Restaurant Chez Miocque in Deauville, France

It would be remiss of me not to write about another highlight of last week's trip to Deauville which was dinner at Brasserie-Restaurant Chez Miocque. I can't pronounce the name very easily, but I can easily recommend going there. Without a doubt.

Before I go any further, let me apologize upfront for not having a single picture to share. (Bad blogger!). I was totally engrossed in the evening itself, and the one and only picture I took turned out ridiculously blurry. I'll blame it on the after dinner Calvados! And on all the laughing going on that night!

We went there for lunch last year and it was very good. Had to go back, but especially so when our friend Ulla relayed her story from the night before. She arrived one day earlier than we did, and befriended the owner Jacques that night. So when we arrived on Monday night around 9:30pm for dinner, Jacques greeted Ulla and therefore us, like family. Already acquainted with Ulla, Jacques turned his attention to Robbin & I & asked where we were from. To my response "Chicago", he said, "Very, very cold". I totally agreed, but had to add, "yes, but warm hearts!". He surprised me by giving me a high five! That made me laugh. Our night was off to a fun start!

Let me try to describe this character Jacques. (He seems like a character to me. From a book or movie. A real interesting sort.) Yes, his name is tres, tres francais. His accent is adorable and he is fluent in english. Here's a man that enjoys life. Or so it seems to me. He smiles naturally & gracefully. I'm not sure his age, but it's bound to be in the retirement bracket. He's been in this business forever, and will forever be. The inside of the place is lined with photographs that date back decades. He's in every single one of them, accompanied by the rich & famous. I'll bet he's friends with each & every one of them, too. I can imagine how the place must be abuzz during the Deauville film festival. It's mostly such a crowd that fills the photos on the walls.

The food there is classic french fare. It's the kind of thing I love, especially when somebody else prepares it well! I could not resist an escalope of veal in a mushroom cream sauce, along with the garlicky sautéed potatoes. The red wine we had was very good, even if I can't remember the name. We had eaten & drank well, but I was really dying to try the tarte tatin. I noticed the women next to us enjoying a piece with a scoop of ice cream, and I imagined that a brasserie-restaurant like Chez Miocque must have a great rendition. There are tarte tatins....and then there are tarte tatins. This fell into the latter category. The three of us shared a piece. We ordered cream with ours. Ulla jokingly suggested to the waiter that the three of us really liked cream & please bring a big bowl. I thought we might get whipped cream, but what arrived was a big bowl of creme fraiche epaisse! It's kind of like a sour cream. Robbin, Ulla & I dug our spoons into the cream even before the apple pie! OMG - we were in cream heaven. This is where the best cream is produced (in the world, if you ask me!). That apple tart had been nicely caramelized as it should be & the underneath pie crust had been light & fluffy & crispy, just like I like it. Our waiter came by to check on us, by now it was getting past 11pm. We raved about it & said we had to sample a 2nd piece. None of us were hungry really, but we did need another bite so that we could taste more of that cream! (Kidding, the apple pie tasted so good that we felt like we "needed" to share just one more piece.) Our waiter said to us in all seriousness, "In this region the way we do it, is we pour the cream on top & let it slide into all the nooks & crannies". (I'm paraphrasing here, but this was the jist of it). And that's exactly what we did. Instead of each of us putting a spoon of cream on our plates & tasting a little pie with a little cream, we slathered it on. Completely. And then dug in. Those guys sure know how to eat a tarte tatin!! It was mighty fine. I'm still thinking about it to this day...

Our waiter couldn't believe we ate the entire "saucier" (gravy boat) full of cream. We then realized that they brought us an over sized bowl of cream, thinking we couldn't possibly eat it all. We sure showed them, didn't we, girls?! Oh la la....we really just couldn't help ourselves.

If that wasn't enough, Jacques, with his entourage around him in the enclosed terrasse seating area, signaled something to the waiter. The waiter quickly arrived at our table with 3 generous snifters of Calvados. We raised our glasses to Jacques & gave an "air toast" to him in his direction, which he reciprocated in kind. We were silly with elation. Having eaten well, laughed a lot, and now feeling the affects of the Calvados starting to arrive, we finally had to call it a night. We were the last customers inside. Jacques & his clan were still out on the terrasse. We talked with them a bit more, and finally said good bye. That's when we realized it had started to rain. Again, Jacques gave a secret signal code to the server guy, and seconds later, he arrived with 3 generous & extremely sturdy umbrellas. We were touched by his thoughtfulness, and offered to come back the next day to return his umbrellas. He said, "No, they are for you to keep". That Jacques sure has a generous heart. And that's how come the food at his restaurant tastes so generous too, in my opinion. This is the kind of place that could become a habit. A Deauville ritual. Jacques, if you are reading this, merci mille fois! You're the best!

Address:

Chez Miocque
81, rue E. Colas
14800 Deauville
02.31.88.09.52

:/dma

OFF4 - Ominivore Festival 2009 Deauville

This week I attended something called OFF4 2009 - Omnivore Food Festival that was held in the Normandy coastal town of Deauville. It's a relatively young event - it just had its 4th year. Deauville is an easy two hours by train from Paris and is better known for its annual American Film festival in September. However, I suspect that OFF will put Deauville on the map for another reason!

I love the Omnivore Food Festival. I think it's a great event. It's attended by professionals in the industry - chefs, cooks, vineyard owners, restaurant owners and the like - but it's also open to the public. The two-day schedule was filled with highly talented and creative chefs (young and old) who shared their savoir-faire (know how) and philosophies. The music was modern, the vibe was good and the stage was well-equipped with a mega-projection screen suspended in the air, allowing everyone to have a good view, even back row seats.

In each 35 minute segment (approximately), these guys (yes, all were guys...) either gave an actual demo (anywhere from 1 - 7 dishes) while being interviewed (not easy!) -- or -- they participated in a "one-on-one" talk, seated at the couch area over a cup of coffee (called Café Confidences by the festival).

Demo with Chef Laurent Chareau

Café Confidences, with Pierre Hermé

I appreciated the caliber of the demos. The chefs assume you already know the basics. My head got a little overloaded, however, just a couple of times, and not because it was mostly in French. The logic occasionally slipped into lapses of complexity when the more avant-guarde chefs explained their subject. I should say tried to explain. It actually became amusing in all its complexity, where, at some point, the explanations went around in circles, out there and back again, still not fully understood....finally, the interviewer, equally perplexed at times, reached out to the audience for help to understand some of the more obscure ingredients or ideas being used!

And I was at a momentary loss when occasional terms were used very casually, such as "yuba", "umami" and "methyl cell" (that's New York speak for "methyl cellulose", you know, because...well, it just is). These moments were rare however, and the caliber of what was shared was consistently high and extremely professional. I enjoyed the Café Confidences for different reasons. They were simple and straightforward: questions were asked; responses were given. The dialogue was all highly personal, anecdotal and refreshingly honesty. No recipes given here, but better than that, we gained an understanding of someone's philosophy and integrity.

I attended the festival one day last year with Ecole Ferrandi (as part of the Sup 2nd year class). Everyone was impressed. In fact, throughout the rest of the school year, we tried to recreate some of the ideas we had seen that day. This year we also came home equally inspired to try to recreate and reinterpret. I'd say this is definitely a sign of a good event.

The first guest was Pierre Hermé (of my macaron addiction), and it continued with others such as Alexandre Bourdas, Laurent Chareau, Bertrand Grebaut, Emmanuel Renaut, Jacques et Laurent Pourcel, Mads Reflund, Franck Cerutti, Peter Nilsson, Jaques Marcon (son of Regis), several Italians, one chef from New York (David Chang), and chefs from Denmark and Spain - including Adrian Ferra, last but not least. Here are a few highlights:

Pierre Hermé, Paris

Asparagus, egg, parmesan - Bertrand Grebaut

Chef Bertrand Grebaut - Agapè, Paris 75017

Salad Caprèse - Stephano Baiocco (Italy)

Brandade de Morue, PDT Vitelotte (Cod and Purple Potato)- Riccardo Camanini (Italy)

Eel, seared foie gras & mango - Katsumi Ishida (Lyon)

Explanation of how dish was created - Jordi Butron (Spain)

Ferran Adria - el Bulli (Spain)

The MC - who did an oustanding job! (Don't know his name though)

The take-aways for me were:

1. Figure out what inspires you - it's where you can draw creativity. The Scandanavian chefs highlighted this point with the greatest flare and enthusiasm. They are absolutely crazy about nature - the changing of the seasons, the first fish eggs of spring, the first onion greens pushing their way through the spring snow, feeling the water on your face at the beach, walking in the forest....these are things that have inspired their plates.
   
2. Stay open-minded. Always. Even if the idea sounds strange initially, or avant-guarde (examples: eel and foie gras with mango, or "dirt dessert"...it's not really dirt, it just looks like dirt since it represents the forest! Refer to #1 above...well, maybe you "had to be there" for that one, and unfortunately,no photos to help explain!).
   
3. Food artistry = a combination of perfectly executed technique + elevated artistic presentations.
   
4. Don't be afraid to think outside the box. Strange ideas or concepts can lead to "creativity". We saw some pretty amazing creations.
5. You won't suit everyone's taste, so don't even try. Do your own thing. I saw several chefs who seemed to embody this notion. They have launched new horizons by doing their own thing. And they have done it quite successfully, too, according to their own definition of success (ie, not necessarily financial).
   
6. Simplicity on the plate - people want to see & understand what they're eating (even in the molecular food world). Modern. Clean. Simple.
   
7. Push the limits of comfort zone, but bring us back to something familiar.
8. New ideas come from questioning everything without prejudice. No assumptions; no presumptions; no thoughts about why something can't work...a child's approach to seeing the world can perhaps lead to more creativity than a rational-minded approach!
   

Donc, voilà. These are my interpretations of the event. None are necessarily revolutionary, per se. Haven't we heard some of these thoughts before? (ie, "think outside the box"....stay "young at heart"....etc, etc). It still serves a purpose to me, however, and that is to refresh my memory - something I need from time to time. Looking forward to OFF5 2010, announced to be held again in Deauville. Bravo.

P.S. Wondering what Omnivore means? Click here to see if you were right!
P.P.S. There's also a wine expo at OFF, but I didn't have time to check it out...too bad.
For more information about OFF, see their website (in french): Omnivore
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Beau Biarritz and Restaurant Chez Albert

The forecast last Saturday for the Pyrenées mountains was cloudy and overcast, so that made our decision on what to do that day easy: head for the sun...head for the coast, to beau (beautiful) Biarritz. A short one hour 15 minute ride by car from Pau, Biarritz is a beautiful coastal resort town and summer get-away destination for many. It's so close to Spain that you can even see the Spanish Pyrenées! Our day's plan was simple: go to Biarritz, eat lunch, take une promenade (walk) to help digest lunch you know, and that's about it! Très relaxing.


I highly recommend the restaurant Chez Albert, located at Port de Pecheurs. When sitting on the terrace, you have a view on the Atlantic Ocean, although admittedly, you need to look through the parking lot first. No matter, that doesn't detract from the restaurant's charm, which is to say its fresh, fresh seafood. Here's what we had during our 2+ hour lunch:

Entrées (1st Course)


Left - Huitres (oysters) Top Right - Moules de bouchot (steamed mussels); Bottom Right - Tartare de thon ceviche (tuna tartare)


All was very good, but by far, the best were the oysters. I'm kind of a novice when it comes to fresh oysters, growing up in the mid-west and all, where beef is king, and fresh fish and shellfish are not always easily available. In fact, I was almost a little squeamish the first time I tried to open an oyster and then taste it at Ecole Ferrandi here in Paris. But I have to admit that I've grown to really appreciate them & like them. In France, they have a strict protocol of traceability at all steps in the "supply chain", to use a term from my old business days...from the ostréiculteur (oyster farm producer) to any/all intermediaries...to the end seller...to the customer. There are never any guarantees, but it does provide a good assurance as to quality & freshness. Something like this probably exists in the US...I don't know since I wasn't in this line of work when we lived there! Anyway, the next time we go to Chez Albert, I'll be ordering a big platter of oysters (Marene-Oléron #3)!

Plat (Main Course) - It's the same story here. All were very good. One was exceptionally good. The Saint Pierre (John Dory). It was out-of-this-world good. Cooking a fish whole certainly has something to do with it, which required that two people order it. Find someone who wants to order this because you will really love it!



Top: Saint Pierre (John Dory), whole, cooked in a croute de sel (salt crust) on the grill. Fileted at tableside Left below: Seared giant scallops, with jambon de bayonne, slices of boudin noir et sauce beurre blanc Right below: Tronçons de turbot grillée (grilled Turbot), aspèrges blanc (white asparagus) with poppy seeds, piquillos (red peppers) and sweet potato chips













Dessert: Sorry no pictures. In fact, I didn't order dessert but I tried a bite of Raymonde's gâteau basque made at the restaurant (called Pastiza basque tiede). This is a regional specialty and really should not be missed, no matter how full you feel!

For our promenade, we walked up and down the coast - past the casino, near the Hôtel du Palais (with 1 michelin-star restaurant La Rotonde), and back down the coast toward the Rocher de la Vierge (Statue of Madonna on a rock). We watched the many surfers there that day, observed the waves crashing dramatically against the enormous stones seemingly perched in the ocean at low tide, and saw many locals sitting on various benches lining the beach and park areas. Some were reading alone, some were simply gabbing in the sun with a friend (with noticeably bronzed skin), and others were enjoying an ice cream or looking at nice sand sculptures. Here are a few pictures of our walk. I can see why Cathleen and her family go to Biarritz every summer for the month of August! It sure is tempting...but back to reality, it's worth going, even if just for the day!



L'Addresse:

Restaurant Chez Albert
Port des Pecheurs
64200 Biarritz

Télé: 05 59 24 43 84

Panoramic Pau

Five hours on the TGV, we found ourselves in a compartment full of Sisters and their teen-age apprentis (apprentices) headed to Lourdes no doubt. The trip was quite pleasant, really. And much better than a 10 hour car ride. Plus, we were "blessed" with some gregorian chant practice along the way which helped nod me off to sleep, I must admit!

We arrived just in time for lunch and we headed straight over to our favorite restaurant in Pau, Au Fin Gourmet. It's conveniently located just across the street from Gare de Pau (Pau train station). Unfortunately, I was too taken in by the moment to think about taking any pictures of what we ate! The meal was superb and I can at least describe it to you:

Entrée (1st course) - langoustines (tails of small-lobster) in a farce fine (fine cream-based fish stuffing) which was enrobed by a layer of spagetti, and served with a lobster sauce. The spaghettis were pre-cooked and individually "glued" together to hold the form and to hold the prized langoustine inside....amazing.
Plat (main course) - bonite avec qq (tuna with I don't remember what)! Very good anyway.
Dessert - A roasted, caramalized white peach encovered with phylo dough sitting on a bed of riz de lait (rice pudding), with a caramel sauce. Outstanding. I'm not usually a riz de lait gal, except when it comes to passing the CAP exam (!!), but this one was de-li-cous!

After lunch, we talked with frères Ithurriague, owners of the Au Fin Gourmet restaurant (brothers Christian - front service; Patrick - Patisserie; Laurent - chef de cuisine). They are the ones who catered our wedding. They are also the ones who allowed me to come into their kitchen for a 1-week stage (student work) nearly two years ago when I was just starting my culinary classes at Ecole Ferrandi. That had been the first time I worked in a professional kitchen. It was an amazing experience for me and I'll always be appreciative of their generosity & encouragement.

Then we had an equally amazing dinner at home chez LaSalle. We repeated this pattern every day we were there! Eating well is very important in France. Actually, eating is just the excuse to spend quality time with good people!

What does Pau mean to me?

Panoramic views of the Pyrenées, inviting, warm, palm trees. Sunshine. Relaxing. Fresh air. Above all else, it's the most hospitable place I have ever visited in France. It's where we go once a year. It's where Jean et Raymonde live. Which explains the hospitality part.




L'Addresse:
Restaurant Au Fin Gourmet
24, avenue Gaston Lacoste
64000 Pau
Tél. 05 59 27 47 71

Hi ho hi ho, it's off to Pau we go!

I wanted to let you know that "Snow White" and "Happy" are off to Pau for a long weekend. Up at the crack of dawn to catch the TGV (high speed train) to Pau, we get ourselves to Gare Montparnasse by metro. The only thing to worry about is passing our luggage through the turnstyle system that reads our metro ticket, and navigating the multitude of staircases, with luggage in hand. A good reason to travel light!

Pau is a place dear to our hearts. It's where "Happy" and I were married six years ago, long before we ever imagined we'd actually be living in France! Will write more when we get back.

Meanwhile, who can list all seven dwarfs off the top of their head? Me, I can come up with up with six....someone, please help!
:)

Day trip from Paris to Champagne Region

If you like early fall, Saturday was your day. The temperature was crisp in the morning yet mild in the afternoon, the fall colors were starting to appear, and the sun was poking its head out from time to time. It was a perfect day for a get-away to the Champagne region of France.

We headed to a village called Epernay. It takes less than 2 hours to get there if you go directly. However, we took La Route Touristique du Champagne, a scenic drive through the region, with winding roads and magnificent views of vineyard patches and small villages lining the Marne River. About 3 1/2 hours later, we reached Epernay just in time for lunch.

But where to go? We had no hard rules except to steer clear of brasseries receiving bus loads of tourists. We ended up finding a small 40-seat restaurant in the square next to the church, a charming place called La Table Kobus. We would gladly go back. The serious young waiter was especially knowledgeable about all things regional. In fact, this rather surprised us and entertained us. He gave us a map (who needs GPS?!) & explained how to get to Hautvillers, our next stop. He also answered our question about why we were still seeing some grapes on the vine when the harvest must have already happened last month. Yes, "the vendage (wine harvesting) is certainly past, and the grapes are harvested 100 days after the first flowers blossom on the vine. Therefore, those that are remaining had late-blooming flowers and cannot be used." OK, then. Good to know. And lucky for the birds, Eric said.

When we asked where Dom Pérignon was buried, wasn't it next to a monastery? "Non, not at all. It is an Abby, not a monastery. And he was buried in a church." He continued, "But the monastery is not open to the public unless you have", and at this point he showed us the palms of his hands, before adding "pattes blanches". Surely this must be an idiom because the literal translation just wasn't working! Literally, "pattes blanches" means white paws or legs (like a cat, dog or chicken). Eric explained it means that you are acceptable because your "paws", or hands, have never been dirtied before. In this context, it must surely be related to holiness (as in getting into heaven's gates), n'est ce pas?

Could our lunch have really taken two hours? Yes! And we enjoyed every leisurely second of it. We then drove a short distance to Hautevillers. I had previously been there with the Ecole Ferrandi class, and from that brief visit, I knew it was a place I wanted to see again. It's quaint and charming. It's quiet, even on a Saturday with tourists here and there. It is a town of rustic elegance that only the french paysage (countryside) can offer you.

We visited the church & Abby where Dom Pérignon first discovered how to make a fizzy wine back in the 17th century. Little did he know then how much fuss we'd be making today over his discovery! And he never could have imagined how famous his name could become centuries later!

All in all, we spent an hour in Hautevillers just wandering around & exploring. We walked by the vineyards of Moet et Chandon, and found this staircase. I like this picture because it's almost an optical illusion. Which way are the stairs going? Up or down? We took these stairs - it's a hilly area - and they lead us to a path around the Abby, to a park, with a beautiful view on the valley. That's the spot where I took this video. From my previous post, we all know I'm video-challenged....but I'll keep working on it, I promise!


There's one last thing worth noticing if you go to Hautevillers. Several homes have painted metal decorations hanging on their outside walls depicting a craft of some sort, presumably that of the owner. Take a look at a few, aren't they cute? In Richmond (Virginia, that is), it was flags. Here, it's metal plates!



Finally, it was time to head home. On our way, we stopped at a champagne house to do a tasting with hopes of finding a good bottle at a decent price. We didn't find either, but that's OK. We'll be back to the champagne region, and meanwhile, there's plenty of bubbly to be found in this city!



Address:
La Table Kobus
3, rue du Docteur Rousseau
51200 Epernay
Tele: 03 26 51 53 53