Rob Power
Google
This completely vegan no-compromise dinner at Antonio Chiodi Latini was without a doubt the best meal I had on this trip. I got the 9-experiences with the 4-glasses pairing, and my companion had the 7-experiences with a single glass. We both were thoroughly impressed with everything. One of the two extras I got was a nod to molecular gastronomy, with some pods that I think were freeze-dried that you dip in different varieties of olive oil. Think freeze-dried astronaut ice cream, but with flavors like zucchini, sweet potato, radish, and artichoke. Interesting, but I'd not get the 9-experiences a second time just for that. But the other "extra" that I got, and my friend did not, was some little stuffed pasta with this amazing vegetable jus that made me wonder at the chef's ability to get flavor like that out of vegetables. The risotto was perfect, without a drop of cream, the smoked asparagus soup was somehow impossibly just as good as the artichoke soup at a famous place we visited the prior week, and the dessert (main ingredients were strawberries and cucumber cream in a piped almond milk cream cup) and after-dinner drink similar to gin and tonic were sublime.
My dinner companion pointed out that the mung bean pasta at the start, as well as the bamboo dish, had strong Asian fusion influences. The potato with spice powders and artichoke with mousse dishes were unlike anything I've ever had and seemed completely original. The one topped with crisp zucchini flowers confused me for a second as it was coming toward the table, because the presentation resembled prawns.
I've yet to find anything close to this at home. It was a real treat.