Every year, we look forward to the lovely fantasy dinner series at Elizabeth Restaurant! It's our only yearly splurge every year on dinner dates, as this dinner series features one of our favorite tv shows- Game of Thrones.
Last year, we had experienced the fantasy dinner series for the very first time and fell in love. You can find the article from last year here.
Being that they had 2 menus this year, we decided to try both menus - the King's Road (inspired by the type of food the characters might come across foraging and stopping at inns during their journeys), and the Kingdoms (inspired by food popular with the royalty of the seven kingdoms).
Among our favorite dishes from the King's Road were the oxtail cabbage wraps, which came with a flower-garnished dipping broth. The fermented carrot, topped with popped sorghum was an amazing and inventive appetizer before the bigger courses arrived, as was the pecan biscuit topped with fois gras and clover. The wild-picked ingredients really offered the feel of a dish one would eat while traveling.
For the Kingdoms course, our top pics included a dish made of thin-sliced turnips, which had a consistancy like pasta, flavored with ramp oil. As well, the amazing rose for lady Margaery, which was a rose made of pickled beets, prepared in a soy/wine reduction. As well, even the simple vegetable dishes were amazing. The asparagus with homemade hollandaise topped with lavendar was the best we had ever had.
In addition, we took the opportunity to add on an extra 3-part course representing the Iron Islands. Obviously, this was a seafood-heavy course, and it was amazing. All of the items were great, including the squid-ink pasta and caviar served in butter sauce, and the clams served in a dashi broth and calamansi vinegar. We especially liked the squash-flower fritters, stuffed with mascarpone, chives, and salmon roe that came served on a piece of driftwood.
Not that the rest of the meal wasn't absolutely amazing. Here are some images of the many other courses and drinks we enjoyed that evening, including a "milk of the poppy" sorbet, lemon cakes for Lady Sansa, and a dish of "strawberries and sweet grass":
Of course, the decor of the restaurant complemented the meal that we had. Elizabeth Restaurant was transformed into a beautiful space reminiscent of Game of Thrones.
We had a few moments to speak with Chef Iliana Regan - owner of Elizabeth Restaurant and Kitsune. She said that out of all of the food served in that night's service, her favorite was the turnip "rose" dish inspired by Lady Margaery Tyrell and dinner of onions--a King's Road dish that featured stuffed onions in a French Onion broth.
Last year, we dined in a communal setting, but the staff at Elizabeth later discovered that it takes too long to serve the diners wiht such a set up. Game of Thrones has been the favorite fantasy dinner series among customers, so they now offer it twice a year during spring and fall. But you need to hurry and get tickets to this dinner series for the next few years. Chef Iliana will only be doing the Game of Thrones fantasy dinner series for as long as the show is running.
Later this August, Chef Iliana Regan's new restaurant, Kitsune. Kitsune is inspired by home-style Japanese cooking. This will be incorporated with Midwestern ingredients and seasonings.
