Raest! (Day 2)

I just had a meal that I will remember for years to come! Years. The original plan for today was to drive to Sandoy in the morning and explore Torshavn in the afternoon followed by an early (6:00?) dinner reservation at Raest. Things did not go according to plan. 

My stomach was feeling uncooperative this morning and the weather forecast for the day was not good. We woke up to howling wind. It sounded like the wind was trying to break into the apartment. By late morning it was also raining and we decided to scrap our plan to drive to Sandoy. Instead we decided to explore Torshavn on foot, in the rain. 

During weekdays there are number of shops that are only open from 9:00, or 11:00, or 1:00 until 5:30. The entire town seems to shutdown at 5:30, except for the restaurants, which open at 6:00. Today was a day to explore the shops that we've missed the last two days because we were doing stuff in the middle of the day. 

We got plenty wet walking around town, but it honestly wasn't as bad as listening to the howling wind would lead you to believe. Without a doubt the highlight of the day was dinner. We had reservations at a restaurant called Raest which specializes in Faroese fermentation. 

I suspected we were in for a good time when we approached the restaurant and they identified us by name. It turns out we were only one of two couples dining this evening and dinner took us approximately four hours across 11 courses. I don't know if I can say enough good things about this meal. It was exquisite. 

The meal was rooted in the Faroe Islands celebrating the Faroese food ways, but it wasn't constrained by this idea. One of the chefs was from Mexico and worked in references to Mexican cuisine into the larger meal that were very successful. 

Every dish contained food that was fermented. This often included botanicals from the Faroe Islands that had been pickled or fermented. It also included blue muscle garum, and the undisputed star of the Faroese fermenting scene, fermented Faroese lamb leg. The temperatures are cool enough on the Faroes, and the wind salty and constant enough that if you hand a leg of lamb out the island will auto-ferment and jerky it for you. This time-honored method of food preservation is so engrained that our hosts provided us with a booklet of Faroese terms used to describe fermented food... the vocabulary is robust.  It's so common that we've seen it in the local grocery stores.

I got the wine paring and Dawn got the non-alcoholic pairing. Both were excellent. One could argue that the non-alcoholic paring was more impressive because it showcased the fermentation work of the restaurant more. However, the wine paring is one of the best I've had in some time, so no complaints here. 

The undisputed high point was an mid-meal plus up offering. Normally I despise offering diners truffles or some prestige ingredient in the middle of an already expensive tasting menu. In this case, they offered us a Saunterns to pair with a langoustine dish. The Saunterns was a rare vintage and the hook was they were one of a few "Lighthouse" restaurants charged with pairing the sweet wine with a savory dish. I ordered the wine because I've been infatuated with Saunterns since starting my WSET education. 

Oh man! I don't know how to describe this wine. The nose is intoxicating. The wine fills the mouth and the finish goes on and on and on. Dawn tried it and was equally impressed. I save a portion of the pour for the rest of the meal and we kept returning to it just to nose it. I have a feeling that I will be disappointed by Saunterns for the foreseeable future. 

One of the surprises of the evening was Sea Buckthorn. This shrub was described as "Nordic Passionfruit" and if I wasn't told otherwise, I would have thought it was passionfruit. I need more Sea Buckthorn in my life. Besides the lamb, seafood and buckthorn, which were incredible by the way, the stand out tonight was seaweed. The dishes showcased seaweed used in innovative ways and they were unanimously successful. 

Pulling a thread from the discussion we had with the tour guide at the Faer Isles Distillery yesterday was that the Faroe Islands have yet to develop their own cocktail culture. But the ingredients are all here. Like many places (e.g. the American south) unfortunate law have stunted the growth of unique drinking culture. But change is happening! They are staring to make Faroese spirits that I think hold great promise. The local botanicals of the islands hold are waiting to be incorporated into cocktails. I want to have a seaweed focused martini. The Sea Buckthorn yearns to be converted into a Sea Buckthorn Martini. Do I need to retire and move here to help make this happen? 

The potential and future trajectory are clear. Someone needs to open up a speakeasy or a Japanese inspired listening lounge and help bring about Faroese cocktail culture. Also, tonight's meals has reenforced the conviction which I already hold. I need to be fermenting more things all of the time. Ferments are good!