May 28, 2011: Jacques Reymond

Update 31/12/2014: Jacques Reymond closed downwards belatedly finally year. Its replacement, Woodland House, even hence does vegan friendly fine dining, patch Jacques himself has taken over a pub inwards Prahran - we've yet to see either place.

Since moving to Melbourne (and starting a nutrient blog), Cindy as well as I direct maintain started a vague tradition of going somewhere upmarket for each of our birthdays. Along the way we've sampled some of Melbourne's fanciest degustations but until this twelvemonth we'd never made it anywhere inwards the really overstep tier: the three-hatted places from the Good Food Guide. That's because inwards the fourth dimension we've been inwards Melbourne, this has basically been ii places: Vue de Monde as well as Jacques Reymond. Given the rave reviews from Carla as well as K this twelvemonth it became pretty clear that Jacques knows how to cater for vegos, hence nosotros booked inwards to celebrate me making it to my early-mid-thirties.

Jacques Reymond is something of a Melbourne institution, having been running inwards a grand former mansion inwards Prahran for nearly xx years. The fit-out is stately as well as stylish, all grand mirrors as well as opened upwards fires rather than the industrial-chic favoured past times some of the newer high-end places. Similarly, the staff are friendly but slightly formal - they're non hither to last your friend, they're hither to serve. The deference amongst which they stood aside when 3 of us converged on the same doorway made me experience a lot to a greater extent than wealthy as well as powerful than I truly am.

As vegos, you lot basically direct maintain to guild the degustation - vi savoury courses, 2 desserts, petit fours as well as this costless appetiser - a low-cal as well as puffy choux pastry amongst a beautiful Gruyère filling.

The outset course of education on the carte du jour was: Soymilk, corn as well as watercress soup, tater foam, shiitake kakiage as well as panko cheese.

The soup itself was strongly flavoured, amongst the bitterness of the watercress dominant. The tower of goodies inwards the middle added the requisite saltiness as well as sweetness, making for an intriguing dish. Having done some googling, it seems that kakiage way some split of tempura - I didn't hollo back the mushroom had whatever form of batter on it at all, but the lilliputian cheese fritter may have.

Next upwards was K's favourite dish: new manner gazpacho amongst pure natural love apple tree jelly, beignets of Australian bush tomatoes, cucumber as well as melon, a champagne foam.

The lilliputian jelly tubes were filled amongst a concentrated love apple tree mush that was intense as well as sweetness (even this tomato-sceptic was impressed!), patch the beignet seemed to us to last filled amongst tater rather than bush tomatoes. Unless bush tomatoes are white as well as creamy similar tater fritters. In which case, grade me downwards every bit pro-bush tomato. The accompanying foam didn't produce a lot for me, patch the lilliputian slivers of cucumber as well as melon added some lightness but were generally in that location for presentation purposes I'd say.

Next up: Flavours of Autumn: cannelloni of beetroot as well as carmine cabbage relish, Mount Buffalo hazelnuts as well as orangish oil, saffron rouille dressing.

The canneloni filling was a sweetness beetroot-based delight, every bit were the candied hazelnuts as well as the rice. The saffron dressing as well as the ii dots of super-concentrated java reduction were both delicious, but both got a combat lost if you lot tried to combine them amongst the potent sweetness of the canneloni. The cabbage leafage canneloni itself was a prissy idea, but they were a combat difficult to cutting through, which meant I rapidly ruined the gorgeous presentation.

Lacquered marrow zucchini inwards masterstock, exotic mushrooms as well as fresh pappardelle. Tasmanian wasabi espuma as well as ponzu juices.

The sauce inwards this dish was in all likelihood my favourite season of the nighttime - citrussy as well as rich (we were both mopping it upwards amongst our bread). The light-green vegetable (I'm non certain what it is) had soaked it upwards as well as was merely wonderful, every bit was the fresh slice of pasta. Cindy as well as I each had some textural issues amongst the residue of the dish - I'm non a big fan of zucchini, hence the marrow was a combat soggy for my tastes. Meanwhile, Cindy doesn't truly bask the gelatinous texture of the fungus pieces that were hidden at the bottom of the dish, hence nosotros both ended upwards amongst slightly mixed feelings. Still - that sauce was to cash inwards one's chips for.

Our poly peptide for the night: Steamed silken tofu similar a waldorf salad, crispy enoki, spiced walnuts as well as compressed apples, oloroso sherry vinaigrette.

This was i of my favourite dishes - wonderfully crispy lilliputian mushroom pieces, lightly sauced tofu, lilliputian pieces of sweetness apple tree as well as some crunchy spiced nuts.

Our finally savoury: Eggwhite omelette of turmeric carrots as well as pickled chokos, grated daikon as well as chilli ketchup sorbet.

The ketchup sorbet was every bit fun every bit it sounds, as well as truly complemented the omelette truly well. The edible bean sprout as well as carrot pieces within the omelette were really lightly cooked as well as quite crunchy, patch the omelette was low-cal as well as fluffy. The lilliputian smear of orangish materials behind the omelette (maybe the pickled choko?) didn't produce a lot for me at all - I in all likelihood should direct maintain combined its saltiness amongst the ketchup to lighten it a bit.

Onto dessert: Iced java as well as chocolate martini, Tahitian vanilla, caramelised nuts.

The bottom of this was a tangy orangish jelly dotted amongst fresh strawberry chunks, amongst creamy layers of vanilla as well as hazelnut inwards the middle as well as and hence a big dollop of chocolate sorbet as well as java foam on top. Frustrating moment: the spoon they give you lot can't stand upwards for into the really bottom of the martini glass. (Solution: you lot tin utilisation the grip of the spoon to dig out the finally combat of jelly deliciousness!)

Second dessert: Deconstructed cheese cake: galette of fresh Timboon fromage blanc 50 ‘artisan, warm fruit pudding, mount bush pepper berries H2O ice cream.

This was in all likelihood the winning dish of the nighttime - a non bad diversity of textures as well as flavours that worked together perfectly. The bush pepper berry H2O ice cream inwards detail won Cindy's pump amongst its extra complexity of flavour.

Finally, petits fours amongst a apartment white for me as well as a lemon verbena tea for Cindy. These were prissy lilliputian sweetness treats to air current things up, but I ended the nighttime merely wanting to grab a handful of those chocolate truffles - hence rich as well as black as well as addictive.

We had a lovely nighttime at Jacques Reymond - lots of non bad food, fantabulous vino as well as efficient service. It was non bad to larn a few to a greater extent than exotic dishes (no beetroot as well as goat's cheese combo for starters) - it's clear that Jacques enjoys playing to a greater extent than or less amongst all kinds of vegies. There were a few slightly bum notes - a baffling over-use of foams (seriously, 6/8 dishes had foam!) as well as the marrow dish didn't truly travel for either of us. But the desserts hither to a greater extent than than made upwards for it - in all likelihood the best fix of desserts we've had.

At $135 for 8 courses, Jacques Reymond is at the upper goal of the the degustation cost range. And, patch it's definitely a non bad meal, I'm non certain it's amend than the slightly cheaper options at Cutler & Co or Circa.

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For a eating theatre that used to politely inquire bloggers to pose their cameras away, Jacques Reymond certain has been thoroughly blogged.

It's non bad to run across that Jacques Reymond is downwards amongst vegan nutrient - In the mood for noodles as well as Easy every bit Vegan Pie both raved virtually their vegan experiences. It's also got a proficient vegetarian rep, amongst The Age featuring it every bit the best vegetarian fine-dining experience inwards Melbourne.

The residue of the food-blogging basis has gone nuts for Jacques, amongst raves at: Tastebuds Galore, Fat Pom Pom, Gastrology, August Diners, Megalomaniac, Double-cooked, Shane on the go, Munching inwards Melbourne, Eat Cook Drink, Ms I-Hua, Trish eats, Slicing Almonds as well as Zesting Lemons, Greedy Diva, Totally Addicted to Taste, A Cynic is Only a Frustrated Optimist, Dave addition food, Gluttony gluttony, Tummy Rumbles, New Epicurean

Only 1001 dinners, 1001 nights, Simon Food Favourites as well as Niche were a combat disappointed past times the experience.

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Jacques Reymond
78 Williams Road, Prahran
9525 2178
veg degustation $135 (with wines: $230)
http://www.jacquesreymond.com.au

Accessibility: The criterion entry includes stairs but in that location is probable a wheelchair-accessible alternative. Space betwixt tables is really reasonable and, of course, there's sum tabular array service. Toilets are accessible enough, although I didn't honor a specific disabled toilet.