Lumiere

[Adesso Chef]

Lucais will most certainly be heading to Chicago to do the stage at Chef Trotter's restaurant. He will go after Dine Out Vancouver and Valentines Day.

[nwyles]

Lucais will most certainly be heading to Chicago to do the stage at Chef Trotter's restaurant. He will go after Dine Out Vancouver and Valentines Day.

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What a fantastic oppourtunity. I am so jealous.

I hope he decides to share his experiences when he gets back, either through you and Luciano or get him to post himself.

[kurtisk]

I hope he decides to share his experiences when he gets back, either through you and Luciano or get him to post himself.

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If you're curious as to the Trotter stage drill, you can always follow up with Tina Fineza (ex- Bin 942, George) who recently did one there at the the same time that Mark McNeil (Sommelier at Provence Marinaside) did a stage on the floor.

I'd tell you their stories, but I don't know what's on the record & what's off the record...

heh!

k

[mkjr]

Thanks for the post. The Dagueneau wines kick ass and I glad to hear it was good. Anyone know if that was thanks to Marquis which I know brings in lots (well not really lots but some) of these wines? Too bad about the Mouton although the more I drink older wines the more I like them younger. The menu looks very seasonal which is great to see!

[Zucchini Mama]

QUINCE JELLY WITH TAHITIAN VANILA, CELERY HEART, BOSC PEAR, POACHED QUINCE AND CANDIED CELERY

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Jamie,

What a meal! Right now, I'm fascinated with quince. What was this dessert like?

Your mother sounds very entertaining!

Zuke

[Ling]

^Also, was the "celery heart" like a celery-infused coeur a la creme?

[Matt R.]

After receiving a copy of the menu tonight, my first question (to paraphrase Sloan) was 'were you underwhelmed?'

This style of food is right up my alley, and I certainly wish I had been there. The menu screams regional and seasonal simplicity. Not simplistic execution, but top quality ingredients presented with clean, logical accents. Judging by the menu and the acclaimed skill set of the chefs involved, the food must have spoken volumes.

But did anyone go in expecting Vegas, only to be pleasanty surprised by Vancouver? I hear RF spent 30 grand on china recently.

I am *so* jealous.

-- Matt.

[Edible Vancouver]

It’s daunting to have to work as someone else’s stomach. Since the Mr. was not able to attend this event on behalf of the eGullet crew after winning the draw last week, I (the Mrs.) gamely volunteered to take his place. My business partner, Dawn Saunders, more than gladly filled in as my date.

Usually when we dine out, I sit in the background and enjoy the meal under the flash of the camera while Mr. takes notes, pictures and copies of menus. This is my first review. Please forgive any reviewer/posting faux pas.

Lumiere, as most of you already know, is a beautiful, tranquil restaurant. Throughout service, the staff floated through the room carrying plates of heavenly food. Where this food came from, neither Dawn nor I knew, since when we wandered into the brand-new kitchen 20 minutes prior to service it was a sea of calm. We expected bustling, noisy and sweating chefs a la the stuff of reality food television. Instead we saw hundreds of white plates covering the stainless steel countertops and many zen-like chefs gliding throughout the kitchen. No overflowing pots and pans, no screaming, towel-waving, frantic chefs. No food save reams of yummy-looking loaves of brioche.

We contemplated this calm while sipping a glass or two of Ruggeri, Giall’oro Extra Brut N.V. Prosecco and nibbling on the canapés: an Alsatian tart (airy pastry topped with cheese, onion and bacon) and marinated herring escabeche with crème fraîche and caviar. This lovely food had to come from somewhere. Maybe it was the bubbles, but Dawn and I started to think we had been transported to Harry Potter’s world where Chefs Jacob and Feenie were waving their wands and magically producing the 10-course meal. And I have to say, there was nothing during this fabulous dinner that made us think otherwise!

We were seated and our evening began. The room vibrated with the energy of 60 expectant gourmets. Collective sighs of contentment came forth with the first course: a terrine of foie gras, Riesling ice wine jelly, truffled frisee, and the orange blossom toasted brioche. After days of eating salad and broccoli to prepare my arteries for this meal, my tastebuds thought they had died and gone to heaven. The wine was impeccably paired to stand up to the richness of the terrine. (Phillipe Delasvaux 2004 Coteaux du Layon Saint-Aubin.)

Just when we thought the first course was the “best we’ve ever had”, we were presented with a succession of fish courses: a light Quenelle de Sandre (pike perch according to my dictionary) with a paper-thin disc of black truffle placed upon a creamy lobster reduction. The accompanying Pfaffenheim Tokay Pinot Gris Grand Cru Steinert 2001 Alsace was beautiful (so beautiful that I nearly wept when Mr. informed me that we have a couple bottles in our cellar!) The next fish dish was a unique Choucroute de Poisson (lake trout on a bed of braised cabbage) with a Noilly-Prat butter sauce. I know, the English translation does not do this dish justice; it must be a bit of that wand waving Rob and Michel did in the kitchen because fish and cabbage do not melt on your tongue the way the choucroute de poisson did.

The fish was followed by a crystal clear pheasant consommé with a brunoise of vegetables; Escoffier himself could not have done better. We are lucky to have such masters of classic French technique in our city. The burgundy pairing with this dish was smooth: Fontaine-Gagnard 2003 Chassagne-Montrachet.

By the time the sixth and largest course arrived, the room had lost its reverent air; everyone was scooping marrow and sliding forkfuls of the juicy Cote de Boeuf and buttery Gratin Dauphinois across their plates to sop up every drop of the generously ladled Pinot Noir sauce. More bread please! Or perhaps one of those spoons the French made to save the fingers from scraping the last of the sauce off the plate! We swirled our glasses and admired the Baron’Arques “Toques et Cloches” Cuvee Lumiere 2001 Haute Valle de L’aude, from Lumiere’ s own barrel and poured tonight in celebration of 10 great years. We feel honoured to be a part of the festivities, we raise our glasses to toast the chefs and the staff for their achievements and we are full.

But there is more. Warmed Munster cheese on fruit and nut bread with cumin seeds and a fresh quince jelly. Dawn and I smile and discreetly adjust the waistbands as we lean back and sip a great B.C. wine: Dirty Laundry Madame’s Vines Gewurztraminer 2004. Dawn tries not to think about her early start tomorrow – her first patient at our physiotherapy clinic is waltzing in at 6:40 am –as she dips her spoon into a divine Mirabelle sorbet and eau de vie. We applaud the sugar-dusted Kugelhopf (an Alsatian, or is that Austrian? version of Italy’s pannetonne) as the staff parade it through the room. It returns, sliced, with a kirsch crème anglaise and the most wonderful fromage frais ice cream. Heaven on a plate and it’s not even chocolate!

We finish the meal, satiated and spell-bound by the banquet created by Michel, Rob and their assistant wizards – I mean, chefs – out of the magical kitchen. We sip our tea and latte, nibble again on dainty sweets and gaze out the window at yet another enchantment. What a perfect evening. It’s snowing.

Gail Pateman

Edited November 29, 2005 by Edible Vancouver (log)

[*Deborah*]

Oh, thank you Gail, well done!

[Ling]

What a great write-up...I feel (almost) as if I were there. Well, minus actually getting to taste all that wonderful food!

[BCinBC]

Thanks for the report Gail, I too felt like a little window had opened up for me to peek inside. Great work.

The quenelle / truffle / lobster dish sounded the most intriguing to me, I would love to see a photo if there are any out there. (Not that I can see a bunch of cameras coming out at an event like this, but on the off chance...)

Eric must have been quite disappointed, but lucky you - not to mention Ms Saunders.

[Brenda]

Did you see either of the chefs?

Your review was wonderful. Gail. It felt as if you were channeling

M.F.K Fisher as you wrote about your meal.

It also made me feel sleepy, very sleepy... but in a good way.

[Edible Vancouver]

Some photos as requested...

Many thanks to QuBic Lam who willing to share some of his photos

Edited November 30, 2005 by Edible Vancouver (log)

[nwyles]

Look at these Rock Stars !

Not a smudge on the aprons or a drop of sweat on the forehead.

I think the "magic wand" theory might actually be close to the truth.

I have worked a shift with Michel and he is sooooo clean. I think his jackets come in with a heavy starch, and some sort of teflon coating. And like the Werewolf of London, his hair is perfect !

Looks like a great time. Makes me wish I bought more tickets for the draw !

[Lancelot]

Great post.

I was there as well and it was very impressive.

There were a couple of discordant notes . I thought the eau de vie overwhelmed the the mirabelle plum sorbet, and the Dirty Laundry Gewurztraminer seemed a bit petroly with the dessert.

Wine wise I really enjoyed trying a RED Chassagne Montrachet and the Paul Blanck 01 Rosenberg. The Cote de Layon was very nice.We are very lucky to have as many good chefs in this town as we do.

[kurtisk]

There were a couple of discordant notes . I thought the eau de vie overwhelmed the the mirabelle plum sorbet, and the Dirty Laundry Gewurztraminer seemed a bit petroly with the dessert.

You'll stick with your signature though, right?

Don't let the minutes spoil the hours.

Super-envious of your evenin'!

k.

[Edible Vancouver]

Yes, we saw the chefs. Rob held court at the door of his kitchen; he generously answered questions about the meal and the recent renovations. During dinner, both chefs took some time out to address the room, simultaneously reminiscing and roasting. After the dinner, Michel graciously circulated the room. There seemed to be a lot of Le Crocodile fans in the crowd.

The quenelle dish and the lake trout were hands down my favourite. The quenelle was light and white and rich and creamy all at once. And the sauce...think lobster bisque reduced to a few tablespoons. I would've loved to lick that pot! The lake trout was perfectly cooked. I seem to remember it described as "baked", but it certainly didn't taste baked. I imagined that it had been poached in butter it was so smooth and rich. And the bed of choucroute - a little sweet and sour and the texture of sauteed onions.

Thank you to all who participated in the lottery - Dawn and I had a wonderful time. Here's to at least 10 more years for Lumiere and Le Crocodile!

[Matt R.]

But did anyone go in expecting Vegas, only to be pleasanty surprised by Vancouver?  I hear RF

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Okay, so after seeing the photos, I guess there was a little Vegas, too.

Here is the link to my Flickr account, hosting the 27 photos that I decided to put up. I got permission from the owner of the photos, but not Mr. Feenie or Mr. Trotter.

Credit for the photos goes to Brian Bradley (pastry chef where I work, winner of the Grand Marnier Dessert Challenge and a ticket to this event.. in one week) and credit for the food goes to everyone else involved, especially the cooks. There are very few descriptions, as the photos are high-quality and really speak for themselves. It looks amazing.

-- Matt.

[transfattyacid]

But did anyone go in expecting Vegas, only to be pleasanty surprised by Vancouver?  I hear RF

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Okay, so after seeing the photos, I guess there was a little Vegas, too.

Here is the link to my Flickr account, hosting the 27 photos that I decided to put up. I got permission from the owner of the photos, but not Mr. Feenie or Mr. Trotter.

Credit for the photos goes to Brian Bradley (pastry chef where I work, winner of the Grand Marnier Dessert Challenge and a ticket to this event.. in one week) and credit for the food goes to everyone else involved, especially the cooks. There are very few descriptions, as the photos are high-quality and really speak for themselves. It looks amazing.

-- Matt.

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Thanks for the link Matt.

ps well spotted re: Hellmans bucket behind the bar

[BCinBC]

Thanks Matt - and Mr Bradley - for the photos, some good peeks behind the scenes. All the courses look good, but 3 (lobster terrine), 5 (signature RF), 7 (boudin blanc), and 11 (cannoli) look extra special good. Odd.

[Ling]

Thanks so much for the pictures! I'll echo BCinBC and single out the lobster terrine, and the cannoli as two of my favourites. I also love the bold presentation of the Matsutake mushroom/Russian fingerling potato dish.

[mkjr]

Nice photos. Just not the "wow" factor I would have expected. I guess these pictures are not worth a thousand words....without having been there to smell and taste.

Edited November 30, 2005 by mkjr (log)

[chrisstearns]

ps well spotted re: Hellmans bucket behind the bar

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I guess the cat is out of the bag.

We weren't quite ready to debut our "Mayo-tini" yet.

[Memo]

Well. if you want to "hold the mayo" - a martini glass certainly facilitates that!

Chris - will your "Mayo-tini" have an interesting egg:oil ratio?

Memo

[BCinBC]

What we didn't see was the bucket of Parkay, and the shot of Chris mixing up the Marge-tini. "I can't believe it's not butter!"

Holy crap I watch too much TV.