The Mint: The best restaurant in the Research Triangle area

After the bellydancing show last night, we went to dinner at The Mint at One Exchange Plaza, a relatively new (opened in January) restaurant in downtown Raleigh. We entered with some doubts, because the local Raleigh restaurant critic had given it the same rating as several other places we'd tried recently, and all of them had disappointed us a bit. We left three hours later sure in the knowledge that the critic was wrong--he should have ranked The Mint much, much higher than all the others--and that we'd just eaten at the best restaurant in the area.

The moment you spot the lovely entranceway and take advantage of the free valet parking, you begin to hope for something special. The interior, complete with bank vault door leading from the foyer into the dining room, is elegant and way more big city in feel than one expects in our area. Attractive design touches abound: a winding staircase to the bar upstairs, strands of crystal hanging in the two-story-high windows, nifty place settings and candle holders, and so on. In the wrong mood I might take the designer as having tried a bit too hard, but even then I'd admire the effort. I was in the right mood, however, so I loved the place.

The real star of the show, though, is the food. Executive Chef Jeremy Clayman and Chef Eric Foster (whose title I regret I did not get) are a potent, talented, young team. We'd read in the local paper that they were slowly introducing Raleigh to molecular gastronomy, so we begged them to hold back nothing, to create a tasting menu they wanted to cook, charge us whatever was fair, and hit us with their best shots. They did. The resulting meal included many courses (I didn't count, but at least nine), and each one was delicious, inventive, playful, and interesting. For those afraid of molecular gastronomy, note the first word in that list: delicious. Just order the food, put it in your mouth, close your eyes, and experience it.

We were lucky enough to be able to talk to the chefs for a few minutes after the meal, and they said that they were encountering some resistance to their techniques. Though that's probably something we should expect from Raliegh, I'm still very sorry to hear it, because these two are superb at what they do.

Let me give one example, the dish I believe would be most likely to scare away most diners. (None of the others was this weird, so I figure if you can get your heads around this one, you can handle the rest.) In a beautiful, small, white bowl we received a dish that looked like a slice of sardine sitting atop some reddish-brown crumbs and some tiny yellow-white balls. The dish was in fact a Spanish sardine atop pound cake crumbs and banana ice cream dots--and it wasn't a dessert. Okay, I grant it wasn't traditional, and I can see how it might put you off, but if you passed it by you'd be missing something wonderful. Cut the sardine and use a spoon to put a bit of it, some dots, and some cake crumbs into your mouth all at once. Chew, and you experience the true joy and magic of adventuresome cuisine (molecular gastronomy or otherwise): a wonderful blending of textures (crumbs and popping dots and the soft flesh of the sardine) and tastes that you've never experienced before, something totally new and joyful. The fishiness of the sardine vanished and left a briney flavor that mixed beautifully with the other ingredients. Amazing.

The Mint doesn't post its offer of a tasting menu, but I highly recommend asking them to create one for you. These guys are artists, so hand them money, sit back, and let them work. I'll be returning many times to do it again. I'll also go to try the items on the menu; if they cook it, I want to eat it.

I should also note that the service, led by our main server, Kevin Barrett, was attentive without being intrusive and generally quite good. I'm only downplaying it because the food is so stellar.

I still adore Piedmont and Rue Cler and many other local favorites, and I'll dine at each of them often. When you eat the The Mint's tasting menu, however, you're entering another level. I've dined at about half of the country's top-rated restaurants, and the highest praise I can give The Mint is this: my meal last night held its own against the best I've had.

Keep this place in business, and encourage Clayman and Foster to keep practicing and improving their art. Take a chance on their talents, and you'll be very glad you did.