we are truly very lucky that we were able to get another reservation at noma but it was a bit of a bittersweet feeling knowing that they are officially closing as a restaurant at the end of 2024.
into the greenhouse for a hot welcome tea
The beautiful path
the beautiful pathway
Restaurant entrance
ready for our dinner
Grilled reindeer heart
reindeer heart
with Béarnaise sauce of pine, juniper berries and rose oil
Lingonberry birch and jasmine tea
Reindeer head
reindeer Brain custard with bee pollen
Dried fruits, strawberries and tomatoes with rabbit oil and pine cone scales
reindeer sweetbreads in crispy moss and sauce of gooseberry and sea buckthorn
deer tartare aged in beeswax in king oyster mushroom
Forest broth of chestnut, quince and pine
one of the dining rooms
THe main open kitchen
Reindeer penis ragout with cooked grains and seeds like sunflower, coriander, and bulgar
smoked quail egg cured with wild boar fat and wrapped in pickled ramson
cooked pumpkin with white currant leather and sauce of fermented barley and jasmine
fresh hazelnuts, chestnut purée, white sturgeon caviar and whipped cream
bear Æbleskiver filled with herbs and topped with crispy bear fat and served with side of bear caramel
rose hip berries with kombucha mother, quince broth and apple
aged deer and truffle toast
grilled wild deer aged in beeswax with dashi, mushroom and pine sauce
with truffle toast
cloudberry gel with dried plum juice, hazelnut milk and blueberry powder
saffron ice cream layered with mexican chocolate with poppy seed and licorice sauce
reindeer blood caramel and chocolate
The quiet kitchen after service
The awards
Part of the test kitchen
juice Pairing
Lingonberry and birch
ancho chili and chantarelle
yamazoe oolong
quince and fennel
lapsang souchong and pu’erh
geranium and pine
rose and sloe berry
plum and angelina
what another amazing and unforgettable dining experience, It was so nice to be able to experience it this time with my parents. as we already knew the drill we went a bit early so that we could sit in the greenhouse and have a nice hot cup of tea to warm up before walking down the beautiful pathway to the front doors of the restaurant. it was definitely colder and darker than the last time but it was still a nice little walk.
we were then escorted to our table through the main open kitchen with each staff welcoming and greeting us as we walked in, we ended up in the same dining room as last time but at a different table so it was a nice familiar feeling. as we were so impressed with the juice pairing last time we decided to do both the wine and juice pairing.
there were a few dishes that looked a bit similar to what we had last time but in reality there was only one full dish we had before the bear Æbleskiver, some dishes had components we had before like the reindeer Brain custard but then was added with other ingredients that then made the dish so different than last time. it is hard to pick favorites as there were so many dishes that were amazing, some dishes we didn’t particular like but that doesn’t mean that the dishes were bad, it just didn’t suit our palette but doesn’t mean that other people didn’t love them. I don’t think the goal of noma is to please everyone, it is to show what can be done with food, what you can do with these ingredients in different forms and different cooking styles and forms, it is to open people’s eyes and bellies to something unique and to celebrate the forest and the wild. I would have never tried reindeer penis and it actually wasn’t that bad. this isn’t for picky and non adventurous eaters.
the service and the staff is also what makes this place special, everyone is so knowledgable and so enthusiastic about what they do and at this time everyone was so excited about going to kyoto as they were getting ready to leave in two weeks. They do try to make you feel comfortable but not in a superficial way, it seems that they all genuinely like to be there and love what they do.
now that the whole world knows that noma will be closing its doors as a restaurant at the end of 2024, it will probably be even that harder to get a reservation but if you are one of those lucky ones it will be an experience to remember.
