lizziee

In the Guardian, there is a review about Passard using argon oil at Arpege: http://www.guardian.co.uk/Distribution/Red...-476051,00.html Here is another link that describes argon oil and its use: http://www.stratsplace.com/rogov/israel/mo...n_favorite.html

Actually we have an exact bill... we paid for it in advance. And I hope it doesnt take longer than that. We're eating in the basement, we plan to cook with the outdoor grill a lot, and eat out. Just thought I would remind you!!!!!!

Cabrales, They are always on the menu, just different varities depending on the season. Of course, the largest variety is now - in fact the town of St Bonnet has a large mushroom festival in October. However, we ate there the first time in May and "spring" mushrooms were featured.

Marcus, It depends on the restaurant. Haeberlin featured a special lunch menu on Saturday and Sunday that featured his "specialties." It was well-priced at 106 euros and I think that is why the room was packed with French families. L'Arnsbourg's tasting menu was superb as was the one at Crissier (Rochat). But, if all you ate at Boyer and Regis Marcon was the menu, you would miss exciting, wonderful dishes. Marcon's lentils with truffles and poached egg is a remarkable dish and one that I would drive to St Bonnet tomorrow to eat. It is just that good!!!! So, I will have to equivocate and say it depends.

"My drive now is the fascination of why one dish can taste fantastic to one person and disgusting to another and how we process the information from our mouths to our brain." I am intrigued by your above statement. Do you have any preliminary findings as to why people "taste" things so differently?

St. Bonnet is a tiny town with one garage, one church, the mayor's office, one tabac, a chacuterie, a couple of houses, small apartments and a vacation "village." In other words, the majority of the population is made up of cows and horses. This is mushroom country and over 18 varieties grow wild on the surrounding hill sides. We later learned that Regis Marcon, the chef/owner, forages for mushrooms every day around 7 am. The rooms are simple but well laid out with a spectacular view of the countryside. We have a small sitting room and adjacent bedroom and large bathroom with tub and shower. Dinner (1st meal) As we were seated in the lounge for our aperitifs, Alain Marcon (no relation to the chef), the GM, remembered us from last year and came over to chat. He mentioned that the restaurant business in Lyon is down 30% --another 9/11 aftermath. Laurent, the sommelier joined us and talked wine with my husband. Regis Marcon also stopped by to say hello and welcome us back--what a greeting! Chef Marcon served 5 amuse with our champagne a. croque-monsieur avec champigons - a sandwich of mushrooms b. galette de pounti (herbes, blettes, porc, pruneaux) - a "pancake" of pork, prunes, swiss chard and herbs. c. Les beignets de St. Nectaire--a deep fried fritter of St. Nectaire cheese. d. Grilloton au sesamie--small pork sausage deep fried with sesame on the outside e. Le sarassou servi avec un petit friture d'eperlan--a small deep-fried smelt There were 2 large parties in the main dining room, one of 18 and the other of 10. They explained that we would be seated in an alcove away form the noise of the birthday celebrations--unfortunately the big parties got the "A-service team" as we noticed the difference immediately and throughout the meal. We decided to do the Chef's big degustation menu. 1st course--veloute de cepes au lait d'amandes--a cepe mushroom cream soup with big chunks of almonds on top served cold in an egg cup--great starter. 2nd course--gateau de cereales aux champignons et legumes marine's, tepenade forestiere--this was a very intricate dish--the first layer was quinoa, next the tapenade, and then in strips along the top (looking like a flag)were vertical stripes of marinated vegetables, cepes, zucchini, peas and black mushrooms with a crusty bread tapenade perched like a flag pole on the top. 3rd course--langoustines--in a large bowl there were pieces of langoustines with beans, chunks of ham, cabbage, a mussel in the shell, a small clam in the shell, various mushrooms in a rich fish stock flavored with wild herbs. An interesting feature of the presentation of the dish was the placement of a sprig of each herb (5) used in the dish around the plate--a good reference to help you identify the flavors. 4th course--pan-seared foie gras crusted with crushed almonds, marmalade of apples, sliced figs, an edible flower tasting like an oyster mushroom on a lentil ragout. Normally, a foie gras dish at this point would be un-welcome, too much, too fatty, too filling. However, somehow with the almond coating, the bed of lentils and all the other ingredients, this dish was perfect and satisfying. In comparison to the almond coating on the Troisgros eel dish a few days ago, this dish was far better. 5th course--pan seared omble chevalier (char, similar to salmon trout) cooked with white sorrel butter and accompanied by 2 kinds of chanterelle mushrooms (cibrarius and tubaeformis). We opted for champagne granite instead of chanterelle mushroom consommé. 6th course--lamb perfectly rose served with mushrooms from the end of summer. 7th course--cheese from the large and well stocked cart--we chose very little as there just was no room left. We adjourned to the lounge for coffee, pastries and John's cigar. A note on smoking. There is no smoking allowed in the restaurant. Therefore, there is a constant flow of people from their tables to the lounge for a quick "puff." There is not less smoking, it is just less convenient. Service??? A word about le petit sommelier (second stringer named Emanuel). Getting him to stay on the ball and pour our white wine was like pulling teeth. Jean Jacques and the team at Troisgros seemed to have eyes in the back of their head, never allowing our wine glass to get down to the 1/4 level. Emanuel left us sitting with an empty glass for at least 10 minutes. But, that was not his worst sin--he turned out to be a "wine thief." When he poured the red wine into the decanter he managed to take a full glass for "his tasting pleasure." Laurent, the real sommelier, had arranged with Emanuel to bring us a special sweet wine of the region (more later) to have with the foie gras. Emanuel forgot and Alain had to quickly hurry to find Laurent, get the wine, pour it and serve it to us. Emanuel, as a final gesture, managed to spill our red wine during the cheese course. Regis Marcon does a great job. The poor service was not enough to destroy our pleasure in being back here. We hoped the next two meals would be 100%. Wines: 2000 Condrieu Mathilde & Yves Gangloff--same wine we had at Troisgros--delicious. 2000 Coteaux du Layton "Clos de Sainte Catherine" Domaine des Baumard--this is the sweet wine that almost got left out with the foie gras--delicious, light, a new experience for us - not cloying in any way. 1999 Cote Rote "Vielle Vigne en Coteau" Jean Michel Stephan--a new and very small producer according to Laurent. (He had introduced us to the Gangloff Cote Rotie La Barbarine last year.) Wonderful, full bodied, great with the lamb--too bad we had to "share" with Emanuel. Lunch (2nd meal) We knew we had to keep this lunch very light and very simple--dinner was only a few hours away. Of course a glass of champagne to start the day in the lounge with our amuse. The amuses, served on a glass plate with a wooden frame, were a deep fried filo triangle filled with sausage, a sautéed cube of bread also encasing some sort of pork product and a mushroom presented on a spoon with a herb/butter sauce. Regis Marcon stopped by and mentioned that he had been out foraging for mushrooms at 8 am. He said that he found little as mushrooms don't really like the cold-- and it was cold. 1st amuse at the table--a mushroom soup composed of various small mushrooms in an intense thick mushroom stock--this was superb. 2nd course--This dish is a tour de force--a lentil ragout with various vegetables (carrot slices, spring onions, summer squash) with a lightly smoked poached egg surrounded by black truffles-- unbelievable!!! Our "A-team" servers, Alain, the Maitre d' and Laurent, the sommelier, each pierce the egg with a steak knife and cause the golden yolk to ooze into the lentil ragout and the truffles. 3rd-course--Rouget with ciboulettes, cepes, deep fried squid, grilled squid, black olives, mashed "mushroom infused potatoes" and other sliced vegetables. There were too many flavors in this dish--just too much going on, but light enough to meet our needs for a second course that would not bury us. Wine: Blanc Fume de Pouilly, 1999, "Clos du Calvaire" by Didiere Dagueneau Laurent noted that this is a real rarity--expensive, but delicious. Laurent was disappointed with the wine because he did not feel that it really showed all the strength and bouquet that he expected. General observations: The dining room was packed again with large tables--one table of 12, 2 of 8, 2 - 6s , 3 - 4s, and 4 deuces plus a huge table in the private dining room. Every table, except us was having the "big" tasting menu we had the night before. But, unlike last night, we had the "A-team" wait staff and service was flawless. Dinner (3rd meal) Dinner was very different in feel than lunch. Where lunch featured large tables, dinner was primarily couples. It was more relaxed for the customers and the staff. As we entered the restaurant we were greeted warmly by Alain, Laurent and Chef Regis Marcon. Chef Marcon gave us a wonderful compliment--he thanked us for inspiring his staff. The raison d'etre for eating 3 meals in one place is that you become a known face. You are not one of the touring gourmands who is saying "do it to me" and then leaving for another "do it to me" experience. The chef also mentioned, almost casually, that he is going to build a new restaurant on the hill, up the road from the present restaurant. He intends to have floor to ceiling windows with views of the entire countryside. Also, as the kitchen is 15 years old and is in need of remodeling, a new kitchen will be part of the new restaurant. With our champagne, we again had a series of amuse, but as I was doing too much talking, I forgot to write them down. 1st course--la brochette "Margaridou." This is a signature dish which is featured in his cookbook. On a silver skewer with a feather symbol a croquette was presented that is filled with lamb sweetbreads, morels, and ham. The sauce was a black truffle butter sauce--a classic, perfectly balanced. As a side dish, on a specially made glass plate etched with pine trees and a mushroom, they presented a melange of mushrooms and a salad of greens which were presented in a tied bundle. 2nd course--Lamb cooked in a bread dough--not pastry--it looked just like a loaf of bread. A table with a large cutting board was wheeled to the table and Chef Regis Marcon arrived quickly to carve and present his lamb specialty. He deftly cut around the base of the dough, removed the lamb which was cooked with bone in. The chef spent a bit of time examining the meat to find the grain, turned it from side to side until he determined exactly the way he wanted to carve it. Three perfect, rare lamb slices were plated, a small line of mixed spices [thyme, coriander, rosemary, sel de mare, and pepper] were presented in a stripe just above the lamb. A mixed array of vegetables [tomato, haricot verts, pea pods, carrots, scallions, summer squash] was placed to the side. A small casserole was presented with slowly simmered potatoes and cepes. The lamb is served in 2 services. The extra lamb is put back in the dough crust and kept in the kitchen to stay warm until you have finished the first. Service was warm and flawless. Alain and Laurent are a perfect pair-I suggested Frick and Frack. Alain didn't have a clue to the reference, but he suggested that they were more like Laurel and Hardy. A note on tasting menus--everyone in the room, except us, was having the grand menu. If you are dining in a great restaurant like Regis Marcon for just one meal, this is probably the way to go because the grand menu does give you an idea of the full range of the chef's talent and cuisine. However, the specialties like the lamb and sweetbreads at dinner and the egg/lentil "killer" dish from lunch are never on the grand tasting. We would never have experienced them unless we had ordered a la carte. We would have missed "the best." Wines: St. Joseph Blanc, Bernard et Fabrice Grippa, 2000 Hermitage Rouge 1998, Domaine Alain Graillot Both wines were excellent. The Hermitage was a special treat because, as Laurent told us, Graillot is not going to be permitted by the owner of this property to bottle in Hermitage any more. The wine was not "huge" but it was very full bodied and superbly flavorful - very clean and polished finish. The White St. Joseph was a treat - a good choice with the appetizer, light, not too fruity, very "clean" and basically simple direct flavor with a fine finish.

Bunny, Since you mentioned an interest in contemporary cuisine, I would highly recommend Auberge de L'Ile. The chef speaks perfect English and presents the menu himself. It was a wonderful experience. As I mentioned in my post, Leon de Lyon was, for us, a much better experience at lunch. Many of our favorite dishes were not on the dinner menu. Bux, is absolutely correct when he states that here you will experience true French "soul food." Other than quenelles at Christian Tetedoie, we were very disappointed. I haven't been to Bocuse in years, but other than for historic value, the food was mediocre. The restaurant at Villa Florentine was also not a "must" eat, but again that is based on a meal there 4 years ago. A knowledgeable "local" raved about Rotonde, but I have not eaten there. To find, my full posts on the above, see below. Leon de Lyon http://forums.egullet.org/ibf/index.php?s=...ST&f=10&t=12046 Christian Tetedoie http://forums.egullet.org/ibf/index.php?ac...64c46601cce523e Auberge de L'Ile http://forums.egullet.org/ibf/index.php?s=...=10&t=9768&st=0 Hope this helps.

Leon de Lyon is a classic Lyon restaurant serving basic, classic Lyonaise food. There are no bells and whistles, no surprises, but then again there are rarely big mistakes. You can expect and you get classic, well prepared food. The major down-side is the impersonal, "going through the motions" service; it is so impersonal that you feel that you are just one more face, creating work for the staff. We were not offered an aperitif until we snagged a server and asked for one. The amuse were nice--a tomato with a ravigote sauce and a wonton crisp filled with sausage. 2nd amuse--a cold soup of green vegetables and fresh herbs perfectly prepared and balanced. 1st course - My husband had the pate en croute with gelee and mixed salad. It was absolutely perfect--rabbit, foie gras and duck. I had the artichoke appetizer which consisted of perfectly cooked al dente artichoke heart slices, artichoke mousse, a small mixed green salad and an unusual touch of a small slice of sautéed foie gras . Main course--My husband had lamb. This dish utilized all parts of the lamb--the liver, sweetbreads, saddle, rib, plus chopped lamb in an hallowed out squash bowl. There was also a tomato filled with a puree of peas and courgette filled with mushrooms. Unfortunately, the chop was overcooked, although the vegetable sides were wonderful. I had the rabbit which also utilized various parts - on the bone, the loin stuffed with a minced rabbit stuffing plus a mound of shredded rabbit. The dish was garnished with deep fried strips of polenta. There was also a small casserole of end of the summer vegetables, served on the side. Cheese course - For some reason the cheese tasted very salty. Four years ago we had a spectacular lunch at Leon de Lyon - my husband had the finest pigs trotters he has ever had. We were so looking forward to our return visit, but found the experience, both as to food and service, disappointing. Lyon de Lyon seems to be a businessman's lunch place more than a couples fine dining experience dinner place. The lunch menu features more of the traditional cuisine we were hoping to have, but is not offered at dinner. All in all, I would chose Leon de Lyon for lunch. (Chef Lacombe mentioned that his business has remained the same throughout the year. Our guess is that the bulk of his business is local business people for lunch.) Wines: 98 Beaune-Clos-Du-Roi, Tollot-Beaut & Fils--wonderful.

Cabrales, I take absolutely no offense and understood you meant taste as to flavor. I value your opinions and even though we disagree, please don't take it personally. pirate, I wish you would give Gagnaire a chance. His cuisine is anything but tomato juice with a scoop of peach ice cream. I would give that analogy to Astrance and Veyrat. Again, this is a highly personal, subjective opinion To quote myself: "salpicon de rouget de roche and capres la wicchia, lard blanc colonnata, feuille de bar de linge mi-fume, deux variete de carottes. This was one of the best dishes of the night--smoked bar underneath the rouget (a layered sandwich effect) with the smokiness of the bacon, the slightly sweet drippled carrot sauce--just amazing in conception and taste--Gagnaire at his very best." This is not innovative food at the expense of taste. It was perfect in taste as well as conception.

Cabrales, This is what makes horse races. You found Astrance wonderful; I found it the worst possible example of invention and innovation at the expense of taste. You don't like Gagnaire's food where I will return willingly, even though as I have said, it wasn't the best meal we had over the course of our month in France. But given 2 dinners in the space of a month, there was more right than wrong. Steve, I don't know much about argon oil so I can't add any knowledge to its use. I do know that when the hen dish was at first presented in cocotte, the aroma was unbelievable and I couldn't wait to taste it. Why the addition of the oil? I don't have a clue.

Bux, I hope I didn't give the impression that I expected our meals at Gagnaire to be perfect. I don't expect that at all. I have such respect for Gagnaire that it is a matter of dissappointment when there is a "miss." I agree that when dining at Gagnaire, all preconceptions about food, ingredient mixing etc. must be put aside. What I find extraordinary about Gagnaire, is that his blending of flavors work ---- they taste good. Other than the guinea hen dish where the argon oil (thanks Cabrales for supplying the name) was overwhelming and the truffle dish where the truffles were the tasteless end of the summer ones, it was a wonderful meal with the highlight being the 5th course - the rouget. I also wonder if the fault on the Hen dish was a service, front of the house mistake. It was the server who added the argon oil table side. Who knows? As I said in my initial post, I find Gagnaire a must "eat" for serious diners who are serious about food. Bux, I am looking forward to your complete report and am so glad that it lived up to your expectations.

Heston, As a follow-up to my question under "Gourmet", what other similar flavour profiles have worked with flavours that normally don't go together?

BRAVO!!!!!!!

Heston, You were featured in an article "100 Great Things About Restaurants" in the Oct. issue of Gourmet Magazine. They mentioned your newest, revolutionary creations: caviar with white chocolate and sardines on toast ice cream. What led you to these flavor combinations? How was it conceived? Would you give a more detailed description of each dish?

hollywood, There were definite similarities between the menu we had and the one you referred to, but it was not the same menu. In fact, one of the things that the poster mentioned was that their waiter said that the "menu was in constant evolution." The two dishes that seem constant are his signature dishes of avocado ravioli and the bread soup. We had no amuse, they had crispy friture. The dish described as cepes and pear had an inordinate amount of marjoram in the cracker base. (Cabrales, I refer to this as a cracker for it was quite crunchy and not at all pastry-like.) The poster mentioned that their tart was seasoned with marjoram.. Their langoustine dish was accompanied with a spoon of vin de Jura sorbet, ours was with hazelnut. Their mussels were in a green curry sauce with coconut oil, ours in a foamy broth of langoustines. They had sandre with girolles and hazelnut butter. According to our waiter, we had omble chevalier with a peanut based sauce. (Again, I could be wrong on this, but I would be surprised that the chef would use hazelnuts in two different dishes.) They had "Apotheosis of Vegetables. We had codfish with basil oil. They had guinea fowl and we had lamb. We both had a lemon grass sorbet, although they described it with red pepper and we had pimento. Whether, I would have liked their menu better than ours is a question I can't answer.

Peter, We did not find it excessive, but then we had been to Ducasse in Paris. We ordered very carefully and they were more than willing to do half portions. Value is a relative term, but the food, service, experience was so exceptional that I would do it again.

hollywood, I am only going by what our waiter told me - I could have misunderstood, but I was sure he said omble chevalier. The sauce had more of a peanut flavor, but again I won't swear to it. Without the sauce, the fish was beautifully prepared, perfectly roasted, not dry, just excellent. With the sauce, you lost the fish - you tasted just sauce; I could be eating a piece of anything. So to answer your question directly if sandre was served with a hazelnut sauce in such a way that all I tasted was hazelnut sauce, my reaction would be the same. Out of curiosity, why did you think I had sandre and not the omble chevalier? Ajay, The avocado ravioli was superb. But having to drink the shot glass right afterward just destroyed the taste of what you had just eaten. This happened again and again. The cepes and pear were an interesting and surprisingly good match, but the marjoram in the cracker ruined it for me. The mussels were perfectly cooked and if I avoided the broth very enjoyable. Again, I liked the cod fish, but I was pushing the basil oil to the side. It seemed as if I was spending my time decomposing the ingredients. I just didn't get the "bread soup" at all. I work with yeast all the time and often taste proofing yeast - that is what it tasted like to me.

I asked the question honestly. Beachfan, I am looking forward to reading your notes. Cabrales, I would be interested in a recap of your meal at Astrance. For me, I found the flavor combinations discordant and as I said, I am not wary of the innovative.

Dinner - Astrance (A Note: These posts are not in sequence of when we actually ate at each place. Our Astrance meal was after 45 meals in France.) We had been eagerly anticipating our meal at Astrance. All of the reports, especially Patricia Wells and members of eGullet were absolutely raving. The room is very contemporary, serene, minimalist with splashes of color - gray textured walls, a stone floor, yellow velveteen banquettes, orange velveteen covered chairs, white tablecloths with place plates that look like giant lollipops in pink, yellow, blue, green and orange. Large mirrors,hung both vertically and horizontally, give the room a spacious feeling. Spotlights are recessed in the ceiling, and there is a balcony of gray chrome and steel that is cantilevered over the downstairs area. We decided on the Surprise Menu. 1st course--an avocado ravioli--2 thinly sliced ripe but firm avocados are the outside of the ravioli which hold a crab salad that has been enhanced with chives, fleur de sel, lime zest, and a touch of almond oil. This rightly deserves to be a signature dish; it was wonderful. But, after eating the crab you are instructed by the waiter to first mix and then eat with a small spoon some ingredients in a tall shot glass--yogurt, a fish mousse, juniper berry. The ravioli were delicious, but why the shot glass? My husband saw surprising similarities to eating Ajax or Babbo. 2nd course--a layered dish of cepes and pear on a crunchy, somewhat sweet, cracker with marjoram. The marjoram over whelmed the taste and the mixture of sweet and savory did not work. 3rd course--langoustines with julienne apples and an accompanying spoon of frozen hazelnut puree. You were told to take a bite (a la El Bulli) of the langoustine and then a bite of the frozen stuff. The langoustines were mushy and the frozen stuff added a completely wrong note. 4th course--mussels in the shell in a foamy broth of langoustine. The broth was so strong and fishy tasting that it ruined the mussels. 5th course--omble chevalier, roasted with girolle mushrooms and a peanut butter sauce. This was horrible. I just don't understand the combination of a wonderful fish like omble chevalier being paired with a peanut butter sauce. The fish by itself was excellent. My husband was ready to call a cab but I wouldn't let him. So he kept shaking his head saying "fish and peanut butter?" "fish and peanut butter?" 6th course--codfish with mushrooms and a balsamic vinegar reduction with basil oil--unfortunately no redeeming virtues or flavors here--just awful. 7th course--the "infamous" bread soup which looked like yeast proofing. I must be missing something here because it tasted very much like yeast proofing. 8th course--pimento lemon grass sorbet - why? 9th course--lamb with a potato cheese galette--the lamb was good and the galette excellent. 10th course--a series of desserts-by this time I had put my note pad away, but I do remember a fried greasy madeline. Wine: My husband who is in charge of keeping track of the wine was so disgusted that he forgot to write down the exact wines - a moderate cheap Chablis and a Faveliey 98 Gevrey Chambertin. The chablis was OK. The Gevrey might have been good, but the waiter took it on himself to decant the Burgundy about 1 hour before it was needed-- so the wine was totally faded out. It was obvious to the maitre d' that we were hardly enjoying our meal. He was very solicitous and not at all defensive. L'Astrance is an example of Adria's El Bulli food gone wrong. Innovation for the sake of innovation without any regard for taste is asinine. Food is meant to be eaten (amazing concept). Auberge de I'lle in Lyon, L'Arnsbourg in Alsace, Regis Marcon in St. Bonnet, Trama in Puymirol are all chefs delivering contemporary and innovative food that taste wonderful. Even with some misses from Gagnaire, his restaurant is worthy of going to repeatedly. We don't see ourselves as old fogies, meat and potatoes people. We have had 45 meals in France up to this point; our only requirement is that we are only looking for food that tastes good. Why don't I get it? Why the raves?

bunny, I won't reproduce my entire post here but I think you must try Auberge de l'lle about 20 minutes outside of Lyon. You can find my entire post on the most recent Lyon thread.

Lesley, At least I won't have mouth ulcers! The sad part for us is that we were so looking forward to going back to Veyrat. From the warm greeting to the beautiful room to the welcome glass of champagne - we thought we were "in" for the "great meal of a lifetime." I don't think I am adverse to new flavor combinations or innovation, but I just didn't get what Veyrat is trying to do now. Sorrel is a wonderful flavor - sorrel soup, the famous Troisgros dish of salmon with sorrel, but oxalis (wood sorrel) is so acidic that, for me, it is best used for contagious sickness, pestilential fever and mouth ulcers. Thank you for your thanks on these lengthy long-winded reports. I do hope I am not boring all e-gullet members.

Lesley, I am very interested. Do you know how much they cost? Is there a source in the US? I really appreciate your help.

Troisgros---Roanne-- The rooms at Troisgros are beautiful--very contemporary, sleek with a bathroom much better than ours at home--glass-enclosed large shower, sunken tub, 2 sinks, marble counters all surrounded by mirrors. There is a sitting room with a couch and desk and a large bedroom with a small balcony. The tables and light fixtures and the accessories are tasteful and modern. As we were having both lunch and dinner at Troisgros, ordering was crucial. Also thanks to Robert Brown, we decided not to have the tasting menu and construct a menu of those things we really wanted to try. Lunch - We had champagne in the lounge, unlike Georges Blanc, we did not receive menus. Amuse with champagne: presented in 6 "Chinese-type" soup spoons placed precisely on a rectangular plate - salmon tartar, marinated sardine with pimento and a crunchy bit of artichoke with a slice of ham. 2nd amuse--at the table--a thick custard of celery with bits of celery and a slice of banana on top--a big flavor surprise--and it worked beautifully. 1st course--noix d'huitres tiedies en vinagrette aux perce-pierres. The oysters were presented warm in their shells with a sauce from sea fennel, also known as crite-marine. This was an exceptional dish--the plump, briny oyster nestled in a delicately seasoned sauce with finely diced lemon, cornichons and the sea fennel. The unusual element of the dish was the placement of a sliced almond on top of the oyster--a surprising "crunch." 2nd course--Troisgros' signature salmon dish with sorrel. We had this dish 2 years ago, but didn't remember how wonderful it was. It was perfect - thinly sliced salmon, just barely cooked, on a rich sorrel sauce. 3rd course--Boeuf Charolaise Chateau au vin de Fleurie et a la moelle, pommes de terre a la forezienne. If my husband could have, he would have picked up his plate and not only licked it clean, but also eaten the plate itself - that is how good the sauce was. The beef was perfectly rare, so tender you barely needed a knife. The beef marrow on top melted in your mouth and the sauce was classic French--the best of haute cuisine. The potatoes, which were served in a little silver casserole, were perfect and if you added some to the sauce--sublime. Wine: Lunch: 95 Raveneau Les Clos--superb, this is one of my husband's favorite vineyards in France.- 95 Cote Rotie, Cote Blonde, R. Rostang, Ampuis This was supposed to be a "light lunch" as were having dinner in about 5 hours. Dinner This time we had our aperitif at the table and perused the menu while "sipping." The amuse was the same presentation as at lunch with the addition of a tomato in a vinaigrette of basil. With the help of Pascal, the most gracious Maitre d', we composed our own tasting menu. 2nd amuse--on a bed of rock salt, the plumpest oyster in its shell with a sauce of lemon creme fraiche, a tiny bit of lemon pulp and strands of sea fennel surrounding the shell. This was served with a small, crispy bread reminiscent of a triscuit in taste. 1st course--Robert Brown who had been to Troisgros a few weeks ago, recommended that we have something stuffed with peas, almond and mint-- We had Pelmenis de petits pois et amandes. This was the thinnest sheet of pasta stuffed with pea, mint and almond puree. On top of the ravioli was a tiny pea pod filled with 5 skinless peas. Absolutely perfect! 2nd course--Troncons d'anguille chemises de noisettes et romarin. Thick slices of eel were cooked with the bones, then crusted with almonds with a rosemary and cornichon butter sauce. Tiny cornichon slices surrounded the plate. The rosemary was a little too pronounced and the eel nearest the bone was much more tender than the outer pieces. My least favorite of all the dishes. 3rd course--Canette de challans epicee et pickles d' echalotes, pommes soufflés. This dish represented Michelin 3 Star table side service. A large silver platter holding a perfectly roasted duckling was brought to a cutting board table side. Deftly, our server carved the duck, sauced the plate and laid moderately thick slices of breast meat on the plate. Roasted shallots accompanied the duck and much to our surprise, some cooked corn--surprising because, although you see corn growing in fields all along the roads, the French usually reserve corn for animals. The piece de resistance for us--paper cones filled with pommes soufflée arrived which must have been made just seconds ago. The duck was served in 2 services. The second service contained duck leg meat in the same rich duck sauce with a hint of orange and another serving of freshly made pommes soufflée--we were happy Troisgros campers. 5th course--cheese 6th course--we skipped dessert and had coffee and pastries in the lounge. Wines: 00 Condrieu, Mathilde et Yves Gangloff--we did not know that Gangloff made a Condrieu. Jean Jacques, sommelier, explained that Gangloffs have about 1 hectare right behind their house planted to viognier--he also noted that the wines of Gangloff are wonderful, but Yves is "crazy" (not quite sure what he meant.) The wine was pure essence of viognier--light and even a bit fruitier than most Condrieu--a perfect match with the cuisine. 97 Cote Rotie, Les Grandes Places, Jean-Michel Gerin--the match with the duck was absolutely perfect. Service at Troisgros: There were 4 people waiting on us. All were professional competent without hovering . The Troisgros motto seems to be "watchful." Everyone covered for each other so there were no glitches or lapses. There was a perfect dance to the service--an unhurried "ballet" of seamlessness. Last year our memory of Troisgros was very nice, very precise and perhaps a little "cold." This time between Maitre d' Pascal who was so considerate to ask if we wanted the same table for dinner as the one we had for lunch--a perfect location -- to Jean Jacques Banchet, the sommelier who gave us a tour of his 60,000 bottle cellar- everything was perfect. (By the way, Jean Jacques is a cousin of M. Banchet owner of the La Francais in Wheeling, IL--small world of food and wine.) Over-all the feeling we got was elegance, perfection and warmth combined to make us feel very much at home and special--Michel Troisgros visited with us a bit after dinner. He was equally as warm and personable. Le Central - Troisgros' bistro Lunch The bistro is immaculate, like everything at Troisgros. The paper place mat on the table had a picture, like a reflection, of a place setting so each item in the place setting was put on top of its "reflection." 1st course--we started with Galette craquante de jambon cru tomates et basilic. This was a thin, wafer-like crisp on which were placed layers of tomato, ham, hard-boiled egg slices with basil, olive oil and capers--kind of an open faced sandwich ..delicious. 2nd course--salmon cru marine a l'aneth, pommes de terre a la sauce Raifot. The salmon was much like gravlax, although sliced much thicker and served with a quenelle of horse radish/onion cream and thinly sliced boiled potato--excellent and just enough. Wine: 00 Sancerre Vincent Pinard, Nuance--very nice, simple, clean and moderately priced - perfect with the food.

Steve, Thank you for your link to your review. As I mentioned earlier, the 2 meals I had at Veyrat a couple of years ago were on the whole good, with some extremely high notes and a couple of misses. Nothing at all what we experienced a month ago. For the record, I looked up wood sorrel and the acidity that I tasted is very much present in wood sorrel. SORREL (Wood) OXALIS ACETOSELLA "Both botanical names Oxalis and acetosella refer to this acidity, Oxalis being derived from the Greek oxys, meaning sour or acid, and acetosella, meaning vinegar salts. A perennial, Wood Sorrel is a small plant with leaves in three parts, which often fold up. The flowers are bell-shaped and white with a dash of blue. Despite its name, the plant is not related to Sorrel, but is closely related to the Geranium family. Modern uses: The plant is particularly rich in oxalic acid and potassium oxalate, which are not suitable for those with gouty or rheumatic tendencies. It can he injurious if prescribed injudiciously. The leaves are used for their cooling action in fevers. The infusion - i oz (28 g) to i pt (568 rnl) of boiling water - is also given for catarrh and urinary tract inflammation in doses of 2 fl Oz (56 rni). Excessive or prolonged administration is not recommended. The infusion is used as lotion for skin infections. The juice is used as a gargle for mouth ulcers. Excellent in any contagious sickness or pestilential fever."

Marty, I wasn't sure why I didn't like the taste of the oxalis and decided to look up the definition on the web. "Any of about 850 species of small herbaceous plants that make up the genus Oxalis, native mostly to S Africa and tropical and S. America. Most members are familiar garden ornamentals. The name (Greek for "acid") reflects the plant's sharp acidic taste." For me, what I must have been tasting was that sharp acidic taste which I found a bad match with the egg. Before I really mixed the oxalis into the egg, the texture and taste of the egg was perfect - some softly cooked white, the silky yokiness were perfect. But with the strong acidic taste, the egg flavor was lost and the result was harsh and off-tasting.