Virtual Gourmet

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Just as it’s always been, fine dining, both in public and private, is as much a part of New Orleans as filigree balconies, booze, the bayous, and the big bend in the Mississippi that caused an outpost to be built here in the first place in 1718 by Sieur de Bienville. The Crescent City is home to some of

America

's best restaurants—Antoine’s opened in 1840--and the old Creole traditions are not only alive and well but thriving, joined by a slew of new ideas from young chefs with plenty of new ideas. On a recent trip I checked in with some of both.
Opened in 2002 on the ground floor of the Renaissance Pére Marquette Hotel in the Business District and quickly named one of Esquire's best new restaurants of that year, René Bajeux's eponymous René Bistrot (817 Common St., 504-412- 2580, www.renebistrot.com) is full of sunshine during the day, a large, comfortable dining room decorated in handsome greens and lemon yellows, with large, copper-sheathed niches set into a wall of tiny mosaic tessarae that shimmer like the sea—a perfect up-to-the-minute decor for Bajeux's state-of-the-art French cuisine. rene

We began lunch here with huitres rôties, oysters roasted in the shell with leeks and horseradish under a layer of melted St. John cheese. Served on a bed of rock salt to retain the heat, they were rich, flavorful and mouth-searing at the same time. Our other first course was sublime sardines--they'd been swimming only the day before and Fed-Exed from

Portugal

--simply grilled with thyme and garlic, and, to gild these lilies, a baby octopus salad, all on a free-form triangular glass plate in sea-foam green. The sardines still smelled of the surf and tasted like heaven.
Bajeux followed this with a top-notch "one-dish bouillabaisse" with a captivating elegance in the flavors, textures, and presentation, buoyed by a pungent rouille. Equally exceptional was canard au miel et vinaigre (below); marinated for two days then roasted for 12 hours, the half duck was boned, except for the drumstick, then served with cubes of roasted sweet potatoes in a deep mahogany sauce based on the duck stock--one of the best canards I've ever tasted. canard

    Bajeux's toque may be in New Orleans, but his discipline
remains Gallic, so that his forceful, focused flavors are
deeply satisfying without being heavy-handed as in much
that passes for Creole cuisine. As a result, we were more than
ready for pastry chef Joy Jessup's desserts: First, warm
financier, that incomparable gâteau that is simplicity itself,
with no sauce or icing for it to hide behind, nothing but its
rich crumbs and the delicate flavor of brown butter, as well
as a small scoop of mascarpone on the side. Just as fine, and
lovely to look at, were three gem-like profiteroles –the pâte à
choux perfectly dry on the inside-- filled with cherry, pistachio,
and espresso ice cream covered with a warm chocolate sauce,
like an ice cream sundae for adults.
    As for wines we enjoyed the house champagne, Pierre Gimonnet & fils non-vintage blanc de blancs ($13 a glass), which had everything I look for in a bubbly: crisp but not abrasive, effervescent with tight aromatics, a whiff of yeast, and a wonderful, lingering aftertaste that ultimately left the palate clean. A ‘01 Morgon from Ferraud & fils ($7.25/$28 by the bottle), one of my favorite Beaujolais' crus, was fruity and robust, yet with a certain firmness and style.
    Lunch appetizers at René Bistrot run $4 to 8, $13 , entrees: $10 to 20; Prices go up $1-$3 per course at dinner.

One of the newest places to open is La Côte Brasserie (700 Tchoupitoulas St., 504-613-2350, www.lacotebrasserie.com), where Bajeux's partner, chef Richard "Bingo" Starr (previously at Cuvée) performs his own magic. Located in the brand new Renaissance Arts Hotel in the Warehouse District, this ultra-modern restaurant is cavernous, with a long sinuous bar offering diners an up close view of the goings-on in the kitchen, while large comfortable tables allow for more leisurely dining.
cote

Our dinner began with sea scallops, quickly seared to bring out their natural sweetness, on a bed of slightly astringent arugula and radicchio. Little bits of bacon added a salty smokiness, while a delicate honey-orange vinaigrette had just the right tang and sweetness to complement the shellfish as well as to provide a refreshing acidity. Move from mollusk to crustacean with wonderful lobster gnocchi, little daubs of pink-tinged pasta served with sweet peas, shiitake mushrooms for texture, and small bites of lobster tail meat, all bathed in a savory prosciutto cream sauce. If you're a fan of duck confit, you won’t want to miss the one here. The mahogany drumstick arrived on a bed of mustard green hushpuppies and was covered with a mound of heavenly shoestring sweet potatoes for a bit of color and crunch.
    Starr has brought his beloved Creole cuisine into the 21st century by refining its flavors and globalizing its larder. His paella di mariscos is an unalloyed homage to the Mediterranean, awash with clams and mussels over a bed of saffron rice loaded with bits of fish and grounded by large meaty chunks of house-made chorizo, substantial yet polished, with each element cooked to perfection.
    Pastry chef Jessup doubles up working here too. Her crème brûlée comes in a large shallow bowl to maximize its yummy caramel crust, while a crème fraîche sorbet arrived with crumbly lemon sablée cookies and a blackberry/cabernet sauvignon granita quickly melting into a delicious, deep purple sauce.
    Some 15 to 16 wines are available by the glass here, most at very fair prices. A Hanna Sauvignon Blanc ($7.50) was full of flavor without being intrusive, while a Con Freixes Macabeo, Aka Viura, from

Spain

($6.50) was a simple, unpretentious, utterly enjoyable white. Red wines included a delicious ‘00 Mercurey from Bouchard & Fils ($7), with a wonderful pinot noir nose and good acidity for balance, as well as a Conde de Valdemar Tempranillo ($8) with a certain restraint and medium-body that made it the perfect match for the paella. Even dessert wines were well chosen: an Elderton ‘01 Botrytis Semillon from

Australia

, very much like a good Sauternes, and a refreshingly light Moscato d'Asti from Marco Negro in

Italy

.
Appetizers run $5.50 to 12.50, entrees: $16 to 31.

Located right on Jackson Square in a building that dates back to 1762, Muriel's on the Square (801 Chartres St., 504-568-1885, www.muriels.com) serves Creole comfort food in a setting that tries to capture the feeling of an old-time New Orleans bordello but has some difficulty carrying it off. Done in a pastiche of styles, the comfortable main dining room (below, right), in beautiful deep maroon and lighted by magnificent crystal chandeliers but with an odd collage of posters on one wall, could do with a little tweaking. There is a second dining room on the ground floor and a convivial courtyard bar as well as several elegant, private rooms upstairs. Don't miss a peek at the "Séance Room" decorated in a wildly eclectic manner, spanning ancient Egyptian to Victorian, that succeeds in evoking the sumptuous decadence of an Anne Rice interior. muriels

To commemorate this year’s bicentennial of the Louisiana Purchase, Chef
Erik Veney has dedicated two of his best appetizers to the heads of state
involved: “Jefferson’s American quail” and “Napoleon's

France

shrimp
rémoulade.” The names may be awkward but the dishes definitely are
not. Wood-grilling added flavor to the bird, which came with a small
mound of pecan mashed potatoes and a fresh green apple gastrique, while
flawless fried green tomatoes, covered in a light batter and fried until crisp,
made the perfect partner for the shrimp rémoulade sandwiched between them.
    Veney makes good use of his grill, and our seafood entrees also benefited
from the lingering flavor of wood smoke. Seared tuna served atop
feather-light gnocchi and earthy wild mushrooms was finished off with lardons
of smoky bacon and a rich yet supple pinot noir sauce, all rich flavors and
textures tuna needs, perhaps a bit too much of them in this instance. Grilled
shrimp with just the right amount of tasty, charred bits came with fluffy rice and
a spicy butter sauce based on pepper, Worcestershire sauce, and Abita beer.
    With these manager Chris Patria suggested a ‘98 Clos Vougeot from Jadot, a wonderful grand cru from one of Burgundy's top negoçiants. Supple, with just enough fruit and not a hint of the unpleasant sweetness of so many New World pinots, it was a great burgundy and a good value at $90--not much more than retail in NYC. I think I’d come back here just for the wine.
    As good as Muriel's pecan pie and brandied bread pudding were, I'd pass them by for pastry chef Ben Marrett's own creation, a peanut butter dome covered in a Valhrona chocolate glaze, with a caramel center and a peanut brittle shortbread base. As much candy bar as dessert and not meant for nibblers, it quickly disappeared without a trace.
Appetizers: $6 to 9.50, $15 for foie gras; entrees: $19 to 29; Table d'hôte: $22 to 25.

WALKING THE WALK: A great way to get a handle on the town is by taking The Southern Comfort Cocktail Tour ($24 p.p., 504-569-7786 or 800-535-7786, www.sotherncomfortcocktailtour.com) a leisurely two hours in the late afternoon spent visiting some of the Big Easy's most famous and infamous restaurants and bars. It's as much about local history, lore, and architecture as about booze, since it's based on the book Obituary Cocktail, a gorgeous photo-essay by local photographer, Kerri McCaffety. The Obituary cocktail --a "lethal" splash of absinthe added to a martini-- as well as the Ramos Gin Fizz, Pimm's Cup, and the Sazerac were all invented in NO, as was the cocktail itself, when a young Royal Street apothecary, Antoine Amadée Peychaud, put together a "restorative" by adding bitters to brandy and served the mixture in an egg cup, called in French a coquetier.

Sailing on two successful restaurants, The Red Cat in Chelsea and The Harrison in TriBeCa, restaurateurs Jimmy Bradley and Danny Abrams have embarked on number three. The Mermaid Inn glows like a lighthouse beacon under a black awning on Second Avenue, an area once known more for drug paraphernalia than for fine food and wine. Though stalls still sell the aforementioned along St. Mark's Street, the truth is, the East Village has changed considerably in the last 10 years. “It’s cleaned up,” says Bradley, who once lived in the East Village. “The per capita operations have gone from bodegas and Korean markets to cheap and adventurous dining.” Bradley comes from a family of winemakers (formerly the Bartolomeo Pio Wine Company of Philadelphia); Abrams, a managing partner, has worked the field at such spots as Citrus and Gotham Bar & Grill.

Enter The Mermaid Inn, which opened last spring, offering fresh seafood fare in a restaurant that is run like a tight ship, with very reasonable prices (entrees fall between $15 and $22). A weeknight here bustles loudly, with barely enough elbowroom at the long stainless bar and a good hour’s wait for a table. (The restaurant takes reservations only for parties of six to eight, and even those are limited.) It’s a small place. There are 28 seats in the front dining room and 40 in the back, with a galley-sized kitchen connecting the two. (The heads here aren’t much larger than what you’d get on a ship.) In the summer a back patio opens, raising the seating capacity to 100.

The front room feels a little like being below deck. The wood-paneled ceiling is low. Nautical maps hang on wood-paneled white walls, with a portrait of JFK and Jackie O watching over the crowded room. Wainscoting, painted black, and soft-lit hip-high sconces add an understated elegance. Conversations sway and swagger between the political and personal at a decibel level that increases an already high threshold of noise. At one end a kitchen-hand shucks oysters while Joe our bartender extols the virtues of cabernet franc. We order a bottle of Château Hureau, Saumur-Champigny ‘00 by Philippe et Georges Vatan ($26), which Joe chills to curb its “rustic tannins.” He says the same wine goes for about $10 a glass at one of their other restaurants. It feels like we’ve hit pay dirt at a Barney’s sale. We nibble on pretzel goldfish bar snacks with glee.
    In less than an hour we’re called then escorted to the back dining room, which feels less like a ship and more like New York. The brick walls glow in candlelight. Fresh flowers are placed throughout the room. With little coaxing by our waitress, we start with the Washington State Hunter Point oysters ($10), silky nuggets that are creamy and delicious. The calamari stew ($8) has a vibrant spicy seafood-tomato broth with fresh calamari, pastina and cherry tomatoes.
    The entrees further buoy our spirits. The pan-seared diver scallops ($18), so sweet and cooked just until opaque, stop conversation. Even the light beurre blanc with the smoky bits of pancetta and a tangy hint of horseradish elevates the richness of the scallops. The accompanying Napa cabbage, braised in melted butter and onions, reminds me how delightful this under-appreciated vegetable can be. A whole grilled dorade ($19), a cross between a sea bass and trout, gently unveils a flaky flesh under crisp skin. The fish contrasts nicely with wilted bitter greens and the light zinfandel vinaigrette. All the while the Château Hureau fits whatever we have on our plates – fish and all.
    The Mermaid does not do dessert--a decision made with the size of the kitchen and restaurant in mind, says executive chef Michael Price. Instead, they do what they can. They do serve a complimentary demi-tasse of chocolate pudding, just enough creamy chocolate with a star of whipped cream to top off the meal. If you must have dessert the hostess has a list of nearby restaurant recommendations, which include industry(food) and Veselka, the 24-7

Ukraine

institution, both nearby.
But the sweetest ending of all is splitting the check, which ends up being about $80 for two, making Mermaid not only a third success for its owners but a treasure for those who don’t mind waiting.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
PROLE FOOD

KOPP’S
7631 W Layton Avenue
Milwaukee, WI
414-789-1393

Back in 1950 frozen custard was one of the big post-war ice cream hits. Its texture was luxurious, it was freshly made, pouring forth from spigots before your eyes, and you most certainly couldn’t buy it at the neighborhood supermarket, so it was a treat to go out for it on a summer’s evening.
Kopp’s was founded in that year by German immigrant Elsa Kopp, who, after her husband Karl became ill, was aided by Leon Schneider of

Leon

’s Frozen Custard in opening her own stand. Its success was clear evidence that the American Dream was very much a reality, as Milwaukeeans adopted Kopp’s as one of their favorite ice cream spots.
While most frozen custard and soft ice cream stores offer only two or three flavors, Kopp’s has one for every day of the month--including a secret flavor each “Magic Monday,” which has kept children guessing and dreaming of it throughout the weekend. Other flavors include fantasies like peanut butter fudge crunch with Graham cracker crisps, chocolate malt with chunks of malted milk balls, Bailey’s Irish Cream Coffee (a special for St. Patrick’s Day), and Rainforest Crunch, made with Brazil nuts and butterscotch custard. And to commemorate their founder’s homeland, there is even German Chocolate Cake, full of walnuts, chocolate, caramel and coconut.
There are two other locations now, but the one on West Layton is the original. Kopp's also delivers anywhere in the U.S. Call 414-282-4312.
--John Mariani

Ferran Adria, Watch Out! The Most Intriguing Dishes of the Year!

"Roast paving stone of cod roasted with the Japanese woman, marrow, noodle
and oil of sesame."

piglet

"Velvety of celery, cabbages stuffed, plays of piglet
and sauerkraut."

"Warp end fresh and semi tomatos crystallized, Niçoise olive and basil."

"Let us pepper piquillos stuffed with brandade, net of mullet and bean coconut."

"Salted small duck knuckle of ham, French beans and apple mashed potaties."

p[igs

"Coast of pig farm, braised lettuce and andouille Parmentier."

"Crumple of apples to the gingerbread, freezes vanilla."

"Caramlized pineapple, almond soap and fruit chips."

* From Dec. 13-15 chef Mark Salter of The Inn at Perry Cabin (800-722-2949; www.perrycabin.com.) in St. Michael’s, MD, will team up with chefs from Hôtel de la Cité, with a Champagne reception. Sat. afternoon, the pastry chef from Carcassonne will demo French Christmas pastries; guests at the Inn will receive a special "pastry surprise" in their room. Sat. evening, dinner features winter meats and game from surrounding farms, culminating with brunch on Sun.
* NYC’s `21’ Club celebrates its 63^rd anniversary of a festive New York City tradition: the Salvation Army Band at ‘21,’ when Christmas carols and Holiday tunes are led by the chorale, and guests are encouraged to chime in. Both lunch and dinner seatings. Call 212-52-7200.

* Dallas’ Nana rings in the New Year with a choice of two packages: “Nana Bar Bash” and “Dinner with Dancing” in the main Nana dining room for a 4-course dinner with choices from each course. Seatings at 5:30, 6:00, and 6:30. $85 pp. The second seating is a 6-course dinner with Perrier-Jouet Grand Brut Champagne, complimentary party favors; dancing and music provided by Diane Wisdom and her piece jazz band. $165 pp. Call 214-761-7470. A special $99 Anatole Hotel room rate will be offered to guests attending either the Nana Dining Room or Bar.

* 15 ria in Washington, D.C.is offering dinner for two with a bottle of bubbly, an overnight stay in a deluxe room and a continental breakfast in bed for two the following morning for $275 per couple (retail value $429). Call 202-232-7000. New Year's Eve dinner for two at 15 ria can also be arranged for $150 per couple, including a bottle of champagne.

MARIANI'S VIRTUAL GOURMET NEWSLETTER is published weekly. Editor/Publisher: John Mariani. Contributing Writers: Naomi Kooker, Kirsten Skogerson, Mort Hochstein, Edward Brivio, Robert Mariani. Contributing Photographers: Galina Stepanoff-Dargery, Bobby Pirillo. Technical Advisor: Gerry McLoughlin.

John Mariani is a columnist for Esquire, Wine Spectator, Diversion and the Harper Collection. He is author of The Encyclopedia of American Food & Drink (Lebhar-Friedman), The Dictionary of Italian Food and Drink (Broadway), and, with his wife Galina, the award-winning new Italian-American Cookbook (Harvard Common Press). To purchase from amazon.com, click on the image below.