The Chicago Foodies Unique Dinner Series launched January 28th with "16 Courses of Black" at Moto. The Unusual Dinner Series was created to give chefs an opportunity to do something a bit "different". In this case I asked Chef Homaru Cantu who is known for doing things differently, "What hasn't worked?" His answer focused on an all black dish that was off-putting for many reasons. From unseen and unexpected textures to an unappetizing appearance while being eaten, it seemed to be "too different". The next question was "How do you feel about 16 Courses of black?"
I didn't know what to expect when putting the Unique Diner Series together but that was part of the idea and Saturday night, after 7 hours at Moto, in the company of Moto's staff and Chef's Cantu, Jones and Farina I came away amazed.
From his introduction asking the diners to be kind, Chef Cantu demonstrated what the Unique Dinner Series is all about. The audience of 24 came willing to taste something new, experience something unusual. While a dish or two might make it to the main Moto menu, the majority of them were simply inspired by the concept of black. They were one-shot dishes more fun than refined... interesting, surprising, and risky.
As you can imagine after 16 courses, including one we were explicitly not allowed to photograph, I can only do a disservice by trying to re-compile each dish's ingredients, and preparation. Simply enough, I'll let the pictures do the majority of the work and try to add what I can with specifics, pairings, etc.
Walking downstairs into the lab for the first time you would see a large prep-table and around it smaller tables and chairs for patrons. In the corners are several machines, including a freeze drier and a couple of gas tanks. Throughout the evening the staff was plating and prepping dishes and able and willing to answer questions.
Continue reading "The Unique Dinner Series at Moto with 16 Courses of Black: Recap" »





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