SLS Hotel @ Beverly Hills Trilogy, Last Chapter: SAAM

First Chapter:
http://foodmakesmehappy.blogspot.com/2010/07/sls-hotel-beverly-hills-trilogy-first.html

Second Chapter:
http://foodmakesmehappy.blogspot.com/2010/07/sls-hotel-beverly-hills-trilogy-second.html

10 p.m.

12th Course: Japanese Baby Peaches

The little green things are Japanese baby peaches, how cute is that?!
This dish was served with Burrata cheese,
It's a type of fresh Italian cheese,
Imagine the flavor of creamy Mozzarella cheese then you'll get how Burrata tastes like.

13th Course: Hot & Cold Foie Soup with Corn

Cold foam on the top and hot soup on the bottom,
Scoop your bite all the way down to the end and enjoy it all at once,
Nice contrast of flavors, 
The sweetness from the corn also has a strong presence in this dish,
Definitely my top three favorites of the night.

10:30 p.m.

14th Course: Norwegian Cigalas

The little cup in the back contains lobster head broth,
Intense flavor, almost comes with a wee bit bitterness,
Not a big fan of it.

15th Course: Not Your Everyday Caprese

Kind of like regular caprese reconstruction,
SAAM applied the same spherification technique here used for the black olives,
As a result, you get a small liquefied mozzarella cheese ball,
The sensation of cheese burst in your mouth is..."fun!"

16th Course: Kurobuta Pork Belly

Kuro means black, buta means pig/pork.
Served with honey lemon vinaigrette and baby vegetables,
Look at that baby zucchini flower, so adorable.

This dish is good, but I tried pork belly from Bouchon by Thomas Keller before,
His was better.

17th Course: Wagyu Beef Cheeks

The three highest quality beef from Japan are:
Wagyu, Kobe, and Matsusaka.
Wagyu and Kobe are more common in the United States,
I haven't really seen Matsusaka here yet (hopefully we'll get some soon, it's so yummy!).

This dish was served with passion fruit seed and pumpkin seed oil,
On the side, porcini onion and mandarin orange.
Meat itself was awesome, almost melt in your mouth,
Sauce-wise, so so, I couldn't get away with that sticky, oily texture on my tongue.

18th Course: Summer White Truffle Risotto

Extra order of the night since SAAM had white truffles from Italy that night,
Very "truffle-y" with al dente risotto.

11:30 p.m.

19th Course: Philly Cheesesteak

Served by a small bronze monkey.

The bread itself is very thin, with gooey cheese in the center,
Philly cheesesteak reinterpretation.

20th Course: Dragon's Breath Popcorn

Fun, fun, fun dish!
The waiter tossed the popcorn into nitrogen liquid,
Moments after, we were asked to chew it with our mouths closed immediately,
A mirror was also provided so we can have a good look of ourselves,
But why "dragon's breath?"

I think you get the idea here.

21st Course: Rose Clementine

Served with rose water foam,
Absolutely loved that foam.
I recalled that the "American Beauty" from Extraordinary Dessert in San Diego was one of my favorite drinks, and it was made with rose water also,
I think I'm just in love with rose water, such elegant aroma.

12...midnight

22nd Course: Lychee and Coffee

Coffee jelly on the bottom with lychee crumble and white chocolate.

23rd Course: Sexy Little Sweets

Little sweets infused with Saffron, passion fruits...
Up to this point, it was way passed midnight,
My stomach was full so pardon me,
I didn't even try all the bonbons from this plate...
This might be my first time say...too much sweet stuff...

My long 4 hours journey at SAAM came to an end,
And that doesn't include the time passed at Bar Centro before our dinner reservation,
Wanna try another 20-something courses tasting menu?
Nah...at least not within the next 6 months.

Cindy's Rating: 7

SAAM @ SLS Hotel
465 South La Cienega Boulevard
Los Angeles, CA 90048
http://www.slshotels.com/
http://www.sbe.com/sls/bazaar/