May 21, 2011 France Adventure

Bonjour les amis!  Hello, friends, and welcome to Cépage et Cuisine, Mary’s and Brian’s wine and food blog.  May 21 was our travel day to Paris for the final part of our adventure in France.  After a final walk to the boulangerie in Le Puy Notre Dame for un pain au chocolat we returned the rental car to Avis in Angers where we were to take a train to Paris.  The TGV was delayed slightly because a hot air balloon had crashed on the tracks between Angers and Paris!  When we got to Paris we tried to transfer from La Gare Montparnasse to the Paris Metro, supposedly nearby, to get closer to our apartment and walk the rest of the way.  After walking in large circles a couple of times, looking for the Metro, luggage in tow on a warm day, and grabbing a quick lunch, which is still about an hour in France, we gave up and took a taxi.  Note #1 to future Paris travelers who take a taxi:  A 1€ per bag charge is added to the fare.  Mary knew from reading travel guides that this is expected and normal.

The apartment is in the Saint-Germain-des-Prés district of the Rive Gauche, the Left Bank, known historically as the more Bohemian or artsy side of the city.

In fact, the apartment was above an art gallery. The district borders the Seine and, to my delight, is where Julia Child lived during her Paris years

A two block stroll put us on the river walk, smack in front of the Musée d’Orsay and across the Seine from the Musée du Louvre.

While we were walking around, I asked Mary, “What’s that big building over there?”  “I don’t know,” said she.  She later researched it online to put our lack of knowledge about Paris into sharp focus when she learned it is the Louvre.

We researched nearby restaurants in advance of our trip and decided on La Rotonde for the evening, partly because it is nearly a straight shot on the Metro from the Rue du Bac station near the apartment.  Note #2 to future Paris travelers who take the Metro:  The doors of the subway cars do not open automatically at each stop!  We missed our stop!  There’s a switch you have to push.  We got off at the next stop by following another passenger, exited to street level and found ourselves on Boulevard Montparnasse, the street on which La Rotonde is located.  We started walking and finally found it, right on time for our reservation.

Having absolutely no experience with Paris, La Rotonde is what I imagine when I think of the style of a traditional Paris restaurant…polished brass, dark wood, oil paintings, formal waiters wearing suits, and there I was in my blue jeans and knit shirt. No matter, they were friendly and welcoming.  We were seated next to a waiter station where they performed some of the plating service of meat and fish after they came from the kitchen, such as carving and deboning.  It was fascinating, like watching someone at a skilled craft, which it is.

I started with escargots dans la coquille, snails in the shell, once again with butter, olive oil, garlic, and parsley.  Delicious!  If you haven’t had them before and don’t think you would like them, give them a try.  I was pleasantly surprised the first time I had them a year ago.

Mary had filets de bar, sea bass in a sauce of lemon confit and wild rice.  I love the French language expression for wild rice, riz sauvage.  She said the dish was delicious and especially loved the sauce.  She has had a similar sauce with several fish dinners.   The fish was cooked to a perfect turn, moist, flaky, and flavorful.

I had a dish the menu described simply as suprême de poulet fermier, chicken supreme with mushroom risotto.  The chicken was fine, tender, moist, and flavored with a reduction of wine and mushrooms, I think.  What was amazing, though, was the risotto.  Mary makes a fine risotto at home, but this is the first time I have had risotto aux champignons, or risotto with mushrooms.  It was rich, creamy, combined the flavors of the rice, the cheese, the stock, the mushrooms…wow!  I’m still thinking about that risotto.

Mary had lime and grapefruit sorbet for dessert.  The red boule in this photo is actually a red or pink grapefruit sorbet.

La carte offered foie gras de canard, duck liver pâté, with a glass of Sauternes, which is described as a match made in heaven.  I’ve had foie gras a few times and Sauternes many times, but I’ve never tried the combination.  It was, in fact, delicious and Mary also liked it, but to my palate, the pairing of Sauternes with a good Roquefort cheese is more compelling.

About the wine, the carte du vin offered excellent choices at what I thought were reasonable prices for a famous Paris restaurant that undoubtedly attracts many international travelers and tourists.  With the assistance of one of the servers, I selected a Pouilly-Fuissé by Domaine Laurent Gerra.  Pouilly-Fuissé is in the Mâconnais region, considered part of Burgundy, but south of the Côte d’Or.  The wines are often excellent and at lower prices than their famous northern counterparts.  The Chardonnay was perfect with both dishes, especially the fish.  It had fresh citrus aromas and flavors and was refreshing on a warm evening.  It did what a good pairing and a balanced wine is supposed to do.  The flavors of the wine enhance the flavors of the food.  The balanced acidity of the wine refreshes the palate and leaves you ready for the next bite.  The chicken with the mushroom risotto would also have been excellent with a Pinot Noir. 

Mary looks slightly stressed in this photo after the travel events of the day, negotiating the Paris subway, and the temperature.  Like most residences and businesses in France, La Rotonde is not air conditioned.  It wasn’t terribly uncomfortable, but we drained at least three water carafes after all the walking.  We felt sorry for those busy servers in their dark suits, ties, and long sleeves.  Here are my notes on the wine.

Domaine Laurent Gerra Pouilly-Fuissé 2009.  This was a delightful wine, clean and refreshing, with lots of citrus character and minerality.  The aroma was mostly fresh lemon with a nice, stony minerality.  The palate showed crisp acidity, medium body, almost a light, creamy texture, and bright lemon flavor.  It was very nicely balanced, not very complex, but delicious, and with medium length.  A perfectly good dinner wine in Paris.  13.0% alcohol.  We paid 35€, which is a good restaurant price.

That’s our post for today.  We hope you enjoyed it.  We welcome your comments and emails.  We have one more day in Paris before we return home.  Keep checking back at Cépage et Cuisine for more of our culinary and wine adventures in France.  Until then,

Cheers!

Mary♥Brian