#oddduck

Odd Duck - Milwaukee, WI

Overall: B+

Chicken Liver Mousse and Country Pork Pate - mustard, pickles, baguette

We started the meal off with a little charcuterie. The chicken liver mousse was exceptional, one of the best parts of the whole meal. Bold yet balanced flavor, nice texture. The pork pate was also very good and worth trying though not quite as good as the liver mousse. Pickled and mustard were fairly understated, could have done with a bit more flavor intensity. Bread was unexceptional and I would have preferred it toasted. 

Charred Octopus - grilled pineapple & habanero salsa, ham, cilantro, beet poi, taro chips

A theme that quickly emerged during this meal was that of the five or so items in the description, only two or three really contributed anything / were detectable in the dish. In this case, it was the octopus and salsa. The octopus was nice, just a little bit of chew and a subtle char flavor. The salsa was more sweet than spicy and complimented the octopus nicely. The dish would have been elevated if the other elements had come through more. 

Oaxacan Hibiscus & Queso Empanadas - avocado crema, guajillo puree, carrot jicama slaw

This was an interesting dish concept but I’m not sure that it really works. The filling of the empanadas was just too dry. Even though there was moisture on the plate from the avocado crema and guajillo puree, the empanada was pretty dense so it was hard to compensate for. Flavor was fine overall, I really liked the contribution of the guajillo puree. The slaw also added a nice textural contrast. 

Sichuan Pork Belly - bok choy, scallion, soy peanuts, rice cake noodles, pickled shiitake mushroom

This was my favorite dish of the night. While the flavor was pretty uniform throughout the dish, it tasted good enough that I hardly minded. There was really good textural contrast between the bok choy, peanuts, and pork belly. The other elements weren’t easily detectable. 

Nopal Cactus Risotto - grilled poblano puree, chayote squash relish, slow egg, cotija cheese

This was one of the best risottos that I can remember having. It was ridiculously creamy and had a very rich flavor. All of the elements blended seamlessly (read: cannot be individually identified) other than the cactus, which was somewhat bitter and I though would have been better left out.

Sweet & Sour Smoked Duck Breast - 5-spice cashew butter, miso chawanmushi, confit crispy rice, compressed rhubarb, pickled mustard greens

This dish was a mixed bag. It felt like a chopped episode with a bunch of unrelated ingredients that had to be incorporated - it came together nicely but i don’t understand the thinking behind it. I really liked the confit crispy rice and think that it probably should have been the focus of the dish - it within itself incorporated balanced yet varied textures and flavors. I also really liked the flavor of the pickled mustard green, but it was pretty tough and would have been better served in smaller pieces that didn’t require cutting. The duck was fine but not noteworthy. Despite searching, I could not find the rhubarb. 

Morel Mushrooms - sourdough french toast, brandy mushroom cream, fresh burrata cheese, green garlic confit

This was easily the nicest plated dish of the evening - gorgeous on its own and perfectly accentuated by the plate. It tasted very nice but it was rich on rich on rich would have benefited from some other elements - acid, bitter, sour...perhaps just atop a chicken breast. Could have done with some more mushrooms (even if they werent morels) as I think that would have brought some more balance to the quantity of cream sauce. The french toast served more as a vessel to eat the mushrooms and cream rather than actually contributing to the dish.

Grilled Steak Skewer - french onion roulade, blue cheese au poivre, pea shoot salad, tarragon vinaigrette

By this point in the meal I was most certainly suffering from palate fatigue, but this bold flavors of this dish managed to cut through. This was one of the better flavor-balanced dishes of the evening. The steak had a thick, flavorful crust that played perfectly against the funk of the blue cheese, the tang of the vinaigrette, and the savory roulade. The pea shoots contributed little flavor-wise but were a nice garnish. 

#2 - Giffard Lychee Liqueur, Lillet Blanc, Salers Aperitif, Cocchi Americano, Fresh Lemon

All that came across in this drink was lychee flavor and I’m not too upset about that.