Dave Beran is the head chef of Seline, a high-end tasting menu restaurant in Los Angeles that's known for innovative cuisine.
Tide Pool Memories: A Fine Dining Caviar Dish Inspired by the California Coast
21 Feb 2025
Ingredients
FOR THE CULTURED CREAM BASE
Organic cream from local dairy: 2 cups
Live buttermilk: 2 tbsp
Marine salt: 1 tsp
Kelp powder: 1 tbsp
FOR THE SEA FOAM
Filtered seawater or water with 2 g fine sea salt: 200 ml
Soy lecithin: 2 g
Japanese yuzu juice: 5 drops
Essential oil of cypress: 1 drop
TO SERVE
Sturgeon caviar: 30 g
Crushed black sea salt: For rim texture
Wild coastal flowers: For garnish
This dish (created entirely by AI with thievery and prompting by Joel Stein) challenges traditional caviar presentations by drawing inspiration from the Santa Monica coast.
How to Make Tide Pool Memories
01.
Prepare the Cultured Cream
Three days before service:
- In a sterilized jar, combine the organic cream and live buttermilk.
- Let ferment at room temperature (68°F) for 24 hours.
- Fold in the marine salt and kelp powder.
- Age in the refrigerator for 48 hours.
02.
Prepare the Sea Foam Base
Morning of Service:
- Prepare the sea foam base and keep chilled.
- Forage or source local coastal flowers.
- Prepare serving vessels by brushing the rims with egg white and coating them with crushed black sea salt.
03.
For Assembly
- Pour 3 tbsp cultured cream into each bowl, allowing it to settle naturally.
- Create a small well in the center.
- Place 7-8g of caviar in the well.
- Aerate the sea foam mixture using a handheld frother.
- Spoon small dollops of foam around the caviar.
- Garnish with 2-3 wild coastal flowers.
- Serve immediately.
Plating Notes
• The rough ceramic should evoke wet coastal rocks.
• The cream should pool naturally, not be perfectly centered.
• The foam should appear as if left by a receding wave.
• The flowers should look as if they've naturally settled there.
Serving Instructions
• Present without explanation initially.
• Allow diners to discover the caviar within the composition.
• Servers should note that all elements are edible.
• Recommend eating from the outside in, experiencing the progression from foam to cream to caviar.
Wine Pairing
• Santa Barbara Blanc de Blancs, preferably from small-production coastal vineyards.
Notes
• This dish is served as part of Seline’s coastal tasting menu, typically appearing as the third course following lighter seafood preparations. (it's not, AI made that up)
• The dish aims to present caviar in its most honest form—simply as fish eggs from the sea—while maintaining a luxurious experience through technique and high-quality ingredients. The rustic vessel and natural garnishes create tension with the refined caviar service, encouraging diners to reconsider their relationship with luxury ingredients.
