I've been craving a dining experience lately, not just a restaurant where you are served good food. I wanted a new place, different menu, different atmosphere. So, off we went to Metamorfosi in Parioli in search of this dining experience, and all in all it was what I wanted. We went with the classic tasting menu of 5 courses for 70 euros, and added the wine tasting that went along with it for 30 euros. The tasting menu went like this:
amuse bouche
raw red shrimp with avocado, wild oyster cream (Gamberi rossi e avocado Crema di ostriche selvatiche)
65 degree egg with pancetta, parmesan foam served with pasta chips (Uovo 65° carbonara)
risotto with snail and parsley (Risotto bianco Lumache e prezzemolo)
almond crusted lamb (Agnello croccante alle mandorle Melanzane e crema gelata al “gin-epro)
banana with armagnac in white chocolate foam (Cioccolato, banane caramellate e Armagnac)
Like I said this was accompanied with the wine tasting that went something like this: prosecco for the first two courses, chardonnay for the risotto, artiginal beer for the lamb, and a sweet wine for dessert. I was a bit disappointed with the wine tasting since I had the idea that each course would be accompanied with a different wine, so that I would end up trying 5 different wines. Secondly, I do not like beer, and was not even asked if I wanted beer with my lamb or if I preferred a red wine (yes please)! Third, I found the dessert wine a little too strong for my dessert since the dessert was very delicate in taste.
The food on the other hand was quite good. I loved the red shrimp and avocado, liked the egg dish, which is a deconstructed carbonara, but found it to be a little too heavy. The risotto with snail was good, since I love the texture that snail adds, taste was good. Loved the lamb, although at this point I was starting to feel too full due to the heavier egg and risotto dishes, that I did not enjoy it as much as I would have liked, and obviously the beer just brought things down further. It was however the most succulent lamb I have ever tasted, cooked perfectly, with the most perfect almond crust, served with an eggplant strip and a sorbet of juniper berry. Finally the dessert....I am the kind of person who thinks there is always room for dessert. Strangely enough this time I did not have a major sweet craving after my meal, and am not a fan of white chocolate. I was very surprised that this dessert was the right amount of sweet, did not have a strong white chocolate taste but a rather creamy foam instead that was heavenly, and then the banana and armagnac.
All in all, a lovely dining experience, friendly staff, even friendlier chef who came out to greet the diners and ask how everything went. The mood in this restaurant is relaxed, dim lighting, pretty silent but not in a stuffy way, in a relaxing way.
