Elements’ contemporary Asian menu raises the bar with seasonally evolving dishes
I make a point every year to revisit a few restaurants that I’ve reviewed in the past, with the aim of writing an updated review if it’s warranted. Elements, which I’d reviewed in 2012 a few months after it opened, was on my short list of candidates for re-review in 2020.
Then coronavirus hit, shredding everybody’s 2020 calendars, including mine, into virtual confetti. For obvious reasons, I’m not able to write a full starred review for Elements — or any other restaurant, for that matter.
But I can tell you about a recent contact-free takeout experience that, if anything, left me more impressed than ever with the contemporary Asian restaurant that Michael Chuong opened eight years ago.
Not that the food wasn’t already topnotch back then. But packaging food for takeout — especially food that was designed to be presented in a fine dining restaurant like Elements — raises the degree of difficulty. Chuong and his team rack up the points big time with dishes arranged so carefully — in environmentally friendly containers, no less — that it’s a cinch to preserve the artful presentations when you transfer them to your own plates.
The food is as good as it looks, too. The crab cakes I’d ordered were a small miracle, their still-crisp panko crusts packed with more crabmeat than you get in many crab cakes twice their size. And a roasted beet salad, topped with orange sections, radishes and a loose skein of carrot threads, fully delivered on its jewel tone promise.
A togarashi-spiked romesco sauce dolloped onto a sweet, moist filet of pan-roasted Alaskan halibut was proof that Chuong hasn’t lost his instinct for fusing the flavors of other cultures into his mostly Asian repertoire.
And how the chef managed to fry a sunnyside up egg so that the yolk would survive the half-hour drive from Chapel Hill to my home is beyond me. He did, though, and it was the crowning touch on lemongrass double pork chop that had been grilled to a succulent, rosy-centered turn.
Now that I’ve got your mouth watering, I’m afraid to tell you that none of the dishes I had that night are still on Elements’ seasonally evolving menu. Even the exquisite classic coconut cake that we had for dessert gets a different presentation on the current menu.
But I’ll wager that presentation, with caramel mascarpone and espresso sauce, won’t let you down. Nor will anything else that strikes your fancy, based on Chuong’s track record. For me, that track record goes back to 2006, when Chuong earned a loyal fan base in Cary at the excellent (and sadly, now shuttered) An.
Those fans will be happy to know that Chuong recently opened a second restaurant, called MC, in the historic Jones house in downtown Cary. The seasonal menu is similar to the one at Elements (including sushi, which I haven’t yet tried), though the chef says the traditional space at MC is more intimate.
I’m looking forward to when I can see for myself. In the meantime, you can bet an MC takeout order is on my calendar.
Elements
2110 Environ Way, Chapel Hill
919-537-8780 or elementsofchapelhill.com
Takeout Tales
Send me your experiences with restaurant delivery and curbside pickup at ggcox55@gmail.com. I’ll publish as many as I can (edited as needed for brevity and clarity) in this space.
Hawthorne & Wood
Winston L. offers all-around praise for Hawthorne & Wood — which, as it happens, is just a few doors down from Elements in the East 54 complex in Chapel Hill.
“I’d like to give a shout-out to Hawthorne & Wood in Chapel Hill, not just because it is a wonderful place for a great meal and evening, but for their support of the community in these challenging times.
“Chef Brandon Sharp and his staff have dedicated their efforts since the beginning of the pandemic to keeping its customers well-fed with unique carry-out menus. The three-course dinners for two are sufficient for a second meal for two.
“When the restaurant opened for dining on the patio several weeks ago, CDC guidelines (including masks) were followed, and tables were social-distanced by 20 feet. They also go the extra mile to accommodate diners for special occasions, which we experienced for our 45th anniversary.”
This story was originally published July 26, 2020 at 11:15 AM with the headline "Elements’ contemporary Asian menu raises the bar with seasonally evolving dishes."