Otherworldly Cuisine

Click your heels three times and whisk away to the otherworld of The Silver Bough, where culinary magic is being spun right in our backyard. (And break out the black card. The all-inclusive, 15-plus course dinner with cocktails and wine pairings is a staggering $550.)

Here, behind a secret door, in a curtained room, you will be seated with seven other guests maximum at a Brazilian granite chef’s table in a kitchen where the senses are awakened by unique creations for the eye as well as the palate.

Mastery is revealed over several hours by chef/owner Phillip Frankland Lee, his partner/wife/pastry chef Margarita Kallas-Lee, and their well-orchestrated team. It’s a gustatory show in three acts (sea/land/dessert). Even the name is a tasty confection. The Silver Bough, in Irish mythology, is a doorway to the land of the gods.

Mortal guests in this land watch each labor-intensive, Lilliputian course being crafted while learning about the best of the best ingredients in detail.

Yes, there is spiny lobster, caviar, and an extraordinary amount of black truffles from France, shaved before our very eyes. Gold flake is applied to certain dishes. Tender, melt-in-yourmouth delicacies include kinmedae (golden eye snapper), flown in from Japan. Dry-aged Japanese wagyu beef is also part of the adventure But it’s much more than the array of ingredients. It’s the preparation, finely honed recipes, and incredible presentation that dazzle.

We were delighted by the pommes soufflé, tiny, puffy, crispy potato skin pockets stuffed with lobster innards whipped with crème fraîche, topped with sea urchin and carnations. Another winner was an earthy and satisfying venison soup made with wild venison from New York, chanterelle mushrooms (after the rains) and a pigeon egg from a Carpinteria ranch.

Do not ignore the man and his culinary team behind the curtain. Chef Philip has raised Santa Barbara’s culinary bar to staggering heights, and the rest of the world is taking note. — By Leslie Westbrook

The Silver Bough is located inside the Montecito Inn at 1295 Coast Village Road in Montecito (Santa Barbara). Dietary restrictions are honored. A 6:30 p.m. seating is available every Thursday through Sunday. Tickets can be purchased at www.silverboughmontecito.com.