Chefusion

3 Variation Bread Spread

Chef Tony and his team of valiant individuals know how to execute a fine dining experience. They're talented, organized, and if it isn't enough-- persistent in refilling your water glass every five minutes (yes I was counting). It's no wonder they were one of the top ten restaurants in Wisconsin in 2016, ranked at #3.

Chef Tony highlights the importance of exposing Green Bay to the concept of fine dining. He emphasizes the significance of dressing up for the meal, assembles the table where you grab silverware from the outside, and introduces the traditional three-course meal, which usually consists of an appetizer, entrée, and dessert.

Like most chefs in fine dining, they start you off with an Amuse-bouche, which is a bite-size Hors d'oeuvre. It prepares you for the chef's cooking style, amuses your mouth, and plays with your palate, and the best part-- it's complimentary, so you won't be seeing it on the bill. Chef Tony served a piece of shrimp that rested on top of chickpeas dressed with a lemon vinaigrette, and thin orange shavings as a garnish. One bite was all it took: a zesty, sweet, and light sourness that came together, it was a cold hors d'oeuvre, and the perfect start to my dinner.

Prince Edward Island Mussels

Mussels are my favorite type of shellfish, yet, they're difficult to work with. There's an entire process to preparing mussels before you cook them, and believe me when I say this: it's a painful process. I started with the Prince Edward Island Mussels. It's served in a bright white slanted china bowl, and the first thing that drew my nose in was the smell of garlic. Chefusion prepares their mussels by sautéing onions, garlic, and tomatoes together, and finishing it off with butter and pesto. I could honestly say this, it's like I was eating pasta, except the mussels were a substitute for noodles and there wasn't any cheese.

The earthy flavor from the pesto wasn't overpowering, it was there to balance and provide an herby taste. The butter brought a creamy texture to the dish, which went well with the garlic and tomatoes. But here's the best part, mussels usually come with bread, and in this case, Chefusion provided two thick logs of toasted garlicky bread. Once you finish the mussels, there's usually leftover liquid sitting underneath. I kid you not, I broke the rules of using silverware, ripped the bread with my bare hands, dipped that bread in the liquid, and I think you know the rest.

My Entrée was a Tournedos and Lobster, which in layman's terms, is just a fancy name for "Surf and Turf". Tournedos means a small round thick cut from a fillet of beef, and in my case, it was two 4oz filet mignons. And of course, who could forget a delicate lobster tail to pair with an expensive cut of steak? This dish brought back memories of my time spent in culinary school. It's old-fashioned and complimented by a rich brown sauce, that every culinary institute in the U.S teaches their students how to make: Demi-glace

Chef Tony understands the rules of cooking steak, how to sear it without scorching and making sure the internal temperature is correct. My steak knife cut through the filet mignon like butter and almost melted in my mouth. The lobster tail wasn't rubbery or dry; the sauce that came on top of it will forever be a mystery...

Tournedos and Lobster

However, there were a few factors that led to the downfall of this entrée. While everything on the plate went well together, the steak lacked seasoning and the demi-glace was a bit sweet for my taste. The sauce is one of the most important components of a dish; it takes hours to simmer, and one simple mistake can be fatal. Chef Tony did well, but the texture of the demi-glace was inconsistent. It was a bit thin and as I just mentioned, too sweet.

The entrée also came with potato sarladaise, which is sliced potatoes and garlic cooked in duck fat and garnished with cilantro. Duck fat adds a hint of smokiness when cooked, it's supposed to be delicate and oily, which is why it's so good and bad for you. But I wasn't tasting that with the potato sarladaise. The potatoes required seasoning, they weren't sliced but cubed, and there weren't any garnishes of parsley to be found anywhere on my plate.

I can't say much about the dessert course either. To keep things short and simple, I ordered the Sorbet, and on the menu, I was promised seasonal fresh fruit, which I didn't get. The only thing I received was three oddly round artificial-tasting fruit sorbets. Dessert is supposed to supply you with the ultimate "good ending." Unfortunately, I didn't get the ending the menu promised me. Which resulted in a disappointing epilogue to my meal.

Sorbet

I hadn't done the whole fine dining thing for a while, the last time I splurged on an expensive feast was in Canada two years ago. I'm glad I went to Chefusion, considering that it's one of the few fine dining joints in Green Bay (besides another that I've heard of), it was nice to get out and dine-in, in amidst the pandemic. Chefusion executed their service well according to the laws of hospitality. The portions of their food were beyond what I'd expected from a fine dining restaurant, and the quality of their ingredients was better than most.

I had fun, reminisced about culinary school during my meal, and felt like one of those aristocrats who get to have three-course meals every day. Sad to say though, this will be the only three-course meal I'll be having until another two years, maybe even more...

But with that said and done, Chefusion still has a long way to go if they want to continue to keep its status as an "upscale" restaurant.

2.5/5 stars