Disappointing New Year’s Eve dinner: Restaurant Azahar @ Hospes Las Casas Del Rey De Baeza (31. December 2019)
Let’s say, I had high hopes for the “NYE dinner” (EUR 100.00) incl. wines (EUR 35.00) but I was not entirely happy with the experience. The starter consisted of “pickled scallop in grapefruit with herring caviar” which looked nice but frankly, pickled scallop isn’t really my thing.
Now, before we continue, I have to make it clear that I had specifically asked the kitchen to speed the dinner up a bit so I would be done before the expected midnight bells. However, they took it very literal and made sure that almost all courses had been served within one hour. Which seemed a bit off. However, my request, so not going to complain about that.
The next course was “crispy cashew foie mi cuit with cherry and Modena vinegar sauce” which was okay but frankly, not really to my liking.
The “duck ravioli in its juice with Cádiz blue cheese and dried tomato” looked lovely and was actually also rather tasty in terms of the perfectly al dente cooked raviolo as well as the intensity of the blue cheese sauce. However, the fact that the raviolo was only semi-warm when served, wasn’t really what I wanted / had expected. I get it, I asked you to rush so you rush. But preparing dishes that far in advance so they are almost cold when they are served isn’t what I expect for a EUR 100.00 meal.
The “cream of shrimp, its tortilla and chamomille foam from Sanlúcar” was semi-enjoyable as it was lukewarm. I somehow like soups warm or even hot. And not like they’ve been sitting around for half an hour.
The “roasted pink sea bream with mashed peppers, almonds and baby squid” was enjoyable. The fish was good, the fried baby squid rich (although there was more batter than squid) but overall a good dish.
Luckily, the main course, the “loin beef with candied garlic praline, Amanitas mushrooms and truffle potatoes” was very enjoyable as the meat was prepared perfectly according to request and the quality of the meat was also exquisite, making it actually (surprisingly) the highlight of the meal.
The “Brandy sponge cake, hazelnut ice cream, orange peel and pine nuts” was a good ending to the dinner.
The atmosphere of the Azahar restaurant is okay but not great. And with regards to the service I would like to point out two characters. On the one hand side, the chef the service who made it possible that my dinner was sped up but had a very unpleasant and unfriendly attitude. On the other hand, an elderly waiter who really did an amazing job and was super friendly and helpful at all times! That’s the kind of service which is memorable and enjoyable! Thank you!
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Contact Details:
Restaurant Azahar @ Hospes Las Casas Del Rey De Baeza
Plaza Jesús de la Redención 2
41003 Sevilla (E)
Tel.: +34 954 56 14 96
Fax: +34 954 561 441
E-Mail: reydebaeza@hospes.com
Homepage: https://www.hospes.com/en/casas-rey-baeza/