@Shelovescake

Henceforth, I shall be finishing all of my dishes with a healthy dribble of extra virgin olive oil. My main take-away from three days at Toklas: extra virgin makes everything shiny and delicious. A case in point: the ricotta and orange cake with is drizzled with both an orange syrup and extra virgin before serving. The olive oil (which is also in the cake) elevates the pudding with richness and a savoury quality that brings the plate together in unifying song. The cake performed the finale of my on the house lunch which marked the end of my stage. The prelude to the cake was the casconcelli verdi with ricotta, peas and lemon and the Toklas green salad. To drink: a dry, acidic yet fruity German Riesling. Such a lovely way to say thank you. And a reward which was considerably sweeter given the final task I had been assigned: mandolining garlic for confit…for over an hour! By the end my legs were fizzing from standing still for so long. But, thankfully, due to the advice to ‘double glove’, my fingers were in tact and didn’t stink of garlic.

The day started well with the head chef assigning me to ‘garnish’, which is where sides and pasta are made and plated. I was asked to make the pink fir and winter tomato al forno (a recipe I have already copied – see my version below). This was followed by slicing squid alongside the head chef. He’d taken delivery of a large quantity that morning and had a plan to braise it with garlic, basil and roasted datterini tomatoes. Just before lunch service, I got the chance to be at the (very) hot stone stove to sauté spinach. Cubing butter and portioning crab were my other tasks of note for the morning. And then my three days was over in a flash.

I’m so delighted to have chosen Toklas for my Easter stage. It is one of my favourite London restaurants, which I now know has an incredibly supportive head chef and a super talented and friendly team. Not to mention incredible produce handled with respect and skill in a kitchen that it tight for space but not for flair. Toklas has set the bar very high for future stages.