Alinea: More Complete Account, Part 7

[Tyler] I already talked about part of this course in a previous post. Our sommelier brought this to the table, looking exactly as it is in this picture. He said the first element was hot, and he would be pouring cold rhubarb juice over it (in the shot glass on the left).

"See if you can identify what the warm ball is," he said, as he poured the juice. I shot mine, and immediately recognized my favorite vegetable -- beet. The beet and rhubarb was a great combination. In fact, I think Rob may be working on a beet-rhubarb dessert idea, inspired by this course.

The other six items were variations on the rhubarb theme. Eaten from left to right, they were: Crispy rhubarb "leather," possibly freeze-dried. A piece of candied rhubarb, served on a pin (they liked using these pins for small items to be eaten by hand). A rhubarb mousse served on a curry leaf -- I don't remember what the little crystallized pieces were in that bite, but we scraped it off the leaf with our teeth, which was fun. Coconut and rhubarb with a sprig of mint (I think). Rhubarb ice cream, skewered on a longer pin. And, finally, a more-complex bite, with a foam and a sprig of dill (?) on top.

The last bite was served on a "monocle" (their name for it), which was intended to be scooped into the mouth like an oyster on the half shell. It seems to me, we had an earlier course on a monocle. I remember the look of it on the black table, and I remember wondering how to eat it. However, that course didn't show up on menu, and I've lost the complete memory of it. Hmm. At any rate, I already knew what to do with a monocle when this course came around.

Update: Rob just called me and reminded me where we saw the monocle earlier in the meal. In the octopus course, our server brought us a monocle before the young man brought the bowl. The monocle was where we placed our fork, after we ate the octopus and before we drank the soy milk.