Times reviewed Kabawa earlier this week, so time to write up my visit last month. Gift link:
Overall, I wanted to like Kabawa more than I liked Kabawa. Hard to disentangle from exhaustion with tasting menus in general, and with such a large menu, this review is partial. And apologies photos aren’t great. I’m still self conscious taking these.
Complimentary Buss Up Shut, butter, jam, chickpeas, pepper jelly. Nothing revelatory but fun start.
Pepper Shrimp. Pretty big miss. Sorrel (aka Jamaica) overpowered the shrimp, which had temperature issues and little flavor. Was expecting something like Gambero Rosso. Underlying shrimp flavor wasn’t there.
Breadfruit Toston. Maybe execution more than conception, but another serious miss. Toston was flavorless, octopus mealy, almost no sauce chien to brighten. No resemblance to the dish described in the Times.
Black Bass with Curry, Jerk Duck Sausage, accompanied by rice and beans, salad, and Japanese sweet potato in pineapple vinegar. Bass was great, especially the accompanying curried sauce, as was the Japanese sweet potato. Duck sausage was an interesting idea, whole chunks of liver integrated into the sausage itself. Little jerk flavor though, and it didn’t quite work on its own terms.
We definitely missed out on the goat but were told it would duplicate the bass/ curry.
Enjoyed the whole tamarind pod as a palate cleanser, and the dessert, a coconut turnover, more a loaf of sweet bread topped with cream cheese frosting, was nice.
Don’t totally know what to make of Kabawa let alone the Times and New Yorker raves. It’s a good value, ton of food, a few good dishes, but the two early dishes that didn’t work really did not work. At least for two, the tasting menu format doesn’t do it any favors (something I felt at Le Veau d’Or, which I liked more but found less interesting). Maybe I’m sick of giving up control at restaurants.
Having spent a decent amout of time in Haiti, Jamaica, Cuba, I’m definitely interested in the raison d’etre here. As much as Caribbean is a unified cuisine, I have a passing familiarity, and don’t think I’m holding Kabawa to preconceived notions about what this food can be. But maybe? Guess I’d prefer a different format. Will be interested to hear what others think.