SOUTH of the border: K'u'uk

RER 2.8.13

What a culinary adventure; a restaurant trying out new techniques and combinations, while sticking to traditional roots and local ingredients. The restaurateur who owns K’u’uk, also has two other places in the city of Merida, and is on his way to reinventing the food scene and elevate regional cuisine, with an edge of refinement, modernity and innovation. Their vision is to recreate traditional Yucatan themes, recipes, and flavors in “new arrangements.”

RER 2.8.13

After being seated, and quietly handed menus, we were given a tall shot class of beet and tart orange juice. It was smooth light, and felt wet and thin, but cool and refreshing. The beautiful dark color of the juice, rich, echoed the color on the walls, just as dark but in a way warmer and redder. The smoothness of the juice was also present in the décor, almost tasteful, with a modest blend of contemporary and regional.

RER 2.8.13

We were even given an amuse bouche, delicate and artistic, and completely unexpected. It was textured, with a potato thin crisp, dotted with corn and local flavored creams, paying homage to the area, while bringing something new to the aesthetic. The flavors were dull, but the textures, the conflict of the thin crunch and the smooth and creamy was rather exciting.

RER 2.8.13

With guidance, we ordered three appetizers, a healthy blend of traditional and innovative. We experienced shrimp floating in a green colored bean soup, tickled with cilantro and cheese served with tiny rustic crunchy corn disks. The flavor was very mealy and heavy, typical of bean purees, but the sweetness of the shrimp played a rather sharp contrast. We also had a play on salad, with crisp dehydrated lettuce, warm baby potatoes, smooth avocado, acidic heirloom tomatoes, and creamy Ramonetti cheese. The dish was a jungle gym of bite size elements, varying in delicious texture and taste, combining to make something completely out of the ordinary with such plain, straightforward ingredients. The last appetizer was centered around baked pumpkin, and included the intrigue of plain tart yogurt, tangy goat cheese, dust-like almonds and orange orbs of sweet potato golden puree. This was disjointed and less refined in execution and flavor profile. Every element was decent on its own (the sweet sweet potato goodness, outstanding), but it was super difficult to put together and build a cohesive bite.

RER 2.8.13

The appetizers were mildly disjointed, but not dysfunctional; there was always some almost obvious way to combine all of the different elements, to make a bite that was truly inspiring and delicious.

RER 2.8.13

Next for entrees, we had meat, not a ton, but well prepared and satisfying in its excellence. The two steak entrees, one a rib eye and the other like fillet mignon, were served with just enough starch, to soak up the juices and the decadence of the beef. The rib eye came with a spattering of tomato gravy, which was hardly discernable, yet at the same time, would have been greatly missed, and a little bed of mashed cassava, just enough to satiate. The other steak came with ample seasoned till orange, spicy and crisp, almost too much and on the verge of overwhelming the fine tender cut of meat. The potatoes, however, ended up being addictive and stealing the limelight.

RER 2.8.13

The last meat entrée was described as hog jowl, annotated for my understanding as, really fatty pork. The pork was tender and salty, fatty but not uncomfortably so. It was luxurious, almost like a delicacy in the mouth, small slices enforced slow enjoyment. This entrée, however, did not come with enough accoutrements to cut the fat and vary the flavor. It came with some split cherry tomatoes, and thin lines of what felt like mashed potatoes, starchy and tangy. The two looked more like decoration than flavor and dish enhancement, though the acidity was welcome, breaking down the fattiness of the pork to something more relatable. 

RER 2.8.13

The downfall of the entrees I experienced was proportions, too much of some and too little of others, and emphasis was not always placed on the right element. Everything tasted and looked beautiful, there was no shortage of flavor and authenticity, just certain moments were over played.

The desserts, though, dallied in the realm of whimsical and playful, employing scientific techniques as well as familiar ingredients to create something completely imaginative and different.

RER 2.8.13

One of the desserts we tried involved a dark soil of burnt milk, lengthy cubes of rice pudding, a dollop of radish ice cream, with a single thin shave of candied radish. This was absolutely delicious, an image of a foreign planet, occupied and being discovered. It was also dully sweet in way, making each component blend in flavor but remain distinguished in texture; the fine crumble of the burnt milk, and the beads of rice in the rectangles of stiff pudding, the crunch of the little radish and micro green accents, and the blending smoothness of the ice cream, all played with the expectations of your mouth and mind.

RER 2.8.13

The other dessert though, was quite the opposite, relying on the savory sweet aspects of beets and yogurt, frozen and freeze dried with science and mystery. There were also intense moments of sweet bitterness of dark chocolate that crunched with coldness. This, though imaginative, did not tickle my sweet tooth, that wanted to be stroked with an after dinner dessert. It played into the dichotomy of many natural ingredients that we consume.

The whole experience was decadent and luxurious, from the décor and setting to the food and the flavors, ingredients and service. The chef and the vision of the restaurant emitted an invitation to play with your food, pick and combine to design your own kind of indulgence. Yet, each piece is placed methodically and chosen specifically for your plate, well curated but issuing freedoms at the same time. The creativity was really present in the appetizer and dessert courses, whereas the mains were traditional and almost standards. Both the appetizers and desserts were like building blocks, each element a step toward your own unique dining experience, no bite ever the same, making your meal completely different than your neighbor’s. It was fun and flavorful, different and evolving.

RER

3.3.13

RER 2.8.13