Grano

We were initially planning to go to another steakhouse yet again, but to our dismay, they were closed. I was very hungry, so we decided to try an Italian place I'd been meaning to try out - Grano!

Open kitchen with a chef that has blatantly copied my hairstyle...

We went for the lunch course:

The antipasto was a Japanese Amberjack carpaccio. Perhaps not the most traditional fish for carpaccio, but it was delicious nevertheless. I hear this fish is in season now, which is probably why it tasted so great. The amberjack's taste combined very well with the shallots, capers, and vinegar.

Mmm... raw fish with shallots and capers.

We went for the pizza and pasta of the day for the main course. The pizza of the day was a margherita pizza with buffalo mozzarella. I am normally not a fan of tomatoes in general, but the taste of tomatoes in this pizza was spectacular, both for the sauce and the sliced cherry tomatoes on top. I can finally understand what people mean when they refer to cherry tomatoes as sweet. It was slightly cooked, so it didn't have the raw tomato texture that I can't stand, but it wasn't mushy. Just incredibly delicious.

Mozzarella will never be the same...

The pasta of the day was, for me, the highlight of the meal. There is just something about the combination of slightly undercooked eggs paired with truffle that is irresistible. It reminded me of the tagliolini that I had at Vía Veneto in Barcelona earlier this year. I wish I could say more about this dish, but you have to try it for yourself - words don't do it justice.

Lost for words...

The dessert was almond canoli - crunchy on the outside and rich and decadent inside... how it should be.

The only thing I would change is the coffee. I was expecting an espresso, this being an Italian restaurant and all, but we got a watered down coffee instead. But honestly, at this point I was so utterly satisfied with the meal that I let that slide.

Crunchy canoli and watery coffee

Overall, fantastic meal, and great value. I will definitely be back for more to try their dinner menu as well as a la carte items.

[Ep.1] The barn prime steak house

이방인님을 따라 스테이크 먹으러 ㄱㄱ~~

가는 길 날씨도 따땃하고 기분좋앙~~ 룰루랄라~~

런치타임에 가서 그런지 우리 외 딱 한테이블!

그분들 가시고 나서는 우리가 레스토랑 렌트한 기분으로 식사했다

식전빵!

겨울됐다고 배려해주신건가?👀

내가 따뜻한 빵을 좋아하는걸 아시고 식을까봐 그러실걸까..?

빵이 엄청 뜨거워서 마치 방금 삶은 고구마 껍질을 까듯이

들었다 내렸다 하며 빵을 뜯었다...ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

하지만 끝까지 따뜻하게 빵을 먹을수 있었다 감사합니당당

저기 가운데 있는 소스는 엔초비랑 올리브가 들어간 소스

나는 딱 한입 먹고 안먹어서 맛이 기억안난다... 버터는 맛있었다

그다음 에피타이저~

위에는 비프 카파초 아래는 하몽이 들어간 야채아 과일 샐러드

비프카파초는 아삭아삭 야채와 소스와 고기가 어우러진 적당하게 맛있는 맛!

대충 감이 오시나용?

하몽은!

나는 먹을 때 마다 처음 먹는 음식 처럼 새롭게 느껴지는데 이유는 특별히 모르겠다

하몽같은 촉감의 음식이 낯설어서 그런건가

하지만 일단 기름이 적당하게 혀에서 녹고 약간의 짭잘한 맛과 약간의 느끼한 맛이 섞이고 나면 특이하게 자꾸자꾸 먹고싶게 만드는 묘한 맛이 있다.

오늘의 스프!

버섯으로 만든 스프!

버섯향이 가득 퍼지는 맛! 살짝 짭잘

생각해보니 짜다면서 싹싹 다 먹었으면 맛있는거다!ㅋㅋ

여기까지는 특별함은 없었지만

다 맛있게 먹기는 했다

하.지.만

스테이크는 정말 짱짱!!!

사진보니깐 지금 또 먹고싶네!!!!!!!

사진을 발로 찍은것 처럼 찍어 맛을 전하지 못해 아쉽다..

둘 다 너~~~~~무너무 맛있었다

첫번째 사진이 안심스테이크(미디움레어)

고기가 입에서 스스륵 녹는 것처럼 부드러웠다 보들보들

소스를 곁들여서 먹으면 더 맛있다

두번째는 드라이에이징 뉴욕스트립 스테이크(미디움레어)

이건 정말 눈물이 나는 스테이크

넘 맛있어서 눈물이 ㅠㅠㅠㅠ 진짜 울진 않았지만

겉은 바삭하고 속은 쫄깃?하면서 부드러우면서 고기맛이 촤악~~

아스파라거스도 맛있고 정말 짱짱짱짱

꼬옥! 드셔보시길 바랍니다

마지막 디저트!

라바케잌!

이건 10개정도 집에 싸와서 매 끼마다 먹고싶을 정도로 맛있었다

라바케잌과 그 안에 초코랑 바닐라 아이스크림

시원하고 달콤하고 정말 최고!!

티라미수

맛있었다! 티라미수는 대부분 맛있는것 같다

맛있었다 외에 별로 할말없다..ㅋㅋ

라바케잌 짱짱

디저트와 함께 음료 선택도 가능하다

티와 커피가 있었던 것 같다

 스테이크와 디저트로 정말 행복했다

행복한 식사시간 끄읕!😊😋

The Barn Prime Steakhouse - ENG

Sometime this year, I made the decision to reduce my meat intake, not because of ethical reasons or health reasons, and much less because it's the trendy thing to do, but rather due to environmental reasons. The rationale behind both sides of the argument has been widely debated, but this is not the point of this post. The point is, I knew I would not be able to swear off meat entirely. Why? Because I love a good piece of medium rare steak. And sometime last week it dawned me... I hadn't had a steak in a while, to the point that I can't remember when the last time was. So we decided to pay a visit to The Barn Prime Steakhouse, located in what is undoubtedly the fanciest part of town, Cheongdam (near Apgujeong Rodeo Station). I don't like large crowds, so we went there at lunch time on a weekday. We were welcomed by a very cozy ambiance and nice interior, with part of a wall displaying their cuts of meat being dry-aged.

Unfortunately, it didn't occur to me that I should take a picture of the meats being dry aged, but you can see part of it in this picture, on the right hand side. Having visited at lunch time, we decided to go for the prix fixe course. I have been known to spend extravagantly on food, but this time I decided to be a little more frugal (relatively speaking, as a 39,000\ + 8,000\ per person meal is still considered quite pricey for most).
On to the food... For starters, we chose a Beef Carpaccio with shallot dressing and Jamón Serrano with cherry tomato confit and orange salsa.

Jamón serrano, or Serrano jamón, according to the menu...

Beef carpaccio 

While not a bad start, I felt there was nothing really special about both of these dishes. I love carpaccio, but this one was a little too... mild? Underwhelming? I'm not even sure what would best describe it, but it was nothing to write home about. As for the jamón, I tend to prefer ibérico over serrano, but I always keep an open mind. The jamón was pretty good, but the salsa accompanying it was too sweet to the point that it overshadowed the jamón, at least to my palate. Admittedly, I am not a big fan of sweetness in foods that are not dessert.

Next up was the Soup of the day, which happened to be a mushroom soup.

This was absolutely delicious. It hit the right notes in my taste buds, with the earthy flavor of the mushroom balanced by the richness of butter and the delicate spice of the black pepper, not to mention the crunch of the croutons. My only regret is that I didn't take longer to savor this, as I devoured it in no time.

And now, the stars of the show...

Prime beef tenderloin steak

Dry aged NY strip loin steak

Oh my... if I had to choose one out of the two, I couldn't. It's like a kid being asked if they like mom or dad better. Chocolate or vanilla. Left eye or right eye.

The strip loin had this smoky flavor exploding in my mouth, but this is the sensation that makes me come back for more. The tenderloin had a texture that felt like a piece of heaven, so tender it just melted as I bit into it. Medium rare steak, I had missed you more than I realized.

Now, onto dessert...

 Tiramisu

Dark chocolate lava cake with vanilla ice cream

Both of these were delicious, but personally I felt there was a bit too much cocoa powder on the tiramisu. In other words, my palate enjoyed it, but my throat did not. The lava cake, on the other hand, total home run. No more words needed. You just gotta try it.

Overall, I enjoyed my visit to The Barn, and I will definitely be back, this time to try the dinner food. If I have to sell some organs to pay for it, why not? I will also post my thoughts about this meal earlier, closer when I eat it so I can describe it better.

Later Alligator!