EatWellsLiveWells

October 10, 2008

I went to Back 40 a few days ago with my son. We were promptly seated in the outdoor garden which, compared to other ones, was pretty comfortable. We had risotto balls with beets and blue cheese (not a favorite of my son), the special fennel salad with pumpkin, grass-fed burger with sea salt and rosemary fries and a 1/2 of chicken cooked in their French-made rotisserie (left/sold by the previous restaurant) . If I judged the meal based on how much or how fast my son ate his hamburger, it was a huge success.  He finished the whole thing in record time. Despite the food and excellent service, it was a bit pricey for Avenue B in the East Village. But we’ll probably go back (40) again anyway.

October 2008

Last weekend we celebrated my birthday by EatingWells and LivingWells. On the way back from my son’s soccer game in Brooklyn (he won), we were diverted by heavy traffic on the BQE to just under the Brooklyn Bridge. We took the opportunity to have a quick pizza at Grimaldi’s Pizzeria on Old Fulton Street. We shared a large plain pie- just some sauce, basil, olive oil and fresh mozzarella cooked in a coal brick oven until the crust blistered and the bottom has just a touch of black. We enjoyed it lot. We then headed around the corner for some of Jacques Torres Chocolate. We shared apiece of dark chocolate bark with some espresso (my son tasted Torres’s famous hot chocolate). That night, we went to Le Perigord, one the few remaining classic French restaurants. We started with two glasses of Lillet and a Shirley Temple for our apperetif. Next my wife and I ordered the cold buffet and my son chose the escargot. For the plats principaux, we had halibut, bass and a filet of beef. Finally, for dessert, we had a chocolate souffle, chocolate mouse and apple tarte tatin. It was a lot of food and a lot fun and I can’t think of a better way to celebrate my birthday.

September 20, 2008

We went to Perbacco last Saturday for dinner. Frank Bruni in The New York Times gave it two stars a few weeks ago so we decided to give it a try. Well, we were not impressed. First of all, what is it with stools? Have restaurant designers ever sat on one and had a meal? Perbacco is small, crowded and very noisy and the food was simply not that good. Certainly didn’t live it up to the hype. For appetizers, we shared grilled zucchini and ricotta cheese , a special rolled bresaola and a green salad with walnuts and honey. The others were OK but the zucchini was iced cold. We mentioned it to two servers who just said “sorry about that”.

September 10, 2008
I managed to have one more nice lunch in Paris before returning home and went directly to Christian Constant’s Café Constant; just a few doors down from Les Cocottes on rue Saint-Dominique.

Since I didn’t have a lot of time, I quickly decided on the 23 euro menu of the day. The first course was 3 grilled langoustines with a simple green salad. Next, was a plate of roasted organic chicken with a few roasted potatoes. Simple, but well done (taste that is, not the chicken). Finally, for dessert I had fresh raspberries with cream, almonds and mint.

It was a great ending to a few days in Paris.

September 8, 2008
Les Cocottes, 135 rue Saint-Dominique
This is one of four restaurants by Chef Christian Constant. They are all along one block of rue Saint-Dominique, very close to La Tour Eiffel. After working at The Ritz, Paris, Constant became Executive Chef at The Hotel Crillon’s 2-star Michelin restaurant, Les Ambassadeurs. After 8 years at the Crillon he decided to open his own restaurant, Violon d’Ingres, just a few doors down from Les Cocottes.
I had the ‘salade roquette’ (arugula with bacon and poached egg)’ the ‘cocotte du jour’ (cocotte is a casserole) and ‘fromage basque’ served with black cherry confit. I thoroughly enjoyed these dishes with a carafe of Chablis and one of Cairanne rouge (AOC Côtes du Rhône Villages)

I really enjoyed this bistro. The food and service were both excellent and the price was very reasonable considering the quality.

At Restaurant Brindille in the 16th arrondissement near the Parc des Princes, we had fresh anchovies, poached eggs with mushroom sauce, salmon, and brandade ( a purée of salt cod, olive oil, and milk, and is a specialty of the city of Nîmes in the Languedoc region in the south of France. ) We had this delicious meal in less than an hour in a very small, former café turned restaurant with an open kitchen.

Yves Camdeborde’s Le Comptoir off the Boulevard Saint-Germain in the 6eme Arrondisement is packed every night. People actually wait in line (on line for New Yorkers) for a table which is something I have never seen before in Paris. I arrived early on a Sunday evening and was lucky enough to get a table outside just as the line was starting to form. I ordered a ‘planche cochonaille’ (which is a small cutting board with assorted chacuterrie) followed by a ‘salade de poulpe’ (octopus salad). I enjoyed these very much a with a ‘pot’ of Saumur rouge. Finally for dessert I ordered the caramel ice cream with sea salt. The rich, deep color fooled me into thinking I would taste the sweet cream first. Instead, it was the salt and then the caramel. That was unexpected but delicious just the same.

I had been staying in the 7eme arrondissement for quite a while but it wasn’t until I visited again with my two brothers that I discovered Boulangerie Poujauran on rue Jean-Nicot. Even though Jean-Luc Poujauran sold his bakery to pâtisserie Stéphane Secco a few years ago, it is absolutely worth a visit for great breads and pâtisserie. I usually buy one or two small sandwiches made on fresh-out-the-oven, very chewy baguette to bring on the plane to help cushion the blow of airline cuisine. My brother also loves the canelé, a specialty of the Bordeaux region with a soft and tender custard center and a dark, thick caramelized crust. He thinks it tastes like bees wax. I guess its when the Baker meets the Candlestick maker.

After five days in Perignan, I returned to Paris on Sunday September 7. My first stop was Café Roussillon on rue de Grenelle for Salmon Tartare. It was good but too much dill for my taste.

September 6, 2008
Restaurant al Tres

You can find a really great restaurant along the very narrow rue de la Poissonnerie in Perpignan. We had Coquilles St. Jacques, Lamb encrusted with Pistachio and fresh goat cheese with green salad. I would enthusiastically recommend this restaurant!