Archive for October, 2009

Paris, October, 2009

Menu Decouverte

• L’Amuse Bouche
• Le Caviar
• Le Crabe (softshell en tempura)
• Le Foie Gras aux haricots cocoverjutés
• L’Œuf cocotte et sa crème l’égère de girolles
• La Sole en tronçon
• L’ joue du Bœuf à la bourguignonne
• El Andalous (fraises de saison)
• La perle du Chou (chocolade)

I had many good things to eat when traveling recently to Paris, including a “tasting menu” at one of chef Joël Robuchon’s restaurants, his famous Atelier. Everyone with a reservation is served just minutes after 6:30 PM, and upon entering, are issued to your counter seats. With a party of four, we got a corner, two of us on both sides, which seemed an ideal vantage point for enjoying the meal and viewing not only the workspace but also some of the “audience” Additional seating is available along the wall, but I would not have valued sitting against the wall to eat my meal. I can’t imagine who would.

The menu gave us a choice of entrées. You can see I chose the beef, but others had the choice between foie gras-stuffed quail and lamb (with la fleur de thym). This entrée was perhaps the most successful dish, executed perfectly between dreamy mashed potatoes, the most cute and small mushrooms, and a rich beef cheek amply surrounded by a rich and thick, glistening red ruby, wine sauce. It got straight to the point: let’s enjoy this. Gone were the rustic connotations often associated with this beef stew.

The foie gras course was not my favorite: it was served over a collection of beans and while delicious, it lacked the sophistication that a little sweetness, when paired with foie gras, often has in such a dish. The crab was superb (better than Michel Richard’s version at Citronelle), and my favorite was the caviar dish. A mushroomy drink as the amuse was also outstanding.

Most odd on the dish was the egg course, served in a martini glass, everything foamy, liquidy, and infused with mushroom. There was good parts about it (flavor), but the texture was not my thing.

The fish was bland.

The “Andalous,” a light strawberry dessert, was outstanding. Like the entrée, it was a real winner in simple sophistication. Superb flavor with hints of tomato, basil, and lime tequila.

Not the most delicious, but the most memorable, was the final course: a modern take on the profiterole, covered in a dome of chocolate. Upon being served this dish, hot chocolate sauce was poured over the dome, making it disappear before our eyes. It was magic, and it was quite entertaining. Coffee served with dessert was incredible. Smooth, dark, and ever sweet.

My 2-star meal at Joël Robuchon’s was delicious. I can’t say it was the best meal I’d eaten. Most disappointing was the level of service: while efficient and capable (the waiters match your preferred language), in the end it lacked the warmth I’ve experienced at other places. Nevertheless, I’d recommend this place for its different take on dining by transforming the kitchen into a little scene of theatre. Incidentally, you’ll find Robuchon’s Ateliers in different cities as well.

I’m not sure where to write this post (the subject matter is something that fits well into the food scene, but it also borders on my other areas of interest, as well.)

Food blogger the Amateur Gourmet took issue with a recent column by Christopher Kimball, and it generated a number of comments.

To break-down the issues here, this is what I see:

• Kimball writes about the fall of Gourmet, and talks about his own job as publisher of his own food magazine.
• He seems to think that the passing of Gourmet is a bad thing, and points to the Internet as one of the causes of its demise.
• Roberts takes issue because he seems to be blaming the food blogs for this demise;
• Many commenters join in with horrahs!, saying Kimball’s magazine is boring and bad. Food blogs rule!

I have been a subscriber to Gourmet and to Cook’s Illustrated. In fact, I have all of the latest issues here at home now. I like reading about food. I like food blogs, but I also enjoy good cookbooks, books about food, and even shows about food (like TopChef).

I don’t think Kimball’s article was all that harsh. I think Adam’s post was more harsh, and then for an even more obscene read of everything, the comments took things to the next level.

The truth is, food blogs, food television, and food podcasts are popular sources of information and are tailored to the passions of people who love food. So are the magazines.

We only have so much time in the day to read, watch, and listen to content. That’s what’s the Internet is providing. There’s a great collection growing here in Richmond with food blogs. I don’t have time to read them all religiously. I check them when I have a need to: “I wonder what the trendy new restaurants are this month?”

Kimball’s right to a degree. Folks are replacing their limited time with materials of different quality. But I don’t think a lifetime’s experience necessarily always makes the best read or entertainment. Some food bloggers inspire me, and I’d follow their recipes. Some are just fun to read. Adam Roberts sometimes shares recipes, but I’d never eat them, his cooking looks messy and I don’t trust his palate. But that’s not to say he’s incapable of creating good food.

We thin-slice (to borrow a term from Malcolm Gladwell) people and sources of information. I’m, for one, glad that we have such a variety of sources for information about food today. I’m sorry to see Gourmet pass, but in its void there is still an abundance of content. Over time, the food blogs that don’t inspire and don’t deliver the quality Kimball talks about will pass. Understandably, he may be upset that the economy for publishing has changed quickly. When everyone’s a media producer there’s an over-abundance of content.

These food blogs represent a welcome break from institutional food writing; they are fresher, brighter and more truthful than the kind of writing Kimball mourns—writing that must pass through board rooms, across copy desks, and into editorial meetings before it’s ok-ed and printed.

I’m not sure this comment from Adam Roberts fits (for me) either the writing in Gourmet or the writing in Cook’s Illustrated. I don’t see only one medium being the winner. Roberts says that Kimball’s ship is sinking. I hope not. There’s a lot of to be said for the time it takes to produce work of quality. We live in a world today of quickness, of things that are almost all-okay, almost-accurate, and almost-perfect.

When the entry-cost is free (i.e., food blogs that people start and maintain to share their passion), where’s the incentive for the quality only the dedication of time can bring?