Culinary perfection is exceptionally difficult to achieve. It is easy to recognize.

Suzen and I have eaten in many cities in many types of restaurants. From hole in the wall to Parisian white glove, we’ve had the fortune to sample the skills of single chef kitchens and of culinary teams organized like a small army.

We have, of course, our top 10 lists and we revise and rethink our history of consumption all the time. Our “very best” list is short. It’s the places where we had the opportunity to experience true perfection. You might think that deciding between really, really good and perfection might be difficult. It isn’t. When you have perfection, you know immediately. You are stunned. It’s a food high that is immediate, intense, and so obvious you just sit and laugh and enjoy.

On television, Gordon Ramsay can seem a tad rough. Okay, rough is an understatement. He often strikes people as someone they would not want to meet, as someone whose restaurants could not be great. How could a swearing, screaming tyrant produce unbelievable food?

Well, Ramsay’s very demanding personality does translate into perfect culinary experiences. Suzen and I ate at Maze in London two years ago. Not only was the food ideal, but so too the service, the space, literally everything. Go to gordonramsay.com/maze and look at the website. The beauty you see on the screen, in terms of the picture and text and layout, is precisely what you experience when you dine there.

I am convinced that any piece of dust at a Ramsay restaurant is there only after passing inspection.

Fortunately, there is now a cookbook based on Maze. You’ll want to start cooking right away. One specialty of the restaurant is a new trend: verrines. A verrine is foody version of the mai tai cocktail. Layers of food create a visual stack of color, flavors, and textures in a verrine. The recipe below is typical and it is a wonderful dish to sample. Don’t be afraid of the multiple steps. Like many Ramsay recipes, each component itself is fairly simple — there’s an Italian influence there. Ramsay’s genius is to combine superior individual pieces into a dish that is overwhelming wonderful.

Put aside your television impressions. Embrace the Ramsay. He offers you food on a level you have only dreamed of.

Cornish Crab Mayo with Avocado and Corn Sorbet

Servings: 6 as an appetizer

Crab Ingredients:

1 cup crabmeat [ideally fresh from a 2 ¾ pound crab]
⅓cup mayonnaise
Juice of ¼ lemon or to taste
Sea salt and black pepper

Crab Preparation:

In a medium-sized bowl, add the crab meat and mayonnaise.  Mix with a fork, adding the lemon juice and salt and pepper to taste.

Avocado Puree Ingredients:

2 avocados
Juice of 1 lime or to taste
1 tablespoon crème fraiche

Avocado Puree Preparation:

Halve, pit and peel the avocados, then whiz to a puree in a food processor blender.  Add the lime juice and crème fraiche.  Whiz to combine and season with salt and pepper to taste.

Corn Sorbet Ingredients:

12 ounce can cornel kernels in brine
Pinch of superfine sugar (optional)
Sea salt to taste

 Corn Sorbet Preparation:

Tip the corn into a food processor blender, adding the liquid form the can. Whiz until smooth, then pass through a fine strainer into a bowl. Taste and add a pinch of sugar and/or salt if needed.

Churn in an ice-cream machine to a sorbet consistency, according to the manufacturer’s instruction. Transfer to a rigid container and put into the freezer (unless serving straightaway). Let the sorbet soften at room temperature for 5 to 19 minute before serving.

Assembly and Serving:

Spoon the avocado puree into cocktail glasses to half-fill them.  Divide the crab mixture between the glasses, forming an even layer, then top with a quenelle of corn sorbet and a chervil spring.  Finish with a small spoonful of caviar, if you like.

Source: Maze by Gordon Ramsay