Desarma Review – A Taste of Madeira in Funchal

Fine Dining Done Right at Desarma

Stepping into the restaurant, we were blown away by the views. Admittedly we enjoyed seeing everything in the daylight and then watching the sunset more than the nighttime view, so keep in mind sunset times if you plan on visiting.

We settled in and looked at the menu with our choice of 6, 9, or 12 courses. We chose the 9 courses, along with optional wine pairings.

The first course was an amuse-bouche with cured tuna with cucumber, asparagus, and herbs. It was light, refreshing, and our palates were awakened and ready for more.

If you’ve been to Madeira you’ve no doubt experienced one of the most delicious traditional dishes on the island: espetada. Chunks of meat are seasoned with bay leaves and traditionally grilled on a Laurel (bay leaf) skewer which is then served at the table hanging vertically from a hook. The next course was a delightful play on espetada, with cured tuna served with black garlic mayo, served on fresh bay leaves for decoration. The earthy richness of the mayo and the bay leaf essence evoked the smokiness and herbaceousness of espetada.

The other components of this course were also homages to the island’s cuisine, with one plate highlighting dried limpets (a type of aquatic snail typically served grilled in their shells), beef tartare, and a mushroom gel. The final component of this course was a fried little ball of scabbard fish with shaved skipjack tuna top and a tomato vinegar sauce. We really loved the creativity of this course and the way it played off of local ingredients and tradition.

Next up was smoked trout with crispy skin on top and roe and mustard seeds on the bottom, all sitting in a rich fish stock with ginger. On the side was house made bread with butter and salt from the Algarve, along with luxuriously smooth olive oil from Tras Os Montes.

If you’ve been to Madeira you have also surely witnessed one of Madeira’s other agricultural products – grapes. The next course was all about these local gems, with small spheres made to look like grapes. Inside each one was a soft goat cheese, and the spheres were resting on a sauce made from grapes. This sauce was very special as it was pickled and smoked inside Madeira barrels! The plate was finished off with another set of small spheres that also looked like grapes, but they were made from a moscatel grape jam. The whole dish was a little sweet, a little savory, and very delicious.

A thick, meaty grouper course came next, with thinly shaved fennel on top of a creamy green sauce. On the side was a crispy cracker-like bite made from spinach and seaweed, topped with caviar. It was a refreshing dish that tasted like the essence of the sea.

Things got richer with the following main course- angus served with a sauce of reduced oxtail stock, an onion cream, and garnishes of dehydrated onion and winter truffle. The meat was cooked to juicy perfection, and the accompaniments accentuated the richness of the meat. A flaky croissant bite with caramelized onion served on the side was heavenly.

Transitioning into the sweet courses, next up was a slice of dehydrated pineapple topped with coconut cream and a ground pepper syrup. Also with this course was a delightful choux pastry with a cinnamon and nutmeg cream filling.

We were left with a few final petits fours including a quejada, a chocolate truffle filled with banana, a sercial jelly, and a lemon and olive oil tartlet. It was hard to pick a favorite from these bites, but the tartlet was particularly lovely.

Although we were stuffed to the brim, we were celebrating my birthday and they brought out a special chocolate cake slice complete with a candle to finish off the evening.

We should note we also tried the wine pairings with this meal, which were excellent and primarily focused on wines from Madeira and mainland Portugal. It turns out the chef is also a winemaker, and one of the courses was paired with one of his excellent wines from the island. This was extra special because it wasn’t a wine that you can just buy in stores. The pairings also naturally featured a Madeira pairing for the dessert course – a 10 year Barbeito, our favorite producer on the island. We had a lovely chat with the somm about Madeira and bonded over the fact that Barbeito is our favorite!

We really enjoyed this splurge meal – the views, the use of local ingredients, the twists on Madeira specialties, and the excellent wine pairings all made for a relaxing and special meal. If we had the chance, we’d gladly return if we ever make it back to Madeira!

Desarma is located at Rooftop Rua das Maravilhas, 74 9000-177 in Funchal, Madeira, Portugal.