La Ferme de Mon Pere

[jakubc]

I have two questions regarding Marc Veyrat's restaurant in Megeve:

1) Is the food served substantively different from that served at his place in Annecy. Some differences could perhaps be attributed to the seasons, but otherwise is the food the same or is it more rustic, sensuous, or generous?

2) This question can apply to any restaurants with seasonal closings: Is it advisable to go soon after a place reopens for the season? Does it take several days or weeks for the kitchen to hit its stride? While one would expect such concerns to be irrelevant at very high-caliber restaurants, in his post on Troisgros, Robert Brown wondered if some of his disappointment with the meal had to do with the restaurant just reopening. On the other side of the coin, is it bad to go to a place just before they close for the season (staff fatigue, etc.)?

[cabrales]

The food at Ferme is rather different from that at Annecy, with the differences in my mind being largely attributable to (1) seasonality of products, (2) dishes appropriate for different seasons and (3) Veyrat's "evolution" with respect to his cuisine. In mid 2001, I had two meals at Annecy; in early 2002, I had two meals at Ferme. Not to dissuade you from sampling Veyrat's cuisine, but I subjectively dislike it.

For your reference, below are indicative menus taken off Veyrat's current website. Note that the Symphony or Sonata tasting menus should be ordered, in view of a la carte pricing being very high. If you have specific questions about dishes, I have sampled probably at least 50% of them, so I could try to respond.

AUBERGE DE L'ERIDAON AT ANNECY A LA CARTE

For an apéritif, come and discover the sea breezes and mountain air...

Raspberry Royal, Cassis, Sloe Gin,

Wild strawberry, Blackberry 23 euro

Savoy Champagnette 23 euro

Champagne 23 euro

Beaumes de Venise 2000 Muscat 'Domaine des Bernardins' 23 euro

************

Let yourself be guided along mountain paths in the company of Marc Veyrat...

One Cold with Sour Purée and Cinnamon,

the other Hot with Fragrant Myrrh Vinegar 75 euro

Frog's Legs with Orange, liquorice, Extravagant Salad from Elsewhere 73 euro

Warm Squid Jelly

Warm Squid with Ivy Flavour, Cucumber,

Squid with Pistachio, Foamy Flaky Crab 60 euro

Sushi Ravioli

Three Raviolis from the Region, Sinful Sushi,

Spicy Oils, Hazelnuts, Olives, Bean sprouts

59 euro

************

Warm Hedge Woundwort Soup

Warm Hegde Woundwort Soup, Wilted Iced Echalottes,

Hint of Back Bacon 60 euro

Vegetables from Arthaz

Vegetables from Arthaz, semi-cooked, semi-raw,

Filled with Exotic Spiciness and sourness

54 euro

Chicken Consommé

Chicken Consommé, Melt-In-Your-Mouth Spaghetti

with Dairy Flavour, Chicken Liver Sorbet

67 euro

Soft Boiled Eggs

Semi-Soft-Boiled and Semi-Scrambbled Eggs, Foamy Nutmeg,

Hint of Wood Sorrel 54 euro

************

Char from the Region

Roasted Char in Spruce Bark

with Poppy Seed Milk 99 euro

Pieces of Lightly Sautéed Prawns, Yarrow Millefeuille Bonbons 99 euro

************

Lake Féra

Lake Féra Cooked on its Skin, Ice Cube,

with Alpine Avens Flavour

76 euro

River Stone Roast Turbot with a Gentle Touch of Bread Crumbs, Bitter Lemon Grass 85 euro

Turbot on a Stone

Turbot Cooked on a Stone from Arly, Verbena Balm Lozenges,

Wild Celery Coulis

88 euro

Delicately Smoked Lobster Dry Steamed Lobster, Good King Henry,

Freshly Steamed Junniper from Menthon

104 euro

Lamb Cooked in Clay Saddle of Lamb Cooked in Clay Flavoured with Wild Thyme,

Ramson Gratin

79 euro

************

Beef in a Crust Filet of Beef in a Crust, Green Apple Coulis,

Alpine Mugwort from Manigod, Greaseless French Fries

99 euro

Veal Filets

Veal Filets, Runny Yagourt with Queen of the Meadow,

Coffee Bonbons, New Rice, Swish of Black Juice

99 euro

Pigeon in Milk Poached Pigeon in Hogweed Milk,

Celery Raviolis with Vermicelli

88 euro

Savoy Cheese Platter from Aravis 23 euro

My Childhood Desserts...

Fruit Raviolis

Fruit Raviolis, Tomatoes, Pineapple, Mangoes and Similar Flavoured Sorbet 69 euro

Christina Cream

Christina Cream, Sweet and Sour, Lemon, Cinnamon, Passion Fruit,

Light Caramel Ice-Cream, Orange Flavoured Madeleine 61 euro

Chocolat Platter Wild Thyme Mille-feuille, Overflowing Biscuit,

Dairy Ice-Cream, Cacao Sorbet

73 euro

Cream Pots Old-Fashioned Cream Pot,

Alpine Flora Discovery 54 euro

Feuilleté

Mille-feuille Soufflé, Jar of Old-Fashioned Apricots, Cold Almond Coulis 70 euro

AUBERGE DE L'ERIDAN AT ANNECY -- TASTING MENUS

Sonata Menu

Hot Escalope of Liver, Fragrant Myrrh Vinegar

*

Half Soft-and-Scrambled Egg, Foamy Nutmeg, Spiked with Wood Sorrel

*

Warm Jelly with Ivy Flavour, Cucumber,

Squid with Pistachio, Flaky Crab

*

Three Raviolis from the Region, Sinful Sushi,

Spicy Oils, Hazelnuts, Olives, Bean Sprouts

*

Chicken Consommé, Melt-in-Your-Mouth Spaghetti with Dairy Flavour,

Chicken Liver Sorbet

*

Lake Féra Cooked on its Skin,

Ice Cube with Alpine Avens Flavour

*

Turbot Cooked on a Stone from Arly,

Verbena Balm Lozenges, Wild Celery Coulis

*

Hedge Woundwort Soup, Iced Wilted Echalottes,

Hint of Back Bacon

*

Baby Potato Cappuccino with Truffles, Cloud of Cocoa

*

Warm Duck Irish Coffee,

Iced Corn Soufflé, Caraway Bonbons

*

Saddle of Lamb Cooked in Clay Flavoured with Wild Mountain Thyme,

Ramson Gratin

or

Poached Pigeon with Hogweed Milk,

Celery Raviolis with Vermicelli

*

Savoy Cheese Platter from Aravis

*

My Childhood Desserts

*

220 Euro VAT included

Symphony Menu

Hot Escalope of Liver, Fragrant Myrrh Vinegar

*

Half Soft-and-Scrambled Egg, Foamy Nutmeg, Spiked with Wood Sorrel

*

Warm Jelly with Ivy Flavour, Cucumber,

Squid with Pistachio, Flaky Crab

*

Three Raviolis from the Region, Sinful Sushi,

Spicy Oils, Hazelnuts, Olives, Bean Sprouts

*

Chicken Consommé, Melt-in-Your-Mouth Spaghetti with Dairy Flavour,

Chicken Liver Sorbet

*

Roasted Char in Spruce Bark, Poppy Seed Milk

*

Turbot Cooked on a Stone from Arly, Verbena Balm Lozenges,

Wild Celery Coulis

*

Dry Steamed Lobster, Good King Henry,

Fresh Juniper from Menthon

*

Hedge Woundwort Soup, Iced Wilted Echalottes,

Hint of Back Bacon

*

Baby Potato Cappuccino with Truffles, Cloud of Cocoa

*

Warm Duck Irish Coffee, Iced Corn Soufflé, Caraway Bonbons

*

Filet of Beef in a Crust, Coulis of Green Apples,

Mugwort from Manigod, Greaseless French Fries

or

Veal Filet, Queen of the Meadow Runny Yoghurt,

Coffee Bonbons, New Rice, Swish of Black Juice

*

Savoy Cheese Platter from Aravis

*

My Childhood Desserts

*

298 Euro VAT included

The Symphony Menu will only be served to the entire group of guests at table.

I probably have menus from Ferme de Mon Pere that I can type up. However, I am somewhat pressed for time, so please post in this thread if the menus would aid your decision.

Marc Veyrat's presentation methods for certain dishes at Ferme de Mon Pere.  He utilized glass testtubes with cork stoppers.  For me, that kind of presentation method is becoming distracting (not that I would otherwise be particularly impressed with his cuisine).  

-- Consumme de poule du pays, sorbet de foie gras, vermicelles de parmesan (chicken consumme, foie gras sorbet, parmesan noodles).  This dish was my least favorite during the meal, and contained "noodles" (not as thin as vermicelli reference suggests) made out of parmesan (quite pungent, for some reason) and chestnut or hazelnut.  These noodles were displayed in a testtube, with half of their length outside the tube.  The dining room team member asked me to taste a few of them with my fingers ( ! ), and to place them inside a pottery soup bowl that contained the foie gras sorbet.  Then, a pottery jug with chicken soup was poured over the noodles and foie gras, and the diner was asked to stir (with a spoon, thankfully).  The resulting concoction was confused.  The testtube reappeared later, containing a sauce.

Even sillier was Veyrat's inclusion of syringes in his presentation method.  Like the testtubes, this is a recent development.  This appeared in two dishes.  

-- L'oeuf seringue a la muscade, ecume de mais (egg with nutmeg and corn).  This dish was quite tasty, as an emptied egg shell was refilled with scrambled eggs made only with yolk.  On top of that and still inside the egg was a light emulsion of corn (with a subtle flavor).  A dining room team member brought a plastic (?) syringe with a little cloth covering the "plunger"'s upper part (to add to the Savoyard presentation) and injected liquid nutmet into the dish.

-- Langoustines juste poelees en morceaux, bonbons a l'achillee millefeuille (pan-fried langoustine pieces, with a candy made from an herb/flower? from the region).  This dish was quite good, as the langoustine meat was well-prepared and the bonbons were liquid-filled (slight hint of mint or licorce perhaps).  Oddly, there was a deep-fried oval ball of langoustines meat presented inside the emptied and cleaned head of the (very large) langoustine.  A dining room team member came by the table with a syringe containing mandarin jus for injection into the deep-fried item.  

[Wilfrid]

I'm suprised to find a squid up a mountain path!

Two friends who live in Switzerland dined at the Farm recently and spoke very highly of it: enjoy.

[jakubc]

Cabrales:

Could you describe the "evolution" of Veyrat's cuisine? Are the test tubes and syringes indicative of a more modern and scientific approach to his cooking (influences of Adria perhaps)?

Did you chose the tasting menu? I do not think it is necessary for you to post the menus from your trips unless you feel that they would offer significant insight (which the mention of syringes and test tubes did). I have seen the old menus on his web site.

[cabrales]

jakubc -- I have never eaten at Adria (yes, that's the case), so I cannot speak to comparisons to Adria. Did you see the Ferme de Mon Pere menu a while ago, before it was taken off the Veyrat website? If so, I am not going to type in my menus from earlier this year.

My own sense is that it is worth going to sample any three-star in France, even though I would find Veyrat to be among the weaker three-stars. Certain other members appear to take a contrary view to this food. Also, one should sample something to judge for onself.

[Bux]

We dined at Veyrat a little over three years ago. He had not yet opened the restaurant in Megeve and I can't speak for the changes in his cuisine since, but it was an exceptional meal. If it wasn't the best meal of our lives, it was certainly a contender for that honor. , It was certainly not the most rustic meal I have ever had, but there was an earthiness about the food as well as a sense of the region that contributed it its appeal. It was sensuous food, but I'd probably say that about all great food. Either that, or I'd need to find food sensuous before I'd say it was really great. As much as I can say any meal in that price rage is generous, this was a particularly generous meal in more than one way. The meal was very satisfying and one felt the chef and the kitchen gave it everything they had. I'd also have to note that Veyrat sent out several main courses that were not on the menu between our last savory course and the cheeses, I'm not sure why we were the beneficiaries of such generosity, but he was generous to us.

[ajay]

Bux,

How would you compare Veryat and Bras, given that they both seem to be striving to create an experience based on the terroir of their regions, or have I misapprehended the concept undergirding their respective cuisines?

[Bux]

Bux,

How would you compare Veryat and Bras, given that they both seem to be striving to create an experience based on the terroir of their regions, or have I misapprehended the concept undergirding their respective cuisines?

Ajay, that's an excellent question and I hardly feel qualified to offer a definitive comparison after only one meal at each, especially as the meals were three years apart. We had dinner at Bras and stayed in one of his least expensive rooms for about 175 euros. We had lunch at Veyrat, not the least because his rooms start at just over 400 euros. In both cases we were there at somewhat off season, but at Veyrat the room was considerably less full and we had more attention and perhaps better service. To cover a question asked by jakubc, that I didn't answer earlier, it was the first day of the season at Bras and dinner was the first meal served for the season. In spite of that, the food was flawless and it was evident that cooks were in the kitchen well before opening day. There was a glitch or two in the service early in the evening that got us off into a bad start. It wasn't anything fatal, and I suspected things would go more smoothly in the front of the house in a few more days. I'm dwelling on these peripheral things because I think a first time diner is apt to be very influenced by unfamiliar surroundings in a way that may influence the meal, or at least an appreciation of it. I recall being a bit annoyed at the beginning of the evening at Bras and as a result I looked at the wine list with some less interest than I might have had our pause in the lounge for an aperatif gone more smoothly. Did it have a negative affect on my final appreciation of the meal? I don't know. Veyrat's place is very homey and a bit rustic in spite of extensive investment. Bras very modern inn is quite a different experience.

Both chefs are successful in creating their cuisine and they both tie their food to the local terrior, but in different ways. There's an emphasis with Veyrat on foraging for wild herbs, flowers and roots of the Alpine countryside. Bras seems more interested in the traditional farm products. The differences in style of their cuisine are not so easy for me to compare offhand, right now. One similarity was that both, as I recall, limited their cheese selection to local cheeses and both offered an excellent choice, although with Veyrat it was limited to a couple of different cheeses and a selection of each at varying ages. In an odd way, while I see Veyrat's cheese cart as tighter and more intellectual is closer to how I would describe Bras' cooking. I think of Veyrat as the more romantic expansive cook. So my understanding of their respective cuisines is probably not so well formed. A further difference between the two meals that might also color my comparison is that we arrived at Veyrat rather ravenous, having had a light dinner the night before and little for breakfast. We ordered the tasting menu and Gagnaire regaled us with extra courses. Unfortunately we timed our day poorly before arriving at Bras. We had a later lunch than we intended and ate more than we should have. We had a limited appetite by dinner time and ordered the smaller of the two special menus.

[jakubc]

About a month ago, I visited France for the first time. The culinary highlight occurred on my last full day of the very memorable three weeks with a six-hour lunch at La Ferme de mon Pere. My curiosity about Marc Veyrat was piqued two years ago, when the NY Times ran an article about him and his two restaurants in the Alps. What I found interesting at the time was his use of exotic and indigenous herbs in his cuisine.

Three star restaurants are considered to be “worth the trip” and taking the lunch did involve quite a bit of effort. The night before I drove up from Aix-en-Provence—a 400km drive. My lunch reservation was on the restaurant’s seasonal opening, a Saturday in the middle of December. Ski season was to begin the following week, and Megeve was hence relatively quiet, with a number of the hotels still closed.

Having looked at Veyrat’s website and having read others’ experiences at his restaurants, I expected to be presented a very generous cuisine. I was not sure as to whether I would like it, as some of the more recent reviews on e-Gullet had questioned Marc’s approach. But in order to prepare myself for a gastronomic marathon, I only ate fruit in the morning and took a long walk in the crisp alpine air before arriving at the restaurant.

Because it was the seasonal opening, a journalist was outside with Marc, taking photographs. I grabbed the chance to take one myself.

Before I was seated, the maitre d’ gave me a tour of the restaurant. The dining room is on the top level of a chalet. Below are the cellar, cheese cave, and pens with pigs, sheep, and chickens. One can see these from the dining room as well, through the glass windows in the floor. My table was set in a small alcove, not too far away from a stall with a cow. I particularly enjoyed my table as it offered a direct glimpse into the kitchen. Probably because it was the opening day, things appeared a little chaotic initially as the staff flitted about the dining room seating the arriving patrons.

As my lunch entailed around twenty courses, I will mention the key points of the experience. Before being presented with a menu, I was given a plate with three amuse bouches. One of them was a hollowed out pumpkin filled with a pumpkin soup on top of which was thin layer of cream with a rich flavor of smoked bacon. Looking in the Michelin guide, I now see that this is one of the recommended dishes (“Potimaron en soupe, ecume de lard fume”). It certainly was one of the best soups I have eaten anywhere. The smoothness of the soup made me wonder how many times it had passed through a chinois. The flavors, while perhaps not sounding that exciting, really were very delicate and clear. In general, I found that throughout the course of the meal, the flavors I was eating were extremely clear —a sensation comparable to looking through a window that has just been cleaned.

I did not spend much time perusing the menu. As Cabrales has mentioned, many of the items on the menu are quite expensive (just having taken a peak now to his website I see most entrees in the 80+ Euro range with four at 195 Euros). The Symphony menu offers the diner a chance to sample most of the items on the menu for a lot less relatively speaking, and I thus chose it. For some reason, the smaller Sonata was not offered. As a final note, I add that the price of the Symphony was 298 Euros, whereas now it is listed at 315.

The three other courses that really stand out in my mind were:

Crozets savoyards virtuels au jus de poule degraisse—a chicken consommé poured over a round disc that looks like a little pancake. The disc magically dissolves. The diner is instructed to eat this course by drinking directly from the soup bowl by tilting it just as hungry child might. The consommé was very rich and clean and dissolved crozets added an interesting element of saltiness. Even without the crozets though, the consommé was remarkable.

Legumes oublies d’hier, d’ajourd’hui et de demain dans une terrre d’argile—forgotten root vegetables served with a black truffle sauce. The vegetables arrive in a clay container which is cracked with a little pick. A small sack is taken out and opened with the root vegetables over which the very rich sauce is poured. I have not had much exposure to truffles, but I did have the opportunity to sample them a number of times while in France. After eating this dish, I finally realized why people are so enthusiastic about them. The truffles flavor was integrated and concentrated into the sauce exceptionally well. I am a big fan of root vegetables, and this dish was probably my favorite.

Le quatres crèmes brulees—the four crèmes did not actually have the caramel top I had expected. I do not know if this was due to time issues on opening day or whether the dish is always served as such. The NY Times in its article showed the crèmes with the caramel crust The crèmes were all delicate infusions of plants (the two flavors I remember were verbena and chicory) and had an interesting texture halfway between liquid cream and a more set crème brulee. I was struck by the purity of the flavors.

The meal was memorable in several regards. One was being able to see Veyrat himself. Seated on a large table next to mine was a family with whom Marc was chatting. When the woman saw me looking over in their direction, she came over and introduced herself as Marc’s wife. She asked if I was a journalist because of the photo incident. I told her that I was simply visiting from NY. She mentioned that Marc is thinking of possibly installing himself here.

I wonder how well such a venture would work, as I had the impression that Veyrat’s commanding presence in the restaurant was quite essential to its performance. From where I sat, I could see the incredible speed with which the kitchen was performing. I have for example stared into the Jean Georges kitchen from outside and the intensity seemed to be several magnitudes higher at La Ferme. At one point, I saw Marc in the kitchen. He grabbed one of the cooks by the nape and spun him out of my sight, furious at something.

I also enjoyed the wide assortment of breads offered. Admittedly, I only got to sample half of them because I wanted to save room for the real food. Favorites were the Polaine (spelling?) and the bread with bacon.

The staff was extremely welcoming and competent. With the first course of foie gras, the sommelier recommended a wonderful wine from the region (vin de paille arbois f lornet). For the rest of the meal I had a half-bottle of the 1990 Bougros Regnard Chablis, which I chose myself. I do not know much about wine, and I think I could have done a lot better. The wine was good in the sense that it did not distract from the food, but it certainly was not as good as the one Ravenau I have had. A glass of Sauternes and verbena tea ended the marathon.

After the meal was over, I had a seven-hour drive through the Alps back to Nice, where I had to catch a plane the next day. I had consciously moderated my drinking for the drive back. It was a really long drive, but I was able to enjoy the peace of the quiet night and the memories of a really exceptional meal.

As a final thought, I add my general impression of Veyrat’s cuisine which seems to be focused on novel and vibrant flavors. There were a few courses which offered tastes walking the fine line between interesting and too strong. The egg with nutmeg is an example. There were also little flavor pellets with several of the dishes that contained extremely concentrated flavors. Despites its pastoral name and simple country decor, La Ferme offered very cutting edge cuisine (at least for me). It is a place where I would go for inspiration or for a very special experience. It was a nice contrast to Restaurant Troisgros, which I also very much enjoyed during my trip. Troisgros seemed to take the opposite approach, offering a very modern décor and perfect classical food. Unlike La Ferme, I could see myself eating at Troisgros several nights in a row. I think that just as some diners have found el Bulli to be challenging, I found Veyrat to be the same, in a good way. I also asked about the status of desserts at La Ferme, because I had (perhaps falsely) gotten the impression that his daughter was responsible for making them. From what I was told by the staff, the desserts are simply her favorites.

I have attached a copy of the symphony menu taken from the website and identical to what I was served:

menu symphonie

(hiver 2002-2003)

Cubisme de foie gras, mikado, jus aigrelet d’Alisier de montagne

*

Œuf coque, brouillé, piqûre d’Oxalis, écume de muscade

*

Grenouilles caramélisées, réglisse sauvage, salade étrange, vinaigrette d’orange

*

Frites de polenta piquées au parmesan, poivrons, sardines du pauvre

*

Crozets savoyards virtuels au jus de poule dégraissé

*

La folie de la mer, l’œil montagnard moderne

*

Saint-Pierre aux arômes d’amande, riz basmati,

caramel acide cuit sur un galet du Fier

*

Saint-Jacques, dattes confites, citronnelle amère

*

Langoustines, pelures de pamplemousse confites, semoule virtuelle d’eucalyptus

*

Légumes oubliés d’hier, d’aujourd’hui et de demain cuits dans une terre d’argile

*

Cappuccino de pommes de terre aux truffes et cacao

*

Nuggets de pigeon, coulis de fenouil, écume anisée, pipette noire,

le bonbon fou au Carvi

*

Ris de veau, paille de berce, salière d’olives et de noisettes

bonbon à nouveau fou à la chicorée

ou

Filet de bœuf des Alpes ou d’ailleurs de chez Monsieur Jargot,

Jus de pommes vertes acides, frites réalisées sans huile

*

Le bonbon de caviar (oscietre), Chantilly de tussilage

*

Plateau de fromages des Savoies

*

Les sorbets, les cornets de notre maître Dali

Gelée d’agrumes, arôme de verveine citronnée, bugnes de ma grand-mère

Soufflé de pommes renversées, tube à essai, épluchures

Les quatre crèmes brûlées diététiques, senteurs de la récolte d’été

[cabrales]

jakubc -- Thanks for your informative report. A couple of questions and thoughts on my part in response:

-- At Ferme, were you immediately seated in the dining room or were you initially placed on the upper floor seating area? (My subjectively preferred spot in the dining room is near the chickens, which is directly ahead (in a little corner of sorts) when one enters the main dining area. I have not been seated there yet.)

-- Œuf coque, brouillé, piqûre d’Oxalis, écume de muscade -- Is this dish still being served with the syringe, and, if so, what was your reaction to that presentation method?

-- Crozets savoyards virtuels au jus de poule degraisse -- This dish appears relatively new, although I can't be sure. Could you describe the dissolution process of the disc a bit more (e.g., the rapidity with which that occurred)?

-- Cappuccino de pommes de terre aux truffes et cacao -- The potato/cacao combination used to manifest itself in the form of pureed potatoes, over which would be dusted (partially) dry cacao powder. Please describe the capuccino, and how the cacao was integrated into the capuccino, if you recall.

-- The creme brulee samplers I have had at Veyrat's do have the normal, thin crust on top, consistent with the NYT report you noted.

-- Veyrat has produced a number of new dishes since only about a year ago.

-- On Troisgros, what is fascinating is that certain classical leanings have been retained, yet M Troisgros has been influenced by Asian spicing to a controlled extent. Depending on what is ordered, that can be more or less apparent. Troisgros is one of my favorite restaurants.

[jakubc]

Cabrales:

After being shown around, I was immediately seated. I did have to wait a little while before I could order an aperitif though, as things seemed to be a little wild.

The egg was presented as you and Lizziee have described--a staff member injects the egg with a rather large syringe. Certainly, a more appetizing way to get the nutmeg emulsion into the egg could be found. As far as the flavor of the dish goes, the taste of nutmeg is quite strong. This is dish that I do not think would work in larger quantities, but as a small course, it was interesting.

The crozetes struck me as perhaps similar to the noodles that came in a test tube that you mentioned. I was warned that something unexpected would happen when they added the broth. The dissolving is quite sudden, giving something not so dissimilar to egg yolk. Certainly on the order of 15-30 seconds.

The cocoa cappucino was as you describe. I think I enjoyed the dish in the small format, but I would not want eat a whole plateful of it and pay the 195 Euros I am not sure about the value of cocoa in the dish.

I recall really liking the pototoes with the truffles at the bottom.

[zeitoun]

I have read one or two articles suggesting that Marc Veyrat was thinking of closing one of his flagship restaurants (La Ferme de mon Pere in Megeve). Is it true? Would this mean that this season's closing in April might be the very last at his restaurant? Was there any more recent information released that would shed more light on this?

[Bux]

I've no news on the matter, but you say "flagship" which would assume he had a fleet of restaurants. I'm not aware of any but the two restaurants, each of which operates in season. There's no news on his web site to indicate he's closed la ferme.

[zeitoun]

but you say "flagship" which would assume he had a fleet of restaurants.

←

A poor translation of "un de ses restaurants phare"

[cigalechanta]

I read he was going to open one in New York.

[zeitoun]

I read he was going to open one in New York.

←

I know he plans to open something in Paris, but in NY!??!? Where did you read this?

[Le Zouave]

New York? I'd also like to know where that came from?! As far as Paris is concerned, he's supposed to have found a place in the 17th -- but nothing has opened yet. It should be something really small, maybe for less than 20 people, some kind of "gastro-lab" where he'd have some lucky and rich folks try his new recipes. But one must say, honestly, that Veyrat has been talking about his parisian restaurant for years -- and what have we seen for the moment? Nothing, exactly.

[cigalechanta]

Sorry, I was given the wrong information.

I came across these comments about closing the restaurant.

http://fora.erobertparker.com/cgi-bin/ulti...=7;t=002194;p=0

[John Talbott]

New York?  I'd also like to know where that came from?! As far as Paris is concerned, he's supposed to have found a place in the 17th -- but nothing has opened yet. It should be something really small, maybe for less than 20 people, some kind of "gastro-lab" where he'd have some lucky and rich folks try his new recipes. But one must say, honestly, that Veyrat has been talking about his parisian restaurant for years -- and what have we seen for the moment? Nothing, exactly. 

←

My memory is hazy, but isn't the "gastro-lab"on the Av Niel? I know I saw it somewhere, but can't find it by searching. Anyway, he also has some, (? how much given the reviews), interest in the new resto at Roland Garros called, I believe, Roland.

[kkwchan]

I was planning to visit his three Michelin star winter restaurant in December, but just heard that he sold it recently. He will just focus on his 3 star summer restaurant la Maison.

Anyone has more news on this?

[cigalechanta]

No, I did hear he was opening one in Paris. We dined at the one on Lac Annecy.

[Le Zouave]

Rumours he was about to close la Ferme de mon père started in january 2005, but I havn't heard anything new since. Rumours he was about to open in Paris started... when? 1999? 2000? Again, nothing really new since, except he said last year that he had found a place in the 17th. We're still waiting...

[kkwchan]

Rumours he was about to close la Ferme de mon père started in january 2005, but

←

Just called la Ferme for reservation next year. They said they just changed ownership and chef.

[Bu Pun Su]

Does anybody know who is the new owner and chef of La Ferme de mon Pere?

I just visited Marc Veyrat's official website and we could no longer book this restaurant via this website. I guess this is no longer a rumour after all.

When is Chef Veyrat going to open his new Paris restaurant? I heard it's somewhere near the Roland Garros.

[fresh_a]

The space he bought is in the 17eme--but still no news , even though it should have been open already months ago...