Le Rech, Paris France

Le Rech: A Classic French Bistro
When I visit Paris it is a humbling experience. I have studied the cuisine of this city and country my entire adult life in order to hone my craft and better my skills. When one is in Paris, arguably the greatest food city in the entire world, for one weekend, you must make wise choices in regards to where you dine. When you have only three days in Paris, it is a double-edged sword to make your first meal in the city at a restaurant owned and ran by Michelin three star Chef and restaurateur, Alain Ducasse. It is a wonderful experience but at the same time you know that nothing else you eat while on your trip will compare. With twenty-one restaurants and counting, Chef Ducasse is a force to be reckoned with in the world of fine dining.
Tommy, Elizabeth, and I got off the train from Brussels, dropped our bags, stopped in at Printemps, for some light shopping, and headed for a lunch that I have no equal for in my memory. Le Rech is a classic French bistro opened in the style of 1920’s Paris. The Art Deco atmosphere is complimented by the delicate approach to the cuisine that Chef Ducasse and his staff employ. The offerings here are almost all seafood, save a few beef and veal offerings. We opted for the three course pre-fixe lunch and were not disappointed.
The menu was as follows:
Soupe glacee de concombre au rouget
Ou
Fillet de haddock marine au citron, salade d’herbes

Julienne de linge pochee, asperges blanches et sabayon citron
Ou
Joues de lotted snackees aux mousserons et cresson de fontaine

Soupe et sorbet de fraises gariguettes
Ou
Pain perdu Pastis d’Amelie, glace caramel au buerre sale

For the first course we all ordered the marinated haddock in citrus with the herb salad. While cold cucumber soup would have fit the 80 degree the delicate flavor of the marinade and the citrus cream accompanying the salad sounded too good to pass up. This fish was sublime. The citrus was just enough, not so much that it over powered, as is often the case in something like ceviche. The flavor of the haddock still shined in this dish. What I found most interesting about the first course was the plating. The fish was served in a bowl that was no doubt specifically designed for this dish as nothing else but the battonet of haddock would fit in the dish. The accompaniments were served on another plate, which allowed you to mix and match until you found that perfect bite. Balance between the fish, the greens, and the citrus cream was easy. The perfect piece of toasted bread was there to provide some crunch and texture that was much needed.
For the main course we were more diverse. I ordered the monkfish with mushrooms in a butter sauce while Tommy and Elizabeth ordered the poached mullett with a citrus sabayon and white asparagus. Both of the entrees were exceptional and given the hot day very delicate while still being filling. There is nothing worse on a hot day to sit down to a meal that stuffs you and leaves you lethargic. My dish was all about the seasoning. With only three ingredients on the plate it showed how the kitchen staff could transform such simple food into something extraordinary. When you start with the best ingredients available and apply classic technique with absolute precision it is hard for it not to turn out wonderfully. The other entrée was also superbly done. The fish poached till just done, left it flaky but not dry and the sabayon, which is a sauce usually, reserved for dessert was the star here. An emulsion sauce similar to hollandaise, this sauce had the perfect amount of citrus to butter to egg. The sauce was in complete balance with the fish and asparagus. It is of note that neither of the entrees was served with a starch of any kind, which I attribute, again, to the warm weather.
The last out of the kitchen was our dessert course. Elizabeth ordered the strawberry soup with fresh strawberries and strawberry sorbet. This was like the best fresh strawberry you’ve ever had but amplified by ten. Tommy and I both ordered the French toast with caramel ice cream. This was amazing; there are no other words for it. The toast was encased in a glaze, which had a slight crunch to it but made the texture otherworldly, while the inside was soft and rich. The ice cream was perhaps the greatest ice cream I’ve ever tasted. It was rich velvety in texture and had the most intense caramel flavor you can imagine.
This lunch was one for the record books, the setting, the company, the service, and of course the food made it a highlight of the trip for me so far and one of my favorite meals of all time. Here’s the Alain Ducasse, cheers Le Rech!

Culinaria 2010!

Culinaria is a yearly event that gathers together Michelin starred Chefs from all over Europe. By happenstance we were in Brussels the very same weekend that this festival was happening. Tommy and I ventured onto the Brussels’ subway for the first time and made the trek to the expo center to eat lunch. After getting turned around and walking way further than needed we found the Culinaria, bought tickets, got confused, spoke broken French, and were herded inside. Forty-five Euros bought us a ticket in and a four-course lunch, each course prepared by a different Master Chef plying his trade. In addition to lunch there were vendors from all over the continent selling food and food related products as well as chefs giving demos and classes (sadly, all the instruction was in French or Dutch).

Tommy and I were blown away with our lunch experience! The menu was as follows:

Langoustine, dans de la brume, fenouil, orange, algues, ail des ours

Shrimp bruleed with fennel and oranges

Lard de ferme confit, soufflé et laque aux epices

Farm-raised pork belly, confit and soufflé, lacquered in spices

Joue de veau braisee, celery-rave, estragon, Parmesan

Braised veal cheek with celery root, tarragon, and Parmesan cheese

Ceci n’est pas une orange

Orange dessert served several ways (my liberal American translation)

Each course was expertly and painstakingly tended to and the flavors melded and worked together like a fantastic piece of art. The presentation of the shrimp involved dry ice so it was the most impressive visually. The entrée of veal was like the best pot roast you ever had but from another planet! The two standouts for me were the second and fourth courses. The pork belly was so tender they only handed out spoons. It was served with a pork fat soufflé, fried pork skin, and bacon. This was an otherworldly experience for me. For someone who lives and breathes pork it was a new experience for me. Unbelievable! The dessert was a study on orange, which after the two previous courses being so heavy was needed. Everything on the plate, except the graham cracker was orange flavored. Frozen orange mousse, orange sorbet, orange jelly, candied orange zest, and did I mention the plate was painted with 14K gold leaf before plating.

Tommy and I have set the bar really high for only our second day in Europe. We have 9 more days of eating ahead of us. Here’s hoping it goes up from here, tomorrow…PARIS!

www.culinariasquare.be

What a difference a day makes

I ate a "cheesesteak" in the Philadelphia airport. The next actual meal I ordered, unless you count the airplane slop, was roasted bone marrow and garlic croutons, and an endive salad with blue cheese, golden raisins, and toasted pine nuts. Needless to say the "cheesesteak" was head and shoulders above the classical French offerings I had for lunch in a street side cafe in Brussels...oh, no it wasn't!

Bistro G-EA, Brussels as hell, French as fuck!

The best thing about Europe is the pace. Jet-lagged and wanting to low-key it Tommy, Elizabeth, and I went to a little French bistro around the corner from our hotel/apartment. We were there for over three hours watching people, eating, and talking and it was the perfect way to start our vacation. There was no, "I gotta grab a quick bite so I can get me to the Wal-Mart." We enjoyed three courses along with coffee and after dinner drinks for T & E (which were on the house, of course) and every bite was sublime. I managed foie gras in two courses as well as a Greek salad that was enough to make me full, but the way things were paced we had time to digest and enjoy every course that was offered. As we shared around the table we decided that this type of meal is certainly not possible in Dayton, probably in the U.S. all together. There is simply no emphasis put on actually enjoying the meal, the time spent, the service, and the company in America. I would rather spend three hours with my best friends than sit in front of a T.V. watching spirit-crushing, mind-numbing trash any night. Here's to the European way of life and our first epic meal in Europe, courtesy of Bistro G-EA

Airplane food, does it HAVE to suck?

Yes! A thousand times over, yes!

Europe better get ready for a spanking!

After a long hiatus I am back! Tommy and I are on our way to Europe. We are planning on eating the shit out of that continent! We will be in Berlin, Paris, Brussels, and Amsterdam. Keep an eye on this spot plus the ever popular "I Crushed This" for all Tommy and I ingest in the coming weeks. Lastly, look forward to a slightly delayed post from last week's Chicago meals...

New Bloggings for Summer!

Hello blog-o-sphere!
I have been away a long time but I am headed up to the windy city today and I promise I will eat there. On the agenda is Lula, a hipster bistro, breakfast at Ray's Bucktown Bed & Breakfast, Soul Vegetarian for Stacie, and hot dog Mecca, Hot Doug's. So stay tuned to the blog this week as I will be posting pictures and word to document my gluttony in Chicago! Sorry for the long absence I will do my best in the future to eat more and take pictures of it.