Topaz – a name standing for highest quality French cuisine in Cambodia since 1996 – are staying on top of their game for the first global Good France dinner 2015. Head chef Sopheak Pov gave Post Plus a preview on some of the extravagancies we can expect for the seven courses dinner.

Good France Black tie dinner on Thursday March 19 starts at 7pm. Book under +855 12 333276 or [email protected]

Post Plus: Sopheak, a set menu of thua proportion must follow a guiding principle. What is it?

Sopheak: We at Topaz say there is no limit to quality. Only the best is good enough. We are using the freshest and best products from Cambodia such as pepper (fr. Kampot), palm sugar (fr. Takeo), steamed grouper filet (fr. the sea) or pumpkin (fr. Kandal). The rest of the ingredients like the milk-fed lamb, chocolate and of course foie gras are from France.

Post Plus: How are you planning to open up peoples taste buds?

Sopheak: We will serve a river lobster dish with Caviar Sturia, a French caviar brand that is regularly listed in the top three at official blind tests. Once we had Russian customers at Topaz who brought their own caviar. We let them blind test the Caviar Sturia against theirs and they liked it better. That was a real shock to them!

Post Plus: Sounds promising. What’s else can we look forward to?

Sopheak: We will serve pan fried foie gras des Landes with Kandal mango in a reduction of malt water and palm sugar. After the foie gras you will try an emulsion, a foam of Kandal pumpkin. The air bubbles in the foam will maximise the intensity of the pumpkin leading to a taste explosion in your mouth.

Post Plus: What could possibly top a pumpkin explosion?

Sopheak: We will serve a rocher to reset your taste buds. This is necessary to enjoy taste and tenderness of the seasonal and limitedly available specialty, French milk lamb. This marks the highlight of the menu.

Post Plus: And how does the evening end?

Sopheak: With a trilogy of Michelin Star praised deep fried chocolate and pepper mint that makes magic happen and features a real novelty: Fried chocolate that melts inside. It’s like a chocolate fondant times a hundred.