I began my final (pre Grand Finale Tour of Favorites) round with...
FRANCE
Escargots Persillade en Brioche (garlic and parsely snails in brioche). Eiffel Sour Cosmo Slush.
Sometimes I still can't believe I eat this. But when I can't *see* the snail, all I can taste are butter and garlic, which, hello! Delicious! And washed down with a refreshing tart cosmo slush? You really just can't miss. At this point, these two are nothing new or adventurous. They are just very yummy old friends.
But now, it was time for something new!
SINGAPORE
Seared Mahi Mahi with Jasmine Rice and Singa Sauce.
I had tried the other menu option from Singapore last year (the Beef Rendang) and so I was prepared for a little spiciness this time. The fish was perfectly cooked (probably due to the fact that my piece came out of a fresh batch--it can be difficult to pull off perfectly cooked fish in mass quantities if it's been sitting even a little while) and the spice rub on it was noticeable but not overpowering. The sauce had some bite to it, but the jasmine rice tempered it well. It was a very balanced dish, overall, and I enjoyed trying this new dish.
From here, we headed to...
POLAND
Zapiekanki (toasted mushroom, caramelized onion and cheese bread with house-made ketchup).
This dish may have been my biggest surprise of the 2012 Fest. I had smelled it several times over the course of my various trips around the world and it certainly smelled appealing. I knew I was running out of room, though, and I was going to have to choose between an old favorite (the Kielbasa and Potato Pierogie with Caramelized Onion and Sour Cream) and the risk of passing it up in favor of an unknown contender. Bottom line: it was going to have to be *good* to make it worth sacrificing the other dish. Since we make kielbasa and pierogies at home fairly often, I opted to take the risk. I chose correctly!! It was sort of like a pizza, but...not. It was definitely more bread than pizza crust. The combination of flavors from the onions and cheese made up for all the mushrooms being there (truthfully, they weren't that bad), but the star was that tangy, slightly spicy ketchup. It made my taste buds jump to attention.
It was time to make my final stop of 2012...
TERRA
Chocolate Cake with Passion Fruit Sorbet and Coconut Foam.
Well...I should have stopped with my previous dish, except that I try to at least taste something from each booth, and there was no way any of the other options from this booth was going to pass my lips. The cake was dry and, I have to be honest, this whole foam fascination in the culinary world just doesn't make sense to me. The only redeeming quality of this dish was the sorbet.
What an underwhelming way to wind things up. Good thing I had my Grand Finale Tour of Favorites to look forward to!
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