Saturday, November 11, 2017

Guy Savoy Paris

Guy Savoy, the Legion d'Honneur recipient, is one of the most famous and respectable French chefs. His eponymous restaurant has held 3-star Michelin for 15 years or so. I had a chance to savor his creations for the 1st time in 2008 when the restaurant was still located at rue Troyon (now converted into a sea food restaurant named Etoile-sur-Mer), then around 2013 in Guy Savoy Singapore (closed for good unfortunately). The meals were good but nothing spectacular. However, the restaurant attracted my attention again when the chef-owner announced that he would move to a grander place at Hôtel de la Monnaie, on the Left bank near the Seine. It became a reality in 2015; in addition early this year La Liste selected restaurant Guy Savoy Paris to be at the top of its list. I thought that probably now it's time to return there and it happened when I visited Paris in May 2017.

As I arrived at the restaurant, I had to walk up a majestic red-carpeted staircase. Then, as you approached the main entrance, the door would open on its own accord. I was escorted to my seat by the hostess and soon after that, a familiar face greeted me - Mr. Hubert Schwermer! I was surprised and glad that he's still with the restaurant. I was not after any particular dishes of Guy Savoy, hence degustation menu was my logical choice. The meal began with several amuse-bouche, such as small foie gras sandwich, a plate of vegetables and purple beetroots. There was no more bread trolley (or bread pairing). The bread was baked in the house and supplied by Frederic Lalos, the youngest "Meilleur Ouvrier de France" winner.    

Set Menu: Colours, Textures and Flavours

L'huître concassée, granité algue et citron (“Concasse” of Oysters, seaweed and lemon granite) - The oyster tartare was fresh, briny and filled with iodine essence. The seaweed, tart granite and a bit of olive oil highlighted the creamy and tasty oyster. It's a dish that's full of ocean flavor; very pleasant

Surprise de homard (Lobster 'surprise') - The lobster, served slightly below room temperature, was surprisingly rather lack in flavor but the texture was still nice. The subtle clear consomme and carrot helped the shellfish - decent but not as delicious as I had expected

Caviar, l'œuf en sabayon fumé (Caviar, potatoes with smoked sabayon and chips) - The mild and earthy potatoes were 'improved' by the creamy & flavorful sabayon as well as distinctly nutty & salty caviar. Dip the crisp chips in the light, smoky yellow 'sauce' to optimize the experience ... it was a very good caviar-based dish but I missed the Colors of caviar

Accompanied by wine: 2014 Chablis Premier Cru Côte de Léchet Domaine Jean Dauvissat Père & Fils (In short, it's long, beautiful and complex - floral & herbal aroma, mineral nose and delicate taste. A good matching for the oyster and lobster) 

Des legumes ('Vertical' vegetables) - Essentially, it was a combination of raw and cooked seasonal vegetables served with their broth and perfumed by lemongrass. Some of my seasonal items were asparagus, carrot, leeks, celery, radish, turnip etc; alright - not as impressive as l'Arpege veggies

Un morceau d'énorme turbot cuisiné tout simplement (Fillet of giant Turbot, cooked simply) - About 1 hour before this course finally arrived, the staff brought and showed to all customers the giant "pretty" Turbot that would be cooked as part of the dish served at degustation menu. The fish was firm and yummy especially when eaten with the sauce made of its jus and vinegar. In contrast to the firm Turbot, we had softer and buttery mashed potatoes. A nice and balanced dish!

Puy lentils with black Truffles - This was an extra dish from the kitchen. A simple and humble dish that was carefully prepared can be awesome. The lentils were earthy with some peppery flavor; they went along well with the scented truffle

Accompanied by wine: 2015 Condrieu Les Grandes Chaillées Domaine Du Monteillet Stéphane Montez (Aroma of oak and honey, less dry compared to the my earlier wine, medium palate and a bit bitter - quite good pairing, but I may not enjoy to drink this by itself)

Soupe d'artichaut à la truffe noire, brioche feuilletée aux champignons et beurre de truffes (Artichoke soup with black truffle; layered brioche with mushrooms and truffles) - The timeless and arguably the most popular dish of Guy Savoy. I felt that the soup was more intense and deeper in flavor than during my first visit, which was a good thing. The rich soup worked in harmony with the salty parmesan, pungent / garlicky truffle and flaky + 'sinful' brioche with black truffle butter. I asked for a second brioche to wipe clean the soup

Selle et carré d'agneau « version Sud » (Saddle and loin of lamb; 'South version') - I forgot to take the picture of this dish. The young milk-fed lamb was from Pyrenees. The saddle was fine, smooth and flavorful while the loin was fatty, tender and also delicious. It was served with artichoke, spinach and the lamb jus. The portion was very small sadly ...

Accompanied by wine: 2014 Saint-Joseph Cuvée Le Berceau Domaine Bernard Gripa (Deep, some fruity and tannin, woody - a lot of potential for further development, 3 more years should be more ideal. It went nicely with my lamb course) 

Saint-Nectaire, la croûte et le champagne en gelée (Rind-on Saint Nectaire farmstead cheese with champagne jellies) - The cheese was kinda sweet with rich & creamy texture and fruity aroma. The condiments 'helped' elevate the already succulent cow cheese a bit ..

Coconut sorbet with pineapple and passion fruit - A good palate cleanser that almost tasted like "deconstructed" virgin pina colada. Sweet, refreshing and a bit sour

Le mille-feuille minute à la vanille de Tahaa (Millefeuille ‘à la minute’ with Taha’an vanilla) - What can I say? It's pretty much perfect. The puff pastry layers were light and delicate but held the vanilla cream well. The Tahitian vanilla cream was amazing - pure, not overly sweet and fragrant; I ended up finishing the 'extra' cream put on the sides. It's the most delicious thing I ate for this meal

L'écrin de chocolat noir (Dark chocolate parcel) - The presentation was visually beautiful. It was made of Papuan dark chocolate with its strong cream, sea salt biscuit and chocolate sorbet. Pure decadent for chocolate lovers

At the end, Hubert himself came and served me trolley of ice creams, sorbets, dessert jars and traditional biscuits. This was one of the best things about the 'old school' French gastronomy. There were lots of stuffs but the small portion was just right. I had praline and vanilla rice pudding (the best), passion fruit and chocolate macaroons, strawberry shortcake, cheese and chocolate cake, caramel cream and sorbets (mango, ginger and earl grey). Overall, the food was about as good as the one I had nearly a decade ago except the desserts were much better. The service dropped slightly simply because the restaurant was full and the staffs tried their best to balance serving the dishes promptly and entertaining guests. Approximately, there were at least 50 diners occupying 5 different salons, therefore I could understand why compared to my last visit, the hospitality was less personalized. I did not see chef Guy Savoy visiting the dining room or greeting guests this time.

I was glad that Guy Savoy finally got a much deserved and better place for his restaurant. The establishment was palace-like and architect Jean-Michel Wilmotte led the renovation of this old building so that it would be more 'relevant' in the 21st century. The interior was generally dark with some shades of grey; high ceiling and tall windows allowed plenty of natural lights. The 'dominant' black colors were contrasted to the bright and white tablecloths as well as a few colorful tableware decorations. Similar to his old restaurant, there were plenty of (modern) paintings and sculptures enriched this dining room and enhanced its atmosphere. Ultimately, a meal at Guy Savoy was not about incredible and uber delicious dishes. It's always the whole package - high level cooking using superb ingredients; affable, fun and caring hospitality; comforting environment and generous food by the host. Regardless of any not-so-positive things I wrote here, I was glad that I made this return. The link for the pictures: Guy Savoy Paris May '17

If any of you want to see how Guy Savoy food has progressed, here are the pictures of my old meal at rue Troyon: Guy Savoy Oct '08

Food (and Wine): 95 pts

Service (and Ambiance): 95 pts

Overall: 95/100

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