Maison Nivel

Our Rating: 10

Date Visited: December 2018

Reservations: Dream on

Chargrilled Three inch cut USDA prime ribeye basted with olive oil, rosemary and garlic in a red wine reduction, Himalayan salt and freshly cracked pepper.

Served by the Chef-owner of Nivel with precision and loving care.

Restraint is the basis of his philosophy. Start with the very best ingredients, intervene as little as possible. This type of cuisine is very simple, and thus, very hard to do. There is nowhere to hide. Material, timing, skill, all must be in sync. The result is nothing short of purist perfection. Perfection derived from long and repeated practice. Restraint including allowing the meat to rest before cutting it. Of using only very little salt. The chef’s thinking is not unlike that of a well trained sushi chef. The result: a crisp chargrilled exterior with a rare soft interior. The meat’s natural flavours lightly infused with the scent of rosemary and garlic. Of perfectly edible soft fat. And a razor thin edge of crisp succulent char.

Furthering the practice of restraint, no other dishes were served. No potatoes, no vegetables, only an equally spectacular bottle of wine.

Considered one of Spain’s finest wine’s, Vega Sicilia’s Unico Reserva Especial, a blend of 1996, 1998 and 2002. Bottled only in years that justify the name. Aged for years before release. And though it could have been bottle aged for another 20 or 30 years, with its hints of balsamic, charcoal, chocolate, prunes and dark cherries, it complemented the steak perfectly.

This steak can rival Peter Luger’s in New York, And is an interpretation as purist as Aragawa's in Tokyo.

Each of us ate and drank slowly and deliberately. Knowing the quantity was limited, the opportunity rare, we tried our best to savour and extend the moment as long as possible.

The monastic location, the hidden approach, the chef’s thoughtful adjustment of the lighting and music to suit our mood and personalities, his personally serving and joining us for the meal (he eats his own cooking) — with Ella Fitzgerald against a soft backlit glow playing in the background — visiting Maison Nivel is an experiential pilgrimage to a temple of competence. One that we would gladly make again.