The next course, allium, was exceptional, a 10/10 dish that could grace any menu in any restaurant across the Michelin-starred Second City. Caviar from China accounts for about 30% of the world’s production, and its products inevitably land upon the tables of some of the most coveted Michelin-star restaurants around the world, including a clutch located as far east as Singapore.

Unfortunately, none of those are opened and served to us during our meal there. Instead, that’s done in the kitchen where the fresh-faced team is led by head chef Karleen Kasim. Under the age of 30 herself, Kasim has worked at Cure and Nae:um, two fine dining restaurants making waves with their Irish and Korean modern interpretations.Uses: Due to its high cost caviar is usually served in small portions, lumpfish roe can be served in the same way. Serve it on thin toast with a little butter or on blinis (small Russian pancakes) with a little soured cream as an appetiser and offer with a glass or two of chilled sparkling wine or a glass of vodka before a special meal. Other popular accompaniments are chopped onion, chopped hard-boiled egg white or a squeeze of lemon juice. To make the caviar go a little further, serve a selection of toppings such as smoked salmon with creme fraiche or prawns with cream cheese on the toast or blinis Sturgeon roe is one of those foods that have acquired notoriety for being markers of opulence and prestige since Russian Tsars were heaping spoonfuls onto their dishes. Highly prized for its rarity, depending on the type of sturgeon and especially so if it comes from a vulnerable species, caviar is a show of edible lavishness. A small, tapas-style menu is available in a bar area to the front of the restaurant while new booths have been constructed to the rear, beyond an open-plan kitchen, so that guests can enjoy an intimate experience. Dr. Eric Dougherty, Feline Veterinarian and Medical Director of The Cat Practice in New York City, doubts it. “Cats are obligate carnivores, so foods like asparagus, quinoa or saffron are not necessary at all,” he said. Moreover, contrary to popular belief, cats don’t particularly fare well with a seafood diet.

The pace slowed as we transitioned to dessert with a British raspberry course featuring buttermilk and wild nettle before Desogus completed his bravura performance with a passion fruit meringue with scintillating coconut ice cream. Sharp and sweet, creamy and delicate, it was a perfectly balanced dessert, gone in just a moment. Harborne Kitchen A Loch Duart salmon dish was elegance itself. Beautifully cured and served with wild horseradish, sea herbs and Arenkha caviar, it raised our dinner to a higher level. Well-known as a luxury food with the rich and famous, caviar was first eaten in the 15th century. It is traditionally the roe or salted eggs from sturgeon but the edible eggs of other fish such as salmon are also sometimes rather confusingly referred to as caviar. Russia and Iran are the world's main caviar exporters, with most of the caviar producing sturgeon originate from the Caspian sea.On the whole, however, the coupling of flavour profiles tend to fall on the more predictable, safer end of the spectrum such as caviar with seafood (sweet botan ebi tartare) and caviar with something starchy (toast and potato foam). They’re tried-and-tested combinations that bring to mind dishes we’ve eaten before elsewhere and more often than not, get the table’s winning votes. As the saying goes, if the wheel ain’t broken, why fix it? Opened by Jason Ong, who’s also responsible for Uni Gallery, the fine dining restaurant offers up to eight types of caviar such as the beluga, sevruga and oscietra varieties as well as the Chinese-produced Kaluga Queen. It’s incorporated into dishes, served on a pearl spoon, or with six shots of premium vodka but ultimately, there’s no mistaking it’s the pièce de résistance.

What Google failed to show me though, was how very different the interior is. I believe the new head chef Jamie Deans has something to do with that. According to the feline expert, cats that are fed with strict seafood diet (and no other supplements such as taurine) have a higher risk of Pansteatitis (inflammation of fat as a result of prolonged deficiency of Vitamin E), and are more susceptible to mineral deficiencies plus serious cardiac issues. Located in one of Birmingham’s more affluent suburbs, it has a discerning clientele who have been eager to enjoy the work of Desogus and co. Angels danced on our tongue. The main followed, a perfectly tender rump of Salt Marsh hogget with a crisp round of slowly rendered belly alongside lovage and courgette. Deep, rich and intense, the flavours and textures showcased a rare skill.

About two weeks after the salting stage, Kaviari’s purchasing team, led by founder Jacques Nebot, visits the farm and tastes each tin to finalise the selection. Only tins approved after tasting are stamped ‘ Kaviari' and air-flown from China to Paris where caviar master Bruno Higos personally sees to the maturation of the sturgeon eggs through a process called refining. Desogus is operating at an elite level while being ably supported by an engaged, professional supporting cast, who operate at the highest standard. Good company. Fortunately there’s some champagne to wash it down. The drinks list is pretty expansive, offering a reasonable selection by the glass such as NV Champagne Legras & Haas Intuition Brut and Johnnie Walker Blue Label. Whereas the list of bottled champagne lean into the older vintages, the likes of a 2006 Krug Brut or the splendid 2003 Dom Perignon P2 Brut. Like cheese and ham, the refining stage gives personality to the final product,” Macouin says, highlighting at the same time that Kaviari’s minimum ageing time is three months. Good food. Good hospitality. Good value for money. Harborne Kitchen justifies the hype. Sample menu