L'Arpege Alain Passard - 2nd visit

Michelin 3-star establishments have always been identical with places serving excellent food and wine accompanied by outstanding hospitality set up in unique and comfortable ambiance. Being an adventurous person who loves surprises, I do not want to return to the same place twice unless that restaurant is, of course, exceptional. By that time I arrived at this place, I have been fortunate enough to eat at more than ten different 3-star restaurants in Europe. After having breathed fresh air along the sides of Hôtel des Invalides, I finally reached a deathly quiet street near Musée Rodin just before the sunset. Where was I? The title above should tell it all … yes, at the end I “betrayed” my own tradition. L’Arpege, the place serving me the meal of my life a year before, is the first and only 3-star temple so far where I’ve visited twice. At first, I prefer to try other places like: Guy Savoy or Le Meurice after receiving several excellent reviews from many foodies whom I respected. However, the cooking of L’Arpege’s chef patron – Alain Passard, a great chef who is almost certain to go down in history as one of the best ever, is very difficult to resist. Throughout the year, I could still “taste” his prawn carpaccio with osetra caviar, slowly cooked monkfish with mustard emulsion or free range chicken with garden vegetables in my dream. With such wonderful memories, I was convinced that I had to return to L’Arpege, especially after having found out from the website that it offers many dishes I’ve never tried before.

Upon entering the restaurant through the heavy door, I was escorted to my table located in the center of the restaurant. For most part, the décor at L’Arpege looked familiar to me – it is (still) relatively small and informal in which brown and earth-colored orange dominate the wall. A candle lit at each table as well as the place’s limited cove light make for an austere ambiance; at the back of the restaurant, one could see the portrait of Alain Passard’s grandmother, from whom the chef drew his inspiration. In addition, a watermelon from the chef’s farm is put at every table this time. Unlike the décor, I hardly recognized any L’Arpege’s staffs except for one – Helene; the lady who fried my all-time favorite dessert – crystallized tomato with 12 flavors. Later I found out from Laurent Lapaire, the restaurant manager that half of the L’Arpege’s front team has changed including the former chef sommelier, Stéphane Thivat who currently managed a wine cellar outside Paris. But we know that Passard’s team members usually leave because of bigger opportunities to improve their career – Pascal Barbot and L’Astrance is probably the most famous example. Not only that, even Passard gave his regular customers’ contact lists to help L’Astrance took off faster. Furthermore, the chef’s former apprentices are spread out all over the places including Singapore and Tokyo.

Anyway, let’s get back to the main theme: my 2nd experience at L’Arpege. As soon as I sat down, I was offered an aperitif - this time I had a glass of Champagne Krug Brut Grande Cuvée - balanced and full of finesse, wonderfully creamy and more importantly has a long, lingering finish. In short - simply stunning! After that, while flipping the menu, I indulge myself in Monsieur Bordier’s irresistible salted butter from Saint-Malo spread over in-house freshly baked bread. Upon reading the menu, I “happily” decide to order the degustation menu (combining the elements of earth and sea) even though it would break my bank account. The only dishes that were not changed compared to what I had before are the house specialties – the famous poached egg (Good news: it’s the restaurant official amuse bouche and you no longer need to order the tasting menu anymore in order to taste this dish) and cheese selection by Bernard Antony. Moreover, this time chef Alain Passard was in the kitchen, so it’s normal to expect that I would have a better overall dining experience compared to the first one.

Menu Pleine Terre, Pleine Mer

L’oeuf à la coque (A warm egg poached in its shell served with sherry vinegar and maple syrup) - If you just take the top without mixing it with the syrup, it’s rather acidic due to the fresh cream - but the mixture of it (bitter and sweet) is fantastic – pristine taste with silky texture. The egg itself is barely warm and runny. A good way to awaken my palate

Parfums (belle saison) crème soufflé au Speck (Veloute of vegetables served with cream of smoked ham) - This "soup" served warm; the saltiness of the ham is reduced with the vegetables - leaving out the possible cloying taste from this dish. Oh … that Krug champagne helps too

(Radisotto) printanier à la moutarde d’Orléans parmigiano reggiano (Spring radishes “Risotto” served with mustard and parmesan cheese) - My anticipation is high, but I just realized that the best ingredients for any "risotto" dish is still rice. The flavors worked just fine, but some mustard and the cheese make it a bit too sour

Jardinière Arlequin à l’huile d’argan (cuisine choisie) à la coriandre (Selection of fresh herbs from the garden – beetroots, couscous, turnips, different kind of carrots - served with Argon oil from Morocco) - Is this supposed to be the star for the night? Well, surprisingly I’m not too impressed. Most of the vegetables are freshly prepared and excellent, especially the carrots - crunchy and sweet - and the Argon oil - light and delectable, but they don’t mixed too well … I prefer to enjoy each vegetable separately as side dishes

Turbot de Bretagne (belle saison) (Slowly cooked Brittany turbot served with butter sauce and fava beans) - I expected much more in L’Arpege than simply some vegetable dishes. Here is the savior: a thin and precisely cut turbot (the whole fish is cooked in low temperature for several hours). The taste is unbelievably delicious, one can taste the tasty meat integrated with the full flavor of the fish’s skin and fat. I could not tell which one is better - this or the monk fish I ate a year before

Aiguillettes de homard des Îles Chausey côtes du Jura (Lobster from the Chausey archipelago braised in the yellow wine foam of the Jura and peppered cabbage leaf) - A perfect dish! The portion is generous; the lobster is ethereal - deliciously sweet and buttery with "tender" structure. In addition, it’s enhanced with the acidic taste from the yellow wine and sorrels. Mamma mia! Another back to back perfect dish - the last time was the monk fish followed by the chicken

Fines ravioles fleuries aux herbes consommé vegetal (Thin vegetables ravioli served in clear soup) - Somehow, it took quite some times for the kitchen to prepare the lamb. That’s why I receive this bonus dish - simple consommé where the vegetables, along with the soup’s salty essence, are right and balanced

T-bone d’agneau de Lozère aux algues et escargots de mer poivre noir Serawak (T-bone of Lozere’s lamb served with sea snails, parsley sauce, potatoes and Sarawak black pepper) - Another perfect dish? Well, almost … the sides part of the lamb’s tender meat served with its crispy skin plus the sinful layer of fat are amazing. The potatoes and parsley sauce are good. The only weakness is that the meat’s part near the T-bone is slightly overcooked hence rather hard; the flavor there was also weakened unfortunately

Fromages de chèvre de Bernard Antony affineur (Goat cheese supplied by Bernard Antony) - I was a bit sad when only goat/sheep cheeses are available for that night (aka no comte at all). However, they actually did not disappoint. I have soft La Gayrie, nearly sweet Chevrotin des Aravis, creamy Laurentine, and buche du Gers

Framboises à l’infusion de l’huile d’olive, le vinaigre et le miel (Raspberries served with olive oil, white vinegar and honey) - I requested this special dessert (the original version is with strawberries, but they’re not in season). The taste is a bit funny since they do not blend together nicely, but one can still enjoy the sweet raspberries

Citronnelle crème brûlée (Rich custard in lemon grass flavor with caramelized sugar on top) - Simple but decadent. The lemon grass custard is smooth, silky and refreshing with clean caramel flavor

Île flottante moka-mélisse caramel lacté (Mocha sorbet floating on a lemon grass sauce and caramel milk) - Another bonus dish from the restaurant - the idea is that the pastry chef try to create harmony between the sweet caramel and blend lemon grass, but the strong mocha sorbet makes the overall flavor slightly too sweet. Refreshing and the portion is big

Dessert de cuisine trios macarons du jardin (Three different vegetable flavors of macaroons) - The tasting menu’s dessert consists of (rhubarb, sorels and veggies mint) macarons; the sweet part comes from chocolate and almond biscuits

Another meal, another feast – that’s how I would describe my 2nd visit at L’Arpege which currently is my favorite restaurant in the world. The cooking of Alain Passard is shockingly simple (home style/peasant technique), but somehow he proficiently is able to transform the simple tastes and textures of the ingredients into memorable dishes. Like many other top notch chefs, Passard always pays the ultimate respect to the finest ingredients; perhaps the ultimate distinct identity of his food is that he sources the vegetables from his own gardens (around Sarthe and Normandy) where he often dirty his own hands just to pick the best available vegetables for the customers. However, I was not really moved by many of the vegetable dishes during this dinner; the only terrific one was the different kinds of carrots (really out of this world). I guess I’m more on the carnivore side. Even though Passard abandoned cooking red meat in 2001, thankfully he still does so sometimes, such as preparing the lamb’s dish for that night. His skill is still fantastic; I think he should not give up cooking red meat. Then, when I brought this issue to Laurent Lapaire, he told me that currently Passard only completely stops cooking beef with the exception of Kobe beef once in a while.

The wine-pairing that I had last year under the guidance of Stéphane Thivat was wonderful, but the cost was too much for me to repeat it again this time. Many people know that the wine’s price mark-up at this restaurant is possibly one of the highest in Paris. Therefore, I did not bother to open the list and settled on a glass white and red wine. The champagne I mentioned before was the best. Other wines I drank were: Domaine Laroche Les Vaillons Premier Cru Chablis 2004; it is fruity and full bodied with mineral structure and very good balance, a lovely choice for the turbot and the lobster. For the lamb, the sommelier suggested: Château la Gordonne Domaine Listel 2002; this still wine is fresh and light; barely sweet which is good since the lamb is palatable. There were 2 sommeliers for the night and they seem to be “equal” in position – neither was the chef sommelier yet; both of them are friendly, have good sense of humor and patiently explain the guests about their recommendations. The service here, as usual, is graceful and rather relaxed with the sole purpose to take care of the guests. Laurent Lapaire, in my humble opinion, is the best among all of the maître d’hôtel I have ever met. He is not only very good in leading his team, but also is superior in directly serving the guests. Speaking superb English and some Japanese, monsieur Lapaire is willing to excitedly go over the dishes in the menu one by one with the customers as well as answer whatever questions one may have. For instance, he took 2 lobsters from the kitchen – one is cooked and another one is still alive – and showed me how the lobster from Îles Chausey was different from the regular blue lobster. This establishment indeed has a wonderful hospitality.

Naturally, some of you may wonder how this experience compared with the first time I visited here. Well, startlingly I would say that the first one was better despite the fact that Alain Passard was not behind the stove (it was an Easter Monday holiday); the sous chef Anthony took care of the kitchen. Food-wise: in my 1st visit, I had many of L’Arpege classic dishes since the restaurant celebrated its 20th anniversary. The main differences were: the appetizers - nothing I had in my 2nd visit that’s as good as Carpaccio de langoustines du Guilvinec, caviar osciètre royal d’Iran or Bavarois d’avocat et caviar osciètre royal d’Iran, huile de pistache. The main courses are about the same level - the first time I adored the monk fish and chicken while this time I loved the turbot and lobster. When it comes to the desserts - Tomato confite farcie aux douze saveurs, sucre à l’orange or Millefeuille pralin simply killed whatever sweets I had this time around. Furthermore, L’Arpege was run out of comte … I could not help but conclude that I was fed slightly better the first time I ate here. Wine-wise: the champagne (1996 Billecart Salmon Cuvee Nicolas Francois is on a par with Champagne Krug Brut Grande Cuvée) and the Chablis are equally good. It’s just that in my first visit, I drank a terrific 1991 Porto Colheita Niepoort and 2002 Mambourg Grand Cru - Marcel Deiss. As mentioned before, there was not much different regarding the décor except I found that the restaurant “forced” to put 2 additional tables in the middle to accommodate more guests that made the small dining room even more crammed. Consequently, it affected the service a little bit as the staffs could not move as smoothly as they’d like to. Probably, because it’s Friday night and very packed – sometimes they were incapable of responding to customers’ request as fast as they want to; nevertheless the staffs still enthusiastically served the guests without any signs of tiredness. Regardless of the “flaw” above, my 2nd dining at L’Arpege still ranked very high (3rd place according to my notes), only below my 1st encounter here and Alain Ducasse Paris, and thus L’Arpege solidify its position as my numero uno dining destination in the world. Please check the link below for the pictures: http://picasaweb.google.com/Andi.Chahyadi.Hermawan/LArpegeParisFrance2ndVisit#

Food (and Wine): 98 pts

Service (and Ambiance): 96 pts

Overall: 97.5/100

L'Arpege Alain Passard - 1st visit

Almost a year ago I had my first taste of 3-star Michelin restaurant at Alain Ducasse New York (ADNY) and it was excellent. However, I’m still curious what it would be like to dine at the one in Europe especially in France – the home of the Michelin guide book I suppose. More than 4 months ago, on Easter Monday in 2006 I, all by myself, had a dinner at the French 3* restaurant called L’Arpège, the home of one of the world’s best and most talented chefs – Alain Passard. Honestly, L’Arpège was not my first choice in the beginning simply because I’m quite scared with its prices. I tried to book either Pierre Gagnaire or Le Grand Véfour, but alas both were closed that day since it was still an Easter holiday in Paris. Then L’Arpège came next on my list and it’s available. I guess I was quite lucky as well to secure one place right there as the restaurant is small and full on the day I ate there. This year Easter Monday was actually very special for me. It could be said that day I had my best meals in my life. Earlier, I had a 3-hour lunch at Le Bristol and it was awesome as well. Hence, there was only 3 hour break in between my lunch and dinner. Personally, I was quite full and wondering if I would fully enjoy the meal at L’Arpège. How was it actually? Well, I was blown away. It’s the best dining I’ve ever had in my life, not only the meals but also the experience.

L’Arpège, located in the corner of Rue de Bourgogne and Rue de Varenne at 7th Arrondissement near the Rodin Museum, is set in a modern, contemporary setting in which the large gilt frame could be the only touch of classicism. The size is relatively small (I believe the place could at most allow 40 people to dine at the same time), yet the guests will not feel cramped inside. The decoration is sparse, perhaps only an old violin and a black-and-white portrait of a lady (the grand mother of the chef – Louise Passard) are the only distinguished furniture here, yet impressive. In addition, it is nice, clean and comfortable. About 7:35 pm I got off at the Varenne metro station. It was not too difficult to find the restaurant since I’ve been to Rodin Museum before. If one is not carefully observe the place, he could easily miss this wonderful place to eat. From the outside it looks very simple, nothing special about the entrance-door or the wall outside. It was a quiet evening but the sun was not yet set. I was a bit doubtful to enter the place, maybe it’s not opened yet so I was just walking around. 20 minutes later, I decided to open the door and a lady quickly greeted me and checked if my name was there. After that, Helène (one of the leading waitresses) accompanied me to my table. There had been 10 people seating inside when I took my seat.

The fun began with the (chef) sommelier, Stéphane Thivat, came and offered me a glass of champagne to start my unforgettable journey of eating that night. I accepted the offer and let him choose whatever best for that night and considering the one which would match well with the restaurant’s amuse-bouche and/or appetizers. The dishes inside L’Arpège’s menu are not that many – only 11 appetizers and main courses combined plus 5 desserts; whereas only one choice available for the dégustation menu. This year L’Arpège celebrated its 20th anniversary, so in the savoring menu we could see the dish’s name plus the year it was invented there. At first, I was tempted to let the chef to give me a surprise and cook me whatever he wanted according to the best ingredients offered. Then, Helène told me that Alain Passard was actually not present that day, because of this I decided to play safe and choose the tasting menu. Another reason is that it’s the first time I dine here so it should be best to be conservative. Here it goes; I ordered the grand classic menu as well as wine-tasting to come along with the food. The bread, butter and pre-appetizer here are good, in particular the vegetables. It should come to no surprise because the master of the stove here is the world’s top for vegetable-oriented Haute Cuisine. However, when the real dishes arrived, and then I just realized why and how the food here is considered by many food critics to be extremely exceptional.

Menu Grands Classiques

L’oeuf, fermier de la Bigottière (Poached egg served with maple syrup and sherry vinegar) - This is very impressive, the best egg dish I’ve ever had - easily top the egg from JG’s NY and even Calandre’s. It’s rich yet smooth; I could taste the balance flavor of sweetness, acidity and a little salt. As I “fish” further, I found the depth and precision of this coddled egg yolk

Carpaccio de langoustines du Guilvinec, caviar osciètre royal d’Iran (Prawn carpaccio served with osetra caviar) - An excellent and classic dish from L’Arpege. The pristine caviar, with cream of light emulsion, is served generously. They matched well with the fresh langoustine. It is about as good as the famous langoustine caviar with bouillon served at Alain Ducasse Paris

Bavarois d’avocat et caviar osciètre royal d’Iran, huile de pistache (Avocado mousse served with osetra caviar, oils of pistachio, tarama, and prawns and osetra) - This dish is not in the degustation menu’s list, but they kindly gave me as a surprised one. How’s it? This is one of the best dishes for the night, and truly the best caviar dish ever for me. The mixtures of the mousse (soft with high quality of an avocado) and caviar are excellent!

The first 3 dishes were accompanied by wine: 1996 Billecart Salmon - Cuvee Nicolas Francois, Brut Champagne

Fines ravioles fleuries aux herbes, consommé vegetal (Thin raviolis served with vegetable soup) - A simple dish with strong Asian influence, but as usual - it’s good where the fresh vegetables are wrapped in thin pasta. The slightly dark yet clear consommé is simply the purest essence of the vegetable

Gratin d’oignon doux au citron, parmigiano reggiano (Sweet & soft onion gratin served with parmigiano reggiano cheese) - It’s actually possible to create tasty food in haute cuisine without using too expensive ingredients. The onion is truly fragrance and sweetly appetizing, it’s prepared to my likeness – a bit crispy

These 2 appetizers were accompanied by wine: 2002 Verre de Chablis - Rene et Vincent Dauvissat

Homard des Îles Chausey en aigre-doux, miel d’acacia (Blue lobster served with acacia honey and turnip petals) - One of Chef Passard’s signature dishes. It combines the sweet and sour taste of the turnips and honey sauce. The lobster itself has a nice texture. The only bad thing I would say the size is too small … really

Lotte de Bretagne à la moutarde d’Orlèans, huile de noisette (Monkfish served with mustard emulsion and oils hazelnut) - Honestly, this is the first time I eat monkfish and it’s really delicious. The sides, such as the slowly-cooked at low temperature spinach and roasted beets with aged balsamic vinegar, truly enhanced the dense and meaty fish, grilled gradually for more than 2 hours. Wow … even better than the lobster!

Antique poulet du Haut-Maine au foin, jardinière (Free range of antique chicken served with garden vegetables) - I thought I could not eat a better poultry than Esnault’s white truffle blue foot chicken (ADNY), well L’Arpege proved me wrong. This is indeed the best one and also the highlight of the night along with avocado caviar and the tomato dessert. The skin is crispy, the meat is juicy and succulent (even the breast meat) combined with wonderful raw and cooked vegetables - here it goes a 20/20 dish

The 3 main courses were accompanied by wine: 2000 Saumur Blanc - Chateau Yvonne

Fromages de Bernard Antony, affineur (Assorted cheeses of Bernard Antony) – What more could you expect rather than an amazing cheese selection when a master like Bernard Antony prepare them for you? The captain kindly gave me 6 different kinds of cheeses. Mixtures of cow, goat and the age varied from 3-month to 4-year old. Since I’m not a cheese expert, I do not really know their names exactly. Only remember one, comte … They are all good, in particular when combining with Passard’s fresh tomatoes (my new friend asked for the tomato and it actually matched well with the cheese - a pleasant surprised!)

Accompanied by wine: 1991 Porto Colheita Niepoort

Tomato confite farcie aux douze saveurs, sucre à l’orange (Crystallized tomato stuffed with 12 secret flavors, sweetens with orange and vanilla ice cream) - I thought all desserts are the same, something sweet could not go further than chocolates, fruits or cakes. However, this one is very unique and special. The combination of 12 stuffs in the caramelized tomato was awesome – perfect with the soft and not so sweet vanilla ice cream; the presentation is pretty good as well

Accompanied by wine: 2002 Mambourg Grand Cru - Marcel Deiss

Unlike many other 3* restaurants, L’Arpège does not serve any chocolates or candies following the desserts. Fortunately, this time I got a chance to taste another of L’Arpège’s desserts: Avocat soufflé à la pistache (Avacado soufflé with pistachio) and Millefeuille pralin (a kind of Napoleon with cream and sugar). How could it possible? For the avocado soufflé, my new friend let me try hers. First of all, there were 2 American ladies (it turned out they’re from Philadelphia) dined there on my left side. Probably, they were bored and heard me keep talking English with the waiter, Monsieur Jean-Christophe and Helène, and then through Jean they invited me to seat at their table. Since I was all alone, thus I accepted their kind invitations. Wasn’t it nice to make new friends while dining alone? The older lady is one of the restaurant’s regular customers. She’s very familiar with the food even when they’re nowhere seen in the menu. Furthermore, she has many experiences with gastronomy food, to name a few she has been to many exclusive restaurants such as: Le Louis XV, ADPA, Guy Savoy Paris, and almost all of the New York’s top dining places etc. In the end she offered me to taste her dessert (soufflé – came close to the one I had at Le Bristol for lunch). For the Napoleon pralin (thin and airy), on the other hand, the restaurant prepared a large portion of it to the Japanese guests, but there were some left over usually served to other guests ordering the same dessert. Apparently, nobody asked for it, so I boldly asked if it’s fine for me to taste the Napoleon pralin and they’re happily gave the rest to me. It was big and I could not finish it.

The wine lists at L’Arpège may be a bit inferior compared to its competitors. However, Stéphane Thivat really made the different. Not only is he an expert in picking wines in a relatively young age, but he’s also a very friendly person to talk with. He rarely told me directly what wine I was having; instead he quizzed me to find out the year and the vintage of the wine. As I’m still a beginner, I often failed to guess it correctly. Nevertheless he gave 5 glasses of excellent wines, particularly the champagne and the port – the best I’ve ever had. Clearly, the qualities count more here than the quantities. My advice is that when you come here, let the sommelier picked the wines for you and you will not regret. I was just relaxed and truly enjoy excellent food and wine here. Only wine-pairing in ADNY could top my experience here. The atmosphere is calm and comfy. The day I ate there, more than half of the guests were foreigners – some came from Japan and USA, only few French people as far as I was concerned. There were a few families (even with the small kids – what lucky ones to be able to eat here in such young ages) as well, and it’s fully booked by the way. The service in L’Arpège is extraordinary and the staffs are superb. There are not many waiters/waitresses here (only about 10 people including the ones bring the dishes from the kitchen), nonetheless they’re never shorthanded. I could not recall the time when I had to wait when I need something. They sincerely explained whatever questions I had and the ways we’re discussing or talking something, it’s as though we already knew each other for quite a long time. Last but not least, I must give two high-way thumbs up to the chef-de-cuisine, Anthony for his ability to execute Passard’s cooking tastes close to perfection. I could cry joyfully for eating such outstanding dishes here. I would be more than happy to come back here and hopefully next time Alain Passard would be around in the kitchen (I possibly would give a perfect score then).

When I finished the last sip of my sparkling water, my watch already showed 30 minutes past midnight. I was the 2nd from the last guests to leave the restaurant. It would be nice to end it with a cup of hot tea, but I realized that it’s already very late. The staffs still nicely allow me to stay for the tea; they earnestly would wait for me and I really appreciated that. However, I had to pick up my parents at the Roissy airport in the morning and at the same I was quite drunk honestly after drinking 8 glasses of wines (3 from Bristol and 5 from here) in less than 12 hours period. Therefore, I decided to go back to my hotel with the taxi. All in all, dinner at L’Arpège in fact exceeded all my expectations. The food, wine, service, and experience are all first-class. I’ve never had a better dining experience anywhere else (only Alain Ducasse Paris would come very close) as of now. If any of you would like to see pictures of what I ate, please click the following link http://picasaweb.google.com/Andi.Chahyadi.Hermawan/LArpegeParisFrance1stVisit#

Food (and Wine): 99 pts

Service (and Ambiance): 97 pts

Overall: 98.5/100