Update 2011. As far as i know, the restaurant is closed.
Its been a while I know Javier Lopez Ruiz- not personally, but through his cooking in La Provence restaurant in Vilnius. Tuna tartare prepared in front of you, fresh oysters, sea bass baked in salt comparable to the dish prepared in France ,or, less Mediterranean speacialities such as suckling pork “shashlik” . La Provence was one of the first restaurants in Vilnius that would have fresh oysters and fresh seafood ( flown directly from France) on its menu , and one of the first to have a foreigner as a head chef, a young and energetic Spaniard Javier Lopez Ruiz with experience in Au Crocodile (Strasbourg) under his belt.
Maybe for New Yorkers, Parisians or Londoners these facts are not very impressive, but lets not forget that even if Vilnius is a picturesque city(European capital of culture 2009 ), there are no deep eating out traditions and there is less money than in other post Sovietic capitals like Moscow. Only during the recent years, pizzerias are slowly being replaced by gastro bistros and cosy wine bars and more and more people appreciate good food.
© Egidijus Skiparis - Fotolia.com The front of the building-Domm is in the back.
So back to La Provence, after 5 years of collaboration, the owner Arūnas Oželis and the chef Javier Lopez Ruiz have opened a new restaurant. Domm is located in one of the most prestigious places in Vilnius, in Vilniaus Rotuše, the town hall where Vilnius municipal and cultural events take place. The interior of Domm- where the “old meets the new”, colorful frescos on the ceiling and paintings on the walls mix perfectly with dramatic chandeliers and modern furniture.
What I feared most before going to this place, that it would be just another “temple” of gastronomy with huge pretentions and little capacity. It was not. As Javier Lopez Ruiz told me, his biggest preoccupation is that his guests has good time. And we did. Most of all, apart of having a great time, I had a delicious meal, and, sometimes ,even moving.
Like amuse bouche of raw tuna in oak smoke with romanesco sauce and potato chip. The strong and crisp oak smoke surely opened the senses for the further dinner.
My first dish was called after the famous song “La vie en rose” . The dish contained octopus with beetroot in all kind of forms- chips, foam, raw, etc. It was served with a MP3 player that played “La vie en rose” of course. I don’t know how much the song contributed to my experience, but what I know that the octopus was tender and firm at the same time ,perfectly matching with the sweetness of beetroot and mayonnaise like creamy sauce. I will not overstate that it was the best octopus I have ever tasted.
The "sketch" of the dish from the Domm's website.
Then it was the turn of Spanish rice with lobster. Even if it did look like risotto, the rice tasted like paella. I liked the fact that between the al dente grains of rice you could sometimes feel the crunchiness of sea salt. It was decorated with lemon “air”.
Champagne sorbet with peach "caviar". It was good and well executed, but it was served before the meat, i think it would have been perfect "pre-dessert"....
The final dish i ordered was "Veal cheek,12h, at 64c, gnocchi,truffle,cassis" . Again, the meat was very tender, in perfect balance with truffle flavored gniocchi and cassis jelly and sauce"... Javier Lopez does use molecular cooking techniques, but it is played rather on the safe side. And it hink its great- in my oinion, food has to be delicious fist of all.
The dessert- "Strawberry tartar, catalan cream,pollen,golden honey,mango sphere". The classical tartare interpretation. The egg yolk was made of destructured mango, while the catalan cream in the tube ( it was hermetically sealed) had lemon flavor.
The chocolates brought my the chef himself...
and thats how i had a possibility to to chat with Javier...
To be honest i am even surprised myself to know that this great meal was in my home country... If Michelin comes to Eastern Europe one day,Domm should definitely get at least one star... But, finally,does it matter? It is the food and pleasant time what counts, not stars...
