A Fabulous Feast @ Asana

Congrats to the newly-hitched Jimmy and Dan, whose two-week long celebration just wrapped up this weekend. They were kind enough to invite me to take part in the Boston leg of the wedding, which included a spectacular meal designed by Chef Nathan Rich and Pastry Chef Nelson Paz at Restaurant Asana at the Mandarin Oriental Boston. We took over a private room with a view of the kitchen for a few hours...and ate more than I've ever eaten before! By popular demand, I'm finally sharing some of my pix.

The vegetable tempura amuse-bouche.

The extra-super creamy butternut squash soup with a vanilla apple fritter.

Yellowfin tuna tartare with macadamia powder, ginger crisps, and shiso.

Homemade potato Gnocchi with a roasted tomato purée, basil, and shaved Parmesan.

Wagyu beef with Yukon potato purée, mulato chili, smoked fleur de sel, wild mushrooms, and asparagus.

Sweets construction.

Dessert #1. The chocolate was divine, but my favorite thing was the lemon chip. (And woohoo--Chef Paz gave me the recipe!)

Cake deconstruction.

Dessert #2: the yuzu-tastic cake.