Once I step in a Michelin restaurant, I always have high expectations from the service down to the food (and yes even the bathroom!). So without further ado, here's my blow by blow account of what went down at Lasarte, Barcelona's highest Michelin rated establishment garnering two stars.

1. Ambiance: Unlike other high end restaurants, Lasarte is brightly lit, which means good food photos and no reason to doze off during a 2-3 hour meal. The vibe exudes understated elegance- crisp white linens, expensive platters (Made in Germany, mind you), and a modern, impeccably clean bathroom; all of which something my grandma's and my generation would love.

2. Service: Needs a little bit more training since I can tell some (younger) servers were apprehensive on where and when they had to put down the plate. Their military style of serving is not as polished as Manresa's although all of the staff were very courteous throughout our meal.

3. Food: It is easy to understand why Lasarte deserves its two Michelin stars. Each course was not only beautifully presented, but also you can tell that the chef had given it much thought. All ingredients played a role in enhancing the flavor. In many Michelin restaurants, there are some hits and misses, but with Lasarte, each plate, including the amuse bouche, that was served left me speechlees. It was definitely a meal to remember from start to finish.

Plus points: They gave us a cheat sheet of our pre-fix course before we began eating giving me a good idea of what I was putting in my mouth; most restaurants only give out the list at the end of the meal. The chef also came out to greet us and ask how our food was. 

My ultimate favorite is what I call as "The Most Beautiful Salad I've Ever Eaten." Scroll down below.

Amuse bouche: parmesan, olives, gelee, pistachios

Olives with grapefruit. So succulent and doesn't the gold platter look lovely?

Cheat sheet surprisingly came out at the beginning of the meal with my customize pre-fix of no pork and beef.

5 different kinds of butter: beetroot, mushroom, spinach, tomato and regular butter with fleur de sel. My favorite is the mushroom.

With foie gras and fish. Creamy gooey goodness!

Red tuna tartare with curd cucumber. The curd cucumber is a surprise adding to the 'gelee' feel of the overall dish.

Lightly smoked oyster on the grill with soft cream of Figueres, small squid ragout and crispy tubers. Figueres is Catalan for fig trees. The sweetness of the figs and the smokey flavor of the oysters definitely gave a unique flavor to this dish.

Vegetable leave salad, herbs, sprouts and petals with lettuce cream and lobster. The MOST BEAUTIFUL SALAD I'VE EVER EATEN! I actually didn't want to eat this because it was just too pretty to destroy. Alas, after staring at it for a few minutes and taking many photos, I decided to give it a try and was not disappointed. The transparent liquid, which I believe is the lettuce cream, made the bits and pieces of herbs, leaves, petals, etc. all come together.

My dining chum's beef carpaccio while I was served the sea cucumber below.

Sea cucumber, stewed vegetables, liquid cuttlefish ink and jewish perona liquefied juice. Do you see the black blob on the bottom left? Amazing how the ink pops in your mouth. The green sauce, jewish perona LIQUIFIED juice, sounds petrifying, but was very easy on the palette with the chewy sea cucumber.

Red prawn, royale of sea urchins, caviar of goat's burned milk and almond. I love anything that comes from the sea since I was born not far from it. Thus, I loved everything about this dish, especially the prawn that was staring right at me ready to be devoured below.

Very photogenic prawn! Hi there!

Farmhouse egg with sauteed wild mushrooms, scented meat juice, Iberian gill and truffled cheese shard. I had to google what a gill is and turns out to be a respiratory organ found in aquatic creatures (wikipedia). It sounds weird at first, but it definitely didn't stop me from feasting on this dish.

Low-temperature cooked monkfish settled on onions and paprika marmalade, braised endive with barnacles tarama and black olives. If I were to rate all the dishes, I think this would be last on my list. I believe that it is difficult to get the most flavor out of a monkfish unless if it is grilled or smoke. Nonetheless, I like the use of not so common ingredients on this dish. The barnacles were very interesting to look at and chew.

Roast pigeon, tomato and lemon with apple cream and interiors toast. See that stick in the middle? That was the winning piece on this plate- the pigeon's interiors made to look like a Japanese pocky stick.

Beetroot and yogurt cold cream, micro hazelnut cake, cocoa and cereals infusion. Ah yes, finally desert after 2.5 hours! This plate might look pretty and dainty, but don't be fooled. Whether you eat the ingredients one by one or combine them altogether, there is a burst of refreshing and bold flavors all-in-one.

French toast with frozen coffee creme and plum compote. The best french toast I've ever had. Period! Plus, it doesn't hurt that the plate made the dessert look even more dramatic.

Petit fours. I like the serving platter!

Close up of the petit fours

Even though I was bummed that once again for the nth time, I was not able to get a reservation at Tickets, Lasarte made my trip back to Barcelona worthwhile.