My trip to Europe: L'Eden in Coublevie, France

Few years ago, we discovered L'Eden, a seafood restaurant located in Coublevie, Isère (check out my previous post). This is a spot that my family knows well, so we decided to go there to celebrate Mother's Day. Know that Mother's Day in France is always the last week end of May. 

The place was packed with families when we arrived, but we were the last to leave, after a three hour lunch...

The service was a bit challenging because the restaurant was clearly understaffed on a pretty demanding day. 

While making up our mind with the menu, we ordered the house cocktail that was made with champagne and curaçao, the latter giving a nice light blue color. Floating in the glass was a raspberry that went up and down as time went. 

We also ordered a bottle of wine, a Rasteau from 2010:

The brand is ORTAS that is an anagram for Rasteau.

Few moments after the brought the drink, they gave us a delicious velouté de champignons (cream of mushroom):

They had a set menu for the event, although they agreed to allow Jodi to order a vegetarian dish, as she did not like what they were proposing. Similar to last time, we ordered a Saint-Marcellin cheese salad. 

Nice looking, they put quit a lot of cheese, slightly toasted, on top of mesclun salad. 

On my side, I started with a wild salmon carpaccio with lime, apple, berries and olive oil. 

The carpaccio looked beautiful, made with slices of salmon a bit thicker than usual. The fish was sublime: fresh and delightfully fatty. Unfortunately, it was missing some acidity and the dish was overpowered by the olive oil. 

Next was the magret de canard with a morel sauce: 

Magret is duck breast that is typically thinly sliced with a bit of fat in the outside, usually cooked pink in the center. 

This was served with an écrasé de pomme de terre (crushed potatoes) that was deliciously creamy and some mushrooms. I really liked that dish: the magret was perfectly cooked and had a perfect amount of fat that had this wonderful grilled taste. And that morel sauce...so good! 

They also propose some cheeses like the fromage Blanc below, but I admit that after the feast I had that week end, I skipped it. 

For dessert, I chose the mango soup with a lemon sherbet and fresh mint. 

It was just ok for me, missing some mint and the mango not being that tasty. However, Jodi ordered the moelleux au chocolat, a delicious cake with a melted center. 

We finished our meal with an espresso. 

It was a nice Mother's Day celebration, Bonne fête Maman!

I am sure you wonder if I would recommend this place. I think it is always difficult to judge a restaurant as events like this one are always challenging. Think about it: for valentine's day or New Year's Eve, lots of restaurants are proposing overpriced prix-fixe that are not of the best quality. That does not make them bad. The same applies to L'Eden. 

L'Eden

395 Chemin des Voûtes 

38500 Coublevie, France

www.restaurant-poisson-grenoble.com

Enjoy (I did)!

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My trip to Europe: Le Rempart, Tournus, France

Our last Michelin Star restaurant we tried in our trip in Bourgogne was Le Rempart in Tournus. Nice small city of approximately 6,200 inhabitants, located along the Saône river; it was very quiet at the time we were there, if not for the activity surrounding a small cruise boat where one could dine while sailing on the river.

The restaurant Le Rempart is located in a hotel with the same name. There is in fact the restaurant, as well as a low key bistro, located at the opposite side. 

The impressive building was a 15th century guardhouse, built on the ramparts that were surrounding the city, hence the name Le Rempart (The Rempart), and their logo that is everywhere. 

The decor is pretty elegant and it is definitely one level up from Pierre the restaurant that we visited the day before. At the entrance is a very small lounge where you can enjoy a drink from their large selection of alcohol. 

Then, the tables, not too close to each other. 

The menu, crafted by Chef Sylvain Gohier is very elegant, with an outstanding presentation that would make you think that the Chef is a painter and the plate his canvas. Again here, the food is not only for the pleasure of the palate, but also for the pleasure of the eyes. Showcasing incredible creativity, the Chef interprets dishes from different regions of France, sourcing the high quality ingredients he is using from French producers. 

We decided to start our meal with the house cocktail, made with whiskey, sweet wine (it might have been martini) and Pacherinc. 

With it, they served us some amuse-bouche. 

It was composed of:

Goat cheese

Tomato with chorizo

Tuna

They then served us bread and butter. 

Jodi picked the cereal bread

And I picked the olive and tomato one. 

Then, we all got a petit consommé de petits pois avec son anchoïade or peas consommé with anchovy cream. 

It started well! I love these little amuse that you get in restaurant of this caliber, because it opens your appetite. 

For the appetizer, I got the boeuf Charolais servi en tartare, copeaux de Cécina, Jaune d'oeuf confit et pissaladière aux anchois de Sicile. That is: beef tartare with yolk confit and pissaladière made with anchovies from Sicily. 

I tried beef tartare in the past, but did not like it. I was thinking that in this restaurant it would be fantastic; and I was right! It was succulent, the meat (boeuf Charolais is top quality beef) being very good, cut in very small cubes, giving a bit of texture compared to the ground meat I got in the past, that gave a mushy feel. I definitely discovered, if not re-discovered beef tartare there. 

Jodi got the saumon bio marqué au Fer rouge, tartare au citron Cedras et oeuf de poisson volant, sablé Parmesan et vinaigrette de betterave, or: organic salmon marked with an iron, tartare of lemon from Cedras, flying fish eggs, Parmesan crisp and beets vinaigrette. 

The salmon was delicious: simply cooked, it was a great piece of fish, very fresh. I liked the flying fish eggs with it as they added a delightful bitterness and saltiness to it. 

For my first entree, I had fish. Yes, I wrote first entree, because they propose a menu with fish and then meat. It was a bar de chalut cuit lentement, avec gnocchi de broccoli et écume de langue d'oursin or slow cooked bar fish, served with broccoli gnocchi and a sauce made with sea urchin. 

It was a succulent dish, the fish being cooked perfectly and very moist. I truly appreciated the fact that the light gnocchi had a very slight broccoli taste. 

In fact, Jodi got the same dish, but, as it was from the menu and not prix-fixe, she got a bigger portion and a totally different presentation.

The meat dish was agneau de lait d'Aveyron, carré servi rosé, avec asperges vertes or lamb rack cooked pink with asparagus. 

This was definitely my favorite dish: the meat was so good, tender and tasty with a nice charred fat, that I wish they had more. If you like lamb, I really recommend it. However, I did not like what was under that was surely not polenta, and had a weird taste. 

After the entree, they served us the cheese course. 

Yes, they brought the cheese cart and as Jodi put it, you could hear angels singing when they opened it! I could pick three different ones from a large selection of French cheeses. I chose:

Brillat Savarin, a triple-cream cheese made from cow's milk:

Epoisse (soft cow's milk cheese from Bourgogne):

Tomme de Corse (from sheep's milk):

It was served with une pâte de coing or quince jelly. 

Then we got a pre-dessert that was a crémeux de fleur d'oranger, purée de fruits rouges et chantilly. Meaning: orange blossom cream with red fruits purée and whipped cream. 

And dessert: that time, I went for the Grand-Marnier soufflé that did not only looked spectacular, but was succulent (and big). 

It was served with a lemon sherbet and a muffin that I really did not care about. 

Jodi got a selection of sherbet and ice cream. 

At that point, I was so full that I did not even think about writing down the flavors. We were also trying to figure out if the decorations on the plates were handmade. The answer from the waiter was funny: "We hired an artist and taught him how to make desserts". 

And they stuffed us with some cookies as if we still had room after such a feast...

I could not eat anymore and regretted not wearing stretch pants...

To accompany our meal, we got a white wine: Chassagne-Montrachet premier cru 2008. 

And a red: Chambolle-Musigny 2011. 

Both were proposed by the sommelier who did a great job advising about the wine. When asked if he prefers red or white with cheese, he interestingly said that he prefers white, because cheese would reveal too much the tannins of the wine, making it bitter, and vice-versa. 

This was a fantastic evening and dinner, in a nice place, with an outstanding service. Considering this and the cuisine perfectly executed by the Chef and his crew, I would not be surprised that a second Michelin Star follows...

Le Rempart

2 Avenue Gambetta

71700 Tournus, France

www.lerempart.com

Enjoy (I sure did)!

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My trip to Europe: Le Cloître in Cluny, France

We were in Cluny, famous for its abbey founded in the 10th Century, one of the largest before being destroyed.

Since the end of the 19th century, it is one of the centers of the Ecole des Arts et Métiers, that was organizing a party for the end of the school year. Cluny is also known for its stables, that we did not get a chance to visit.

We arrived there in the morning, walking around this small town and enjoying the market that was setup in front of the abbey.

We looked for restaurants and first wanted to go to the Bar du Centre, but the staff did not seem to be eager to serve customers. That is when we saw Le Cloître, a restaurant serving traditional French dishes, as well as crêpes.

The waiter warned us that the service would be slow because they had a party of 16. I appreciated the heads up as, at least, if we stayed, we knew what to expect.

At Le Cloître, they propose different prix-fixe menus. Jodi went for the appetizer-dessert and I went for the appetizer-entrée as we would probably share the dessert. For her appetizer, Jodi ordered the fried Saint-Marcellin cheese salad.

The cheese was delicious with its crispy and not greasy shell, all melty inside.

On my side, I started of with the escargots façon Beaujolaise:

It was quite interesting: I adore escargots de Bourgogne prepared with butter and parsley, tried them in a Roquefort sauce, but never this way, that is like a ragout made with red wine, with a taste similar to a daube, a classic French stew. I liked it, but my preference still remained with butter and parsley.

For the entrée, I ordered the quenelle de brochet et morilles au coulis de champignons, that is pike quenelle with morel and its mushroom sauce.

When the dish came, it was definitely overcooked and the sauce burnt. Problem was that this dish took 20 minutes to be prepared and, as the service was slow, we had no time to send it back, the abbey closing early. So we ate it. The quenelle itself was decent. But no trace of morel despite what the waiter told us.

It was served with some haricots verts that were not good, and a nice (at least) gratin Dauphinois, that is a potato au gratin. Overall, this was a promising, but very disappointing dish.

For dessert, Jodi ordered the brioche perdue au chocolat chaud. 

I thought it would be French toast with a hot chocolate spread, but it seemed like a store bought slice of brioche toasted, with an imitation of Nutella on top. Perfect for a homemade breakfast, but not something I would serve in a restaurant.

We also tried the creme brûlée that was just ok.

This was a disappointing lunch and next time, I'll pass Le Cloître...

Enjoy (...)!

Le Cloître
16 Rue Municipale
71250 Cluny, France

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My trip to Europe: Pierre in Mâcon, France

My brother Hervé and sister in law Rosa proposed to spend the week end in Bourgogne (Burgundy) and to try some Michelin Star restaurants there. We had a wide choice of restaurants, as the region has many with one or more Michelin Stars, some of them offer reasonably priced menus. For instance, Pierre that is the subject if this post, has a menu at 29 Eur ($40) including taxes and service, with appetizer, entrée and dessert. 

I was also thrilled to have Jodi discover Bourgogne, a region known for its wine, where I did not set foot in years. 

So, our first Michelin Star restaurant was Pierre in Mâcon. To give us some appetite, we first visited this small city, on the riverside of La Saone. 

I thought that Pierre was the name of the Chef and owner of the restaurant. Well, no: it used to be the name of the owner, before Chef Christian Gaulin and is wife Isabelle purchased the place. It is not a big place, with probably 10 to 12 tables spread across the room, so you do not have the impression of eating with your neighbors... That day, they had a party of twenty setup in a private room, but this did not disrupt at all the impeccable service we got. 

The menu is what I would call New French, in the sense that it is not the traditional dishes you would find in some restaurants, like fromage de tête, coq au vin, canard à l'orange, etc...But elegant dishes made with traditional ingredients, from the terroir, such as foie gras or volaille de Bresse (poultry from Bresse, a fairly known origin). There, the pleasure of the eyes is as important as the taste. 

To start off, we decided to try their house cocktail, suggested by Isabelle Gauchin herself who, while her husband is the Chef d'Orchestre in the kitchen, plays the role of Maître D and sommelier. 

The cocktail was made with crémant de Bourgogne and griotte. 

Very fruity and with not too much alcohol, it was the perfect drink to start. 

Then, they brought us some bread. We had the choice between one made with Sel de Guérande (salt of Guérande):

Or olive oil and herbes de Provence (blend of herbs from Provence that you can find in fine groceries or Whole Foods). 

It was served with some smokey salted butter made with smoked Sel de Guérande. 

Then, they brought us some Mises en bouche or amuse bouche:

Fish rillettes:

Foie gras crème brûlée with a cherry jam (my fav):

Crème coco avec jus de viande truffé or coconut cream with truffled meat juice. 

Petit sablé de Parmesan avec crème de roquette or Parmesan cookie with cream of roquette salad:

Chips de jambon cru or cured ham chips:

This was a great start, the presentation being fantastic and a nice way to experience many different flavors. 

We then started our dinner, paired with some white Bourgogne wine from Mâcon, that I completely forgot to photograph, to remember the name...

My appetizer (did I mention that we say entrée in French because it is the first course, while what we call entree in the US is the plat or plat principal?), was the foie gras de canard du Sud-Ouest aux fruits secs en gelée de pomme et Mâcon moeilleux, petite feuilles et brioche tréssée. 

It was a foie gras from South-West with dried fruits in an apple gelée. It was served with some salad and a toasted brioche. 

I loved the foie gras, but admit that I did not like the texture of the gelée that was a mix between the gelatinous part and the crunch of the dried fruits. 

Jodi got the ravioles de champignons avec bouillon de foie gras or mushroom ravioles with a foie gras stock. 

Know that, unlike me, Jodi does not like foie gras, so she was not sure she would like it. But she did! These ravioles that are like small ravioli, were delicious, thin, with the mushroom taste coming through. The foie gras stock was very good also, the foie gras taste not overpowering. 

For the main dish, I got the volaille de Bresse ("Maison Miéral") en deux préparations: la poîtrine rôtie, jus au suc de cuisson tranché; la traditionnelle cuisse à la crème de morilles, risotto truffé. 

It was a poultry from Bresse ("Maison Miéral") prepared in two ways: the breast was roasted and drizzled what I believe can be translated by the juice reduction; then the thigh with a morel cream. It was served with a truffled risotto. 

This was a great dish, the poultry being perfectly cooked and moist. I just wished there was more of that morel sauce that was succulent. The truffled risotto was also perfect with it, the rice perfectly cooked and creamy. 

Jodi got the Goujonnette de turbot au basilic et mini-ratatouille (Turbot fish with mini-ratatouille):

Then, we got a pre-dessert. Isn't it a nice concept? A dessert before dessert: that's my kind of thing! It was a crémeux de fromage Blanc avec une confiture d'abricot or creamy fromage Blanc with its apricot jam. 

But it was not over! We got some mignardises ;

Orange sucettes (lollipop):

Gâteau Mâconnais or cookie from Mâcon:

Gâteau au caramel et noix or caramel and walnut cookie:

Idéal Mâconnais with nougatine, meringue, crème patissière:

Guimauve fraise or strawberry marshmallow:

Then came desserts! Jodi got the ice cream and sherbet selection. The flavors were: vanilla/coconut, strawberry, banana, exotic fruits and cassis. 

On my side, I chose the entremet croustillant chocolat blond "Dulcey" aux Pommes, served with a salted caramel ice cream. 

I picked it because we discovered the chocolat blond "Dulcey" few days before at Valrhona (check out the post here). It was good, but not at the level of their soufflé with limoncello. 

And when we thought it was over, they brought us some chocolates...

This was a sublime dinner, Chef Gauchin definitely deserving his Michelin Star for a cuisine served in a nice and relaxed atmosphere, not stuffy at all. The service was also perfect, as expected in such place. 

Restaurant Pierre

7 Rue Dufour

71000 Mâcon, France

www.restaurant-pierre.com

Enjoy (I did)!

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My trip to Europe: Le Festival des Pizzas in Grenoble, France

Each time we go to Grenoble, we go to the Quartier Saint-Laurent aka Le Quartier des Italiens or Italian neighborhood, named because of the important Italian community there. 

It is a nice area, located on one side if the Isère river and in the bottom of the Bastille that used to be a fortress, built in 1592 on the South end part of the Chartreuse mountain. It is now a ruin, with just few restaurants on top of the hill, where people like to go to get some fresh air, either walking or taking the "bulles", a spherical cable car. 

We looked at all the pizzeria there to try to find one with Saint-Marcellin, a soft cheese made of cow's milk, named after a small town nearby where they produce this divine cheese. Unfortunately, we could not find it, so we opted for Le Festival des Pizzas, simply because they were the only one proposing a five cheese pizza!

That is what I ordered in fact. Cooked in a wood fire oven for a couple of minutes, it had emmental, goat, reblochon, blue and mozzarella cheese. 

I really liked the crust, the outside being all puffed up

And the bottom having a nice char. 

This is definitely the kind of pizza any cheese lover would like, as they were generous in the quantity of cheese. 

Jodi ordered the goat cheese salad, as two pizza are too much. 

Well, the salad was big...

My mom got the Atlantico pizza that had smoked salmon in it. 

It was ok: I do not really like when smoked salmon is cooked because it releases the salt. 

Overall it was pretty good. I would definitely go back, maybe to try their white pies.

Festival des Pizzas
74 Quai Perrière
38000 Grenoble, France
www.festival-des-pizzas-grenoble.fr

Enjoy (I did)!

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My trip to Europe: Greg and Jerry's Burger and Fries in Grenoble, France

I am always curious to see how food is evolving in France, French cuisine being considered one of the best, and French people being very protective about it. Each time I go to France, I see a change: there are more and more fast food, whether it is kebab places (I saw one called "Batman Kebab"!), pizza with chains like Domino's or Pizza Hut, or fast food like MacDonald's, the latter being very popular with the younger crowd. I read recently that Burger King will make a comeback soon after more than a decade of absence, now that they see a profitable market, not anymore dominated by MacDonald's. KFC is also very popular there and plans to open many restaurants across the country. 

Another phenomenon I noticed in the past few years is the emergence of delivery: when I was living in Paris, it was only limited to pizza and paella. Now, more and more, I see delivery for sushi, pizza (I even saw a pizza ATM!) and burgers. 

In fact, I discovered Greg and Jerry's on a flyer at the hotel we were staying in. It is a burger place that serves ice cream from Ben & Jerry's, hence the name, that has been opened for more than six years, but relocated to that place two years ago. 

Very colorful with its red banquette and stools, they try to transport you to the heart of America; normal considering that they only serve burgers. Geared towards carnivores (no veggie burger there), they propose a nice selection of specialty burgers, some similar to the one we have here, like the classic cheese that we tried:

Others reinvented with a French twist, like the Best Mountain, made with reblochon cheese, bacon and potatoes, or the Parisian, made with emmental, chèvre (goat) and blue cheese, that we also tasted. 

The way it works is that you first order at the counter, and then, they will bring it to your table. 

When we opened the box, we were a bit disappointed by what we saw, the bread having a sad look. It is like a sourdough bread, that was a bit dry. In fact, the proportion bread / meat patty was unbalanced in favor of the bread. The meat was good and did not have this grey color that the burgers at MacDonald's had when I went there. But again, too much (dry) bread for the quantity of meat. 

The classic cheese had too much onions, salad and tomatoes, so I barely tasted the meat. However, we ordered the Parisian without lettuce and tomatoes and it was very good. They would use a better bread, this could be a killer sandwich. 

With our burgers, we ordered Idaho potato fries that were cooked skin on, cooked all the way through and deliciously crispy. 

They also had onion rings, that were good, but would have been even better if crispy. There, no special sauce besides mayo and ketchup. 

If you do not like burgers, you can try their chicken nuggets. 

I did try one: it was just ok. 

Full at the end, we did not try any ice cream, that anyway would not have been that original... I think Greg and Jerry's was a nice try and they could definitely beat MacDonald's that is few steps away if they were changing their bread, as well as the price: the menu for a burger, fries and a drink being priced at 12 Euros (more than $17), making it expensive for what it is. 

Greg & Jerry's

105, cours Jean Jaures

38000 Grenoble, France

www.gregandjerrys.fr

Enjoy (I did)!

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My Trip to Europe: La Crêperie de Gordes in Grenoble, France

As we were having lunch with my friend Chrystelle, we decided to try La Crêperie de Gordes, get some crêpes. When I say crêpes, I may want to say galettes as they say in Bretagne where this delicious dish is coming from. The difference? A galette is made with buckwheat (Farine de sarrazin in French) and a crêpe with bread flour (Farine de froment). 

La Crêperie de Gordes is a nice place: they have a big terrace, perfect when weather permits, as it did when we went, as well as a fantastic decor inside, the theme being the Alpes and ski rather than Bretagne region. They have for instance a replica of a ski slope full of playmobil, a popular children toy. 

As well as an authentic cable car where two people can eat. 

The menu is fairly big, with lots of choices for crêpes that can satisfy the carnivores, as well as the vegetarian. Asking them to remove an ingredient or alter the crêpe slightly does not seem to be a problem. 

Jodi decided to order the pear and blue cheese crêpe (the crêpe bleuet) .

On my side, I went for the three cheese one (the fromagère). 

It was made of emmental, reblochon and blue cheese. I preferred this one over the one Jodi got: hers could have been better with the pear sliced in small pieces instead of half, and mixed with the blue cheese cream. Mine had lots of cheese, that was delightful. I have to mention that the galette itself was delicious, very slightly crispy. 

Chrystelle ordered the Sicilienne, that had tuna in it and an egg on top. Pretty good. 

For dessert, Jodi and I shared the beurre-sucre crêpe (butter and sugar), that is simple, but so good. Just smelling the butter makes it appetizing. 

Chrystelle got the same but with lemon. 

I tried it, but prefer the one we ordered. 

With our meal, we ordered a bolée de cidre or some apple cider, a typical drink with such food. 

This was a wonderful meal, not only because of the company, but also because the food was very good and at reasonable prices. 

Crêperie de Gordes
3 Place de Gordes
38000 Grenoble, France

Enjoy (I did)!

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My trip to Europe: Le Marrakech, Moroccan restaurant in Grenoble, France

We went to Le Marrakech, a Moroccan restaurant, two years ago and were still talking about it, wanting to go back to eat some of their couscous or tagines. And we did come back this time, with my Dad, brother Hervé, sister in law Rosa and nephew Valentin. 

This place is spectacular, not only because of the Moroccan cuisine, but also because of the fabulous decor that transports you to Morocco as soon as you enter the restaurant. 

I went to Morocco 15 years ago, in a trip through the desert, with stops in Marrakech, with its crowded soukh, and Ouarzazatte, sleeping and eating under a tent, in the middle of the dunes. There, I discovered the Moroccan mint tea that is more flavorful than the packets you can buy in stores, and deliciously sweet, perfect to help with digestion. We in fact started and finished our meal with it. 

If you are not into tea, they also have some local wine bottles. 

I got to try some appetizers that were delicious, such as the brick kefta, a phyllo like sheet rolled like a cigar, filled with ground meat:

Or the salad mechouiah, made with red peppers and tomatoes. 

For the entrées, we picked the tagine kefta et oeuf, a tagine made with beef meatballs, cooked in a tomato sauce, with an egg in the middle. 

As well as the couscous merguez, composed of semolina and vegetables (mainly carrots, with few chickpeas unfortunately):

And merguez, that are lamb sausages. 

With it, you can add golden raisins or Harissa.

Both dishes were delicious and very flavorful. Very different, I cannot even pick one or the other. 

To finish our meal, we decided to try an assortment of oriental pastries. 

There was:

Ariba (made with almonds):

Makroudh (made with semolina and stuffed with dates):

Baklava:

Loukhoum (with a coconut layer that Jodi loved):

This was a nice way to end a wonderful evening. Le Marrakech is definitely a place to know if you are in Grenoble and want to experience Moroccan cuisine. 

Le Marrakech
13 Avenue Général Champon
38000 Grenoble, France
www.lemarrakech-grenoble.com

Enjoy (I did)!

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My trip to Europe: Le Tacos de Lyon in Grenoble, France - Mexican tacos made by the French?

Each time I was visiting my family in Grenoble, France, my nephew Valentin was mentioning this place called Le Tacos de Lyon. As at the same time he was talking about kebab, I was definitely intrigued, wondering how the French would make Mexican tacos and proposed to go there for lunch.

It is a small place located in a short street close to the center of the town. Very colorful, they serve food until 1am, the crowd being different depending on the time of the day. Mainly young as they offer very affordable prices making it very attractive to high schoolers and students, as well as people who want to eat something original.

First of all, do not say "a taco": it is "a tacos". Then, do not think you will be served Mexican tacos. There, not fish taco, no adobo chicken, no guacamole or pico de gallo. It is a tacos with flavors from Maghreb: the sour cream is replaced by a homemade cheese sauce to balance with the heat some of the sauces or ingredients can have; the sauces are, for the most part, made with Harissa, a hot chili pepper paste coming from Tunisia; and they offer choices of meat like merguez, a lamb sausage fairly common in North African cuisine. I met with the manager, Salah Dardouri, a very warm and welcoming guy, who explained to me that the idea comes from Lyon, considered by most as the capital of French gastronomy. Hence the name Le Tacos de Lyon. Then, they opened a first restaurant in Saint-Martin D'Hères in 2006 and since then have three restaurants in the area. Salah told me that, when they opened in Grenoble, lots of people told them that they were crazy, but he proved them that they were wrong. In fact, I saw plenty of restaurants serving this type of tacos, in Grenoble and elsewhere, and they seem to have a clientele.

You order at the counter and they will bring your order at the table. First, you pick your meat. You can choose one or two, depending on your appetite. In fact, if you are really hungry, you can order a mega tacos with a choice of four meats, but I am not sure that even Adam Richman (Man vs Food) would be able to finish it. They propose: merguez, ground beef, chicken nuggets or chicken cordon bleu. Then, you pick the sauce: white (similar to the one we have in the US, that they put on kebab), ketchup, mayo, aioli, algérienne, Marocaine, Samourai, etc. As mentioned above, the latter being prepared with Harissa. 

Jodi ordered a vegetarian one, made with eggs and veggies, and with white sauce.

On my side, I ordered the merguez with aioli. 

When the sandwiches came, we noticed that they use a tortilla, similar to a burrito or enchilada, that they first stuffed and then grilled. It was heavy for sure. 

The first bite, we realized that they were fries in it, bathed in a lot of sauce. Let me tell you: this first bite was divine. Very comforting, the fries were better in the sandwich than outside, although I got to try them separately and they were as I like them: skinny, not greasy, cooked all the way through and crispy. The merguez was also very good. Salah explained to me that usually, merguez are made with meat leftovers. Not there: they chose the meat before transforming it into a delicious, sometimes spicy sausage.

I admit that I could not finish, the sandwich being very filling. 

So, as I mentioned before, we also tried the fries as my nephew wanted us to taste some of the original sauces they serve. We tried:

Samourai:

Andalouse:

Biggy burger (the most popular):

Homemade cheese (the same they put in the sandwich):

Tunisienne and Marocaine:

My favorite was the Biggy burger, probably because it is made with mayonnaise. But I admit that I liked the Tunisienne and Marocaine, because of the kick they had. 

I really liked my meal at Le Tacos de Lyon: it was very good and comforting for an affordable price, even if it is far from a Mexican Taco. Know that if you do not like the tacos, they offer platters, as well as burgers.

Le Tacos de Lyon
4 Rue Brocherie
38000 Grenoble, France
www.letacosdelyon.fr

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My trip to Europe: Le Chaudron in Tournon, France

If you live in the New York and go to France, you might notice or I should say realize how spoiled we are there, places being opened daily and late at night if not 24/7. In France, it is not the case: supermarkets close at night; pharmacies are closed on the week end, except one per neighborhood for emergencies, and restaurants or boulangeries (bakeries) are closed once a week. If you are in Paris for instance, you will always find something opened, but in smaller cities, it might be a challenge. That is what we experienced when going to Tain L'Hermitage, a 6,000 souls city in the Drôme department, known for its wine and because Valrhona chocolatier has its Cité du Chocolat, a place where you can learn about chocolate and taste as many Valrhona chocolates as you want!

So, after walking around to try to find a place opened there for lunch, we went back to our car and drove to Tournon, the city close by. There, after desperately trying to find a place, we saw Le Chaudron, a French restaurant located located at the end of a cul-de-sac. 

Nice place, with a beautiful terrace that would have been perfect if we did not expect rain...that never came. 

The food there is elevated French or shall I say New French? Yes, they take classic ingredients such as foie gras or fish and create some interesting and mouth watering dishes. 

At the start of our meal, their brought us some caillette, a specialty from the area that is made with different parts of the porc. 

Then, I decided to go with the filets de rouget, a fish close to red snapper, but smaller and with a more pronounced taste. 

It was served with two tapenades, one made with black olives, the other with green, for some added saltiness.

The fish was perfectly cut and cooked.

Nice presentation and a great way to start a meal.

Then, I got the millefeuille of salmon with a curry sauce, served with ravioles (sort of small ravioli, a traditional dish there). 

The salmon was perfectly cooked, moist and deliciously flakey, with tuiles made with sesame seeds that gave a nice nuttiness to the dish.

The sauce was sublime, the curry being there for the color rather than the taste. 

Jodi ordered a cheese plate:

It had:

Fourme d'Ambert:

Picodon:

Coulomier:

Saint Felicien:

With it, she ordered a small salad that was a bit pricey (10 Euros). 

For dessert, we tried:

The pomme au four (oven baked apple) with salted caramel:

The crème brûlée:

The mi-cuit au chocolat:

The dessert were very disappointing: the crème brûlée had a weird taste and the mi-cuit cake was overcooked. Only the oven baked apple was good. 

With our coffee, they also gave us some small pieces of chocolate cake, a nice touch to finish a meal that would have been memorable if the dessert would have been at the same level as the rest of the food. Despite this, I really liked our meal at Le Chaudron: creative and delicious. 

Le Chaudron
7 Rue Saint-Antoine
07300 Tournon-sur-Rhône, France

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My trip to Europe: Le Lido Plage in Aix-Les-Bains, France

There are places where the location primes over the food and Le Lido Plage in Aix Les Bains (France) is surely one of them. Not that the food was not good, but we picked this place because it is located right next to the Lac du Bourget, a beautiful lake where fish, ducks, swans and swimmers coexist. 

When the weather permits, the restaurant will only serve at the terrace, overlooking the lake and the private beach. 

We went on a Sunday, to celebrate my Dad's birthday. They offer a menu à la carte, or prix fixe (know that in France, menu means prix-fixe, not to confuse anybody). We went for a prix-fixe that included appetizer, entrée and dessert. 

All of this accompanied with some delicious white and rosé wine to cool us down on that warm journey. I should add that if you need a hat, they will lend you one, and I was happy that I had one, because those that you can borrow, will for sure make you regret that you forgot yours. 

To start, Jodi got the burger of tomato and mozzarella with pesto and tapenade. 

The presentation was beautiful, the tomato replacing the bun and the mozzarella, that was delicious, the meat patty. It was a nice combination: I did not really care about the pesto, but the tapenade was fantastic with the tomato and mozzarella, elevating the dish that would have otherwise simply be a tomato and mozzarella salad. 

On my side, I had the beef carpaccio:

I definitely did not regret that choice: it was perfect, the thin slices of beef melting in my mouth and perfectly balanced, with not too much acidity. 

Then, for the entrée, Jodi ordered the fried filet of perch, served with French fries and tartare sauce. 

Imagine fish and chips, but French. I liked it, although the fish was a bit greasy and the fries just ok. 

On my side, I got the filet of lavaret, a European white fish, served with a butter sauce, rice and ratatouille. 

I liked it, the fish being perfectly cooked and flakey, but would have liked more sauce as the rice was a bit dry. However, the ratatouille was delicious, quite comforting with different flavors depending on which vegetable ended up on my fork. The addition of some small chickpeas was a good idea, as not only it added a nice flavor, but also some texture. 

Last was dessert. Jodi went for the creme brûlée. 

I went for the white chocolate panacotta with a red berry coulis. 

I admit that I preferred the creme brûlée that was sublime: it was a vanilla one and we could definitely see the vanilla beans. The panacotta was not set at all, being too liquid. Too bad. 

The meal at Le Lido Plage was good overall, dishes from the menu being better than the prix fixe according to my brother who went few times. It is a good place if you'd like to enjoy a decent meal in a restaurant with a stunning view. 

Lido Plage

Chemin du Lac

73100 Tresserve, France

lido.coraxis.pro

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My trip to Europe: Les Jardins de Sainte-Cécile in Grenoble, France

This post is the first of a series from our last vacation in France and Italy.

For a first celebration of my Dad's birthday, we went to Les Jardins de Sainte-Cécile in Grenoble, a restaurant located in an old convent. 

Interesting place for sure: it is the home office of the Edition Glénat, a popular French editor, and has been complemented recently with the restaurant, where the Chef and his crew refined classic dishes.

The decor is pretty amazing, the convent being modernized in a way, with the red and black theme used for the chairs, chandeliers as well as the walls covered with wine bottles, giving a feel of both trendy, but still classic restaurant. 

The wine cellar is located downstairs, where I could not miss the bottles of Coca Cola...

But, one of their main assets is definitely the garden, that is of a nice size, allowing for tables not to be too close to the others. 

The only negative was the service that was not to the level you would expect in such restaurant: very slow, a bit clumsy and missing manners that you would expect anyway in any places. Fortunately, the food was pretty good, original and the presentation was sublime. 

We started off with an apéritif. Jodi ordered an orangina, and I decided to try a Spritz, a Northeast Italian wine cocktail. It was made with Campari and some carbonated water. No prosecco. 

Then, Jodi ordered the Déclinaison de tomate, pétales de lomo, croquant au parmesan:

The lomo is veal and we asked not to have any, request that they accommodated without any problem, making this dish vegetarian. It was very refreshing, with a sort of tomato salad on one hand and a delicious and refreshing gazpacho on the other, without forgetting the tomato spread on top. Nice red matching the color of the restaurant!

On my side, I ordered the Dôme de foie gras, cœur de chutney de fruits, tressé de chocolat that is a foie gras with a fruit chutney in the center and a chocolate dome. 

Very creative: I never had foie gras with chocolate. It is fairly common to eat foie gras with a chutney like fig and to drink it with a sweet wine, but I have never seen it with chocolate. The difficulty there was to make sure we did not put too much chocolate as it would overpower the foie gras otherwise. 

For the entree, Jodi ordered the chaud-froid de saumon mi-cuit, sauce noisette et soja, oignons rouges, tomates cerises rôties, chemisée de courgettes:

Ok, I admit that a translation will be difficult...It was seared salmon with a hazelnut and soy sauce, roasted cherry tomatoes and zucchini. It was delicious: the fish was perfectly cooked, rare in the center and paired perfectly with the hazelnut and soy sauce for an added saltiness and nutiness.

On my side, I ordered the Filet de bœuf en croute roulade d’herbes et blettes, Poêlée d’asperges en deux façons. 

It is like a beef Wellington in a way, except that there is no foie gras and mushroom between the meat and the puff pastry, but spinach.

The meat, that was tenderloin, was as expected, rear, the temperature of such dish being driven by the color of the puff pastry. It was fantastic: juicy and tender, I loved the combination of the meat with the puff pastry, the latter adding a nice buttery flavor to the dish. 

For dessert, Jodi ordered the Chaud froid meringué dans sa nage de fruits rouges that was a meringue in a red fruit soup. 

On my side, I ordered the Croquant coco pistaché, crème acidulée, boule de neige givrée aux citrons verts. 

It was supposed to be a croquant of coconut and pistachio with a lime ice cream. I loved the latter, but not the croquant part that was not at all what I expected: not crunchy, I did not like the flavor that did not really taste like coconut. I for sure preferred Jodi's dessert that was phenomenal: not too sweet, it was very refreshing and a great combination. 

We of course finished our meal with an espresso. 

It was definitely a good meal, a bit pricey though. If they work out the kinks in the service, this will definitely be one of the gastronomic destinations in Grenoble. 

Les Jardins de Sainte Cécile
18 rue de l'Alma
38000 Grenoble
lesjardinsdesaintececile.com

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