Playa Del Carmen – Passion by Martín Berasategui

With such a hilarious Michael Jackson show in the day prior, we couldn’t pass up seeing the Aladdin show playing in the Paradisus La Perla theater. We had an 8:00 reservation for dinner and Aladdin started at 7:30 so we were only able to catch the first 30 minutes of the nostalgia generating performance! Between the costumes, the semi-coordinated dancing and lip syncing, all the music from my favorite Disney movie, and two glasses of wine, we were very entertained.

After we got our Aladdin fix, it was time for dinner at the world-renowned restaurant, Passion by Martín Berasategui. Berasategui has several Michelin Stars from other restaurants and launched a fancy resultant at our hotel. Even though this dinner was not included in our all-inclusive, we decided to give it a go – and boy were we glad!

We got dressed up and entered the fanciest restaurant on the grounds. Our white-gloved waiter greeted us and presented us with a selection of waters from across the world. I have never been offered a water selection… it was so lux. We decided on bottled water from Playa Del Carmen and it was poured over a rose petal in our water glasses.

We were then presented with two amuse-bouches dishes first that were totally to-die-for! The first featured balsamic watermelon, beef and caper tartar over a wonton crisp, parmesan cheese puffs, a grapefruit puree, and another puff of some kind. It was an off-the-menu surprise of a first course into an excellent meal.

The second amuse-bouche was a light calamari salad with a lemon drizzle.

After we finished with the first two courses, our tasting menu began. Our waiter set down a marble block with 5 different butters that were to be paired with a different bread over the next 5 courses. I have to say, the butter was one of my favorite dishes of the meal! From truffle, to citrus zest, to Italian herb, the butters were so creamy and paired so well with each bread variety that I had no butter left by the end of the meal. I was in calorie heaven! Our first butter was accompanied by thin slices of tri tip steak over foie gras royal.

Next up was organic egg yolk with liquid salad, red tubers and smoked cheese. I typically do not like any type of egg unless it is scrambled, but when this infused, red egg yolk was popped and mixed with the other flavors, the egg was taken to an entirely different flavor level.

Next up was a dashi and mushroom broth over liquid cheese spheres with dewlap and crispy quinoa. The broth was poured over the dish and added an interesting mushroom flavor. Additionally, there have only been two different instances in my life where I have eaten and tolerated raw tomatoes. Note, I love sun-dried tomatoes, ketchup, pasta sauce, and salsa, but I just cannot stand raw tomatoes! Outside of the tomato dish at Gaggan in Bangkok, Thailand, this is the only other time I have eaten tomatoes and not died inside – it was that good!

The 4th course was totoba with false shiitake mushroom risotto and creamy rice. It was good but was probably the least remarkable dish of the night. I did like the crispy skin on the fish though.

Our waiter delivered our 5th course of picanha with truffled tubers and olives and then rolled over a cart of salts. We picked some salt flavors and then added a dash to each bite of the steak as we enjoyed the dish. I tried a volcanic  and grasshopper salts and, wouldn’t you know, they were both delicious.

After a quick palette cleanser, my favorite dish of the night of lemon ice cream with basil essence, green bean and almond was served. The lemon was actually a cold, white chocolate shell that contained an incredible lemony cream inside. I cracked it open with my spoon and the cream picked up pieces of the dark chocolate crunch underneath, making for one of the most scrumptious bites of food I’ve ever had the pleasure of tasting. On the other side of the plate was mint infused ice. The cool sensation of the ice ,when enhanced by the lemon and chocolate still lingering from prior bites, was simple and exquisite. I would eat this every day of my life if I could.

The last dessert on the official menu was a chocolate Bailey’s ice cream with vanilla and coffee toffee and it was then followed up by a “chef’s treat” of other various mini-desserts and jellies. Needless to say, we were totally stuffed after a total of 11 dishes (plus all of those yummy butters and breads!).