Chez Manon makes an art of fine dining

Blue heaven: Blue cheese with pear jelly and candied walnut proved a great mixture. Chez Manon Add: Hilton Hotel, 1 Le Thanh Tong Street, Hoan Kiem District, Ha Noi Tel: 04 3933 0500 ext 1605 Hours: 11am to 11pm Comment: Fine wine and gourmet food that's worth the steep price tag.

Fortunately for gourmands in Ha Noi with a taste for top-shelf wine there are several options, and the Hilton Hanoi Opera's regular Wine Dinners are one of the best.

The Hilton's Chez Manon restaurant has already developed a reputation for digestive delights of the highest quality. November's Wine Dinner at Chez Manon didn't fail to deliver on the art of gastronomy and joys of fine wine. The Hilton's Swiss master chef Roland Kaiser, who has more than a decade of experience in creating fine food at leading hotels and restaurants in Asia, shared the spotlight with wine from the Clos Du Val winery in the Napa Valley. Located in California, the famous Napa Valley is considered to be one of the top wine regions in the United States.

Chef Kaiser prepared a feast that celebrated delicious autumn produce and highlighted his extensive knowledge of local ingredients together with the best imported products from Australia and Europe.

Tender touch: Lamb with orange puree and cherry tomatoes. Soup's up: Peking duck consomme with vegetable dumpling. Nice drop: November's Wine Dinner at the Ha Noi Hiolton's Chez Manon restaurant features a range of wines from the award-winning Clos Du Val winery in California's premiere wine growing region of the Napa Valley.

The master chef's unique cooking style – Mediterranean infused with Asian techniques – was showcased at the wine dinner with dishes such as pan-seared "Sous Vide" of venison fillet and grilled marinated ‘Hill Side' rack of lamb.

November's Wine Dinner, priced at VND1,650,000, featured six courses, and each dish was served with a complimentary stellar wine from the Clos Du Val winery. After the preliminary appetizers and a light sparkling wine whet our appetites, we began the serious business of dining with a chicken liver pate served with pickled young vegetables and honey mustard dressing. A perfect appetizer to nibble on in between sips of some Chardonnay Carneros, a wine as smooth and elegant as the chef's homemade chicken liver pate.

The next dish was an exquisite Peking duck consommée with mushrooms and vegetable dumpling. Downed with a glass of Clos du Val's limited edition Carneros Pinot Noir, the mixture of piquant flavours was a party for the palate.

The first main course was a highlight of the night, with chef Roland Kaiser delivering a pan seared "Sous Vide" of venison fillet – imported deer meat that simply melted in my mouth. The venison, served with red cabbage and tomato puree, was pure bliss with a glass of Zindafel, a wine with a slightly higher alcohol content, at 14 per cent, that deserves to be better known than it is thanks to its marvelous cinnamon character that's spicier than a Pino Noir.

After a Vietnamese orange sorbet with white pepper and dried orange zest to clear the palate, it was time for the second main course: grilled marinated rack of lamb with orange puree, sauté jumbo asparagus tips and sun-dried cherry tomatoes.

Fine food and wine is something to be mulled over rather than scarfed down, and November's Wine Dinner kept my taste buds aroused for more than two hours. Thanks to the delicious cuisine, heady wines and jovial company, I would have been happy to stay at the restaurant all night long.

By the time the last course was served, goat cheese with figs and truffles honey along with blue cheese with pear jelly and candied walnut, diners at Chez Manon had reached a new height in gastronomic bliss. The wine menu also saved the best till last, with the perfect compliment of a dazzling Cabernet Sauvignon that was made from grape grown in the Napa Valley's most fertile area for fine wines, the Stags Leap District. — VNS

Chez Manon makes an art of fine dining

Blue heaven: Blue cheese with pear jelly and candied walnut proved a great mixture. Chez Manon Add: Hilton Hotel, 1 Le Thanh Tong Street, Hoan Kiem District, Ha Noi Tel: 04 3933 0500 ext 1605 Hours: 11am to 11pm Comment: Fine wine and gourmet food that's worth the steep price tag.

Fortunately for gourmands in Ha Noi with a taste for top-shelf wine there are several options, and the Hilton Hanoi Opera's regular Wine Dinners are one of the best.

The Hilton's Chez Manon restaurant has already developed a reputation for digestive delights of the highest quality. November's Wine Dinner at Chez Manon didn't fail to deliver on the art of gastronomy and joys of fine wine. The Hilton's Swiss master chef Roland Kaiser, who has more than a decade of experience in creating fine food at leading hotels and restaurants in Asia, shared the spotlight with wine from the Clos Du Val winery in the Napa Valley. Located in California, the famous Napa Valley is considered to be one of the top wine regions in the United States.

Chef Kaiser prepared a feast that celebrated delicious autumn produce and highlighted his extensive knowledge of local ingredients together with the best imported products from Australia and Europe.

Tender touch: Lamb with orange puree and cherry tomatoes. Soup's up: Peking duck consomme with vegetable dumpling. Nice drop: November's Wine Dinner at the Ha Noi Hiolton's Chez Manon restaurant features a range of wines from the award-winning Clos Du Val winery in California's premiere wine growing region of the Napa Valley.

The master chef's unique cooking style – Mediterranean infused with Asian techniques – was showcased at the wine dinner with dishes such as pan-seared "Sous Vide" of venison fillet and grilled marinated ‘Hill Side' rack of lamb.

November's Wine Dinner, priced at VND1,650,000, featured six courses, and each dish was served with a complimentary stellar wine from the Clos Du Val winery. After the preliminary appetizers and a light sparkling wine whet our appetites, we began the serious business of dining with a chicken liver pate served with pickled young vegetables and honey mustard dressing. A perfect appetizer to nibble on in between sips of some Chardonnay Carneros, a wine as smooth and elegant as the chef's homemade chicken liver pate.

The next dish was an exquisite Peking duck consommée with mushrooms and vegetable dumpling. Downed with a glass of Clos du Val's limited edition Carneros Pinot Noir, the mixture of piquant flavours was a party for the palate.

The first main course was a highlight of the night, with chef Roland Kaiser delivering a pan seared "Sous Vide" of venison fillet – imported deer meat that simply melted in my mouth. The venison, served with red cabbage and tomato puree, was pure bliss with a glass of Zindafel, a wine with a slightly higher alcohol content, at 14 per cent, that deserves to be better known than it is thanks to its marvelous cinnamon character that's spicier than a Pino Noir.

After a Vietnamese orange sorbet with white pepper and dried orange zest to clear the palate, it was time for the second main course: grilled marinated rack of lamb with orange puree, sauté jumbo asparagus tips and sun-dried cherry tomatoes.

Fine food and wine is something to be mulled over rather than scarfed down, and November's Wine Dinner kept my taste buds aroused for more than two hours. Thanks to the delicious cuisine, heady wines and jovial company, I would have been happy to stay at the restaurant all night long.

By the time the last course was served, goat cheese with figs and truffles honey along with blue cheese with pear jelly and candied walnut, diners at Chez Manon had reached a new height in gastronomic bliss. The wine menu also saved the best till last, with the perfect compliment of a dazzling Cabernet Sauvignon that was made from grape grown in the Napa Valley's most fertile area for fine wines, the Stags Leap District. — VNS