Vue de Monde

by TP Little bro

There’s nothing like the excitement and anticipation in the lead up to something special. This event came in the form of a last minute cancellation which paved the way for a special Twin Palate experience in arguably the best restaurant in Melbourne. Vue de Monde. I need not say more.

From the moment you walk through the door, everything screams out "Three Chefs Hats". The staff are warm, inviting and immaculately dressed, the decor is new age, daring and classy.

I glance around the restaurant while being seated and notice there are two types of tables. A large rectangular table with a generous amount of "arm room" and the much smaller round table for more intimate meals. I am led to the larger table. I feel like royalty.

Having been seduced by all the buzz this place has generated, I buckle in and prepare to have my mind and body wowed by the upcoming gastronomical affair.

Three chef hated restaurants need to bring more than just meals to the table. They need to take an ordinary meal, weave through their own individuality and uniqueness and transform it into a magical experience. One piece of individuality Shannon Bennett has brought to the table is the element of surprise. There are no menus at Vue de Monde. Instead, there are approximately 60 dishes which, depending on how many courses are ordered, are tailored to each table.

The hardest decision you’ll make for the night is picking a number. “Will it be five courses or nine?” the waiter asks. We ponder. The waiter continues in his French accent, “Five courses has no dessert. To experience the full Vue de Monde experience, we recommend nine courses”. TP Big brother’s eyes light up. Without a moment of hesitation, an executive decision has been made. Nine it is. The experience begins…..

The first step is to stimulate the palates. The amuse bouche served is a Confit egg with white asparagus, bread crumbs and a wood sorrel puree. The egg is creamy with a hint of zest and the bread crumbs are the surprise packet of the dish with a flavoursome crunchy texture. My bouche has been amused.

The first course arrives and is being smoked before our eyes. Ocean trout with horseradish and baby beetroot, covered, with a burning truffle to smoke the fish. The trout is rare and combined beetroot, horseradish and the burnt truffle, make for a contemporary French way of eating sashimi.

While eagerly awaiting the next course, a waiter leaves a trail of smoke as he walks past our table holding two large cigars in heavy glass ashtrays. We are immediately intrigued. We discover the fine pieces of culinary artwork are foie gras stuffed “cigars” and quietly hope the dish served to us later in the evening.

The second course arrives. No cigars but a mushroom risotto garnished with the king of all truffles – the rare and highly coveted Alba white truffle, roughly selling for around $12,000 per kg. Putting the price tag of ingredients aside, I hoped the sum of its parts would taste far greater than the market value of the truffles. The first spoonful is intense. The risotto has a wonderfully rich creamy mushroom flavour. The shaved truffles just melt in your mouth and add another level of flavour that only truffles can do. Not a five figure flavour (does such a thing exist?) but pretty darn good and one of my favourite dishes of the night.

Course number three is the dish containing foie gras and unfortunately it’s no cigar. They must have strategically chose another dish to serve us to entice another visit. We are served a terrine of ox, foie gras and Puy lentils served in the shape of cute little cubes with equally cute pillows of crunchy brioche. The three layers of the cube bring out a wide spectrum of flavours which slowly develops, while staying true to the richness and heaviness of the foie gras.

We across where we see a waitress brewing a consommé at the very table the diners are eating from, using an old 1950's coffee percolator. Interesting. Another table is being served their food on a oversized river pebble. The absence of a menu has become one of the highlights of the night.

Course number four showcased four different cooking techniques that produced four different ways of eating tuna. It was Tuna tartare, rillette and seaweed salt, blue fin tuna stock infused with kaffir lime, fennel and tarragon flowers. This plate lacked punch but won technical points for the techniques used.

Next, it was time to take a break and cleanse the palates with some liquid verjus served at - 8°C mixed with a dash of cranberry juice.

After intermission, course five had no numeric symbolism. Three cuts of Western plains pork (tenderloin, rib and my personal favourite, pork belly) with crispy panchetta and flavours of earth. The pork on the bone was so tender, it fell off the bone.

The flow of the dishes was textbook, gradually becoming heavier and richer with each course and avoiding the pitfalls of feeling too full too early. Thank God. If the food was going to be this good, feeling full would be the last thing I would want!

Next up was the Wagyu Beef with Roquefort ravioli, swede, parsley, horseradish purée and beetroot oil. The thin strip of Wagyu was juicy and well cooked. The Roquefort Blue cheese ravioli gave a flavour hit with an instant tang followed by a gradually intensifying flavour. Combining all ingredients together left a lingering flavour on my taste buds that made me want to close my eyes, take a deep breath and savour for as long as I could.

Once we had finished our main courses, we were pleasantly surprised when our waitress offered a tour of the kitchen. Grabbing the opportunity with both hands, we were introduced to Flo, a sous chef, who took us on a journey of the fish, meat, cold food and the serving stations. We were even privy to some of their nifty contraptions. One of which is a Japanese refrigeration unit which they stock with bottles of distilled water. The temperature is regulated at a constant minus 8 degrees and to prevent the bottles of water freezing, another part of the machine sends through waves of vibration. Flo then proceeded by taking a ordinary looking bottle of water from the unit, shook it up and the once very liquid water froze into particles of ice.

Returning to our original seats, we received one last palate cleanser before the desserts began to arrive. Berry Zabaglione topped with a frozen kiwi fruit lollipop lightly glazed with chilli. My palate felt refreshed and ready for dessert.

Traditionally, our next course was meant to be a serving of cheese. Wanting to please our sweet tooths (teeth) and given our delightful experience with the Roquefort Blue Cheese in the last main course, we decided to replace the cheese dish with another dessert.

And this paid very big dividends. Our first dessert was nothing short of a treat. The Poached rhubarb with cheesecake mousse and raspberry bubbles. Deconstructed desserts are so interesting as it replaces the conventional way of serving a dish with a contemporary one using all the same ingredients. The cheesecake mousse was smooth and rich. The rhubarb, frozen with liquid nitrogen, was sweet and refreshing. It was just like eating a really tasty cheese cake but so much more fun. Seeing each component of the dish, tasting them individually and all together. I was the chef and the diner all at the same time.

When our dishes were taken away, the waiter mentioned that he had replaced our cheese dish with a Cheese cake. Clever.

Up next was Lemon meringue soufflé. It was light, fluffy, and very tart (just how I like them). Topped with crushed biscuits and with crunchy granules of sugar sprinkled throughout, it was beautifully executed.

Another glance across the room and we spot yet another interesting dish. A couple is being served their dessert - 3 different types of custard served in 3 half egg shells in an egg carton! We are like little boys in a museum and cannot believe the creativity before our eyes.

Our final course for the night was the Michel Bras' classic self-saucing chocolate biscuit with chocolate sauce, milk powder and milk ice cream. Slowly working my way through the crumbling chocolate exterior, I finally break into the inner sanctum and am rewarded with warm chocolate sauce oozing out of the centre. Heavy and richly chocolately, the ice cream plays a great part in mellowing the richness and leaving me wanting more.

With all nine courses cooked, plated and served, TP Big Bro and I do a pretty good job, wiping virtually all of the dishes clean and subtly telling the kitchen to keep up the good work.

Then came the most incredible platter of petit fours I had ever tasted. All of them were amazing, tasting just as good as their pristine appearance may have indicated. From left to right: Blood orange jelly with a touch of sherbet, Vanilla macaron, Toffee & Vanilla Cream, Frozen lychee lollipop, Merange with berry tube.

As a final palate cleanser, we are given "space rocks", which despite their charcoal looking exterior, melt in your mouth and are refreshingly minty.

Five short hours later and with not another diner in sight, the night was officially over. Or was it? After saying goodbye all but one waiter, we made our way to the exit. When suddenly, our waiter who had disappeared, magically reappeared with one final surprise. A breakfast bag containing a small loaf of brioche, chive seeds, 2 eggs, 2 cookies and a small package of loose leaf tea. Our night was complete and armed with our bag of goodies, we walked away feeling like we had dined at a truly deserving 3 Chef Hatted restaurant.

Vue de Monde. 430 Little Collins Street, Melbourn., Ph: (03) 9691 3888