Fly 8 hours for one plate of food?

Well, if it was MIND BLOWING, absolutely! Absolutely, in my wildest dream where money and time have no limits… but yes, this was THAT good. Literally, only dreams are made of this level of balanced flavors. Being a sucker for all things sweet and salty, it will come as no surprise this dish that BLEW MY MIND.

Le Corail is located at the Intercontinental Bora Bora Resort and Thalasso Spa. Now, I’m sure you’re like that sounds super fancy pants, no wonder it was amazing. True, it was fancy, and definitely a splurge of a trip. But, honeymoons only happen once in a lifetime, so there is potential this blog is tainted off my newlywed bliss – but I’ll let you be the judge...

The restaurant offers a la carte or three separate tasting menus. The three tasting menus range based on the number of courses. Each tasting menu can be paired with a unique wine tasting experience. The restaurant is extremely intimate, with no more than 15 tables. The tables are set up along with window-to-window walls with a view of the chapel, ocean, and overwater bungalows. Décor is chic, clean, and everything you would imagine for a fancy night on the island.

On top of the food being an experience, the service is impeccable. We were promptly greeted by the very personable manager, had a lovely discussion with their wine specialist, and were continually, but not overbearingly, checked on throughout our experience by numerous personnel. The courses were well timed, the bread was perfectly warm, and the wine glasses were never near empty.

As delicious as the meal experience was in its entirety, there was one dish that stood out beyond the rest. The presentation was on point - I didn’t want to stop taking pictures from every angle possible. The colors were vibrant and the plate was filled with every texture you could possibly want. I love a dish that keeps me on my toes!

So here it is: Mango cannelloni with crab, mussels and melon flavored vinaigrette, Nori crispy cracker. Let’s take a moment, to take that all in…

Starting with the mango cannelloni – this to me was something unique. I’ve eating across the globe, and never come across cannelloni that was not made of pasta. On a side note, I’m pretty sure the definition of cannelloni is PASTA, but I’m choosing not to fight that technicality on the basis of deliciousness. We shall call it ever so thinly sliced mango that is cylindrical in form similar to that of cannelloni.

The mango was insanely ripe but yet maintained proper texture – I think it was due to being in island paradise, that of course, they would have delicious tropical fruit. I saw no mango trees on the island, so feel free to challenge my theory. This mango was stuffed with crab – delicious strands of freshly cracked crabbed. Sweet mango + salty crab, what more could you possibly need in life? I could have NEEDED about 5 more of these…

Accompanying these mango cylinders on the plate were mussels topped with brunoised melons sprinkled with vinaigrette. As we all like to eat with our eyes first, the play on shapes is pure fascination – I have a mango cylinder, strands of crab, cubes of fruit, and muscles still in their shell. Presentation fits the fancy vibe of the restaurant. So here we had again, the lovely play of sweet on salt with the melons on muscles. The muscles tasted insanely fresh, I could have easily downed a bucket of them. No shame.

Let’s top this plate off with the Nori crispy cracker. Not sure whether to call the cracker a swirl or what, but again, I love the play on shapes. The way it sits around the mango with the surrounding muscles is just too pretty for words. There’s no sweet to balance out this notoriously salty cracker, but no worries, the texture alone is why it’s here. That crispy crunch pairs perfectly with all the other elements on the plate – whether it is the mango or the muscle, it adds that crunch to your bite that makes you want to come back for some more.

I’m literally drooling over here, reliving the flavors of each and every bite as I type. I’ve never had a dish stick so strongly to my palette before. The combination of such simple ingredients paired perfectly together, engrained a memory of greatness firmly on my tongue. What I would do to relive that greatness… I wish I could fly that 8 hours flight back to island paradise.

If you’re sitting there thinking, well if that plate was so great, how was the rest of the tasting menu? Definitely, a meal to remember. #staytuned