Block Printing Dinner @ Café Carmellini
Last week, I had the pleasure of dining at Café Carmellini and enjoyed the Chef’s Table experience for dinner! During the meal, I attempted for the first time to carve a block print right at the restaurant.
I made “Baby Oyster” in honor of their signature Oysters à la Pomme. It was, without a doubt, the most delicious oyster bite I’ve ever had!
Oysters à la Pomme features a pearl made out of Granny Smith sorbet, combined with tiny diced Granny Smith apple chunks and topped with a concentrated chive oil.
Oysters à la Pomme @ Café Carmellini
Chef’s Table Experience
The Chef’s Table at Café Carmellini means you literally eat in the kitchen! Instead of sitting in the general area of the restaurant (which is absolutely stunning) — the Chef’s Table is an intimate corner of the kitchen where you have a clear view of all the food as its made.
There is a special kind of charm to witness the behind-the-scenes of dishes and their creation. You can really feel the focused energy of the chefs in the kitchen, and it only added to my enjoyment to see all the care they put into the food.
sketch of my view at the Chef’s Table!
Throughout the evening it was bite-after-bite of yummmmm! I can’t put into words how fantastic the flavor combinations were, you’d just have to try it!
After savoring these dishes, I thought it couldn’t get any better! To my surprise, the desserts were completely in a league of their own.
I nearly cried eating their decadent chocolate cake, decorated with chocolate petals and filled with velvety goodness inside! Only to then fall in-love with the simple, but pure, tart Olive Oil & Sorrento Lemon Coppa.
They were so kind to include a few extra treats at the end, to which I’m shocked at how much flavor they could pack into bites so small!
I can’t say enough good things here — thank you so much chefs!
Throughout the dinner, the waitstaff were personable, kind, and attentive — pretty much all you could ask for! A few of them would stop by to look at my sketches or ask questions, and I enjoyed this banter very much.
All in all, I can’t recommend Café Carmellini enough! The experience is truly such a treat, from beginning to end.
On the Oyster…
I felt particularly charmed by this dish, it was so simple — yet the most surprising. I mean, who knew Granny Smith apples and seafood could go together so well?!
It was such a pleasure to work on my craft alongside chefs in the kitchen. After carving the block (and doing a few test prints) at the restaurant, I went home and printed “Baby Oyster” with the proper supplies. I had an unopened tube of Phthalo Blue paint that turned out to be the perfect shade for this piece.
The kintsugi beauty of Oysters
The kintsugi philosophy is rooted in finding beauty where we expect none — yet, if we look closely enough, we discover that it exists all around us.
One thing that struck me, was how the image of a pearl harboring oyster can be interpreted as a visual definition of kintsugi. The pearl only exists because of an irritant, because of repair formed around something foreign.
The oyster makes beauty from disruption.
And somehow, I felt validated in this observation — that I too, like nature, will continue to repair and evolve over the course of my own life. That one day, these layers will compound and solidify, until a shimmering pearl is left in the end ♥︎
