Went to Ciel Bleu for dinner on the 24th December for 8 course all-in Christmas menu.
First time I’ve been to a 2 star and also this is the most I’ve ever paid for a meal. It was delicious but not sure if worth the price? There were some high end things on the menu and the wines were very nice. Let’s see if I remember everything 😅
1-4: started with some bites and champagne and the bread which is the only thing I didn’t get a picture of. The bread was fabulous with 3 different flavored butters, yuzu, buckwheat and caramelised onion. Bites were in order: hummus with crackers, Dutch cheese with pickles, scallop and then (king?) crab. My fave was the scallop as it just melted.
5: oyster and caviar with cucumber. The cucumber was so intensely concentrated. Brilliant little dish.
6: lobster with radish. This had a delicately bitter flavor profile and matched with a sweet Mosel Riesling which was very nice. My partner wasn’t a huge fan of this cos he is not into bitter flavors too much. I thought it was clever to match with the butteriness of the lobster.
7: I think this was swordfish with brown butter sauce. This was tasty but not exceptional.
8: another white fish with buttery sauce/foam. I think the fish was skate but don’t quote me. Also nice but not exceptional
9: duck stuffed with …can’t remember. A bread stuffing and a cherry sauce. This was great.
10: A5 Wagyu beef Wellington. The standout dish of the night. I’m showing my low class here by not having tried Wagyu before this. It was insanely good and so soft. The mushroom and the pastry was very delicate and a nice addition of truffles. Loved this.
11: the “cheese course” I think was Brie with something else. It was nice but not exceptional.
12: rum baba for dessert. This was assembled at the table. I liked the flavors but it didn’t feel like an overly technical dish.
The staff and service was excellent – could not fault them. We got a panettone to take home which I gave to my MIL so I can’t tell you if it was good or not. It was nice to do something special for Xmas.
by missilefire
4 Comments
Additional cos I can’t seem to edit.
The duck was paired with I think a cab sav from the Barossa. I always find it amusing getting Aussie wine, as an Aussie living on the other side of the planet. Especially in the EU where most people’s experiences with Aussie wine is that it is cheap trash. That’s cos all the good stuff stays at home. So I was impressed with this wine, it was intensely rich and jammy.
One of the fish dishes got paired with a marsanne which is not a variety that I see often but I like very much.
And the dessert wine was a Sauternes which I absolutely just love dessert wine so I was always gonna be happy with that 😅
Your pictures are great! I went to ciel bleu a few months ago. Other than the views of the city, was one of the most uninspiring meals I’ve had in ages. Nothing awful, the presentations were lovely, the wine pairings thoughtful, and the service was attentive, but everything seemed so rote. The flavor combinations and presentations came out of fine dining 101. The descriptions of the dishes, and the wines seemed scripted to the syllable. On the other hand, their bread and butter were sublime.
FWIW, they have their menu posted online: [CB_Menu_Kerst_2024_ENG.pdf](https://irp.cdn-website.com/1d60da1e/files/uploaded/CB_Menu_Kerst_2024_ENG.pdf)
They really like circles, huh?