dining

Photo/ Ryan Seeloff

Open Your Senses to the World at Cafe Margaux Nestled into a corner within historic Cocoa Village you will find one of Brevard's finest dining experiences at one of Brevard's most refined dining locations.

Cafe Margaux owner Alex Litras hosts a monthly event featuring spirits from around the world paired with an amazing six-course dinner. Recent events have included a visit from winemaker Trevor Jones of Australia, fine cognacs, and recently a dinner featuring fine sake. Each dinner can take over three hours as representives from the winery, distillery, or distributor are on hand to answer questions between courses while describing each of the upcoming spirits.

The dishes that Cafe Margaux Executive Chef Erol Tugrul creates to pair with the different spirits lets each guest experience a meal that is among the finest in all of Central Florida.

For example, here is a sampling of the sake dinner- Upon arriving at Cafe Margaux we were escorted upstairs to the "Mediterranean Room" and given a "Sakecosmo" which was a blend of different fruit flavored sakes, a splash of cranberry juice , and lemon juice. Quite a delicious way to start the evening.

Our first course was Panko Crusted Jumbo Shrimp with Pomegranate Berry Sauce and another "Sakecosmo". The large shrimp were lightly crusted with panko flakes, fried, and the dipping sauce provided a sweet yet tangy finish. It was during this course that we were introduced to Masahiro Fukuda, our speaker for the evening. Throughout the dinner Mr. Fukuda provided us with the origin of sake, how it is made, how it compares to wine and beer, and he answered any questions we had regarding this Japanese spawned spirit.

For our next course we enjoyed Shrimp and Scallop Miso Soup with Nori and Japanese Eggplant paired with Momokawa Diamond Junmai Ginjo sake. This was not you run of the mill miso soup found at the typical Japanese eatery. Chef Erol once again hit the mark with his mastery of all types of cuisine in this lovely creation. Let me also state that the different types of sake we sampled were not what you typically find when venturing out to your local sushi haunt. More often than not sake is served warm but each of our tastings were chilled. Also, the sake served represented some of the highest quality sake available. This was the first time either my wife or I had tried chilled sake and in our opinion it is much better chilled than warm.

For our third course we were presented with a Cabbage and Soba Noodle Salad with watercress, daikon, and marinated shitake mushrooms topped with a sake ricewine vinaigrette. The salad was paired with Murai Family Sugidama Junmai Ginjo sake. Withut trying to be a food critic which I am not let me just say that this salad was incredible.

Rounding out the meal were the following dishes; Black Sesame Seared Rare Tuna Akami, Seaweed Salad with Lemon and Ginger Sweet Tonkatsu Sauce once again paired with Murai Family Sugidama Junmai Ginjo sake. Sockeye Salmon Nigri with Bean Thread Noodles and Japanese Cucumbers, Spring Onions, and a Tomato Mirin Sauce which was paired with Murai Family Tanrei Junmai sake. Togarashi Seasoned Wagyu over Grilled Yakiimo with Straw Mushrooms and Edamame and a Sakura Sauce paired with G Joy Junmai Ginjo Genshu sake (Our favorite). Ahhh dessert Agari Green Tea Cake with layers of Yuzu Mousse and Lychee & Asian Pear Sauce paired with Momokawa Pearl Junmai Ginjo Nigori Genshu.

At the end of each dinner guests are invited to purchase bottles of the featured spirits at discounted prices. Several of us took home bottles to pop open later. After experiencing several of these meals I have made it a point to let everyone know how enjoyable they are. Yes the price is a little much for a typical night out, but used as a surprise for a special treat this is the perfect way to go. Guys, just think of the points you would score if you took that special someone to one of these dinners. Big time points, trust me. For a complete listing of future events just visit the Special Events section on the Cafe Margaux website. Please send us an Email if you plan to attend and I will probably see you there with my camera in hand.