Restaurant, Food and Chef News

[John Talbott]

In Le Monde today, Jean Claude Ribaut reported on a meeting of the chefs of the Relais & Châteaux places in Seville, where the unanimously voted to make French cuisine a UNESCO thing. They included: Patrick O'Connell, Gary Danko, Juan Mari Arzak, Kiyomi Mikuni, Français Michel Guérard, Anne-Sophie Pic, Jean-Michel Lorain and Alain Dutournier. Putting a bit of rain on the parade was the charge by chef Santi Santamaria that Ferran Adria was {my trans} "poisoning his customers with lab products such as metilcellulose." The latter was reported in the IHT as well.

[John Talbott]

Web Radio du gout announced that the Troisgros were opening their third establishment called La Colline du Colombier, in Iguerande, 20 km from Roanne which has a menu at 34 euros. Their first two are of course La Maison Troisgros + Le Central next door.

[John Talbott]

Thursday, Web Radio du Gout announced that President Nicolas Sarkozy presented Dominique Loiseau with the Legion d'honneur, noting chef Patrick Bertron's role with her in keeping the enterprise running.

[John Talbott]

Figaroscope Wednesday had an article on openings in the fall, some of which our members already know about:

Eric Briffard ex-Elysees du Vernet to the the George V

Antoine Heerah ex-Chamarre + Moulin de la Galette to Beauvilliers

Thierry Costes of the Hotel Amour, Etienne Marcel, Chez Julien to l’Arbuci

Thomas Langmann & Co of the Hotel du Nord to Chacha

Thierry Faucher of the l’Os empire to Barbezingue

Benoit Bordier ex-Chez Jean to Les Etangs de Corot

Pierre Herme of the eponymous pastry shop to a new one on the rue Cambron in the 1st

Alice Bardet of the Point Bar to a new one Point Bar 2

Julien Foulin former chef editor at Regal to open a new bio resto near the Bastille

Gilles Choukroun, ex-Café des Delices, l’Angl’Opera to the Palace in the 9th

Nicolas Le Bec of Lyon to the Opera Garnier.

[John Talbott]

Yesterday in Le Figaro the front page and back page of the first section were taken by photos and stories by Francois Simon of Alain Ducasse becoming a citizen of Monte Carlo to avoid taxes. Not since Johnny Hallyday tried to move to Switzerland has there been such a fuss.

[John Talbott]

Guy Martin, he of the Grand Vefour has opened a sandwicherie Miyou, 35, rue de Miromesnil, in the 8th and in Terminal 2E at Roissy CDG where they sell "la salade Vegy" with tofu and mango infused with ginger for 9,50 € and a fish wrap with tuna and veggies for 7 €.

[John Talbott]

Alexandra Michot and Francois Simon, in Saturday/Sunday’s Le Figaro, now only in pdf, noted some chef moves:

David Zuddas leaving l’Auberge de la Charme in Prenois replaced by Nicolas Isnard of the Chateau de Curzay but retaining and starting other ventures;

Nicolas Le Bec, chef of the 2-star eponymous resto in Lyon, inaugurates l’Espace Le Bec a lounge bar and other projects including taking over l’Opéra Garnier in 2010;

Hélène Darroze returning from having opened a gastronomic restaurant, brasserie, grill, bar, room-service and banquets at the Connaught in London, closes her Boudoir on the rue d’Assas, because business fell off;

Christophe Dufau, one-star leaves Tourrettes-sur-Loup to reopen Bacchanales in Vence July 14th; and

Lucette Rousseau, called Lulu, leaves her famous place l’Assiette on the rue du Chateau in Paris, where she invented the bistrot gourmand style in 1982 passing the baton in September to David Rathgeber who served under the mast of Alain Ducasse for 14 years.

[PhilD]

Hélène Darroze returning from having opened a gastronomic restaurant, brasserie, grill, bar, room-service and banquets at the Connaught in London, closes her Boudoir on the rue d’Assas, because business fell off;

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The Connaught in London only opened today 14 July - I would have thought Darroze would have still been in London until it bedded down?

[John Talbott]

Hélène Darroze returning from having opened a gastronomic restaurant, brasserie, grill, bar, room-service and banquets at the Connaught in London, closes her Boudoir on the rue d’Assas, because business fell off;

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The Connaught in London only opened today 14 July - I would have thought Darroze would have still been in London until it bedded down?

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Like everyone else, I mispoke; indeed, it/they does/do open today and Figaro's authors say she's been shuttling back and forth on the Eurostar so I interpreted that to mean she would (unfortunately) be returning to Paris. I was so hoping she'd like London so much she'd stay.

[Poppy Quince]

I should think business fell off, but I can't understand why it took so long.

And as for that expensive farce upstairs...the Connaught can have her.

(re-reading this I realize I sound cranky, but that's the way I felt after visiting chez Hélène)

[PaulaJK]

Poppy..I don't think that you sound crazy at all. We always wondered

why this restaurant was so well received since we had the worst

[up end/scale] dining experience there. Unforgettably awful.

[John Talbott]

Figaroscope Wednesday had an article on openings in the fall, some of which our members already know about:

Alice Bardet of the Point Bar to a new one Point Bar 2

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What I hadn't realized until I read les.restos.com today was that Alice Bardet had sold the Point Bar and opened Le Boudoir, 25, rue du Colisée in the 8th, July 15th, T: 01 43 59 25 29 where the old Bouchon Gourmand stood. In this brasserie/restaurant, she's serving: a classic œuf mayo, fois gras de canard, entrecôte with frites, sole, a classic Baba and a crème renversée.

[John Talbott]

Web Radio du Gout announced that 22 talented young chefs had been selected by Gault Millau and Idéal Gourmet, a reservation service. Apparently they will be named in this year’s (35th) G/M edition.

In addition they say that due to less wine being consumed in restaurants, more were using “bag in boxes.”

Also, Serge Burckel of Serge and Co in Schiltigheim, near Strasbourg, has turned in his star {shades of Senderens}and is doing risotto etc Mediterranean cooking.

Finally, l’Internaute announced that the venerable (1947) ice cream place Raimo in the 12th will reopen.

[Laidback]

Does anyone know what has become of Gilles Epie since the failure of Citrus Etoile?

[John Talbott]

Does anyone know what has become of Gilles Epie since the failure of Citrus Etoile?

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Laidback; what is your source/reference? June's WHERE had a piece by Alexander Lobrano indicating it was in business and their website is still active.

[Laidback]

Does anyone know what has become of Gilles Epie since the failure of Citrus Etoile?

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Laidback; what is your source/reference? June's WHERE had a piece by Alexander Lobrano indicating it was in business and their website is still active.

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Hopefully my information is wrong. It came from an employee of the French bank that financed them whom we had lunched with at Citrus Etoile about a year ago, and supposedly they pulled the plug recently.

Are you in Paris now? If so perhaps you could give them a call. I always felt that Gilles Epie had talent..

[robert40]

It appears you can still make reservation via their site.

http://www.citrusetoile.fr/index_us.html

[John Talbott]

I'm reading between the lines or finding information by omission, but it seems that Les Saveurs de Flora Mikula is no longer serving a "women's lunch" but has a 29 Euro one for all, according to Les Gourmandises de Philippe. {PS I always liked the place.}

[algy]

Web Radio du gout announced that the Troisgros were opening their third establishment called La Colline du Colombier, in Iguerande, 20 km from Roanne which has a menu at 34 euros.

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head chef - Cesar Troisgros (with a little - unobtrusive - help from Dad).

It's a wonderful location - in Summer - and it will be interesting to see how his style evolves.

[Laidback]

Forget the Citrus Etoile (unless you want to be surrounded by Yankie tourists) and Toi, which is terrible (more of a bar/lounge place)

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Thanks for opining. Can you confirm that Citrus Etoile is still in business, as I had been told that the plug was being pulled? His gorgeous wife/hostess is enough to attract Yankee tourists

Edited August 23, 2008 by Laidback (log)

[John Talbott]

Today in Figaroscope, Emmanuel Rubin has another article on the "Waltz of the chefs," that includes some of the info above but in addition says that:

Benoit will be chef'd by Alain Souliac from Ducasse's Basque auberge

La Paiva is being transformed from a night-club to a resto by Jacques Garcia

Miyou will be a high class sandwich shop under Guy Martin's hand

Velvet 45 will open October 1st under chef Claude Colliot, exl'Orenoc

Chacha will be a 1930's "speakeasy"

Chardenoux, the beautiful 1900 bistrot, will by the end of September be run by Cyril Lignac (XV Attitude)

Aux Zingots will pass from the control of Gilles Benard to the "pros" of Paris nightlife who run Baron, Hotel Amour....

Bilboquert comes under the Costes' control

Guillaume Delage, exGaya will open his own bistro in the 15th

Barbezingue will open in Issy les Moulineaux under the supervision of Thierry Faucher (l'Os a Moelle.)

[olivier]

Barbezingue will open in Issy les Moulineaux under the supervision of Thierry Faucher (l'Os a Moelle.)

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Is it Issy, really? I ask because there were rumours about a new Faucher "table d'hôtes" in Châtillon, and he already has the Symples de l'Os à Moëlle in Issy.

[John Talbott]

Barbezingue will open in Issy les Moulineaux under the supervision of Thierry Faucher (l'Os a Moelle.)

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Is it Issy, really? I ask because there were rumours about a new Faucher "table d'hôtes" in Châtillon, and he already has the Symples de l'Os à Moëlle in Issy.

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Well that's what it says although I read the same about Chatillon. Maybe Rubin et al have it wrong. Ironic that you ask because I just threw out (recycled) the article this AM.

[fresh_a]

Chatillon

[John Talbott]

Saturday-Sunday's IHT had an advertising supplement on the Biennale des Antiquares that had an article by Heidi Ellison on guest chefs who will be cooking there on the following dates:

Sept 11 - Pierre Mallet + Pierre Carrier

Sept 12 - Patrick Berton

Sept 13 - Stephane Raimbault

Sept 14 - Christophe Bacquie

Sept 15 - Patrick Henriroux

Sept 16 - Helene Darroze

Sept 17 - Jean-Michel Lorain

Sept 18 - Jacques Chibois

Sept 19 - Jean-Andre Charial

Sept 20+21 - Michel Roth.