The fancy Ice menu was one of the reason I want to give the Ice hotel in Jukkasjärvi five stars. Not only was the food amazing. They did also think on al of us who don’t drink alcohol and hade a really nice non-alcoholic drink pairing to the menu.
The Ice bar
We started our evening with a drink in the Ice bar located in the 365 part of the Ice Hotel. You may think this is a strange way to get your aperitifs. But in fact it was the absolutely most logical place to meet up before an Ice menu at the Verandan.
The Ice menu at Verandan
The Ice menu at Verandan started with an amuse-bouche that was an real flavor bomb. It had three to four flavors in on bite and it was a start that set the bar high for the rest of the evening. To match this and the first dish I had a glas of white currant juice.
As you can see at the amuse-bouche the team at the Verandan really nailed the details. As our first starter of the Ice menu we got some really tasteful juniper burrowing moose with cold smoked egg yolk. When we did taste how roach the meet was we almost screamed of joy.
Our second starter was artic tartar, our first dish served on a bed of ice. Something we really looked forward to try. To the tartar we got some birch sap foam that was an experience in it self. To drink I got some black currant juice that matched well with the fish.
Now we come to the main dish of the Ice menu and something very lappish, reindeer! It was so tender and juicy that we couldn’t get it. The meat was served with Karl Johan Mushroom, Jerusalem artichoke and lingonberry. And here I had the absolut most tasty blueberry juice I ever tried. It was like drinking berries straight from the forrest. Well done to this pairing.
Now we was more then satisfied, but who can say no to a dessert on an ice bed. The icecream with raspberry and meringue made us smile and praise the pastry chef. It was just such a fantastic end of the Ice menu.
Maybe it was the effort to design it or it was the match with the apple must that gave it some extra flavors.
Conclusions
First of al I want to give some complements to the crew. At al time they not only bought us fantastic food. They also shared some time with us, presenting every dish and had some small talk every time they picked up a an empty glas or refilled it. Creating an relaxed atmosphere in the restaurant. The Verandan also and this is rare a very good drink package for us who don’t drink alcohol. With four different juices that paired the different dishes on the most magic way.
The Ice menu aint cheap. But it’s worth every crone I paid for it. The service is fantastic, the drink pairing are made with a lot of though and the food is amazing. If this is what Lapland have to offer I will get back as sone as possible.