup, she looked at Jimmy and said,

“This bread is really soft. I’ve never had goat cheese before, but it’s delicious. It’s rich and goes well with bread. If someone brought me this soup and bread every lunchtime, I’d marry them in an instant.”

The two of them emptied their plates, wiping up the remaining soup with bread.

And then the food started coming out again.

“This is Roman-style Amatriciana. Enjoy your meal.”

The server brings the pasta.

“I go to Italy often. Whenever I go to Rome, I eat the famous pasta there, and this is no different. I think the noodles are special. They seem to absorb the sauce better.”

“I don’t know about that, it just tastes good.”

Jimmy ate his pasta in the blink of an eye. In the meantime, the main dish, steak, arrived.

“Rib Eye Steak. Dry-aged for 30 days, the rib eye is coated in a powder made by mixing dried and ground porcini mushrooms and 3% Sel de Guerande salt (premium salt from the Guérande region of France).”

In front of the two is a thinly sliced ​​steak spread out like a fan. The pink flesh of the steak, perfectly cooked medium-rare, glistens in the light. To one side is a garnish of broccoli, asparagus, and shiitake mushrooms.

Jimmy picks up his fork first and tastes the meat.

“Wow. Jesus! This is the best steak I’ve ever had in my life.”

Jennifer also picks up the steak and tastes it, thanks to Jimmy’s excitement.

“It’s true. It’s delicious. It’s tender, but still has a rich meaty flavor.”

“Why does the steak have a smoky, barbecue-like flavor? The meat is chewier than you might think. But it’s also soft to the bite, which is a strange feeling.”

Jimmy immediately picks up another dot and eats it.

“Jaehee was originally serious about steak. The T-bone he made at Luce de Sole was special. He went even further than that. I’ll have to ask him later what he did.”

Jennifer also closes her eyes and savors the taste of the meat.

“It tastes wilder than I thought. Is this what it would taste like if I went to the forest and grilled meat over a wood fire? I cooked it delicately, but why does it taste that way?”

“I think it’s because we used porcini mushrooms. And because we roasted them whole in a pan, it tastes different from meat roasted in the oven.”

And then the dessert that Jehee had put the most effort into during today’s meal was served.

“Dessert is here. The chef asked us to enjoy the aroma and taste of the dessert together.”

The two looked at the dessert. On the white rectangular plate was a shape that reminded them of a winter hill on a snowy day.

“This is a truly artistic dessert. It looks like a snow-covered hill. I guess it’s a depiction of snow on a dirt hill?”

Jennifer examines the dessert closely. The eyes are probably made of cream. The dusting, like dirt, seems to be dark chocolate.

“Let me taste it.”

The two people picked up spoons, scooped up some cream and chocolate, and put them in their mouths. Then they let out a sigh.

“What…what is this?”

Jennifer tastes the dessert again, astonished.

“It smells like earth.”

Jimmy closes his eyes and tastes the dessert again.

“I’m sure. Where is Jennifer from?”

“I was born in New York.”

“Well, maybe you don’t know. I come from a farm in Ohio. Kids who grow up on rural farms get to eat dirt more often than you might think.”

Jimmy says with a smile.

“I do some gardening myself. It doesn’t taste like dirt. It just has a scent. But it’s not unpleasant. Rather, the subtle scent enhances the taste of chocolate and cream.”

The deep creaminess and dark chocolate flavor are strong. And for some reason, the earthy scent from the dessert evokes an inexplicable longing.

“When we first saw this dessert, we thought of snow covered dirt hills. I don’t know how they managed to replicate the smell. It brought back old memories.”

“You mean old times?”

“I ran away from farm work when I was 18 because I was sick of it. I came to New York and started playing guitar and singing on the street, and then I started performing on stage. That’s how I ended up here.”

Jimmy calmly reminisces about the past.

“So you were successful. I heard you have the most followers among talk show hosts?”

Jennifer looks at Jimmy and says.

“Not only have I been divorced twice, I have lost contact with my family. I live in a penthouse in New York, but I am more unhappy than I have ever been in my life. Today, eating this earthy dessert reminded me of my childhood, and I got a little emotional. I am sorry.”

“No, I understand completely.”

“If I could go back to that time, I would run away to New York and stand on stage again. But that would never change the fact that it was the happiest time in my life.”

Jimmy scoops up the dessert with his fork, sniffs it again, and puts it in his mouth.

“I guess I’ll have a lot to ask the chef today.”

The two emptied their plates in silence. Then they waited for Jehee to come.