Passage 53: a Japanese-French star

A new one-star French restaurant entirely run by Japanese

A friend of mine told me of a new one-star restaurant run by Japanese people. It is called Passage 53 and is just two years old. Since the Japanese are very creative and interested in fine cooking, I couldn't wait to go.

This is another of the small places (22 seats) where there is no menu but a surprise tasting for everyone. There are both a French and a Japanese maitre d'hotel--both of whom are knowledgeable and helpful.

The meal consisted of a parade of small plates, each lovingly prepared and delicious. The first two seemed to be riffs on color. I started with an all-white dish: lightly grilled squid resting on a purée of cauliflower and topped with cauliflower shavings. The purée was made with a very flavorful olive oil and the dish (which sounds bland) was quite stunning. Next came the orange dish which was a sea urchin foam, a piece of sea urchin and a carrot flan: also wonderful.

After that, what came on the plates was more colorful and complex. There was a marlin with a variety of seasonal vegetables beautifully placed on the dish; an amazing sautéed foie gras with salty shellfish juice flavored with yuzu: such a strange combination that worked very well. After that came a baked Cévennes onion which had been taken apart and layered with spicy chorizo and then put back together. Superb! The meat dishes were a very tender roast veal and a wonderful poularde with lots of white truffles and a puree potatoes. This was spectacular!!

The dessert course should have been called "everything you dreamed of ordering but were too afraid to ask". There was a terrific lemon mousse with meringue and crunchy lemon caviar, a wonderful tiramisu, chestnut cake with banana ice cream, mont blanc, a clementine sorbet flavored with green tea and the best chocolate tart I have tasted in many years. I saved that to have with my coffee .

The wine list here is quite extensive but if you just want glasses of wine you can have a Meursault (an reknowned producer of Meursault) with the first courses and an excellet Vosne-Romanée from Arnoux-Lachaux.

Like Le Bigarrade and Sa Qua Na, this restaurant is not cheap but would be a wonderful place for a special occasion.

Two bistrots

Two unassuming Parisian bistrots where the food is terrific: La Marmotte and Le Baratin

A few weeks ago, my cousins Jenny and Andy came to Paris to celebrate their 25th anniversary. You'll have to speak to them about the palaces of gastronomy they visited, but this is a post about a small bistrot that Jenny took me to her last night in Paris. (She stayed an extra day.) It was not easy to find a place both good and open on a Sunday night, but I looked in my trusty "Pudlo" Guide and found a coup de coeur in the 6th arrondissment: La Marlotte, which is open 7 days a week. (Coup de coeur is a "love at first sight" designation that Pudlo awards to his favorite restaurants in each of the 20 districts of Paris.)

La Marlotte was not crowded on a rainy Sunday but those who were there, appeared to be enjoying themselves. We relaxed in our banquette and studied the menu which was quite appealing. Jenny and I always share everything. As this is oyster season, we decided to try a few as a pre-appetizer. We chose the Speciales Prat ar Coum and found that they were very salty. This is probably a characteristic of this particular type of oyster which are very much in demand.

For appetizers, we had a delicious lentil salad with shallots and a lovely bib lettuce salad with fresh, thinly sliced artichokes and parmesan cheese. The main courses were both excellent: roast cod with a delicious red pepper sauce and a wonderful duck with honey and spices. We each chose a side order: frites wrapped in newspaper and served cone-shaped in a glass, and a purée of fresh peas.

The wine that the server recommended was excellent and the least expensive on the menu. It was a Côtes du Rousillon and went well with both the duck and the fish.

The best part were the profiteroles au chocolat. You could tell that they had been freshly made perhaps a few hours before we ordered them. This is one of my favorite desserts and I know how to judge a great one. La Marlotte's version was flawless.

Le Baratin in the 20th arrondissement is a place that is very popular with French people and is a typical small neighborhood bistrot. However, what is special about this place is that the very creative chef is an Argentine woman. She works in a tiny kitchen in the back of the bar and from this little room great dishes emerge. The restaurant also showcases different wines and if you are not happy with your choice, they will be happy to bring you others to try.

I went there with my friend Gaby and we had a terrific meal. We shared a dish of veal brains that were served in a chive, garlic, butter sauce--perfect as a dipping sauce with the excellent crusty baguette. There were also ravioli filled with a spicy pigeon mixture. The ravioli were served floating in a flavorful bouillon with turnips as a garnish.

Gaby and I both opted for the duck dish: cooked in two ways with fresh ginger and crunchy cabbage. Although it was quite good, I preferred the duck I had at Le Marlotte which, in its sweet sauce, was made in a more traditional way. And the flavor of Le Baratin's ginger didn't come through in this preparation.

As we didn't want a whole bottle of wine, we were able to order from the list in a size made to our wishes. Instead of a full bottle of 75 cl, we had them open the bottle and serve us 50 cl and this is acceptable and done quite frequently. Our Chinon was full and fruity and went well with the duck.

I was very happy with end of my meal: a perfect smooth luxurious mousse au chocolat. When it comes right down to it, I so prefer delicious and simple desserts that are perfectly made than the many creative concoctions that are offered both in restaurants and in the best bakeries.

One of the best things about Le Baratin is the price. You can get a wonderful meal for about 50 euros with wine and coffee. With the chef's talent, notoriety and popularity, the owners could definitely move their restaurant into fancier and more attractive quarters, but they seem to enjoy what they do so well: running a simple neighborhood bistrot that is always full and always noisy with happy customers.

Three Days in Honfleur

Two wonderful restaurants recommended by the Michelin Guide in the charming town of Honfleur: Le Breard and Sa Qua Na

After reading an article in the New York Times travel section about Honfleur, and receiving a promotion for a cheap train fare, I could not help but make the necessary arrangements to go for a few days in November. I chose to stay in the wonderful La Maison de Lucie that the article mentioned. I always double check with the Guide Michelin, however, because where France is concerned, this is absolutely the best guidebook to use.

La Maison de Lucie is a small inn with stunning rooms and suites. Breakfast is served in one of a half-dozen sitting rooms, each one more charming than the last. At that season, a warm fire was burning in the fireplace day and night. The staff is friendly and helpful and they have a gorgeous and atmospheric hot tub/spa room that is a lovely place to pass a relaxing hour.

When I arrived at the Deauville train station, I waited at the bus station for the next bus to Honfleur. There, I had the most unbelievable experience: I ran into my friend from Tokyo, Kyoko!! I had last seen her in April when I was in her country. She had decided to come to France for a week, but it would make more sense for me to run into her in Paris or any place in Japan and not in a tiny town in Normandy. We took advantage of the small world experience and once we both arrived in Honfleur, met in a café for one of the strong apple drinks: either Pommeau or Calvados.

I have spoken about the Bib Gourmands in an earlier post (noteworthy restaurants where one can get excellent meals at reasonable prices), and chose one for my first meal: Le Bréard. There I had a wonderful meal for 48 euros without wine. Starting with the interesting huîtres pochées; bouillon de pomme glacée, algues et cèpes (poached oysters in a warm apple bouillon with cèpes and seaweed). I moved on to the excellent noix de St-Jacques nacrées, bouillon de châtaignes, potimarron aux cinq épices et citron vert (golden scallops in a chestnut broth with 5-spiced pumpkin and lime). This dish was generously garnished with chestnut pieces and was, in a word, spectacular.

For dessert, I could not resist the passion fruit soufflé served with a coconut biscuit and fresh fruit salad. At the bottom of the soufflé was another layer of soft biscuit that had been soaked in passion fruit liqueur making the dish quite bold and flavorful.

Not only was the food great, but the price was right. The chef, Fabrice Sébire, is one to watch.

For my second evening in Honfleur, I chose the new two-star restaurant, Sa Qua Na. This stands for santé, qualité, nature (health, quality, nature) but is also a play on the word sakana which means "fish" in Japanese. The youthful staff and the way the meal was presented reminded me of another favorite two-star restaurant in Paris: Le Bigarrade.

I chose the more copious menu and was served a parade of inventive and delicious dishes. Some of the standouts were the Pascade Aveyronnaise which is a sweet/savory pancake filled with chives and napped with truffle oil. It is from the Aveyron, the chef's native region. To continue with some of the high points: un daurade juste cuite, boulette de canard poêlé, romaine, semoule, jus moussé à l'huile d'olive. In other words, a lightly cooked piece of a firm white fish with a small ball of duck meat served with semolina, romaine, and an emulsion of olive oil. There was a wonderful poached salmon with sesame, fennel, clams and an oyster cream; a curly julienne of raw beef, celeri-rave, seaweed served as a pasta dish with a spicy seafood sauce; agneau de pré salé rôti, pâte de coing, jeunes poireaux; jus de persil (roast lamb with quince, young leeks, parsley jus). This winning dish consists of lamb that has been raised in the salt marshes of Brittany so that its meat is naturally salted because of the salty grasses the lambs graze on.

After an excellent assortment of cheeses, desserts continued in the same vein. I especially liked the succulent pear cake with beaten cream and caramel dribbled with walnut oil.

As the menu is long and complex, a nice touch is that they hand you a small printed copy so that you can follow along as you are served and as you taste.

On my last day, I explored Honfleur and also took the bus back to Deauville and Trouville--two beach towns that are separated by a bridge. Deauville is chic and fancy and Trouville is a blue collar town which I find more interesting. I wandered by the port and through the fish market and wished I could buy the shellfish I was admiring. To quench my desire, I sat down at the famous brasserie Les Vapeurs and ordered a sea food plate with langoustines, jumbo shrimp, periwinkles, whelks and clams: wonderful. A specialty is steamed mussels that they serve with whatever you like, but most people choose frites. It is a great place to watch the day go by while you are enjoying your meal.

Italian in New York

Stellar Italian Dining in NYC: Da Umberto, Marea, Motorino, Basta Pasta, Centolire

Coming from France, I don't want to have French food when I travel unless I am travelling in France! During this trip to NY, I reserved or asked friends to reserve in Italian restaurants, as the NY restaurants do extremely well in this department. I also went to Mario Batali and Lydia Bastianich's latest creation: Eataly--an enormous Italian food store which is full of restaurants as well.

My cousins, Larry and Boots took me to Da Umberto and we were pleasantly surprised. We had been there more than 20 years ago when it was full of tables with red-and-white checkered tablecloths and lots of noise. After the owner died, his son had the restaurant redesigned, making a quieter more dignified atmosphere. We had a pleasant evening dining on wonderful food and enjoying the conversation. I had a lovely and delicious pasta dish: cavatelli with wild mushrooms and marscapone, followed by a copious and flavorful fish soup (caciucco) of just-caught fish in a tomato broth. Larry and Boots shared a salad with thinly sliced fresh artichokes and followed this with a baked orata for two. For dessert we shared the wonderful ricotta cheese cake and a terrific tiramisu. With dinner, Larry ordered a 2006 Santa Cristina Chianti Classico Superiore of the Antinori family. Although we were having fish and this is a red wine, it married quite well with the wonderful meal.

A few days later, I went out with my foodie friend/cousin, Jenny, to Marea--a reknowned and much-appreciated restaurant. In fact, I had read a review of the place earlier that morning in which the critic highly recommended throwing pocketbook caution to the wind and going there. True to its reputation, we had a spectacular lunch. Some of the outstanding dishes were granchio: lump jumbo crab with figs, duck prosciutto and white cheese in a salad; a mixture of slow-cooked calamari with lobster and shrimp in a tomato sauce; roasted sea scallops with grilled peach garnished with tomatoes and eggplant; and a wonderful semolina spaghetti tossed in crab and sea urchin. I just love sea urchin when it becomes a sauce on spaghetti. Jenny and I shared everything so that we could taste many of the very appealing dishes. For dessert, we had the rosemary panna cotta with figs, pignoli, and a wine reduction and an array of home-made sorbets. This was truly a memorable meal.

Marea's chef, Michael White, is not Italian but spent many years there and has opened a number of great Italian restaurants in NYC. I can't wait to go to another one the next time I am in NY.

High school friends met me outside of Union Square at Basta Pasta. It is an Italian restaurant owned and operated by Japanese people and is modelled after the original restaurant in Ebisu, Japan. Thank goodness that Mickey was there, as he pointed out that the specialty of the house is a parmigiano reggiano pasta dish with prosciutto. To make it, they take a huge parmigiano wheel and cut it in half, then scoop out the inside of the wheel to make a large cavity. Next, they chip away at the cheese. The warm tagliatelle are then tossed inside the wheel and the warmth of the pasta melts some of the cheese so that it clings to the tagliatelle. The pasta is then served garnished with velvety prosciutto. This is a spectacular dish. There are also other wonderful pasta dishes on the menu, and so as to take advantage of the best of all worlds, I had a 1/2 portion of two. My second pasta dish was Linguine alla Pescatore with clams, mussels, sea scallops, shrimp and squid.

That sounds like enough, but I went on to order a roasted Canadian turbot with clams, parsley, snow peas and crab-infused foam. A magnificent dish. For dessert, we shared a melting dark chocolate cake called the Vulcano,
named after the Greek God.

The restaurant is very popular and noisy but it just started to serve lunch. I don't know if it would be any quieter at that time, but it sure is good!

My dear friend, Freda, took me to Centolire--the Upper West Side haven of Pino Luongo. This chef has owned and operated many successful Italian restaurants in Manhattan. We had a terrific meal, catching up and savoring the excellent cuisine. We shared interesting salads and a brilled branzino for two. I had a small portion of pasta after the salad: Rigatoni Buttera with sweet and hot sausage, peas and cream. I loved it.

Although Freda refrained, I could not resist choosing the tangerine soufflé. It was beautiful and perfectly cooked.

At lunch one day, I went to Eataly which is the new huge bright space for everything Italian including products and restaurants. It is the latest brainchild of Mario Batali and Lidia Bastianich. You can buy anything Italian there (both imported cans and jars of food and fresh food). Inside the space are several restaurant areas including the pizza-pasta area, the roast vegetable area, the panini area and a fresh roasted meat sandwich area. There is also a "real" restaurant hidden away in a corner called Manzo. True to its name, it showcases beef dishes. The gelato and cappuccino bars should not be missed. This is a very large and fun place to go at lunch. Be prepared to wait on line if you want to snag a table.

Before I close, I just want to put in a plug for Motorino in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. The pizza there is definitely spectacular and ties with Two Amys in Washington, D.C. Now that some of my favorite pizzerias in NY have gone by the wayside, I have to say that this one is my favorite and the best. Although it is in Brooklyn, it is an easy subway ride from Union Square on the L train.

Dining in Washington, D.C.

Several Great Restaurants in Washington, D.C.: Nora, Central Michel Richard, Two Amys, Zaytina and Jaleo

I spent ten glorious days in Washington, D.C., dining out with different friends and members of my family. The first evening I was there, I went to Zaytina which is a wonderful mezze bar (Mediterranean appetizers) with my friend, Ann, from college days. Unfortunately it was extremely noisy and hard to converse. That always puts a damper on my experience as you find that you can only appreciate the food and not your companion.

We did have some great "tapas" though: Havuc Koftesi which are wonderful carrot-apricot fritters; Octopus Santorini (marinated grilled octopus), Kotopoulo Youvetsi (a chicken, orzo, cheese and tomato dish), and a delicious dish of veal cheeks with preserved lemon. The food was fine but I would recommend this restaurant at lunch or with a very loud talker!

The same chef has a Spanish tapas restaurant on the other side of town called Jaleo. I had the traditional ajo blanco (chilled garlic-almond soup) this time it was garnished with fresh crab, a tortilla with potatoes and onions, and sautéed gambas (jumbo shrimp) in garlic. This was a delicious and very filling lunch.

My brother, David, took me and his companion, Kapri, to Nora. This restaurant is known for the fact that it uses organic, seasonal ingredients in its dishes. I started with a roasted chanterelle and creamy goat cheese tart which was garnished with a red pepper emulsion: sublime. Kapri had a red and gold beet salad which had feta cheese, orange and grapefruit segments, bitter greens and a pomegranate dressing. That was great too and very inventive. David also chose a salad. This one contained local baby lettuces, Medjool dates, almonds, gorgonzola, and a honey vinaigrette. The dinner was off to a running start.

As I adore corn and can really only get it in the USA, I had the salmon garnished with corn, herb pesto, and an oven dried tomato pea-tendril and radish salad. Kapri chose the wild Alaskan halibut with pepper piperade, heirloom tomatoes, green beans and roasted eggplant. David went for the succulent gnocchi with broccoli rabe and a variety of wild mushrooms swathed in a rosemary-almond pesto.

We shared a caramelized pear with Amaretto, served with a chocolate ganache and also the luscious pineapple upside down cake. With our dinner, we had a lovely South African chardonnay.

Another great place is Central Michel Richard. M. Richard is French and moved to D.C. from LA many years ago. He has a number of restaurants in the city, and this the newest edition to his "empire". It is billed as a place for wonderfully prepared comfort food. I went to Central with my cousins, Ben and Becca and we had a terrific time. Becca ordered a salad frisée with lardons and a poached egg followed by a beautiful scallop dish garnished with corn and wild mushrooms. She was not happy with her scallops. I had a flavorful yellow tomato gaspacho with lump crab meat and then enjoyed the short ribs with pappardelle and syrah sauce. Ben chose creamy burrata (a mozzarella) with tomatoes. For his main course, he chose the bucatini with meatballs. That was a true winner and definitely fits into the gourmet comfort food category. Desserts were the weakest course: Michel's chocolate bar (like a kit kat bar); apple pan dowdy with vanilla ice cream; chocolate lava cake à la mode. They were all too sweet and mediocre.

Saving the VERY BEST for last, I happily went to Two Amys twice: once alone, just for pizza, and once with my good friend, Howard. According to me and to other friends who have been there, Two Amys serves some of the best pizza in the states, perhaps in the world (!) and is matched by a favorite place of mine in NYC. Just by looking at the photo, you can see how luscious and beautiful the pizza is. At dinner time, TA serves a variety of Italian appetizers. We had suppli al telephono: rice balls filled with meat and cheese and then lightly fried golden; a beautiful and tasty shrimp and beet salad; sheep ricotta and heirloom tomato plate and pizza!! Unfortunately no room for dessert. The pizzas have thin crusts just thick enough to be chewy. For me the flavor of the tomato sauce (excellent) and a chewy crust are primordial. This is truly a wonderful place.

Le Bar à Huitres

My brother David surprised me with a morning call saying he was coming to Paris on business with a colleague. We decided meet for dinner and left it to me to find a fish restaurant near his hotel. I chose Le Bar à Huitres where I always buy oysters when I have guests.

When we hopped out of the cab in front of the restaurant, David's friend, Jon, could not hide his enthusiasm. He decided then and there that I had chosen the best restaurant for us. I reserved judgment until we actually ate the meal.

The restaurant has its own menu of Plateau de Fruits de Mer--assorted oysters and seafood on a dramatically presented platter, but I decided that we should choose for ourselves. The two men deferred to me, and I told the waiter that I would be ordering for the table. For our starter, we had three sorts of oysters: the flat belons which are redolent of the sea, the succulent speciales, which are my favorite as they are the most meaty, and the delicate fine de claires which have a green hue from the seaweed that grows among them. We also ordered a portion of wonderful pink prawns.

After that, we chose our main course and each came with its choice of garnish. Jon and I shared that magnificent fish, turbot which was simply grilled. With that we had sautéed potatoes and piperade--a Basque assortment of peppers of various colors enhanced with a bit of Espelette hot pepper. With David's wonderful lotte à la provençale came lovely French haricots verts.

Since fish is relatively light, we felt like sharing some of the tempting offerings on the dessert menu. For the table, we ordered a melting chocolate cake with dark chocolate ice cream and a wonderful sablé (buttery pastry) with fresh raspberries, whipped cream and spun sugar.

After the dinner, I could agree with Jon and say that I had chosen a great place.

Bigarrade

A spectacular gastronomic discovery of a new two-star restaurant.

My friend, Carol, came to visit me for five days from Boston. Although we have been friends since the age of 3-4, we crossed several hiatuses of not being in touch during our lives and this time, had not seen each other for 20 years. So it was a great reunion.

I had heard of a new restaurant, Bigarrade, that had received two Michelin stars in just two years. Of course, I wanted to go there and called as soon as I read about it. I had to ask them when they had free tables as there are only 20 seats in this jewel-box of a space. Luckily, one of the available dates fell when Carol was here.

The restaurant is very attractive and the staff casual and friendly. The tables are nicely spaced and one can view the activities in the kitchen, as it is in the same room. There is no menu but they do ask if there are things that you don't eat. Of course, I had called ahead about the cilantro issue.

One's only choice is between the 45 euro and the 65 euro menu--a bargain for a restaurant of this caliber. We chose the smaller menu for our lunch. I started the meal with a coupe de champagne from a small producer: Fleury Blanc de Blanc 2004. After a fresh fried anchovy amuse-bouche, we were served our first course. It knocked our socks off--simply a fried softshell crab. The French do not know about this species of shellfish and the man at the table next to us had never seen one. It was crunchy and delectable: to be eaten with your fingers.

After that came a parade of fish and seafood dishes prepared in very creative and delicious ways: squid with porcini mushrooms, green tomato and onion flowers; a succulent piece of rouget with black radish, red onion and seaweed; cabillaud (cod) with bacon attached to its topside, red Japanese shizo leaf and lime-infused oil. This was garnished with grilled spinach and salmon eggs.

With our meal, we opted for wines by the glass so that we both could choose. I had a lovely Anjou and later, a glass of Riesling which had a deep golden hue. Carol chose a Chenin Blanc.

After all the fish courses came a lovely plate of cheese: conté, fromage de chèvre with an orange confit and cumin seeds. This was wonderful.

Then came a trilogy of excellent desserts. Outstanding was the lemon cream with cauliflower. The cauliflower has a very mild taste and just adds some crunchiness to the dish. There was a small cup of pear juice with a peanut and mint in the cup; fabulous hazelnut ice cream garnished with tiny bits of sweet beet, raisins, caramelized hazelnut, and orange zests. Finally, they brought the ganache au chocolat with a small brownie garnished with a fresh raspberry and fromage blanc. I am not a fan of ultra-creative strange desserts but all of these played up the individual flavors of each part of the dish and were thoroughly enjoyable.

The restaurant is in a small space in the 17th arrondissement near metro Brochant. That is to say, it is not in the center of town. But like most Michelin 2-star restaurants, it is definitely worth the trip.