Is This 'Chika' Worthy?

Pastry Shop: ChikaLicious

Website: www.chikalicious.com

Location: 203 E 10th Street

Phone: N/A

Price Range: $$$$

Choices: White Chocolate Mousse Napoleon with Pistachio Wafer and Concord Grape Sorbet; Fromage Blanc Island "Cheese Cake"; Warm Chocolate Tart with Pink Peppercorn Ice Cream and Red Wine Sauce; (And wine pairings)

For this week, I chose this destination because when I first created this blog ideally I wish to learn all I can learn about pairings of desserts with coffee, and/or wines. ChikaLicious is a dessert bar, which offers this unique service of coupling flavor combinations of desserts with wines. Their menu gives you the option of ordering single dessert choices or ordering the prix fix, which is $16 (+$8 with a wine pairing).

My friends and I had difficulty finding our way there; making our way around streets and avenues we finally found it. It was hidden on a quiet street, with a small signage engraved on the door indicating we were at the right place. We stepped into a very intimate, modern, clean, chic restaurant with an organized open kitchen. In the background you can hear Jazz music and the low mumble conversations of the guests, chefs, and servers. We were not greeted immediately; first we had to seat ourselves. We sat next to the entrance to the kitchen, which was the only table available at the time out of the three tables. The table was set for two. Chef Chika noticed right away that there were going to be a third person, she then came over and set the table for three and to place down the menus. This shows her attentiveness towards her guests. Minutes after, one of the chefs came over, introduced himself and asked if we had any questions regarding the menu. We went ahead to place our orders.

Before I go ahead and describe the flavor components of the Amuse, I would like to take this opportunity to define it for those who are not aware of what it is. A amuse is a pre-appetizer prepared by the chef to appease the guest while waiting, usually it consists no more than two bites. The individually prepared delight is a Bourbon Molasses floating on Espresso Jelly. It served its purpose with its light and refreshing taste, tickling our taste buds making us look forward to what was coming.

The White Chocolate Mousse Napoleon with Pistachio Wafer and Concord Grape Sorbet was my dessert entrée. When it arrived I was a bit a taken back by the plates used. However, the plating itself had balance amongst the colors. Overall the fruity flavor combinations along with the creamy white chocolate, and tart pistachio wafers mingled well with the fruitful Moscato d’Asti, Bricco Quaglia 2010. When it came to fruity flavors I think the Concord Grape Sorbet takes the win. It was the epitome of grapes with its sweet and flavorful juices.

Due to the excessively small portion size, I was not able to fully taste any of my friend’s menu choices therefore I entrust them to give their honest and most professional opinion with their review. My friend’s review is as follows, “As for the Fromage Blanc Island “Cheese Cake” it was light, airy, and had a very bold cheesy flavor somewhat like a French cheese. The heavy cream that surrounded the cheesecake was an unexpected pairing; it cut through the richness of the cheesecake and gave it a tanginess that it needed. The plating was fun and unique. The wine Alvear Pedro Ximenez 2008, was sweet and have flavors of molasses, when combined with the cheesecake, it gave a dark tone to the lightness of the cheesecake. I wanted more, there was not enough.”

My best friend ordered the Warm Chocolate Tart with Pink Peppercorn Ice Cream and Red Wine Sauce. “The peppercorn ice cream very sweet, had a hint of peppercorn but not so much that it would overwhelm the sweetness of the ice cream. The chocolate tart was very warm and crispy, but there was too much chocolate sauce. The richness of the chocolate was too overpowering for the thin tart. Overall the chocolate tart did go very well with the peppercorn ice cream. It was a warm and cool feeling in your mouth.”

Shortly after the server cleared our entrée dishes, we were served the petit fours. There were three varieties; first was the coconut marshmallow, second was the chocolate genoise with chocolate whipped cream and chocolate crochet, and lastly is the gooseberry mascarpone. The gooseberry was very refreshing binding well with the buttery sweet cookie and the richness of the mascarpone. The toasted coconut shreds added a tropical uniqueness to the light, fluffy homemade marshmallows. The chocolate genoise was heavily punched with simple syrup to give it intense moisture. The dark chocolate whipped cream was a great addition to the cake because it evened out the levels of heaviness.

Overall, my friends and I came to a conclusion that the dessert bar was definitely worth a try but we probably will not be going back. The varieties of plates used for each dessert was indeed unique. Although, it was clear the designs of the plates had no connection to one another. As I have mentioned before, the portion sizes were not ideal. There was just not enough for the three of us to share our entrées with another to admire the wonderful artistry that she obviously worked hard on.

Mishii’s Rating: 7/10