Christmas Eve dinner at L'Arpége

It's hard to believe that our Paris trip is over. It was far, far too short and my mind keeps going back - recapping, repeating, reminiscing all the fabulous time we had last week in Paris, every single minute of it (well, almost). Perhaps it's because we were away on vacation. Or perhaps it's because it was Christmas, the most magical time of the year. But then again, perhaps it was simply because we were in Paris, the most remarkably romantic city in the world! All my senses and emotions were just heightened, as though they were on overdrive-
this feeling that seemed to bubble up from the inside - just like a little girl who couldn't contain her excitement on Christmas eve. I was so filled with joy and wonderful emotions every single minute I was in Paris! I didn't want the trip to end and I wished I could capture every single moment into a capsule.....time capsules that I can just release one by one whenever I want to relive each memorable experience of our trip. Stuck in traffic? How about the "romantic walk along Champs de Mars with the fantastic view of Eiffel" capsule? Having a mundane-chore day? Why not release the "relaxing coffee break at Cafe de Flore, watching the world pass by St Germain des Pres on a perfect Parisian afternoon" capsule? Ran out of ideas for dinner? Oh, this must be the best capsule to open - the magnificent Chef's tasting menu that we had for our Christmas Eve dinner at L'Arpege!
It had been pouring in Paris, we were out and about the City, trying to wrap up our photoshoot session and were concerned that we would not make it for our 8 pm reservation. A meal at L'Arpege was an extremely important agenda on our itinerary (afterall, I had agreed to forego my b'day dinner at The French Laundry in exchange for the trip to Paris!) and I had secured the reservations both online and via phone (talk about paranoia!) just a week ago! We were indeed very blessed as the last I heard, getting into L'Arpége without at least a 2-week advance reservation was unheard of, especially during the holiday season! We got back to the apartment, got out of our wet clothes, changed, called for cab pickup and headed off to L'Arpége - all at a record-breaking 20 minutes - that's a first for moi!
The restaurant was tucked in the corner of Rue de Varenne, a stone's throw away from Musee Rodin; we were there just a couple days earlier but hadn't noticed its unassumingly understated façade. As soon as we stepped through the main doors, we were greeted by the maître d’hôtel, who, in less than 2 seconds, located our reservations (I guess we were the only Asians with an 8pm reservation that night!), offered to take our coats and ushered us to our seats. We had the honor of sitting at the Chef's table - a table for two set up at a little corner by the window, right under a picture of Chef Alain Passard's grandmother - Louise Passard whom, as I understood, was the most influential inspiration to his culinary career. I was somewhat surprised by the minimalist interior; no elaborate furnishings, painted ceilings nor fancy gold-gilded cornices. Instead, the twenty odd or so tables in the room were capped with crisp white linens, surrounded by wood-paneled walls and each table was adorned with a single candle and a gourd or squash from the Chef's garden.
Simple yet elegant tablescape. Subliminal. Before we had the chance to pour over the menu, we were served h'or d'oeuvres - tarteletts of potato crisps with two types of filling: tabouleh (a type of Middle Eastern - Lebanese - salad) and the other, carrot puree.

The tabouleh was refreshing, balanced perfectly by the slightly salted and wonderfully flavorful potato crisp. We finished the bite-size h'or d'oeuvres in a flash and was left hungry for more! I knew then that we were well on our way to a delightful gastronomic experience that evening.
We opted to go with the dégustation - the Chef's tasting menu, i.e a sample of the Chef's signature dishes in small portions.

Amuse-Bouche Oeuf à la coque; quatre épices. The infamous Oeuf a l'Arpége - The Arpége Egg. Warm, slow-poached egg yolk served in its shell with a light mousse of whipped cream and sherry vinegar, 4 types of spices (nutmeg, cloves, ginger & pepper) , fleur-de-sel topped with a drizzle of maple syrup. A brilliant play of
Texture: silky soft but not overly runny yolk with light-airy whipped cream and
Flavors: rich buttery yolk with the ever-so-slight tangy whipped cream augmented by the salty fleur de sel and balanced by the sweet maple syrup.

It's not just an egg. You must try it to understand why this is L'Arpége's signature dish. The Egg has been with the restaurant since its inception, and that's 23 years, mind you (no, not that they served us old rotten eggs!) and they have truly mastered the dish. You absolutely must dip your spoon far down enough to make sure you get all the flavors into the two (at most three) mouthfuls of goodness. I wished I could start each day with Oeuf a'l'Arpége!

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Fines ravioles potageres: oignon sturon et poireau de Carentan - these are vegetable ravioli in consommé. There were two types of filling: Sturon onions and Leeks from Carentan (a small rural town in Normandy, northwest of France). The ravioli skin was thin, soft yet had some chew to it. To me, what made the dish was the warm consommé that provided the base for the vegetable filling to shine through. I tried eating just the ravioli alone without the broth, and sure enough, I didn't find the taste as interesting compared to combining it with the broth. I wasn't particularly awed by this dish.

Next up: Coquilles Saint-Jacques de la Côte d'Emeraude (thé vert matcha)-a carpaccio of scallops from Côte d'Emeraude (Emerald Coast that runs west along the north cost of Brittany, France) and carrots with green tea sauce. I loved this dish - the scallops were delicate and the thinly-sliced carrots provided a good crunchy contrast, both well tied together with a drizzle of the green-tea sauce. You can taste the freshness of the scallops and neither the carrot nor the sauce was overpowering. Delightful.





Oh, I forgot to mention the wonderful bread and delicious St. Malo butter - yes, this is real stuff; French yellow buttery goodness at its best!
The ever-so attentive L'Arpége staff made sure that we never ran out of the bread & butter all throughout the evening. D and I have been on extremely low-fat-low-sodium diet the past 5+ months and I think we just let it all go that evening by the amount of butter we partook! I'm not one who likes (or is able to take) too much butter - typically 1 tablespoon is more than overwhelming for me but this French butter......ah, French butter.....it's just so..so....trés délicieux! How can anything that tastes so good be that bad for you? ;-)

I loved the Robe des champs multicolore Arlequin (radis red meat, carotte jaune du Doubs, persil racine....) - long name for an essentially simple yet elegant dish of colorful vegetables from Chef's garden : pettite red radish, yellow carrots, parsley root (and a few more that I simply couldn't remember) in a mousseline sauce. I'm not much of a meat eater - I mean, I love poultry, fish and an occasional good cut of red beef so this vegetable medley is just the type of dish I appreciate - sweet, savoury, even a hint of bitter & licorice crunch from the root vegetables. I have read that Chef Passard has totally reinvented the way diners eat, view and think about vegetables. This dish certainly is a testament to his innovativeness!


Moving along......

Now on to the more serious (read: heavier) part of the meal.

Foie Gras de Canard de la Madeleine de Nonancourt - quick-seared duck foie gras with sweet figs. This, I must say, is my first "punch" of the evening. The courses up till now has been on the "mellow" side compared to this foie gras. I had foie gras almost every dinner in Paris (how could one resist?) but Passard does it so well that this is now my favorite way to eat foie gras. Period. The rich, silky foie gras with caramelized outer layer (from the searing) combined with the sweetness from the figs. Divine. This will be, by far, the best non-vegetarian course of the evening. My only complain is the portion of the course. I know it was Christmastime. I know foie gras is a delicacy loved by the French, especially during the holiday season. But given that we were not even halfway through the tasting menu, and with upcoming substantial dishes like lobster and poultry, I wouldn't mind if the foie gras portion was a tad smaller (ok, you fois gras aficianados out there: don't shoot me!)

Aiquillettes de homard de l'Archipel de Chausey á la truffe noire - simply translated: Lobster with Black Truffles.
I assume for most people, this would be the star of the evening. Afterall, we're talking about a whole lobster, split length-wise, served with another expensive ingredient: black truffles. The lobster meat was cooked perfectly - succulent yet delicate texture. The generous shavings of black truffles....hmmm...need I say more? However, surprisingly, the best part of the dish for me was the potato in truffle oil. Strange? I just liked the balance of texture and flavors - the wholesomeness of the potatoes, the nuttiness of the truffle oil, not exactly overly pungent, but just sufficient to complement the root vegetable. Perhaps I was just physically too exhausted and the lighter dishes appealed more to me that evening.

I was definitely looking forward to this next course, especially after seeing the waiter paraded a lidded dutch oven pot to the next table who ordered the a la carte version of the dish: Grande Rotisserie Francaise - chicken roasted in a bed of hay. Those of you who know me knows that I love roasted poultry of all sorts and am always looking for inventive ways for cooking this dish. Chef Passard's signature chicken dish certainly lives up to its reputation. Moist. Chock full of flavor - there's a slight, very slight hint of smokiness to the meat. Excellent accompaniment of candied shallot and mini carrot on the plate. Both D and I actually preferred this course to the prior homard dish. Another strange revelation! I guess our palate has been "tamed" ever since we started the total diet change mid-year.

My favorite part of the meal - of any meal. Desserts! Well, not quite yet - we still have to work through the cheese course but here in Europe, cheese is somewhat of a dessert. A pre-dessert, if you will. And this cheese course is nothing but exceptional! Take it from a person who's not a cheese-enthusiast but even I had to cave in to this dish! Comté de Garde Exceptionnelle truffe noire - Comté cheese with black truffles. What we had was a 4-year old cheese from 2005. The presentation certainly deserves some mention: a large wheel (and I mean a really large wheel - almost the length of our table!) of Comté on a flat carved wood being carted to our tableside.
The maître d’hôtel efficiently shaved fairly large slices of the cheese and serve the Comté with black truffles. The Comté was definitely more pungent and distinct than the one we had a day before at Paule's but of course, what else should we be expecting from this wonderfully aged cheese from one of the best affineur in France?
The dessert course was a collection of macarons (parsley, basil and beetroot - who would've thought?!), mini friands and my personal favorite: the tarte aux pommes Bouquet de Roses - mini tarts with paper-thin slices of apples formed in the shape of pettite rose bouquets sitting atop the flaky, buttery pastry. Absolutely delectable! Not ludicrously sweet and just the perfect balance of tartness from the apples, accompanied by a side of caramel sauce. I adore cake and pastry decorating and this one's definitely no easy feat. Imagine the time, effort and details that went into making each individual tartelett by hand! Superb.

Just as both D and I were about to surrender and raise the white flag, the maître d came over our table with yet another dessert course - the final one, she winked coyly and nodded convincingly. D and I looked at other and we both knew, this had to be the last or they'd have to carry us to our cab!. As much as I tried, I couldn't resist digging my spoon into the Ile flotante - the floating island which is now one of my new favorite dessert. What was typically the meringue island was replaced by a surprisingly light coffee mousse, floating on a base of creamy lemongrass creme anglaise. The mousse was simply the perfect ending to the meal, in place of un espresso. The slight hint of lemongrass was refreshing and whilst lemon-coffee could be a weird combination, this one was just a match made in culinary heaven. Blissful!
The final nightcap - the highlight of our evening - was that Chef Passard himself came over to our table and chatted with us. Upon learning that we were from the Bay Area, he immediately started telling us about how intrigued he was with the organic farming in Northern California, about Manresa, about the organic orchards supplying to the restaurant and even made sure he checked that we had our transportation ready before we left.
I'm sure D and I have missed out on a fantastic meal at French Laundry. But I'm also positive that our Christmas eve meal at L'Arpége more than made up for it.
A wonderful gastronomic experience - one that I know would be repeated by us returning to L'Arpége (again and again, I hope).


L'Arpége
7e Arrondissement
84,rue de Varenne, 75007 Paris, France
Tel: 01 45 51 47 33 Fax : 01 44 18 98 39

Wine accompaniment for the evening
Meursault "Chevalières" 2007 Domaine Galopière (Chardonnay)
Beaune "Boucherottes" 2002 Domaine Louis Jadot (Pinot Noir)

Price: be prepared to spend well above USD 500 for a meal for 2 (with wine) and definitely more for dinner tasting menu....BUT WORTH EVERY SINGLE PENNY! Mortgage your house or take out a home-equity loan if you need to, but a visit to L'Arpége should, in my opinion, be on the bucket list!