The Top 100 List: #100 Z Cuisine’s “Assiette de Charcuterie Maison”
Z Cuisine’s “Assiette de Charcuterie Maison”
Location: Highlands
Rating: 7 (out of 10)
Price: $20
The Skinny: So… here we are, folks: #100. No doubt I will have a few lists coming up in the posts ahead -best this, best that, overpriced here, awful there. When I make a “best overall restaurant” list, Z Cuisine will surely be on it. Their charcuterie was an excellent note to end on.
The list of elements on the plate bears mentioning, so here it is:
- House made Long’s farm pork shoulder rillettes
- Pâté de Campagne ‘Country Pâté’ ,
- local & French artisan cheese
- accompaniments of red onion confiture
- caramelized shallots
- seasonal chutney
- candied pecans
- imported saucisson sec
- pickled cornichons
- marinated olives
- house crackers
You might think with a list of components this long, you’d forgive the chef if one or two weren’t quite up to the rest. Not the case at Z – every bit of it was good. From the chutney to the Pate. And they balanced well with each other – one complimenting or adding another layer to the next. To borrow a description I read recently, it was more like a chord than a series of individual strings. Very, very good.
Finally, I’d like to give justice to this new gem in Denver – the place was truly excellent. Warm, comfortable feel, almost as if you’re eating in a French relative’s kitchen. And the rest of the food after the charcuterie was incredible. The duck skin in my Cassoulet might have been the most delicious thing I’ve eaten in this entire journey. No joke. The memory of the amazing flavor has stayed with me for weeks. Probably one of the top 3-4 restaurants in Denver right now.
AGREE OR DISAGREE?
February 12th, 2010 at 6:40 am
Great review as always. I must say I looked forward to your thoughts on the top list. Not sure if you are going to be doing any more random reviews or not, but if I might suggest one, Table 6, while their menu changes often, I beg of you to try to get there to try their, pork rinds wrapped in prosciutto, drizzled with olive oil and black salt. I am a cow lover not a pig lover, yes, I admitted it, but this dish would make anyone swoon, salty, crunch and shockingly not greasy. A marriage of all things good in your mouth…..a must try. Hope to see more of your reviews, regardless.
Happy Eating!
February 12th, 2010 at 4:23 pm
Jen,
Thank you for the support and encouragement. The way you describe the dish at Table 6, it sounds amazing. I will definitely try it.
Yes, I will still be reviewing restaurants here and there. We’re currently organizing a charity event with burgers (BURGER BASH!), so I’m trying cheeseburger after cheeseburger right now (Just had Bud’s in Sedalia – delicious!). Of course, I will also be coming out with my own top 50 dishes in Denver soon as well. Stay turned!
February 12th, 2010 at 5:45 pm
Cool, will it be on this website or another? And do rush to Table 6 for an order of those, I guarantee you won’t be sorry.
February 13th, 2010 at 11:23 am
It’ll all be in this site. Going to H Burger Lounge today to worship at the altar of Ian Kleinman.