Benoit

The other night I was waiting for Jay at Adour, Alain Ducasse’s new restaurant at the St Regis. Since it was Jay I was meeting, I wasn’t too surprised to see him saunter in with the great Ducasse himself who naturally wanted to be on hand for a glass of champagne with the great McInerney. The occasion of our dinner was to celebrate Jay’s getting a private wine locker at Adour. So cool, so Jay! We chatted for a bit and it turned out that M. Ducasse was in town for a few days to open another version of Benoit, the Paris restaurant I loved and wrote about last fall. Was I the last to know? Yes, indeed I was. Ah, Benoit! The food, the room, the service, perfect French. And when a French restaurant is perfect, it is genius.


So Alain has brought Benoit to the space previously occupied by La Cote Basque and may open more Benoits in other cities. I got so distracted by the prospects of several baby Benoits that I will have to blog Adour later. Anyway, I need to go again before I can write about it with confidence.


If you know anything about Alain, you know he is obsessed with collecting and shopping. Apparently he bought an Offcinie, a 19th century apothecary that specialized in herbal therapy in Bordeaux and has had it transported to New York and installed upstairs in Benoit as a private dining room. He invited me to take a tour of the new place the next day.

Naturally I went and while we were walking around several people came in to say how happy they were to have something open up in the old La Cote Basque space. So am I. La Cote Basque was one of those restaurants that felt like an essential institution I couldn’t afford to go to but whenever I had the chance to be taken I loved it. The paintings on the wall, the banquets, all so grand. It’s true that the patina wore off and the food went down, but I have only the fondest memories of it in its day.


One of things that caught my eye at the new Benoit were the decanters at the bar. I loved their shape. When I asked about them Alain told me that he’d bought out the complete stock of a German glass factory that made decanters for perfume. Beautiful.
I was telling Alain how much I loved the Savarin at Benoit in Paris, ( similar to a baba au rhum dessert but made in one mold, not individual molds like a baba ). In fact it became an obsession of mine, and I read every recipe I could get my hands on, bought the mold and have been making them ever since. Alain said the two desserts I had to try at Benoit in NY were the Baba Rhum and the Mille-Feuille which he said is perhaps the best he has ever tasted. With a recommendation like that, you bet I will.

They are serving breakfast, lunch and dinner every day. I’m going to give them a few weeks or so before I go to eat there, but I can tell you if the food is as good as Paris I will be a regular, and that is saying a lot for someone who lives downtown.
Benoit
60 West 55th street
New York City, NY 10019
646.943.7373
www.benoitny.com

Benoit

I’ve been hearing about Benoit for years but somehow I’ve never visited this classic, and very expensive, Paris bistro. Recently I had the chance to go and I was enchanted.


The restaurant dates back to 1912 and is located near the Hotel De Ville. Recently it has been taken over by the Alain Ducasse group and Thierry de la Brosse. According to my knowledgeable friend Cedric Reversade, they have not changed much in the classic bistro fare though they have added some flourishes of their own. When I say French I mean really, really French: pate en croute, langue de veau Lucullus, filet de sole Nantua, and tete de veau traditionnelle with sauce ravigote. In short, the works. I’m an adventurous eater except when it comes to organ meat so I gave the tongue and the tete a wide berth.


A superb plate of warm, melting gougeres arrived after we sat down. I started with the salade langouste puce which was wonderful. The langoustine was perfectly cooked and served room temperature over bibb lettuce, girolles, (tiny chanterelles) and haricot verte. Cedric and Monique ordered the langue de veau Lucullus--thin layers of tongue and foie gras. It was served with leaves of romaine lettuce that were brushed with a creamy mustard vinaigrette which I did taste and loved.


For my entrée I ordered the pave de saumon sauvage roti with chanterelles, jus acidulé aux herbs. The grilled wild salmon was incredible--perfectly cooked, medium in the center, and served on the most earthy girolles I’ve ever tasted. The slightly acidic sauce brought out everything brilliantly and provided a nice balance to the fattiness of the fish.


So far so good. I was going to pass on dessert but Cedric insisted that I order the Savarin au Rhum (rum baba baked in a mold) and I submitted enthusiastically. They served the savarin along with crème fouetté, (slightly whipped cream with vanilla sugar) with two bottles of rum to choose from which are then poured over the savarin. Baba rhum is one of the trademarks of Alain Ducasse. After one bite I knew I was in love with the restaurant


As soon as I get home I’m pulling out my French cookbooks to make the Savarin among other dishes inspired by this evening. It’s so wonderful that the classic cuisine of France has been reinvigorated by Benoit.

Benoit
20, rue Saint-Martin
75004 Paris
01.42.72.25.76

Ferry Plaza Farmers Market

Not many things could tempt me to leave New York, but the Ferry Plaza Farmers’ Market in San Francisco is one of them. Every time I visit it I’m blown away all over again.

The farmers’ market is set up outside the Ferry Building which also houses some excellent shops and restaurants that are open all week. A few of my favorites include: Hog Island Farms Restaurant, The Slanted Door; the esoteric Boulettes larder; and Michael Recchuti chocolates. Though the farmers market is open 4-5 days a week, Saturday mornings are by far my favorite time to go.




Here are some of the ingredients I bought recently and can’t wait to try: Pimientos de Padron from Happy Quail Farms; Puntarelle from Star Route Farms ( a bitter green you use for salads); Homemade yogurt from Sant Benoit; and June Taylor’s Tomato Ketchup. The market was also full of meyer lemons, early season persimmons, figs, and every variety of lettuce you can imagine.



And if this is not enough, there are great restaurants set up outside as well. One of my favorites for breakfast is Primavera where you can get the most delicious Mexican food imaginable. I usually order Chilaquiles Aquascalientes--organic scrambled eggs served with refried beans, sour cream, cilantro, queso-cotija and avocado along with freshly made tortillas. The beer battered fish tacos are amazing too.

If you ever find yourself in the Bay Area this is one place that can not be missed no matter what season it happens to be.



Ferry Plaza Farmers Market
1 Ferry Building
Embarcadero & Market
San Francisco, California
94111
415.291.3276
www.ferryplazafarmersmarket.com

Tart Tatin Season

Apple season is here and it’s time for me to break out my tarte tatin pan and start baking this classic French dessert. A tarte tatin is an upside down apple tart, and though it is not restricted to the autumn months, apples are at their peak then so it’s the best time to make one.


While I was in Paris last spring, I stumbled across a small bistro with a sign on its door announcing Grillades au Charbon de Bois. I’m not great with French but I know the word charcoal when I see it. This charming little restaurant, “La Brocherie” in St. Germain des Pres , specializes in meats cooked over a wood fire and serves classic French deserts like crème caramel, mousse au chocolate, and of course, tarte tatin.


As I popped my head in, the chef was preparing a tarte tatin. My mouth was watering so I made a point of coming back for lunch.

On my return I ordered Entrecote Grillé served with a simple baked potato and a few vegetables and it was fabulous. For dessert my slice of tarte tatin came with a side of cream fraiche. The tarte was slightly warm and absolutely delicious. The trick of making a perfect tarte tatin is in the consistency of the apples. They should not be too soft nor too hard and the crust must not be soggy. I have been making this dessert for years and have found that cream fraiche is the perfect accompaniment because its slightly sour flavor is wonderful with the caramelized apples.



So what is the perfect recipe? Well, when I was working on my cookbook, “ I Am Almost Always Hungry”, I tested dozens of versions. I do not use a puff pastry crust, which many recipes call for because I prefer a pate brise crust. I also think using a copper tarte tatin pan makes all the difference. After my visit to La Brocherie I also learned that any deep copper skillet will work as well.

La Brocherie
3, Rue St-Benoit
75006 Paris