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By Michele Kinnon
"Unique."
If I had a dollar for every time a friend described a resort, a restaurant, a
menu as "unique" ...well, let's just say I would be a wealthy woman. Of
course it's "unique," I thought. No resort, restaurant or menu
concept is exactly like any other. What she was trying to express to me was
that this place was special, somehow better than anything we had seen before.
Rob and I were planning to celebrate our seven-year "Mexi-versary"
and struggling to find just the right place to spend a special evening, just
the two of us. We wanted to try something new and fabulous and, after living on
the Riviera Maya for seven years, that has become a tall order for us to fill.
My friend was eager to recommend her new favorite dining experience at a newly renovated
resort close to Playa del Carmen, so we followed her lead and reserved our spot
for the special Chef's Table Dining Experience at The Tides Riviera Maya.
(This review is an except from Michele's Blog - enjoy the whole story by clicking here.)
... We
bid goodbye to our guide and settled in at a cozy poolside table for two
with
nothing, save a few palm trees, between us and the sea. All around us
luminaria cast their warm glow creating islands of light in the
darkness.
Executive Chef Jetzabel Rojas came out to greet us personally and
explain how
the tasting menu would proceed. She was so gracious and enthusiastic
about her cuisine;
we couldn't help but be excited ourselves! The Chef's Table Experience
at The
Tides features seven signature dishes, each expertly paired with a
premier
Mexican wine. The courses are served at a relaxed pace and at no time
did we
feel rushed or pressured to finish off our generous servings of wine.
Our
bi-lingual sommelier was very knowledgeable about the wine pairings and
was
able to tell us about each of the producers, the growing region and the
varietals. He was delighted to discover that Rob and I have attended
numerous
wine tastings featuring Mexican wines and could fully appreciate the
quality of
the wines that had been thoughtfully selected from the resort's 500
bottle wine
cellar.
 We
began our dining experience with a selection of warm homemade rolls and a
flavorful compound butter whipped with cream cheese. From there, we savored a
delicate tuna tartar drizzled with olive oil made by Santa Tomas and served atop a crisp pita chip. This was paired with
a bright sparkling wine from Freixenet.
Braised short-rib tortellini followed in an unctuous gravy-like sauce served
with Rogata Sauvignon Blanc from Baja
Sur, an unusual wine that tasted more like a viogner than a traditional sauv.
blanc but matched well with the tuna. Next, a fresh green salad was served with
a more conventional citrusy Sauvignon Blanc
from Casa Madero. A rich roasted
"Indio" tomato soup was brought out, matched with Casa Madero's "V", a slightly
sweet blush wine made from 100% Cabernet Sauvignon grapes left on the skin just
long enough to impart a bit of color. The boquinete, pan seared and finished in
the oven, came next, moist and crispy all at once, seasoned on the skin side
only and served with a savory cilantro sauce and the tiniest pattypan squash I
have ever seen. This too was successfully paired with the Casa Madero "V". From crispy fish, we moved on to the
duck, two medallions of medium rare breast meat with perfectly rendered crispy
skin served atop a delicate cauliflower puree. A dollop of warm pumpkin mousse
and white corn with fresh farmers cheese were offered on the side. The wine
pairing for this was the Viña
Doña Dolores Crianza, a Cabernet Sauvignon from Freixenet. All the while, servers slipped quietly in and out of the
darkness, adjusting table settings, decanting bottles, replacing wine glasses,
serving and clearing plate after plate of the Chef Jetzabel's culinary
creations. Each dish was beautifully presented and delicately seasoned with
nuances demonstrating an unusual maturity from such a young Chef.
 Finally,
our desserts were placed before us. We were surprised to discover a soft ancho
chile filled with guava paste placed on a swath of sweetened pasillo chile
sauce. This was served with a scoop of house-made caramel ice cream and a
generous pouring of Xtabentún,
a liqueur made from honey and anise and produced exclusively in the Yucatán.
The juxtaposition of sweet and spicy was heavenly, a master artist's
palette of flavors and colors, the perfect end to a magnificent dining
experience.
It's
been quite a while since Rob and I have come across a place that we both could
really rave about, a place that offers a dining experience we enjoy so
thoroughly that we found ourselves eager to return to. When you find yourself
torn between wanting to invite all your friends and wanting to keep it a well-guarded
secret, you know you are onto something special. The food was honest and
restrained and free from any gimmicks or trendy cooking trickery. The plates
were well balanced, the flavors were pronounced without hitting you over the
head with any one element. The service was smooth and unobtrusive and the
atmosphere unsurpassed.
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