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Get EmailsVelvet rope restaurant
No sign. No street number. No doorman.
The only way to find the entrance is to look for the velvet rope flanking the unmarked doors discreetly adorned with double J handles. Even when you pass through the doors, you’ll have to part a velvet curtain in order to reveal the dining room. Inside, your host, Austrian-born chef Johannes Fruhwirt, will be there to welcome you to his private dining room.
Johannes’ eyes twinkle with excitement. He’s been expecting you. You and only a few other guests. You see, there are only 32 seats in his dining room. It doesn’t feel like a restaurant, really. It’s more like being in a private home. Until recently, even the phone number was unlisted.
It was a pleasure having Johannes create our dining experience. I love doing that wherever there’s a great chef in the kitchen. I wouldn’t tell a musician what to play when I go to a concert. I wouldn’t tell an artist what to paint. So why dictate my menu choices to a chef when I can instead put myself in his capable hands and allow him to perfectly orchestrate my evening?
There were six of us, and we were there to celebrate. Johannes graciously permitted me to bring a couple of bottles of wine from our cellar—a ’97 Mauro Veglio Barolo Castelletto and a ‘98 Dolce—which we supplemented with a couple bottles from his excellent wine list. John, our host, found a bottle of ’03 Reynolds Family Winery Stag’s Leap District Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon on the list, which he insisted we try as a nod to my husband who had just helped him wrap up a big case. And I found a fabulous Austrian Riesling to start: an ‘03 Brundlmayer Riesling “Stein”, which delighted Johannes and got the night off to a great start.
The Riesling was a knockout pairing with our first course, Belize Conch Ceviche with Pineapple Salsa. The conch was sweeter and more tender than the conch you generally find on South Florida menus, and richly colored. The wine carried us happily through the second course, Mangrove Snapper with Marscarpone-Crayfish Riesling Sauce, another winner.
The Cabernet proved a worthy match for our next course, Brandy Lacquered Duck Breast with Wild Rice and an Apricot Ginger Glaze. The Barolo, which we had our waiter open when we arrived, was beautiful with Johannes’ Lamb Rack with Autumn Veggies and Rosemary Barolo Sauce. I did call ahead and chat with Johannes about bringing an older Barolo, so I suspect he sauced the lamb accordingly. If not, it was a happy coincidence.
I had also asked Johannes if he was doing foie gras, and when he said yes, I immediately pulled a half bottle of Dolce, a late harvest Sauterne-style wine from Napa, to enjoy with the much anticipated fois gras. Johannes’ classically simple preparation of Fresh French Foie Gras seared with Onions and Sea Salt elicited several moans of pleasure from our party—all mine.
Dessert followed, and I did have a bite or two. But he had me at the fois gras. And what better ending to a completely fabulous meal than the last seductive sip of Dolce—liquid gold from Napa Valley.
