Lisa C.
Yelp
Long-Winded Long-Distance Review Time: Noja (Mobile, AL)
I have been in a slump lately with writing reviews. I lost my passion for food and the flavor to eat. I figured I needed to take a little road trip to hopefully excite my palate and jump start my devotion to write again. Does Noja and Chef Trey have what it takes to bring me back to life?
This restaurant kept popping up on my Facebook feed, so I decided to do a little research. All of the photos I saw of the food looked amazing, so I had to book reservations. Welcome to an elegant brick vintage décor restaurant. This is an amazing place just to enjoy an upscale meal or celebrate a birthday or anniversary. The service is beyond phenomenal here. All of the staff is southern style friendly and will wait on you hand and foot. Please forgive me once again, I can not remember the young lady who took care of us, but she was amazing. She made perfect suggestions for each course, but in all honesty, we were a party of 3; so we were going to try EVERTYHING!!!
I was so excited to get started, my mouth was watering and I was starting to perspire. Our choice of cocktails tonight were the strong and powerful Old Fashioned, delicious French Martini, and wonderful Blueberry Lemon Drop.
I will start by saying, before we get into our courses, this place has brought a culinary explosion to Mobile. Chef Trey has brought simplistic farm to table food and created phenomenal fundamental dishes. Every bite was perfectly seasoned and presented extraordinary flavor combinations to this elegant dining establishment. No stone was left unturned by Chef Trey's line tonight!
To begin, we tried this buttery Seared Duck Foie Gras, which was accompanied by a strawberry puree and a crispy crostini. The restaurant also provides you with their fresh baked baguette, which we used for the foie gras also. But the baguette is served with this beautifully whipped deliciously creative honey basil butter. The smooth creamy bacon Cauliflower Soup was delectable. And this is by far the best Braised Pork Belly I have ever had in my life that absolutely melted in your mouth, and was served along side this fresh corn watermelon salad. The Shrimp and Scallops were amazing on top of creamy parmesan grits with a light port wine cream sauce.
I don't think I have ever had a salad this amazing with the most fresh and clean produce. We tried all three of the salad options and not one of them disappointed. The Summer Salad had the sweetest watermelon and strawberries, and was topped with a wonderful slightly sweet and acidic strawberry dressing. The Spinach Salad had bacon, shallots, and blue cheese, and had the best bacon vinaigrette I have ever tried. The Burrata Salad was a smooth creamy delight, especially paired with these baby heirloom tomatoes.
I didn't think tonight's food could surprise me anymore, until the entrées came out. Beautiful, delicious, simplistic dishes, and perfected with skillful kitchen technique! The Lamb Chops were cooked a perfect medium rare, seasoned perfectly, and extremely tender; and was paired with a beautiful slightly sweet port wine reduction. The Dry Aged Sous Vide Pork Chop was massive, extremely moist, and went wonderfully with a delicious ginger sweet garlic pan a jus. The pan seared fresh Panko Crusted Halibut was light and flakey and beyond exceptional. For our sides we decided to try all they had, which were probably some of the best potatoes ever. Tonight, the entrees could be served with the combination of mashed potato and sweet potato infused with truffle oil, which was a beautiful flavor explosion. Or you could get the best par boiled, extra crispy skinned, deep fried potatoes with coarse sea salt. Then you could choose from the amazing char roasted brussel sprouts or the deliciously garlic tender asparagus.
Still room for dessert? You bet there was, because I took home to-go boxes. I refused to leave here without trying something, since all of the other courses were so exceptional. The Flourless Chocolate Torte was moist and served with the most amazing coffee caramel sauce, and was sprinkled with a little sea salt to heighten the flavor. It has been so long since I have had a perfect Crème Brule and thank you to the patisserie tonight for blessing me with this quintessential tempered dessert. The crispy sugar coating, warm outer layer of crème with a cool center, and perfectly creamy custard texture was flawless.
Overall Review: 210% worth every penny and the hour drive to enjoy this restaurant...I can not wait to come back and try what is on the menu next...This restaurant is now in my top 5, since Troubadour has closed its doors. Do yourself a favor and treat yourself to this drive and satisfy your palate!!! It was an absolute pleasure to dine here tonight!!!