All of us here in central MA already know that Picasso's Ari is Worcester's best chef, but now he's going to have a chance to prove it. I got a preview of his entry in the
Worcester's Best Chef competition, which he is perfecting as an appetizer this week. It's classic Ari: Lamb, Goat Cheese, Pomegranate Seeds and a few hundred other flavors all exploding in sequence like the Pops fireworks display. I have no doubt that this entry should win. Whether it does or not depends on factors beyond anyone's control, but here's hoping.
When the small town I grew up in was graced by the entry of a famous Detroit restauranteur, it led to a marked increase in the number of restaurant options. Place after place popped up to handle the runoff of people who didn't want to wait an hour to be seated. It hasn't happened in Barre yet, but I think it could, and Ari getting some big-time media certainly couldn't hurt.
The big surprise last night was a seafood Dim Sum. Well, that's what Ari called it, but he conveniently ignored the definition of that term. There was no tea. The portions were not small. The preparation was not Cantonese. What we had was actually an oversized east-west fusion seafood sampler. Mussels with a peanut curry preparation. Tuna and Picasso's trademark enormous fresh scallops, both blackened in some crazy spice mix. A lobster wonton that was out of this world. (Cherie and I were splitting this ensemble, and there was only one wonton, so we had to cut it in half. In retrospect, I should have arm wrestled her for the whole thing.) And a huge pile of soba noodles with a peanut preparation, and a completely unwieldy watercress salad. It was stunning.
Last night's cocktails were a mixed bag. There are some exceptional new drinks on the menu: The Spiced Apple Martini is a whiskey-based drink which isn't my usual cup of tea, but the fruit takes it in a distinctly fresh direction that I really enjoyed. For after dinner (definitely not before!) there is the Nutty Carmel Martini, which tastes a whole lot like one of those complicated Starbucks concoctions, although there isn't any coffee in it. It is built on Godiva Caramel, which was introduced in October, 2007, and has managed to evade detection until now. I look forward to seeing this in more cocktails in the future. On the down side, I got a preview of the cranberry infusion they have in the pipeline. At least they said it was cranberry, but Ari & Phil had dosed the thing with so many sweet flavors, all I could taste was Hawaiian Punch. (Just to be clear: I'm sure that wasn't an actual ingredient.) I hope they go back to the drawing board on that one and try something a little more subtle. Perhaps they could hire Andrew for a couple hours of consulting. :)
At the end of the night, Ari twisted my arm until I'd try the goat cheese cheesecake. Yes, that wasn't a typo. I'm all for trying strange food, so I wasn't averse to the idea. I was just full. However, when a cheesecake with raspberry coulis and a caramel drizzle is placed in front of you by the proprietor, full is not an option. I wish I could say that the introduction of goat cheese into a cheesecake is a masterstroke, but, in fact, if he hadn't told me, I never would have guessed that it was there. It was just a damn fine cheesecake. Not dense, not crumbly, just the way cheesecake should be. And thankfully, there was nothing swirled into it (I hate that). If he still has some left, don't let the goat cheese scare you. Put some of your dinner in a to-go box, so you have room to try it. As you might expect from Ari, the portion is easily big enough for sharing.
Picasso will be closed this week for their usual January break. Nice timing to let Ari get 1000 samples of lamb magic ready for the big show.
Let's hope Worcester's best chef gets the recognition he deserves next Sunday.