D.O.M. (which is an acronym in Portuguese for something like, "God is Great") is buried deep in the swanky tree-lined neighborhood of Jardins--Sampa's wealthiest. The area boasts a special dining experience on every other block, but D.O.M. is the undisputed king. It shuffles around the global best restaurants list each year. This go round it landed at #7 and #1 in the South American continent. Even greater: it's chef, Alex Atala, was voted among his peers as this year's best chef in the world.
Let's say the list went out to the worldwide media on a Monday (I believe you can read a description of the top ten in this week's Time Magazine). I called them on a Wednesday. I asked for reservations two weeks later. They said no problem. Not only does D.O.M. have a relaxed vibe, I'm pretty sure you can just walk in and get a table most nights. There were empty seats near us. This can't be the norm for other places. I'm willing to bet the New York entry on this year's top ten is currently booked until 2024.
The secret could be the way D.O.M. plays it cool. There's basically no sign out front. Despite being at the right address, we had to ask a guy outside where it was. He pointed at the 17-foot-tall front door. We entered. There were maybe 18 tables in the place.
The menu consisted of three options:
1. The Vegetable Kingdom with water pairing dinner.
2. The four-course dinner.
3. The eight-course dinner.
We all chose the four-course dinner. I guess "four courses" was a euphemism because I'm pretty sure we had about 10 of them. At the end of the meal, we were given a take-home menu (for blogs like this). It printed eight of them:
-"Scallop with coconut milk and Brazilian nut"
-"Roasted heart of palm and anchovy"
-"Filhote (Amazonian fish) with tucupi and tapioca"
-"Pineapple and amazonic ant"
-"Shrimp, cabbage and rocket"
-"Wild boar with caramel toffee and manioc Bras"
-"Aligot"
-"Brazil nut tart with whiskey ice cream, curry, chocolate, salt, rocket and pepper"
If you're anything like me, you just scanned the above list and said "blah, blah, blah" in your head. That means you skipped over the part where I ate ants tonight.
Go ahead and read over it again. It's in there.
Alex Atala is famous for going on expeditions into the Amazon to find plants, roots and animals fit for his wonderful menu. Each course came with a leaf, or a sprinkle, or a paste of something I'm sure my body had never ingested before. And it was magnificent.
Among them was ants. This plate, which is sort of the rock star of the list, came out halfway through the meal. It consisted of two "raw" (aka uncooked) ants and a square of pineapple. The ants were intimidating little bastards with long legs and a torso that screamed, "I've been hitting the gym."
There was no real special presentation or "plating" with this one. It looked like two dead ants and a piece of fruit. Nevertheless, we each bit into them willingly (we had complete trust in Atala by now) and found them delightful. They tasted like lemongrass and some other herb. Basically, they were wayyyy better than the American ants I'm used to eating.
Making the place even more relaxed is Atala himself. He paced around the small dining room throughout the meal to talk to acquaintances, huddle with staff or monitor the ongoings. He would occasionally open the big front door to wander around out front of the place. Then he would return and sit at the bar for a while enjoying a Coca Cola.
Eyes from all the other diners were on Atala wherever he went. He's Brazil's most famous chef. Dani says she's known about him for years.
The restaurant came to a momentary standstill when a man who looked exactly like Anthony Bourdain entered and Atala dashed from the kitchen to greet him. I had to study the guy's face for a few minutes before concluding he was too old to be Bourdain. Yet, by that point, the dye was cast that this was the kind of place where that sort of thing could easily happen.
The shrimp prawn in some type of jungle sauce was amazing. The wild boar was amazing. The river fish, amazing. The bread, amazing. The dessert of cake and ice cream with salt, pepper and curry tasted like a boastful victory lap.
It was clear to me throughout the meal that D.O.M. belongs in an elite level of restaurants. Is it one of the ten best in the world? Sure, I guess so. What I don't understand is how you compare it to number one or to number 41. I've had meals on par with this before that haven't made any kind of list. Who's to say who is best?
Two and half hours later, quite satisfied with the experience, we prepared to depart. I ran upstairs to the bathroom and on the way down I crossed paths with Atala. He greeted my handshake and we talked for a minute in Portuguese/English. When I said I had visitors from the US with me, he smiled and said he would love to come over to the table and say hello (half the tables in the place were talking in English).
Alex stopped by and let us heap praise on him for a while. When my mom asked for a photo, he responded, "Here or in the kitchen?" And maybe that's why D.O.M. cut through all the other flawless talent to make it to the top ten. Maybe it's why Atala was ranked number one. It's all about the little touches. At the end of the day, aren't meals more about the people than the food?
Me, Mary Ann, Alex, Audrey and Dani.
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