March, Chef Felipe Riccio's Mediterranean Tasting Menu Restaurant in Montrose

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Bibendum has finally descended upon Texas (thanks to tourism funds across the four major cities), with the Michelin Guide set to announce their inaugural awards this Monday, November 11.

While exciting to see which restaurants may get elevated recognition, it will be just as interesting to see how Michelin interprets Texan dining -- the best food here doesn't fit the typical star system template, and tasting menus are not that popular (oh but have we seen a bunch more since Michelin arrived!).

But if there is one restaurant that has been building towards this moment for the last three years, it is March.

Opened in 2021, the intimate restaurant (roughly 40 seats, well-spaced) is tasting-menu only, which changes every six months based on a region and time period of the Mediterranean. Sort of like a European history book version of Next.

The only choice is whether you prefer six ($185) or nine courses ($245), with two dishes being unique to either selection. I am not a wine pairing guy, but to my own surprise I found myself ordering a bottle at restaurant markup -- their list was impressive scrolling for a wannabe oenophile, with whole pages dedicated to Ramonet, Sauzet and Chave. A Pierre-Yves Colin-Morey Pernand Vergelesses Sous Fretille 2018 ($155) stood out, mostly because I've never even seen PYCM out in the retail wild, and the price was right. It carried us nicely through the tasting.

A meal at March has all those elevated fine dining trappings you love or don't, starting in their lounge with an array of opening snacks: tart shells, over-complicated croquettes, and long descriptions that you have forgotten by the time they are recited. All delicious though.

Moving to the main dining room after a complimentary glass of their house-made vermouth -- much more pleasant than it sounds -- you find that everyone gets their own table, thankfully, without a banquette in sight. It is a lovely, minimalist space that is both lively and private at the same time.

The service team has a lot of enthusiasm in regards to the historical influence of every dish, which I appreciated, but it can also be a bit dizzying through nine courses. That said, the service execution was close to perfect. We wanted for nothing, felt at ease with the entire staff and there was absolutely no pretension.

We did the nine-course, with several standouts that I am still remembering fondly. Ciuppin was based on the Ligurian soup, but done as a red pepper chawanmushi with mussels and king crab on top. Served cold, yet abundantly flavorful and really quite elegant.

Foie gras e brioche probably had a great story presented with it, or maybe people just love to eat foie gras when paying hundreds for dinner. This was my preferred mode of liver delivery -- a creamy slice of torchon, topped with a cherry compote ("spherified" to resemble a cherry) and slabbed over a warm mini-brioche roll.

Corzetti was a new one for me, the pasta bearing a stamp per Genoan tradition. A filling of rabbit and a light, but robust sauce with artichokes was all quite delicious. Indigo, was sablefish gently cooked to perfection and topped with caviar -- yet it was the sauce work that was doing a separate guitar solo here, a classic beurre rouge that out-staged everything else.

Desserts were fun if not phenomenal. The palate-cleansing chinotto was based on the same namesake soda and a memorable, citrusy foam that mimicked a soft drink without the saccharine and artificial aftertaste. Myristica fragans, otherwise just known as a nutmeg tree, was the first nutmeg-focused dessert I can ever remember eating at a restaurant. Despite the name, the strong associated flavors are very softly presented -- the main trick being a "fake" nutmeg that hides a sweet yogurt cream inside.

All-in-all, March was mostly delicious, always interesting, and certainly expensive. There is another level they can reach in taste and execution, but the format and cuisine resemble what you would find in other Michelin-starred U.S. restaurants -- there truly is not another restaurant in Texas that is striving for a multi-star experience in the same manner.

 If March is not a two-star restaurant, then Texas doesn't have one.

 

The entrance to March. It shares the same building as Rosie Cannonball, another restaurant by Goodnight Hospitality. Ciuppin with king crab.

Foie gras with a mini loaf of brioche (half showing; torn by myself). Corzetti stamped pasta. 

Sablefish with a phenomenal sauce. Maialino di Latte, pork loin stuffed with sausage and a duxelle-filled cabbage leaf as a crown. Blackcurrant pork jus was intensely satisfying.

Nutmeg dessert, to be smashed by the back of your spoon and revealing a much less intimidating sweet cream inside. View into the open kitchen, but based on seating its more of a look at the pass.