The Greenhouse, II, London

La salle

This post destroys the blog’s chronological order a little, but as the grouse’s season isn’t that long anymore, I thought it might be useful to publish it first.

The Greenhouse is real gem. Nestled in Hay’s Mews in Mayfair, its slick, very chic interior goes well with the clientele that dines here. The room is really well designed, and is probably as good as a basement, with low a ceiling, gets. It is both elegant, and comfortable, even if it does get loud, due to the parquet on the floor, it has unquestionable charm. Design-wise, I love absolutely love it.

La table

On a Wednesday night, we weren’t the only table who wanted to try Antonin Bonnet’s cooking it seemed. The place was packed. Next to us sat Jancis Robinson with Nick Lander, on the other side, Marlon Abela, the owner of the place, who also owns Umu and a few other restaurants in London. Apart from the décor, three things make the Greenhouse special: The absolutely stunning wine list, the cooking and the cheeses. The wine list is easily the most extensive in London, and one of the most impressive in the world. The 3350 wines are mostly highly regarded nectars from the world’s most renowned producers and feature some vintages that not many restaurants sell anyomore. For people who enjoy a wine that is mature, there will be plenty of choice here, and prices aren’t outrageous neither (considering the standard of the restaurant). Krug’s Grande Cuvee is less expensive here than at most other London restaurants, not to mention Paris. At a mere 180 (until recently it was 155 pounds) the mark-up seems very good indeed. A glass of this godly wine is sold at 30 pounds, which is a fair price for coming one step closer to heaven. Things like Bollinger’s Vieilles Vignes Francaises cost less than in some shops here, but unfortunately my student budget, doesn’t allow me to go for such highly tempting diamonds. The sommelier Ronan Sayburn really knows his wine, and is best left carte blanche, trust me, you won’t be let down. We were served a selection of drinkable wines, and one treat, that was outrageous.

La Salle

Service was great: Attentive, friendly, charming and knowledgeable. I found the gentleman in charge of the cheeseboard especially impressive. This was someone (his name escapes me) who has a real passion, who travels to the regions in which his cheeses originate, and who keeps close contact with Bernard Antony, who supplies all of the restaurant’s French cheeses. More about that later though. The only concern I had with the service was the fact that bread and butter were never refilled. One had to ask every single time, which is a little tiring. Especially if you ask for the fourth or fifth time, being a gready bastard like myself. However, any wish was directly obliged, which is all one needs.

Food-wise, we went for the tasting menu (80 pounds), which is very fairly priced for what is offered. I don’t want to suggest them to raise the prices or anything, but I sometimes wonder how places like this can survive on such pricing-schemes. Having experienced a number of 3 and 2* kitchens in action, I know how low prices in London are. A 2* chef in London recently told me that if it weren’t for the hotel that backed his restaurant, he would have been out of business a long time ago. This isn’t a a business in which one makes money, and people who complain should go and work in a starred kitchen for a good month. I wonder how many make it through the first week. To start us off with our Champagne, we were offered a rhubarb and apple sphere, and cheese crackers, filled with a cream, whose contents I forgot to note. The sphere had a rather acidic, tart taste, and was a good set-up for the palate. The crisps were much more pleasant though, as they went beautifully with the drink. A good start.

Pour grignoter

The amuse bouche was a spider crab/apple/celery salad, which came atop crab/dashi jelly. This had very clean, subtle flavours, and could have used a little more punch from the pretty neutral jelly. Nonetheless, it was already very much in the line of Antonin’s cooking: Incredibly clean, natural, perfectly executed and light. This was very precise in every respect, and the addition of tamed Asian elements (dashi) made it only more interesting. Good, although it was no where near as good as what was to come up…

Amuse

Bread was great. The four types offered were warm and crunchy, and had nice, airy mie. All are made in the restaurant, as are the oatcakes served with the cheese (very good too). I couldn’t specify, which one I prefered, as all had their USPs, but generally speaking the level was very high. Butter too, was very tasty, especially the salted one. With the bread at ADAD, I would rate this as the best in London (as far as I can tell). Excellent.

Les pains

I swapped the tasting menu’s beef carpaccio for something of a bit more interest: Terrine of Foie Gras and Bresse Chicken. With this I was served a 2005 Pinot Gris from Bruno Hunold, which went very well with the dish. A small rectangle of foie gras/Bresse chicken and fig terrine came with a pickled quince and some quince puree. Simple, very pretty and most importantly perfect from a technical point of view. This was precise, exact, simple and delicious. A classical combination and presentation, which was dressed in a most modern way. This combination is just made in heaven, it is fantastic and should be eaten by everyone at least once. Be it here or in other great restaurants.  The foie was of very good quality, and went beautifully with the chicken and quince. This evening promised to be rather good! Excellent. (The Simmental beef carpaccio was faultless too, if less interesting as this dish)

Terrine

The second course read like a wild list of products, randomly paired: Scottish scallop in seaweed butter, caviar, goats’ cheese mozzarella, cucumber and rock samphire. This was served with 2007 Albarino de Ferrerio, Bodegas Mendes, Rias Baixas, which was most enjoyable. The huge scallop (not butchered to resemble slices of paper) was steamed and then gently roasted with seaweed butter. It was topped with salmon roe, which was marinated in sake, a goats’ cheese mozzarella foam, some cucumber, rock samphire and a dashi broth. What really struck me, was the huge scallop and the perfect cooking of it. This was again, most precisely timed and contrasted beautifully with the popping texture of the salmon roe and the other elements. The dish was harmonious as such, and the dashi broth’s flavour gave it a strong backbone, which I really enjoyed. Although it seemed a little hyperactive at first, it came out as a fantastic dish. The outstanding factor here was the scallop and the very precise cooking of it. Very good.

St Jacques

Moving on,  here came the fish course: Steamed brill with coconut broth, peanut tamarind and French beans. Paired with 2007 Neudorf Chardonnay, Nelson, it was a very happy couple indeed. The dish really was a study in reductionism and brought things down to the essentials. There was no more than what was really needed on this plate. The brill was covered with a peanut-crust and served with French bean cream and a coconut jus. A dish as minimalistic as this really relies on exact flavours, great execution and most importantly: Stunning products. What really was striking was the way, in which the flavour combination evolved. This wasn’t just an ordinary Asian-influenced coconut-milk based sauce, which often taste rather one-dimensional, and vulgar, but a most complex, fascinating concoction. Together with the perfectly cooked brill, it was a pretty perfect match. Besides the fact, that the fish was a little less firm than I like it (not caught that same day I suppose), this dish was a great thing. It really was one of the very few Asian (although not Japanese)-influenced dishes that worked in a “French” restaurant. Excellent.

Barbue

Just before things got serious came the Pan-fried duck foie gras, spicy carrots, honey-glazed confit medlar and tamarind sultanas jus. The wine poured was a 2006 Torcolato, Maculan from the Veneto. A niece slab of foie gras was surrounded by a collection of carrot cream, a carrot piece and medlar. The sauce, which was rather sweet (given its main ingredients), finished things off in a beautiful way. From reading the course’s description, one might be inclined to think that this would be an overly sweet affair, but luckily enough it was a great game that balanced a subtle acidity with slightly restrained, muted sweetness (coming mainly from the sauce). The vegetables and fruit were cooked al dente, and were very gently spiced. The star of the show however, was the foie gras. This was a very fine piece of cooked foie indeed. In fact, a very knowledgeable diner, whom I was having dinner with was rather impressed by it. The outstanding thing about this piece of liver was the texture. It was unlike most warm pieces, which are stringy, feel heavy, full of veines and break into some kind of disgusting mash, when cut. Luckily enough, this was all the opposite. Most of the time, the foie gras isn’t choosen very carefully, and of pretty poor quality. Here however, Antonin Bonnet explained that they go through a good number of lobes a week (all of which is done by himself) and select only the best. Out of these, they then pick the big lobe, and use only the centre-piece. The cooking process resembles that, which Blumenthal uses on his foie dish, and really does give an amazing result. This was one of the rare pieces of warm foie gras that I absolutely loved. Exceptional.

Foie gras

Now, the initial reason for this dinner was what followed. I had missed eating a grouse last year, during my first year at LSE, so I felt obliged to rectify that. Having asked Antonin if he could prepare me one, he accepted, and so the magical moment came: Roast Grouse, coffee mashed potato. To go with this, we had a glass of 2002 Volnay from Nicolas Rossignol, which was very good, but probably the pairing I found the least convincing. In this case, I really didn’t mind. I was here to meet that Scottish bird for the first time. It really was a beauty lying in front of me. Again, the dish looked deceptively simple: the grouse, a crepinette of the thighs, some leaves and the jus. On the side there was a little cocotte with some coffee mashed potato. The grouse was a particular fine one, I was told by my dining companion, who has eaten his fair share of these fine little creatures. It was as tender as pigeon (and cooked in a similar fashion), with a much more powerful, potent taste. I know quite a few people who find grouse too powerful, but this one really was a stunning piece. It was absolutely outstanding. But there was more than just an exquisite breast, there was also that crepinette lying on the far side of the plate. Often these braised thighs of pigeon, wood pigeon, or whatever bird it may be, are delicious, but rarely are they as powerful and rich as this. It was a piece of heaven, and blew me away. Topped with the same coffee or cocoa emulsion as the breast, it had it all. An absolute stunning piece of cooking. The second round disappeared as quickly as it came, and will be warmly remembered. Before I forget, Antonin deserves some praise for serving a game dish without any sweet components! How often do you have that? This dish really was absolutely divine. (I have now eaten a few grouse based dishes, and must say that this one remains my benchmark, alongside one, I had at ADAD)

Grouse

They wanted to skip cheese, which would be fine in any other restaurant in London, as cheese boards aren’t what they are in France over here. The Greenhouse has a little more, or shall we say something more interesting to offer. Another blogger has written about it before, but knowing that he hadn’t been to the great places for cheese in France, I didn’t really expect anything great. But, being here, I asked if we couldn’t at least have a look at the selection. One of the waiters is in charge of looking after the carefully selected Bernard Antony (for French cheese) and Neal’s Yard cheeses. This man really inspired me with his passion and love for cheese, and his immense knowledge. He likes his Camembert nicely runny, a treat, only seen to rarely nowadays and enjoys his other cheeses nicely matured too. That’s the way it should be, and if it puts some ignorants off, forget them. We had a few cheeses, notably that fabulous 4 year old comte, which was more like those I have had at Les Ambassadeurs and L’Arpege, than the one at Louis XV. This one was much more crumbly, with the crystallised salt pockets. A divine treat. The rest was at least as good as the best cheeses I have eaten in French 3*,  a thing I really did not expect here at all. Each and every single one of the 8 cheeses we tried was in perfect shape and among the finest specimens I have had. There was not a single cheese, which wasn’t fantastic. One should go here just for a grouse and some cheese afterwards. With a good bottle of wine to accompany that, it’s pretty much all one needs. To go with these terrific cheeses, we were served some 1999, Castello di Fonterutoli, Siepi, which was beautiful. Divine.

Fromages

Pre-dessert was a banana sorbet with lime foam (at least if my memory serves me correctly). This was a very good sorbet, and in combination with the foam, it was an excellent first step into the sweeter part of life. Excellent.

Pre-dessert

The real dessert (yes there only was one, times are tough) were Black figs and honey, dried fruit jam, hazelnuts, bronze fennel and fig leaf ice cream. To go with that, we had a wine, I once was served at ADPA with a cherry dessert: 2006 Mataro, Alta Allela. This was a very happy marriage, which worked beautifully. The patisserie here is in stark contrast to that of ADAD and the Square (whom I consider to make the best desserts in town), in that it is much more delicate, in line with the kitchen’s style. The constructions are more delicate, which is one way of putting it, and a little more inventive, than at the aforementioned places. The individual elements in this dessert were each perfectly executed and created a real symphony, rather than a cacophony. The most enjoyable parts were the fruit jam and the ice cream, which was great. The fennel was interesting, but not really noticeable, which might not have been a bad thing. Very good.

Figues

Coffee and mignardises are very good here. Not only do they taste very well, but most of them are a little different from the usual suspects. There is the odd macaron here too, but there is at least one constantly changing part too. Very good.

Mignardises

The whole meal was just what I had hoped for. I had remembered the cooking to be great here from the last time. Today it was by no means short of that, being absolutely outstanding in some parts (grouse, cheese, both foie gras dishes) and mostly very good to excellent. The weakest part was the scallop, but even there, it was a tough call, as the only thing “wrong” with that was the dashi, which one could consider as being a little overpowering. Apart from that this was an absolutely faultless meal, which really was worth every penny. The cooking is clearly influenced by Michel Bras, as Bonnet worked with him before going here, but there is definitely a distinct style, that shines through. Dishes like the scallop or brill would not have seen the day in Laguiole I suppose. The amount of work that went into getting the best products available is quite astonishing here, and really makes all the difference, as we saw that night. If you plan to go to London, do it during the grouse season and eat here. You will be pleased with what you get, very much so….

Legumes comme le garguillou

Wines were very good too, seeing budget limit we had set. Service too, as mentioned before, did not make a single mistake and was great. Whenever it is grouse season, make the trip to Mayfair, eat one of them and forget about everything around you. It really is fantastic.

Le Louis XV, II, Monte-Carlo

La Salle

I have rarely eaten at the same restaurant more than once in no more than 4 days. At Le Louis XV, I did this for the first time in my life. After the stunning meal I had eaten a few days earlier, I returned to Monte Carlo for the second time for another lunch.

La Table

The room was fully booked, unlike on my visit a few days earlier, where only 3 tables were taken. Despite this, the service was as great, perfect and charming as ever, and even Michel Lang, the Maitre d’hotel came for the lunch service (he often spends only dinner services in the restaurant).

 

Quel temps fait il?

After a word with the chef in the kitchen I started with Lanson rose Champagne (they only have the tete de cuvee by the glass for dinner), which was surprisingly good. The amuse bouches were pretty much the same as a few days earlier and were equally tasty and enjoyable.

Amuses

Butter here is quite entertainingly served from a little mountain. They both come from Normandy, and were of very good quality. Bread was also on top form, even though it is always on the slightly softer side, good for cleaning plates, less so for people who like a good crust.

Le beurre

The meal itself started with Foie gras de canard de Chalosse au naturel, pain de campagne toaste. A slice of foie gras was simply paired with three preparations of figs and fresh almonds. Never on earth would I have imagined myself to be eating foie gras on a late summer day on the Riviera. Least of all places in this restaurant. However, Pascal Bardet did chose the menu and I completely understand his choice. It was a stunning piece of foie. The quality of the liver was of the highest order. I would challenge anyone to get me better livers than this one. Technically, it must have been the most perfect cold foie gras I have come across (I thought that I had eaten my fair share of good foie during my short life). It had the most amazing texture, somewhere between creamy, slightly firm and meltingly tender. It’s hard to describe that kind of very unique texture that a fine foie gras terrine has, but this was really a mind-changing experience. Obviously, the seasoning was spot on too, as was the combination with the meaty, slightly sweet figs and the crunchy country bread. I doubt that I will ever eat a better piece of duck liver in my life, as it was absolutely divine.

Foie Gras

 

Next up was a highly seasonal dish: Ravioli croustillants et moelleux aux champignons des bois, un veloute pour saucer. A cepe cream served as base for three glased mushroom ravioli, a few pan-fried girolles and shavings of raw cepes bouchon. The intensity of the farce (made up of cepe puree and duxelle) and cream was remarkable. Despite them not being crunchy, the ravioli were little parcels of distilled joy. The cream, which was lusciously spooned on the ravioli boosted the flavours even more, and made this an absolutely outstanding dish. The quality of the pasta was nearly as good as that of ADPA, where I have found the best pasta so far, but had a little less bite to it. I am not sure how many Italian restaurants can produce better pasta, but many they certainly are not. Not only is the pasta as thin as paper, but it also is cooked al dente (as far as it is possible with such a kind of pasta at least). Excellent.

 

Ravioli de cepes

 

 

On to the main course then: Canette mi-sauvage poudree d’epices a la broche, betteraves et figues marinees, sauce dolce forte. This is another one of the great dishes, that comes straight out of one of Ducasse’s books and is indeed most impressive. The canard colvert (half-wild duck) from the Bresse is rubbed with spices and then spit-roasted (in the old-fashioned style). Paired with two different servings of figs and small glased beetroots, the dish is a most simple, but powerful affair, which is unbelievably tasty. It is great to see a chef use whole birds and serve them in a traditional way, not only boiling them in a bag (sous-vide) and then reheating them. Not only is it most interesting to watch, but it also is a tradition that is both worth preserving, and benefits the diner. This meat stays much jucier, due to the fact that it is cooked on the bone and is wrapped with the protective skin. Also, it will reach your table warm, as it is only taken of the bone, seconds before one eats it. Crispy skin, intense taste and tender meat are all one can expect of a perfect duck breast. This one had it all, even though it wasn’t the most tender I have had. Taste-wise it was absolutely mind-blowing, as it the spice crust worked perfectly with the duck’s flavour. It was absolutely grandiose. The dolce forte sauce is basically a duck jus flavoured with miel d’arbousier, which is a little bitter and a little pepper. It is thus not only a slightly sweet duck jus, but rather a most complex concentrate of flavours. Together with the gamey, spiced duck it created a fantastic combination, that was unbelievably coherent, Excellent.

 

Decoupe de la canette

Canette

The second service of the little bird was a little less succesful. The thigh returned to the kitchen to be finished, but when it came back, it was very tough and nearly inedible. The pairing with the raw beets was great, but the tough meet (I believe that my particular bird must have had a “problem” of some sorts, as I can’t see them using anything that isn’t of the finest order) made it pretty forgettable. Mediocre.

 

cuisse de canette/betteraves

 

 

 

The cheeses were equally good as those I tried on my previous visit, and featured a very good Munster, whom I greatly enjoyed. These are really some of the finest cheeses in France. The only drawback is the somewhat moist comte. Compared to other 4 year-old comtes, it doesn’t have as many crystalised salt crystals, which I so much adore. Apart from that, it is a pretty fantastic cheese board.

 

fromages

 

 

The first dessert was the Feuillet de fruits rouges et noirs en gelee d’ete, crème mousseline. On a rectangle of red berry puree sat a tower consisting of arlettes, crème mousseline and various summer fruits. This delicate structure was simply accompanied by a quenelle of strawberry sorbet. Arlettes are thin disks of puff pastry that are rolled out with icing sugar, and thus caramelise beautifully when being baked. This creates a very thin, crisp and rich biscuit that worked beautifully with the fresh berries and the crème mousseline (half crème patissiere, half whipped cream). The strawberry sorbet had the perfect temperature and texture and thus was a most welcome addition to this very fresh, only slightly sweet dessert. Excellent.

 

Feuillet

 

 

Up next was a relatively new dessert: Peches en vinaigrette huile d’olive/citron, sorbet, Tatin de brugnons. This is a dessert that featured in the latest edition of Ducasse’s Grand Livre de cuisine, but has evolved over the time. A salad of peeled, raw peaches is seasoned with a sweet vinaigrette, made from olive oil, sugar and lemon juice. This is then topped with a milk-mousse and peach sorbet. The left side of the plate sees a tarte tatin of peches brugnons, a particular variety of peaches, that I have only seen in different parts of France. What makes this dessert interesting is undoubtedly the vinaigrette, a sauce usually used to dress savoury salads, and not desserts. Here, the use of sugar instead of salt gives the dessert much more depth and a whole new dimension. In combination with the very fresh, slightly sweeter sorbet and the airy milk foam, it makes for a multi-textural mouthful, that is most harmonious. It certainly isn’t a novelty to eat olive oil in a dessert, after all one often eats it with ice cream in Italy, but in this dessert, it plays a totally different role. The tarte tatin on the side should be mentioned, as it was phenomenal. The pastry was crumbly, buttery, fragile and slightly salted, and the peaches beautifully caramelised and bursting with flavour. This was a delicate, much more refined tarte tatin than most others, due to the subtle peaches and the separate preparation of each element. This was, with the Monte Carlo and one other dessert my favourite of all I have tried here so far. Outstanding.

The mignardises were slightly different in that I had a tarte au sucre and a raspberry financier instead of a wild strawberry one and a tarte tropezienne. All of them were, again, of outstanding technical perfection, and disappeared fairly rapidly.

 

MIgnardises

 

 

 

Looking back, this meal was as good as the one a few days earlier. Products were remarkable, cooking was incredibly precise, the dishes very much reduced to the essentials and the composition as successful as possible. The only slight problem was the duck’s tenderness. It could indeed have been a little more tender (the breast), and in the case of the thigh, it would have been better not to have served it in the first place. But, with such overwhelming flavour coming from it, I really did not mind at all, that it wasn’t the most tender piece of duck I have eaten so far, it was by far the most powerful one, which is more interesting than simple tenderness. In combination with the outstanding service, the most charming welcome and the absolutely crazy décor, a meal here is a memorable experience. In fact, it is one, that will not be forgotten any time soon. I for once, can’t wait for my return…although that won’t be before next year.

 

la salle

 

 

It is quite astonishing how my view on this restaurant has evolved. The first time I came, I wasn’t stunned at all. I even found it a little disappointing, but three meals later, it is pretty close to being my favourite restaurant in the world.

La Merenda, Nice

La Merenda has been known in Nice for a long time. Before Dominique Le Stanc took over with his wife, another couple served the classics of the cuisine nissarde in this little gem, tucked away in the vieux Nice. The setting is of the most basic. There are no real chairs, no telephone, and credit cards aren’t accepted neither. For those interested in going, you have to actually go there in the morning or a few days earlier to book (as there is not telephone, they take bookings only in person). One doesn’t bother with big wine lists neither here: You can choose between a white or red vin de pays (25euro per bottle) or a Bellet (45euro), which is the only vineyard in France, that is situated in a city. What matters here is the food, and the ambience. And those two points are quite peculiar here.

La Salle

First of all, Le Stanc used to run the city’s most highly regarded restaurant, that of the Hotel Negresco. There, he received 2*, but decided to abandon the brigades of the palaces to take over this place. Here, he cooks alone, has a plongeur, and his wife (who is a Husserl, the family that runs Le Cerf in Marlenheim) does the service with a young man who helps out. Simple, effective and most profitable as a business model. Tables are turned once during the evening, and in some cases there are even three seatings, depending on the speed of the diners.

La Table

But, let’s turn to the food. We started with the obligatory Beignets de fleurs de courgettes. Lightly battered, deep-fried zucchini flowers come without any garnish, nor seasoning. The waiter supplies some fleur de sel and pepper, with which you are advised to season them at your convenience. Not a bad system and definitely not a bad dish. These beignets are among the best I have had. As good as those at the Louis XV, and better than at some less glorious places. They are delightfully crisp, light, tasty and fresh. Le Stanq takes a little ride around the Cours Saleya market every day with his bike to buy his products, whose freshness does transpire in the finished dishes. Outstanding.

Beignets

Next up, was a classic, daube de boeuf a la nicoise. A beef stew/ragout, which is normally prepared with orange zest and/or olives came without all of these, and was thus a simple ragout, simmered with carrots and red wine. The only accompanying goodies were some panisses, chickpea fritters that come from the region too. The panisses were great, not quite as perfect as those from the Louis XV, but were very good. The daube itself was less impressive. The problem was a very thin sauce, and some rather dry meat. Now, when I braise meat, it is usually very moist, or juicy, but this was oddly dry at some parts. The sauce could have been reduced for a little while longer, as it was more like a broth than a hearty jus. Taste-wise, the dish was fine, but not remarkable. This was good, but it felt a little disappointing. It seems that Le Stanc took a few shortcuts (not reducing the sauce enough, not monitoring the meat’s cooking and final dryness,…). Good.

Daube

Dessert was another simple affair. A tarte aux blettes is another classic here, and rightfully so. This typically nicois dessert is made out of swiss chard, pine nuts, raisins, parmesan, sugar, eggs and is then enclosed in some pastry. On the plate it is very good, if unusual, but I greatly enjoy it, whenever I do have a chance to try it. This version was good, but not exceptional, as the dough wasn’t as beautifully crunchy as it could have been.

Tarte aux blettes

Overall, this meal was pretty good, considering the whole thing cost about 30euro (excluding drinks). The products were not bad, the skill was apparent, but the problem were the details. When I last came here, the food was much better, there were no such shortcomings. To see this is a little frustrating, as one has a great chef here, who does what he enjoys, in a most cosy environment. What was interesting too was the way the business was set up. A dish like the beignets costs him around 1,5euro and doesn’t demand any work. He sells it for 11 and thus makes a handsome profit on that, as he does with the others too. Now, not that I object, but if people complain about prices, they should rather look at simpler restaurants, and not pick on the top restaurants, who have huge costs (products, labour, crockery, china,…). This is definitely a nice place to go for a rather simple meal, if one is in the area. Perfect for dinner after a meal at the Louis XV…coming up next week.

Le Mirazur, Menton

La Salle

My week on the Riviera was nearing its end, and I had made arrangements to return to Le Mirazur, a restaurant my family and I hugely enjoyed two years ago. Amongst the things that struck me back then was the fantastic bread, the very interesting cooking, great service and the stunning view over Menton and the sea. So, when I came back, I had some rather high expectations, which were further raised by Mauro Colagreco’s entrance into to 50 best list, and his nomination as chef of the year by the French Gault Millau guide.

La Table

The restaurant itself lies a few meters away from the Italian border and benefits of stunning views of the ocean. In addition to this, it does not only have huge windows that let you gaze at the sea, but those who don’t face the sea can still see it, thanks to some equally big mirrors. Crockery and glasses are rather simple, but the chairs have changed from simple beach restaurant-style chairs to something a little more elaborate. Despite a few more changes, the room will not figure among the most beautiful restaurant dining rooms I have seen so far. But, who cares really? We’re all here for the food, no?

La Salle II

Price-wise the menu is on the upper end of 1* restaurants (menus go from about 55 to 100 euro, with a lunch deal for 35 or so). To give you an idea: Tasting menus at a few 2* in Luxembourg and Belgium will not cost you more. But, let’s not complain about prices, in most cases they are a fairly accurate, and these places don’t make a lot of money. The wine list is not really that interesting, but will certainly grow over the years.

To accompany the obligatory glass of Champagne, one is offered a little selection of nibbles. From right to left, there was a cornet of carrots, celery and sesame, a tartelette mentonnaise (a Pissaladiere, with a little Parmesan basically), a spoonful of foie gras with lemon confit and a lemon cream. These were all very good and left me with a desire to find out more. The tarte had very well made pastry and was well seasoned, the foie of very good quality and the cream most interesting. The only rather dull and boring part was the cornet, which didn’t have an interest in the least. Very good.

Canapes

The bread made its appearance, and I was eagerly awaiting the stunning almond and cinnamon bread and a very good fougasse, both of which I had still in my memory as being most amazing little creatures. However, the bread this time wasn’t quite as great as I had remembered: First of all, it was stone cold, the country style bread gave the impression to have been a little old and dull (no crust on this one), the fougasse tasted like some American style toast-bread drenched in olive oil and the almond/cinnamon roll was devoid of any buttery crispiness that I had so much anticipated. When I asked, if it was possible to have my bread warmed, I got no real answer and must thus say that this bread was a little disappointing.

Les pains

Having seen a number of tables ordering a la carte, I had seen their amuse bouches, I knew what those would be and was rather surprised when they were sold to me as part of the menu carte blanche, the longest (and most expensive) tasting menu, the chef offered that night. I have no problem with paying for more dishes, but when one sells a good number of amuse bouches as regular dishes, I do not enjoy it at all. Anyways, restaurants, who cut short their pre-dinner greetings for tasting menu eaters should state that on the menu, it feels a little odd. In the end, three or four of the courses (out of eleven) would have come with the normal a la carte menu too…

The first course was a shot glass filled with green apple, celery, seaweed and a slightly acidic foam. This was an interesting combination that didn’t particularly impress, nor amaze. It was a palate cleanser and acceptable as such. Good.

Shot

Next up was a much more interesting combination. A parsnip veloute was served with pistachio oil, pistachios and a coffee flan. This was a most interesting combination, as the bitterness of the coffee complemented the natural sweetness of the parsnips and the richness of the pistachios. A little more of it would not have been pleasant though, as it was a rather singular taste mix. Good.

Panais/cafe

Colagreco prides himself with his own garden. In the menu, he explains the great amount of love his gardeners put in to it, in a very nice way (there is also an introduction, a preface of sorts, written by his sister). Like his mentor Alain Passard he employs someone who produces various types of vegetables. This can and often has some pretty positive effects on the product’s quality and the variety, but a rather negative effect on the restaurant’s pricing (after all, economies of scale aren’t really favourable in that context). The next course was based around heirloom beets and balsamic vinegar. Now, this is something one gets in many restaurants all over the world these days, and it seems a little overstretched by now. The beets were fine, but there wasn’t any particularly interesting seasoning, nor was there any other extraordinary feature in this collection of beautiful colours. The only sliver of raw beetroot was cut much too thickly, without seasoning and thus in stark contrast to the overcooked, slightly-mushy, under-seasoned other beets. This dish was beautiful, but didn’t quite deliver taste-wise.

Betteraves

Next up was a very good one, luckily. A simple combination of raw gamberoni di San Remo, finger lime and radishes proved to be most rewarding. The highly regarded gamberoni really are special in both taste and texture, and when presented in such a natural, untouched way, this quality is even more apparent. With the finger lime and slightly crunchy radish, the dish was not only very light, but also highly refreshing and summery. One could argue that it lacked punch, but then, the dish wasn’t going in that direction at all. It was one of the most simple dishes of the menu, and one of the best. Very good.

Gamberoni

Following this came a dish that was more or less in the same idea as the beetroot one. A  few pieces of (cooked) courgettes were served with murex snails and a broth made out of grilled vegetables. The idea sure is good, but when seasoning isn’t spot on, the dish loses all credibility and attraction. In this case, salt seemed to have been used with great restriction and thus made the whole combination a little bland. In terms of product quality there wasn’t anything to discuss, it was very good food, but the rather dull broth didn’t quite lift the dish to new heights. Furthermore, the murex snails aren’t something that particularly fascinates me: tough, chewy, nearly devoid of any significant taste, they don’t really add anything (positive) to the dish. Another rather mediocre dish.

Courgettes

After having been served frog’s legs beignets a couple of times now, Colagreco served me some poached in butter. Paired with a few different tomato and nettle preparations, this dish took the classic French frog’s leg out of its comfort zone. The legs were great, creamy, tasty and well cooked, as they should be. The accompanying tomato marmelade was fine too, but a few confit cherry tomatoes were a little too acidic and the nettle puree had a overly dominant power, unpleasant flavour, that did overwhelm the subtle frog’s legs. Apart from this (rather big problem), it was a good dish.

Grenouilles

Next up was a piece of duck foie gras, pan-fried and served with duck/verbena consommé, figs and fresh almonds. This was great dish, with the exception of a under-seasoned broth. The flavours were there, but needed a little strength or kick to live things up. Subtle flavours might have been involved here, but there must at least be enough punch to make these noticeable. The foie was cooked very well, although it was a little “sweaty” (usually a sign for not the freshest or lower quality livers). In combination with the fig and the two almonds it was a most pleasing dish. Very good.

Foie

Usually, Colagreco serves his fish with a smoked emulsion and a few leaves. This time, I was served a piece of blue-fin tuna with an haricot coco foam. The fillet of tuna was cooked throughout (horribly overcooked), and thus a little tough and less tasty. It was cut from a rather sinewy part of the fillet, which was from ordinary quality. Drowned in a massive pool of very good bean emulsion, the proportions seemed to have gotten out of hand a little on this one. If one had imagined a very nice piece of tuna belly (which was the day’s special) or at least a less cooked fillet with about a third of the foam, it would have made for a very successful dish, but like this it just seemed a little odd. Mediocre. Again, one felt a little ripped-off here, after all tuna didn’t figure on the menu at all, so to send those who let the chef decide what they eat the nastiest piece there is, is a rather bizarre thing.

Thon

Luckily enough, the next dish nearly saved the evening. A piece of Sisteron lamb, with a nice crunchy fat crust came with Miso-glased aubergines and a date condiment. If one takes away the fact that Pascal Barbot’s Miso-glased aubergine is being copied pretty much all over the place, this was a wonderful dish. The rack of lamb still had the panoufle attached to it and was beautifully crispy on top, with a creamy fatty centre and most tender meat. This really was a fine piece of lamb. In combination with the dates or the black sesame oil, it was a most happy pairing. Conceptually, it was very similar to a dish I had eaten two years earlier and remembered from then. If only a few more of this night’s dishes could have been like this… Excellent.

Agneau

After a quick chat to Colagreco (who is about to open a steak house in Beirut, and who was implicated in a beach restaurant this summer!?) I was served my first dessert. A tube of frozen almond mousse was served in a fennel soup with orange sorbet, The combination isn’t unusual in cooking, but it was certainly the first time I stumbled across it in a dessert. I certainly do hope it won’t happen that often anymore, as it was not much more than good (if one is generous). The individual parts (with exception of the great sorbet) were only very lightly sweetened and didn’t really have pleasing tastes. If eaten together, the story looked very different and it seemed much better indeed. Still, it is interesting for a one time experience, but not really something I would travel for again. Good.

Orange sorbet

The second dessert was another strange one. A few popcorn pieces were mixed with chocolate truffles, some “chocolate snow” and mate ice cream. I hate writing anything too negative, but this really seemed like someone had thrown all there was left over from the week in a bowl: A bit of popcorn, some truffles, a little ice cream,… The individual parts were good, but this wasn’t a particularly interesting dessert. The “snow” was miles away from what I was served elsewhere (during my Amador internship, they made a fantastic version of this), as it was melting when the plate hit my table and was no more than a rather liquid cream by the time I was ready to start it. The textural combinations were rather odd too, to cut a long story short: Mediocre.

Chocolat

The mignardises were all very good (only the tapioca in the glass a little less so), but nothing worth spending much time with.

Mignardises

Looking back, this meal felt a little weird. I had had very good memories and would have hoped to at least get what I had two years ago both in terms of product quality and cooking. Rather, I got a mix of good and pretty uninspiring dishes, that left me with a puzzled mind. The lamb dish surely was great, but apart from that there was hardly one dish, which was more than good. In a total of about 11, that is not the best of ratios. Some of them seemed bizarre, odd and the products’ quality was not what it could have been, considering the area, and acclaim of the restaurant. The tuna was very poor, the beautiful frog’s legs killed by those overpowering flavours and bizarre tomatoes, the bread was really bad, and various other dishes grossly under-seasoned. Now, that is a list of errors, that is too long for a restaurant, that clearly strives for more than the 1* it holds. The fact that service was rather hectic, overwhelmed and much less charming than last time didn’t help neither. I was also quite astonished at the fact, that they serve three or four courses (out of 11) of the big tasting menu as extras for people on the carte. This is not a way to run a serious restaurant, and I hope for Colagreco that he stops that right away, as one feels a little ripped-off afterwards. He might have more luck with his beach restaurant or the steak house in Beirut?

Cuisine menagere

L’ete nous apporte des produits d’exception. Les cartes des restaurants regorgent d’homards bretons, ecrevisses, legumes, peches, figues, veau et d’autres belles choses. Voici quelques photos de plats faits lors des derniers mois.

des cepes en persillade...

Noix de boeuf, artichauts, courgettes et un us corse

Ravioli di coda di manzo ed olive nere

Grosses ecrevisses pattes rouges, cebettes, girolles

veloute de cepes, des cepes rotis/crus, jambon de porc noir basque

Le Louis XV, Monte Carlo

I first came to Monte Carlo and the Louis XV two years ago. Back then, it was the first big 3* meal I paid for with my own pocket money. I saved up for half a year and was a little disappointed afterwards. I just wasn’t ready for this restaurant. The grand ambience proved to be the first problem. I bought my very first suit, just to go there. However, what really struck me, was the way, in which my appreciation of the food changed in the weeks following that dinner. From feeling a little disappointed to beginning to understand, what this was all about, it was quite a long way. However, when I was back in the region, last summer, I went back. This time for lunch, my meal cost me about a third of the dinner the year before and was mind-blowing. Never before had I eaten a sea bass of such quality, or a dessert this accomplished (although the desserts I tried on my first visit were on the same level). I had found what I had hoped for: Outstanding, regional products, relatively simple dishes, great service and of course, that slightly blasé room. During my week on the French Riviera in late September, I had planned a return to one of my 3 favourite restaurants in the world.

Mon compagnon

The restaurant was the first in which Alain Ducasse received 3*. This was a few years ago, and now he has not that much time for preparing stocks and sauces here anymore. That is why he delegates the work to his protégés, Franck Cerutti, who now runs all of the Hotel de Paris’ kitchens and Pascal Bardet, head chef of the Louis XV. Both of them are incredibly nice, passionate chefs, who seem to really love what they do. This kitchen is equally impressive as that of the Plaza Athenee in Paris, as it has roughly the same amount of cooks toiling in it. They are no less than 25 here, including 2 boulangers and 4 patissiers .

On the other side of the piano, one finds the same amount of people, in Georges Feghaly designed suits (which have a very stylish tab collar, a rare thing these days). This Monegasque designer is also the creator of the Parisian services’ “uniforms”. The cellar, one of the most impressive in the world, is in the very capable hands of Gerard Margeon (head sommelier of the Goupe Alain Ducasse and Noel Bajor, sommelier of the Louis XV), whilst the service brigade is directed by Michel Lang. This famous cellar has a whole history of its own, briefly portrayed in the wine list, which has some incredible prices (few bottles cost less than 60).

La salle

This time I found the brigade to be much more smiling, personal and approachable, the only flaw I had remarked during my previous visits. I wouldn’t go too far, if I would say that they really know how to pamper their diners. You are in most capable hands when dining here.

The room is one of the most impressive I have seen so far. The different (there were quite a few) maitresses of Louis XV look down on the guests, from their gold-framed portraits, the central flower bouquet is always huge and the amount of gold used in this one, gigantic room must amount to an obscene weight. Over the years, one has changed the chairs, and given the room a much friendlier, warmer, brighter lighting. Some hate such décor, but I must say that in this case it doesn’t bother me in the least.

La table

My meal started with the first few nibbles: Barbajuans and bread crisps. Barbajuans are small, deep-fried ravioli from Monaco, which are filled (in summer at least) with ricotta, herbs and blettes. Biting in to one of these little treats is a pure delight. It is pure, because every single flavour is there, distinguishable, yet harmonious. But, don’t kid yourself, technique is close to perfection here too. Not a hint of greasiness is apparent on these parcels and the paper-thin pasta dough is as crisp as it gets. This is as perfect and refined as local, peasant cooking gets. The bread crisps bid your Champagne some very enjoyable company, that proves pleasant enough, whilst going through the menu. A most amusing, enjoyable start.

Barbaguan, croutes de pain

The classic, ever-present amuse bouche here is a mix of raw vegetables with a herb and parmesan sauce: Legumes de nos paysans a cru, sauce aux herbes pilees. It is no wonder that this amuse is often causing quite some irritation. Not only does it shock any first time diner with the disarming simplicity, but it also opposes the highly complex creations other chefs serve before meals. I must say that I am starting to like this more and more, for a few reasons. First, it is very regional. A bagna cauda is a classical Nicois dish, which is very similar and traditionally starts a meal in the area. Second, this plate is something you will always be able to come back to, even if the composition changes with the seasons. Furthermore, it features only vegetables, that come from the Riviera itself. Finally, it is a distillation of the philosophy behind the restaurant’s cooking. The predominance of the vegetables in haute cuisine has not begun in Alain Passard’s Arpege during the BSE-crisis, but here more or less 10 years earlier. Ducasse was the first to serve a fully vegetable-based tasting menu in a 3* restaurant, and the first chef to win 3* in a hotel restaurant. Very good.

Legumes

Bread here is more impressive than anywhere else in this world (at least as far as I have seen pictures or experienced it myself so far). The two bakers produce at least 15 types of bread, twice a day. Even if there are only a couple of tables, the same amount of work is put into it. Obviously, there is not only a huge selection in terms of quantity, but it is also some of the finer bread this world has to offer these days. Among the best varieties were fig and nuts, tomato, fougasse aux lardons and a semolina flour “book”.

Les pains

The actual meal started with a dish, which is contantly changing, but can be seen as a signature of the house: Salade tiede de cocos de l’arriere-pays, vongole, gamberoni et soupions, jus a l’encre de seiche. On a coco bean (small white beans that grow in the area and in Paimpol, where they even benefit from an AOC) puree and salad is mounted a mix of gamberoni from San Remo, vongole, small squid and poulpe. The whole is then served with a black sauce, made from the cooking juices of the different shellfish and squid ink. Looking at this dish, it is rather simple in preparation and not very inventive. The reasons for its success are mainly the fantastic quality of the produce, the precision of the cooking of every single element and the composition of the dish. The gamberoni, caught nearby and pristinely fresh, had amazingly clean, refined taste and a delightful texture. These are miles away from the stuff one is served in most restaurants anywhere in the world. The rest of the seafood does not fail to impress neither. The poulpe for instance, is caught by the last fisherman in Monaco, who supplies some of the restaurant’s fish and seafood and comes from the rocky coast off Monaco. The preparation is much more time-consuming than one is inclined to think: It is frozen, to tenderise it, cooked, and then marinated for 48h, the perfect length for the marinade, at least if one trusts Ducasse. The beans shall not be forgotten, as they are, just like everything else in this restaurant, of truly memorable quality. Along with the iodine flavours of the seafood, they make for a perfect match. Outstanding.

Haricots cocos

I have been making risotto from Ducasse’s recipe for years now, and it is the best I have encountered up to this day, so when I was approached with this dish, I was somehow interested to see what it would be like: Riso aux tomates de pays, pimenton et persil plat, jeunes oignons caramelises, Parmigiano Reggiano. You might have noticed that this is not a risotto, but a riso. Since Bardet took over, he changed the variety of rice to arroz bomba (which is used for paella) and changed the cooking method. The latter too, now resembles that of the paella, and thus gives it a completely different outcome. Apart from the perfect (al dente) cooking of the rice, I was most amazed by the incredibly strong, pungent tomato flavour. This was like eating a distillate of pure tomato, enriched by the gourmandise of the riso. The caramelised onions gave it a nice variation, both in terms of flavour and texture and the parmesan crisp provided a much welcome crunch. The difference from this cooking method to that of a classic risotto is the much lighter finishing. Whereas a risotto is traditionally finished with butter and/or parmesan and/or mascarpone and/or olive oil, this is simply bound with a little olive oil. It thus has a slightly more fine texture, that is really quite special. Another simple, but excellent dish.

Riso

Lapin de ferme mijote en cocotte aux amandes et truffe d’ete, des panisses. A rather generous serving of rabbit, glased in its jus was served with fresh almonds, summer truffles, a mesclun and panisses. Now this was another clin d’oeil to the area, as panisses are a local chickpea fry, that only consists of chickpea flour, water and a little olive oil. Here they were simply outstanding. Crisp on the outside, creamy, nearly like mashed potatoes on the inside, they would have sufficed by themselves. However, it would have been a pitty not to eat the rabbit, as it too, was a rather fine specimen. The various parts (rack, saddle, liver, kidney and leg) were all cooked and seasoned perfectly and were as tender as it could possibly get. The summer truffles were incredibly tasty for such a thing, I do despise, and added a nice earthy note. The trick here was the heating of them. By heating black or summer truffles in  some brown butter, or jus, one will maximise their flavour, and get a totally different effect from simply cold, sliced truffles.Again, this dish was disarmingly simple by appearance, but redefined completely what rabbit should taste like. Outstanding.

Lapin

On to cheese, The various types here come from Bernard Antony, Alleosse and a regional goat’s cheese producer, who all supply their finest pieces.  I tried around six varieties and found all of them to be excellent. The comte, from 2005, is no less good than that of Arpege and is obviously quite impressive. A difference I believe to have remarked the moisture. Whilst Arpege’s and Les Ambassadeurs’ comte is much drier, with more clearly apparent salt crystals, this one was more moist, and slightly different. The local goat’s cheeses were of great quality too. Outstanding cheeses.

Les fromages

Desserts here are easily among the best in the world. Very few patissiers can match the work of Olivier Berger, who is probably one of the most important people in Ducasse’s empire.

My first dessert wer the Figues belones fourrees de crème au miel d’arbousier, d’autres poelees et refroidies, glace au lait. A seasonal, regional dessert, that I served the diners at the guesthouse the day before, made its appearance. The two preparations of belone figs, a variety that grows in the arriere-pays nicois and is particularly tasty and juicy, were accompanied by incredibly powerful milk ice cream and a puff pastry stick. One fig was simply  filled with a arbousier honey cream, whilst the other was roasted, then cooled. Both preparations bring out two completely different flavours in the figs, as the baked one has a highly complex, full and rich flavour, whilst the other is given a slightly bitter note from the honey and a much more natural, direct flavour. This really is a dessert anyone can make at home (although the ice cream might be a little more challenging, due to a very particular preparation) and never fails to impress. Excellent

Figues

One more highlight was to come: Monte-Carlo au Gianduja, glace aux noisettes du Piemont. An ice cream, made with the renowned nocciole delle Langhe is paired with a coco tuile and an entremets consisting of a crumble, gianduja mousse and crumchy base (praline feuillantine, dark chocolate, praline noisette). The delicate composition was mind-blowing. One didn’t feel this to be a heavy dessert or one that overpowers the diner. The incredibly strong, rich flavours were given a very light repackaging, that felt unreal. It was a pure delight, one that will not be forgotten. It was much more impressive than the (excellent) Louis XV, and should be tried by anyone who is seriously interested in cooking, or patisserie for that matter. One of the best desserts of the last few years for me. Divine.

Monte-Carlo

The mignardises are easily as good as the desserts and were simply outstanding. The tarte tropezienne is much better than the original in St Tropez, and the other parts are far better than any versions I have had before.

Mignardises

This meal was a shock. Not only did it exceed my expectations (based on my previous visits), but it also made me realise how local a restaurant’s cooking can be. Not many were the products that came from further than a few kilometers away (the arroz bomba obviously though). Here was cooking that, isn’t inventive, but that doesn’t claim to be neither. It is an extremely pure, product-based, powerful style, which will not necessarily please someone, who doesn’t know a lot about cooking and products, but that will blow anyone with a serious interest away. Every product, be it a bean or a lobster comes from small producers, fishermen, …, who in some cases only supply only this restaurant. Despite it being a Ducasse restaurant, there is an incredibly personal, individual approach to the producers and guests here.  Furthermore, the purity of the flavours and cleanliness of them was most impressive. I have rarely had products of better quality that are given the chance to stand for themselves. This meal did, once more prove that it is often the less great chefs who tend to overcomplicate things and overload their plates with sauces, gels, jellies, airs, emulsions, foams, and whatever you want. In the end my most memorable meals were all in places that have a rather straightforward style (with the exception of Schloss Berg maybe): Louis XV, ADPA, In de Wulf, Schloss Berg, Sportsman.

I enjoyed my meal that much, that I immediately booked a return, just a few days later. I have never done that anywhere else, so this is the greatest compliment I can possibly give a restaurant.

A week on the Riviera

I had the pleasure of  spending a week in late September in a most charming place. La Parare is a chambre d’hotes on the outskirts of Nice (about 25mins from the sea side), which has no more than four individually designed rooms and a magnificient location.  

 

Dinner on the terracce

Each and every one of them has a different theme, dominant colour, and thus very individual character. Sydney and Karin van Volen, who run this guesthouse since more or less six years now, constantly change this and that in every room. They managed to redecorate the old bergerie in a way that makes the best of the old stones, while introducing modern touches pretty much everywhere. The rooms are splendid and make you feel at home right away. For those who enjoy calm, relaxing places, this is not bad at all and comes at a very reasonable price.

 

Dining room

The interesting part about the house’s location is that it is very close to Monaco, Nice, Eze, Menton, Cannes, without being anywhere near any touristy spots. Rather, it is nestled in a small hamlet in the arriere pays, and benefits of a most quiet region and a very pretty view.

 

Courgette soup (pre-pouring)

Twice or three times a week Sydney and Karin organise a dinner at which those, who want, eat at the same table and spend around 40euro (drinks included). During the week I stayed there, I cooked three meals for the 8 guests with the outstanding products of the Riviera. I had found amazing loup, rouget and poulpe, which were among the finest fish I have eaten so far. The beauty of a fish, just caught that same morning, is unbelievable: Its firm and tasty flesh is miles away from the rather uninspiring fish most restaurants sell. 

 

Un loup quelques heures apres sa mort

 

 

Red mullets, about 2 hours after their death

 

Amongst other great stuff, I found a lovely lady who produces and sells a few different varieties of tomatoes and other vegetables in Nice, and who had some of the finest courgettes I have found up to now. This region really remains one of the most interesting and stimulating food areas in Europe, and dare I say, in the world. Cooking here is a joy, and even an amateur can produce some finer dishes, as not much has to be done to those jewels. 

 

Salade de poulpe, courgette, bouillon reduit

Whilst being there I obviously used my time to (re-)discover some of the restaurants in the area.

In the following weeks, I will post my reviews of the restaurants I visited, so stay tuned.

After my week in this lovely bit of France, I was more than sad to leave. This region just has so much to offer: Outstanding products, restaurants, museums, landscape and many more things…

Le Meurice, Paris

 

 

La salle

 

 

When I bought Yannick Alleno’s book a few years ago, I had but one wish: Eat at the Meurice. This wish finally materialised, but the outcome wasn’t exactly the revelation I had expected or hoped for. 

 

La salle

The first thing that undoubtedly strikes the diners’ eyes in this marble and gold orgy is the grandeur of the room. It is probably Paris’ most impressive dining room. However, Starck’s make-over doesn’t go unnoticed and makes the affair much more friendly, light and hospitable. I must say, that I did enjoy this royal cocoon.

 

 

La salle

The service brigade was worthy of such a house. I got all I wanted, with tons of smiles and effectiveness. However, the use of the cloche does seem a little out-dated for someone who claims to be  as innovative as Alleno.

This brings us to Alleno who played a big part in the re-decoration process, as he designed the China, presentation plates rings and tableaux, on which the service delivers the dishes. These are now made of some high-tech carbon fibre construction that only weighs a few houndred grams.

 

On your table, you find the chef’s above mentioned own Coquet China, very good glasses and a little flower bouquet.

 

La table

The meal started with a coupe of Bollinger Special Cuvee and a few nibbles. There was a sardine cream with a lemon bavarois in the little spoon, goat’s cheese with tomatoes on the top-left and a ham mousse on the lower part of the slate. The spoon was quite delicious, with rich, creamy sardine taste and a bright, zingy touch, coming through the lemon. This was a very promising first bite, and I thought that I might have more luck with my meal than a few others. However, the next two weren’t quite that good. The goat’s cheese sandwich was hardly worth mentioning, as it was rather forgettable. There wasn’t any noteworthy taste, combination nor texture. Not really great to kick off a meal in a 3*. The ham mousse sandwich (yes, they used crisped bread twice on that little first plate) was good, but not really interesting neither. Excellent for the sardine, mediocre for the rest.

 

Amuse 1

The amuse bouche was very good. It was a tomato jelly with a few cubes of heirloom tomatoes, a parmesan cream and a deep-fried langoustine. I started with the langoustine, which had spent too much time waiting somewhere before it was delivered to me, and thus was not crunchy anymore. This was merely alright, but I didn’t need it, as the tomato/parmesan combo was very good. Certainly nothing new, but in this case, it was executed in a most convincing way. The flavours were balanced beautifully and the intensity of each element was quite amazing. Very good.

 

Amuse 2

Bread was very good. A selection of five types (olive; tomato; son (a cereal); mixed grains and bacon) all had good crust, very airy mie and strong flavour. The butter was excellent, especially the “Parisian” version with a ham/butter mix. This was a very good idea and was greatly appreciated.

 

Pains

 

Les beurres

With the first course, I was served a rather poor and uninspiring Jurançon Sec – Cuvée marie – C. Hours, 2007.

 

The COURGETTE JAUNE DE LA VALLéE D’ ORGEVAL Confite au four et garnie de moules au safran du Gâtinais arrived promptly and seemed quite promising. After all, mussels can be a most delectable thing and a good courgette isn’t anything I despise neither. Here, unfortunately, the dish had a few major problems. First of all, it was not seasoned enough. I had to give it a few healthy pinches of salt, before I tasted something. Then, I found the courgette to be an average specimen, in terms of quality. This wasn’t a particularly tasty courgette, as it was pretty watery. Rather it was one, which you and I can find pretty much anywhere. Thirdly, the proportions did not work for me. There was too much courgette for way too little mussels (which were delicious by the way). The concept of the dish would have been great, had it been done with smaller courgettes and/or more mussels and a little more salt. This was definitely not a 3* dish.  The wine didn’t really work for that dish neither, at least not for me.

 

Courgette jaune

The wine for the second course was much more interesting already. I really enjoyed it, despite its young age: Puligny Montrachet – J.M Boillot, 2007.

 

BOUDINS NOIRS DE HOMARD AUX POMMES Jus de carcasse relevé à la moutarde. This sounded promising and I thought it looked good when I saw it arrive too. Lobster meat was mixed with squid ink and eggs to make a marine-black pudding. With it came a little lobster jus and a bit of apple. The dish worked beautifully with the wine. This really was a fine match, but the dish itself wasn’t half as nice as that match. Taste-wise it was good. The lobster flavour was present and made even more interesting by the apples, but the texture of the thing was another story. The lobster meat was mixed so fine that it was more like a Wiener Würstchen rather than a boudin noir (which has bits and pieces in it, as far as I can recall). This made it very similar to your everyday sausage ( in terms of texture that is). With this dish I had the feeling that someone really liked that concept of taking a French classic (boudin noir aux pommes) to another level, but didn’t really get there. Unfortunately, I couldn’t really see that third star shine.

 

Homard

 

But, things finally started looking up.

 

For the main course, I was served a glass of Saint Joseph – Cuvée du Papy – Dom. Du Monteillet, 2006.

 

morceau d’entrecôte de boeuf* rôtie Jus et condiments d’une sauce Bercy, pomme Anna. Now, this dish was the first real three star dish so far. It took them a little time, but here the wait did pay off. The centre of an entrecote was topped with a onion and bone marrow ragout and came with a gratin made out of parmesan, tomatoes and a few other things. On the side was served a portion of pommes Anna. The most stunning part of this whole meal were, believe it or not, potatoes. This millefeuille of crunchy and creamy potatoes was absolutely mind-blowing. It might not have been worth the price of the meal (objectively at least not), but I will remember this thing if not much more. The jus was another winner. I absolutely loved it and ate every little drop of it. The beef itself was very good. It had great flavour and was nicely cooked. However, it had rested a little too long or wasn’t reheated properly, as the ends were completely dry and lukewarm. It didn’t really matter, as I really loved this dish. It was finally a successful version of a Bistro classic, one that made sense, tasted well and was executed superbly. Excellent.

 

Boeuf

 

Pommes

 

 

To prepare the diner for the dessert, one is served a plate of mignardises. Today, there was a glass with a verveine mousse, a strawberry, rolled in apricot jelly and, on the plate, a macaron, a marshmallow and a chocolate filled with red berries. These were all very good and well executed.

 

Mignardises

 

Mignardises

 

To not leave me with an empty (wine) glass, the sommelier poured me a Tokaji – Sargà Muskotàly – Château de Sarospatak, 2007. Despite the fact that it was a pitty to drink such a wine at such a tender age, it was quite good and accompanied the dessert very well.

 

Conversation feuilletée à la confiture de mûre Marmelade glacée en coque de chocolat blanc. A lukewarm case of puff pastry served as a pillow for an almond cream, enriched with blackberry jam. Next to it sat a few white-chocolate balls, garnished with crushed blackberries. This was divine. The puff pastry was nearly as good as Pierre Herme’s and made this an absolutely stunning dessert. The fact that it was still lukewarm, as was the delicious filling only made it better and more succulent. The accompanying balls were very good and provided a little tart note, which balanced with the rich pastry and cream. Outstanding.

 

Conversation

 

A second dessert was as successful as the first. A chocolate ganache sandwiched a lemon cream and was topped with a lemon-meringue and a few hazelnut crumbles. This was another masterpiece of the very, very talented Camille Lesecq, who really does deserve his mention on the menu. Everything in this plate worked and created a beautiful piece of art, that was yet again excellent.

 

Dessert

 

 

With coffee, I was served a pain de Genes, which was very nice, but nothing spectacular neither.

 

Le cafe

 

 

After this meal I didn’t quite know what to make of it.Yes, it did have some strong moments, after all the desserts, beef, bread, service and decor were unquestionably on 3*-level, but there were some problems too. The two starters really didn’t work and were miles away from what you expect in such a temple of gastronomy. They really seemed a little ridiculous and more l’art pour l’art than anything else. 

 

Also, the service, however great it was, had barely cleared my table after the first course, when the second was already waiting to be placed in front of me. That just was way too fast for me, and I guess for others too. I’m not a particularly slow eater, but I do enjoy my fifteen minutes or more between courses, after all I can go to Mc donald’s if I want to be in and out in a few minutes.

However, I will return at some stage, as I am sure that Alleno will get better, once he is over all the prizes he won recently.

Schloss Berg, Nennig III

 

I had the chance to spend a few weeks in Christian Bau’s kitchen lately and will write about my experiences, if time permits. My last meal there, a few weeks ago was as good as the one in April, and the restaurant is definitely among my top 5. 

 

La maison

A few words about the chef should be said. During my two weeks in his kitchen, he was there at every single service, during the whole 16 to 18 hours of the normal day and closed the restaurant every night. Not only was he there, but he also cooks most of the sauces, prepares and cooks the fish and many other things. Nothing leaves this kitchen without his blessing. I was certainly impressed when I stood in front of three boxes of tomatoes waiting to be peeled, when suddenly the chef came along and peeled them with me. Such things only show too well how much this man and his brigade work.

Now, to the meal, which is the reason for this post after all. We started with a glass of the house Champagne, which is a very pleasant blanc de blancs and not too costly for a 3* (I think it is 14euro). The first nibbles that arrive at the table already show the immense attention to detail and complexity of the cooking here. The diner is presented with a few brik-tubes, filled with Parma ham mousse today, a cold soup with some air (today it was a beetroot gazpacho with buttermilk air), a few almonds and a little selection of canapés. The crunchy cannelloni were very enjoyable, as were the almonds. The soup, which at the last visit was a little underwhelming had great intensity and power this time. The combination with the buttermilk worked marvelously well too. The stars of this first round of treats are plated on the slate board though. At the top left, one has crab bread with swordfish/oyster tartar and apple foam. This is very fresh, with great textural (crunchy, creamy and airy) combinations. In short, a great little bite (and classic here). Also on the plate was a tomato, pesto, mozzarella tartlett, which was very good, as usual. The last part was a cracker with cream cheese, two kinds of tobiko caviar and a chicken skin crisp. This was not bad at all, but I don’t fancy cream cheese that much. Excellent.

 

Gazpacho, croustillants et amandes

 

Canapes

 

Next up was a new version of the little cornet, I had eaten at the previous visit. Today it was filled with avocado cream, yuzu sorbet (a slightly salted one), hamachi tartar and wasabi foam. This was just one fresh, rewarding mouthful. Amazing in every sense, if a little less gourmand than the beef/eel/caviar version, I had tried in April. Excellent.

 

Cornet avocat, hamachi, yuzu, wasabi

Moving on with the next round of amuses, we had a Bau classic: Two spoonfuls of foie gras. One was an ice cream with a little cherry compote and the other a gateau, with coffee, hazelnut and cherry. The foie here always impresses. This time it didn’t fail to do so neither. It was tasty, creamy, perfectly prepared and great with the slightly bitter coffee jelly. The hazelnuts gave it a little crunch, which I always adore. The ice cream of foie is another winner. It is very intense and unbelievably creamy. Once you have it in your mouth, you wonder how a thing this unctuous can actually stay in shape that well (on the plate). Outstanding.

 

Foie Gras, noix, cerises, cafe

Up next was another Bau classic, in a different version this time. The clarified gazpacho came with olive and mozzarella drops, cucumber sorbet, sea cucumber and carabineros. The flavour of every element was outstandingly present, fresh and clear and the combination of the different parts worked marvelously too. The stars of the show were undoubtedly the sea cucumber and carabinero. I had the opportunity to try a little sea cucumber in the kitchen a few days earlier, so I knew what amazing texture to expect, but I was still startled. It is only poached in grape seed oil, and thus remains very clean in terms of taste, and possibly the best way to discover a product such as this. This was one of the most interesting and satisfying, completely new textures I have come across up to now. The carabinero (large red shrimp that live off the Spanish coast) was as good as they get (which means very, very good). The only problem with such products is the exorbitant price. However, if the chef serves it, all you can do is eat it, no? Outstanding.

 

Gazpacho

Another serving of spoons came right up. This time it was a langoustine variation. A base of tartar with trout caviar was topped with some deep-fried langoustine. The second spoon featured a “raviolo”: tartar wrapped in lardo di Colonnata and crowned with Ossietra caviar. This is an absolute masterpiece. One can’t say anything about this dish but note that it gets pretty damn close to what perfection could taste like. The deep-fried langoustine is coated in the thinnest, crunchiest of batters and gives the creamy, rich tartar both crunch and a different structure. This is really worth a trip on its own. This was one mouthful for which I wouldn’t have minded a couple of hours driving. I really can’t say just how unbelievably good this was. However, there was another spoon awaiting me. This one wasn’t exactly what I would call disgusting neither. Despite being based on the same tartar, the lardo/caviar combination gave it a totally different feeling. The melting lardo, the briny caviar complemented the tartar utmost perfectly. Another outstanding dish based on langoustines within a month’s time (after Hof van Cleve’s terrific langoustines). DIVINE.

 

Langoustines

Just to remind you, we are still at the amuses. Yes, maybe you can see how much effort is being put in to every part of the meal here. These creations are more complex than whole dishes at other high-end restaurants and don’t even make up a big part of the meal. The last plate to come as a “greeting from the kitchen” was a salmon/oyster raviolo with asparagus and wasabi/courgette cream. This was a slightly modified version of the version we had eaten in April. A subtle change can make a huge differnce, as we were about to see. The raviolo was lukewarm this time, which made all of the tastes come out beautifully (oysters are best eaten at 36 degrees Celsius as they have much more complexity). Also added this time was a wasabi cream, which I must say, was very welcome due to the spiciness of it. This was absolutely delicious again.

 

Saumon

 

The first few courses were the same as the ones I had in April, so I will only give brief explanations about these.

 

The first was the Crab Marinated and Deep-Fried/ 2x Watermelon/ Dashi Jelly. It comes as a croustillant and as a salad. The watermelon is served in the form of a sorbet and as a grilled slice. As the watermelon is relatively sweet, this dish is a little too sweet for my taste, if eaten without the sorbet. The freshness of the sorbet however, balances the whole thing beautifully. The fritter is one adorable mouthful, which was the star of the dish. Excellent.

 

Watermelon

The next course was as good, if not better than last time. The blue fin tuna tataki/ Crispy & Sour Vegetables/ Ponzu/ Japanese Essence with Ginger Ale is a classic of the house, and rightfully so. The dish doesn’t only present you with the ever perfect quality of the ingredients, but is also very clever in terms of the construction. The tuna itself is slightly grilled, tender, tasty,… The vegetables (without the abalone this time, which I found a little annoying in the first version of it) were perfect, as was the soup with tuna/avocado tartar. The vegetables gave you a slightly acidic note, whilst the soup had a most complex taste, which complemented the tuna very well. Excellent.

 

Thon

 

Thon II

 

Thon III

Here comes a new one: Blue Lobster/ Tepid Quinoa/ Passe Pierre & Green Apple/ Cream of Corail/ Aroma & Oil of Curry from Madras. This is another accomplished dish. It is very complex as it features a salicorne puree, curry mayonnaise, pan-fried salicorne, green apple sticks and foam, the lobster, a lobster jus, the corail cream, cury oil, quinoa both popped and cooked with the lobster claws and chicken skin. Taste-wise the different aromas work very well, as each gives a little bit to the whole thing. One can mix the diverse elements in any way, and will never be disappointed. I particularly enjoyed the corail cream, which has incredible power and very pleasing texture. Another great dish. Excellent.

 

Homard

Up next was another classic. Coquille Saint-Jacques/ Seawater Tapioca/ Chutney of Carrots/ Foam & Aroma of Raz el Hanout. The scallops were of very high quality (as French ones are out of season, the chef uses Scandinavian ones) and were cooked perfectly. I was kind of sad about the fact that they were halved, but one can’t do much about it. This crime seems to invade the continent too. The tapioca has an interesting, but pleasing taste, which again, works well with the other elements on the plate. This was excellent (sorry for being repetitive, but that’s the way this food is).

 

Coquille St Jacques

Now came one of my favourites. A tempura of frog’s legs, with enoki mushrooms, a watercress soup, spinach and wasabi cream. The main part is made up of the deep-fried legs, with raw and deep-fried enoki mushrooms, spinach, wasabi cream, parsley and garlic. The little cup contains some of the smallest ravioli I have seen so far (they must be about as big as a 2cent coin), some boned frog leg meat and watercress soup. The legs were brilliant, crunchy batter, tender,tasty meat and a great cream to dip them into: all one can ask for. The spinach seemed to be a base for the little beignets to stand on more than anything else, but that didn’t matter at all. The wasabi cream was lovely and spiced things up a little, which isn’t a bad thing seeing that it was a dish which contained mostly deep-fried elements. Watercress isn’t something I have liked for a long time, but this soup was stunning. Every leaf is hand-picked to produce a soup of an intensity and tastiness that is unheard of. I guess a healthy dose of butter and/or cream helped to get to this, but I really didn’t mind. This was terrific.  Outstanding.

 

Grenouilles

Turbot is a fish I particularly enjoy if it is very fresh (thus very firm). I know that most people will prefer it slightly matured, but that doesn’t interest me in the least, as I find this firm, meaty texture most impressive. The best piece of turbot I have tasted in my life was at ADPA, where the thick cut completely redefined what turbot should taste like. Here it was very good, but not quite there yet. Bau buys fish that are about 5,5kg and therefore deliver some meaty fillets. The current version is called Atlantic Turbot/ Smoked Eel Glazed over Charcoal/ Eggplant-Miso/ Shiso Pesto/ Deep-Fried “Ladyfingers”. This dish showed Bau’s penchant for Asian and Japanese cuisine in a good way. The techniques are clearly French, but the spices, condiments, and combinations are inspired by Japanese cooking. The turbot was, as I mentioned, of top quality and had great flavour and texture (not to mention the perfect cooking). The real star of the dish was the smoked eel. I absolutely adored its strong flavour, which was only enhanced by glazing it over real charcoal. The highly complex vinaigrette and aubergine miso cream complemented each element beautifully. Excellent.

 

Turbot

Up next was a fantastic local product: Saddle of Venison from Eifel/ 2x Pointed Cabbage/ Apricots& Chanterelles/ Jus of Venison with Bitter Cocoa and Mild Chili. These are wild animals that are being brought to the restaurant by a game dealer based around 50km north of Nennig, in Trier. Bau served the rack covered with a slice of foie gras, which starts to melt as it is presented to the guest. This doesn’t only enhance the dishe’s flaovur, but also makes the fat-free meat a little more interesting. The cooking was perfect as always during the weeks of my internship. They hardly use any sous-vide  here and manage to cook every piece of venison or lamb to an exact temperature; every day. I must say that sous-vide is great for an amateur, but a 3* restaurant should take the effort to cook meat traditionally, which many, sadly, don’t do anymore. The perfect cooking results not only in very tender meat, but one also has the lovely gamey flavour, which worked beaufitully with the cocoa/Piment d’Espelette sauce. The garnishes were girolles with dried abricots, a combination I adore, as girolles smell of exactly these dried abricots. The cream and sushi of pointed cabbage were as good as in a hare dish I had eaten last December. All in all, this was another excellent dish.

 

Chevreuil

 

To move to the sweet side of things, one is served lemongrass ice cream coated in white chocolate. On the base of the little bon bon, one finds zeta peta, which came rather unexpected for my companion, who couldn’t help displaying a bright smile. Very good.

 

GLace

Moving on, we had the first of three desserts. I must admit that I find the look of that spoon, crowning the “Small Iced Coffee” a little too classic, but the dessert wass highly interesting. First of all, it is nearly devoid of any sweetness. When one starts to eat it, a very strong taste of coffee dominates. As I progressed, I got to like it more and more, as the subtle sweetness of the mascarpone cream does come through eventually and balances the dish in a remarkable way. The spoon gave the whole thing some crunch and further sweetness, making this a perfect little pre-dessert. Very good.

 

Cafe

 

The Gariguette Strawberry/ Mild Ginger/ Yoghurt/ Sorbet of Yuzu was a real winner. There is nothing in the dessert world that  I despise more than some kind of soup as a dessert. I just don’t have any good memories of sweet soups. This time, the story was a little different. The strawberry soup was spiced with a little ginger, which gave it a kick and made the whole thing delicious if eaten with the (sweet) yuzu sorbet. The little strawberries with their different balls on the side made me think of Hof van Cleve. On the other side sits the yoghurt bonbon, which is yoghurt sorbet, sandwiched between crunchy sugar. This was a most refreshing, spicy, interesting dessert. Excellent.

 

Soupe de fraises

Nothing against the two previous ones, but the last one did steal the show. Chocolate & Passion Fruit Canache and Cream/ Salpicon of Exotic Fruits/ Marbled Coconut Ice Cream. It was a play on Bau’s classic, which I had in December last year. Today the chocolage ganache was paired with a passion fruit cream or jelly of sorts. A base of praline gives the dessert crunch, as do the tuiles. I was astonished how well the different pieces of fruit worked with the bitter chocolate. After all, such combinations are often unsuccessful, so to see one, that actually does taste marvelous was pretty much new to me. The little tower contained a brunoise of the same fruit, the marbled ice cream and some sort of chocolate cream. All in all, this was a fantastic dessert, which closed the meal more than beautifully.

 

Chocolat

To accompany your coffee you are of course presented with a few petit fours and mignardises. On the slate you see from the bottom to the top: An after eight Negerkuss, an olive pate de fruit, a cherry filled with some kind of rice and a lemon tart. With it come a few nuts covered with chocolate and two kinds of marshmallow. Also served, but not pictured was a wide selection of pralines. Out of all these treats I disliked the cherry/raspberry combo, but the rest was excellent. I particularly enjoyed the lemon tart, the Negerkuss, the pralines and the pate de fruit.

 

Petit fours

This meal only demonstrated too well how good Christian Bau cooks. Not only is there an immense amount of work in this food, but also a passion for cooking and gastronomy that is driving things forward here. He travels to restaurants, spends as much time as his cooks in the kitchen, closes the restaurant and doesn’t let anything happen without his personal ok. This is a serious cook, who deserves to get much more attention, not only in Europe, but also world-wide.

 

A trip to Nennig will always be worth any distance traveled.  The cooking and seriousness here is just mind-blowing. Coupled with the great service and fantastic sommeliere, Britta Jäger, your time spent here, will be time well spent.

La Grappe d’or, Torgny

 

La Maison

 

 

Torgny is Belgium’s southernmost village. It is also called the Provence of Belgium, for exactly this reason. So, when we decided to have a look there, a restaurant, which held a Michelin * and 18p in the Gault Millau for a long time came into mind. This place had just been taken over by a young chef, who trained under Antoine Westermann and Guy Martin (both had 3* at the time).

 

Le jardin

The chef, Clement Petitjean, has chosen his location wisely. His restaurant is in an absolutely beautiful village, and on a day like the one we had, it could well be somewhere behind St Tropez (only with more flowers). The restaurant has a beautiful garden, in which one can have an aperitif and enjoy the sun. 

 

La table

 

 

The meal started on the stunning terrace with a little selection of amuses. These consisted of a fennel sphere, a shot glass filled with foie gras and some beans and an ice cream made out of tomatoes, served with a little marinated sea bream. The fennel sphere was decent if a little tasteless. The foie glass on the other hand, was very good. The tastes were strong, and the foam and beans added another dimension in both flavour and texture. The ice cream or sorbet with the fish was pleasant but too sweet. All in all, not too bad for a 1* restaurant.

 

Amuses

Next up came a fennel crisp with a little house made barbeque sauce. This was nicely crunchy and a little smoky, due to the sauce. Good.

 

Fenouil

 

 

Parmesan bread was very good, but the butter had a bizarre taste. Not that it was bad, only somewhat unusual.

 

Le pain

 

 

The last pre-meal snack was a courgette cream with a little snail. The presentation is a matter of taste, I found it to look quite ridiculous, but other people at the table didn’t share this feeling. Taste-wise, it could deliver. The courgette was very present and the snail very well prepared. Very good.

 

Courgette

The first course was a tartar of lobster with agastache, a cromesquis of herbs and some lime sorbet. This was a very good dish indeed. The lobster wasn’t overcooked and had both good texture and taste. A cromesquis is normally a hot, crunchy croquette, but here, it was merely lukewarm and had lost any sign of crunchiness. The flavour was there, but without the temperature or texture it was rather forgettable. The sorbet and snow were very good, if mixed with the lobster tartar. Again, this was good for a 1*.

 

Homard

The following was a “signature” of the house. A combination of pig’s trotter, foie gras and sweetbread was served with the jus of braised veal shin and a few asparagus. The problem here was the dry sweetbread. One side was fine, whilst the other was completely overcooked. The foie was perfectly cooked, as were the asparagus (why place them in such a stupid fashion on the plate?). The pig’s trotter only featured in the crisp, which could have been made out of anything and the jus was more a tomato sauce than a veal jus. Mediocre, considering it was supposed to be a classic of the chef.

 

Ris de veau/foie gras

 

 

The fish course was much more successful. A piece of salmon was perfectly cooked and served with black radishes and some emulsion. This was a very fine piece of salmon, which was expertly cooked and accompanied by simple, yet effective garnishes. The kropoek provided the crunch, whilst the radish gave it a little spiciness and the emulsion some airy, light note. Very good.

 

Saumon

 

As a main course we had an Anjou Pigeon served with prunes, crunchy cepes and a consommé of  the pigeon’s heart and liver. The meat was cooked perfectly. Un peu moins que rose, as Francois Simon once said. It thus had great texture and tasted brilliantly. The crunchy cepes were useless, as they had absolutely no recognisable flavour, due to the thin shaving that they were. The prune puree was obviously on the rather sweet side of things but didn’t disturb, as the pigeon’s strong, robust flavour worked well with this little refreshing counterpoint. The accompanying consommé was very nice and had some good strength. Don’t ask me what the jelly was supposed to be, as I couldn’t really taste anything, nor did I ask. Very good.

 

Pigeon

 

 

The cheese cart here was very impressive for a rural 1* in the middle of nowhere. They all come from Robert Bedot, as well-known Affineur in Rocquebrune.  I tried around seven and found all of them to be excellent.

 

Les Fromages

 

 

Also served was a beetroot granite, marinated beetroot and goat’s cheese from the region. This was nice and proved to work well.

 

Chevre

 

Pre-dessert was a bourbon vanilla crème brulee. It’s been a long time since I have been served a thing as simple as this, and it brings back tons of memories. Not bad at all.

 

Creme brulee

 

 

The dessert itself was quite interesting. A few different chocolate preparations played with various confit (sweet) vegetables. Fennel, peas (the green crisp), carrots all worked astonishingly well with the dark chocolate. Not something I would want to eat everyday, but it was good in general.

 

chocolat

 

 

Petit-fours were uninspiring and quite bad for most of them. The only good bite was the chocolate dome.

 

Petit fours

 

 

 

All in all, this was a pleasant evening, and was rather affordable (the menu we had was around 70euro). The food itself was good, without being really memorable. The chef can, if he wants go to 2* level, but that remains to be seen. I wouldn’t travel for this place but it definitely deserves that one star.