Post by phread on Apr 1, 2009 3:03:13 GMT -5
Yesterday we finally made it to our much awaited teen lunch at Guy Savoy. It was a birthday present for my 15 year old. I am going to be completely honest here and perhaps hyper critical, but honestly, this is supposed to be one of the best restaurants in the world and most of the menus start near the 250E range, even for lunch. I feel like it is an investment and people should know before they go...
As we headed out, my daughter asked me a bit more about the place. "It has three Michelin stars." "And what is the maximum?" "3" "What? The place in Ratatouille had FIVE!" "That was Disney, dear, this is real life."
To begin with, you are greeted at an entrance that feels much like a reception desk at a hotel. Two people, computers, phonelines. Very business lunch feeling and not at all my idea of elegant. The people on the other hand, are perfect and one of my favorite things about Savoy is that he hires lots of ethnic minorities to mind the front rooms (as opposed to keeping them out of sight). A rarity in France.
We were seated in one of the three "rooms". Each room is elegant, with tasteful art. One of the pieces was a large bust of Buddah in bright red. The red of match tips, which is exactly the material used to make the bust. We knew this because my daughter had done a report on the artist a year ago and photographed many of his works. It was a treat to see it in-situ.
Beyond the art you also have a view of the bread cart and as the afternoon progresses the cheese and desserts carts come out. Part of the culinary spectacle. Within the first three minutes we were "served" by about five people. My daughter kept saying "merci". As the sixth person approached she mentioned that if she kept saying thanks to all these people, she wasn't going to have time for any other conversation!
Upon being seated we were immediately served a bite of toast with foie gras. Best we've ever had. The man is a master with spices. When the staff saw our reaction we were offered a second "bite". Then came the amuse bouche of a mini springroll, a lobster consommé and a mini samosa. Which I proceeded to eat with my fingers, completely ignorant of the fork and spoon provided for this course. My daughter was concerned that I'd be embarrassed and I explained to her that no, this was the kind of place where one had an OBLIGATION to have FUN enjoying one's food.
The menus arrived and I was disappointed to find that it did NOT include the 100E lunch menu. I had to request it and we were given new menus. I didn't like that. But it did give me an opportunity to see that the two menus are very similar. As we went to order the waiter RECOMMENDED that we share our entrees. He also recommended particular "specialties" of the house. And then he explained that the ice cream and cokies cart that was listed on the menu, was in fact, a given, so my daughter could have that AND the dessert of her choice. "Happy Birthday" I said under my breath.
We began by sharing her entree of choice, a nage of oysters. I don't know what they were swimming in , these oysters, some kind of clear-ish, foamy gel. The oysters themselves were amazing, but with all the extra stuff they made for an enormous mouthful and we were both glad that by sharing we only had to eat three each and not six. They were HUGE! It was our least favorite part of the meal, but more because of our trepedatious relationship with the bivalves than through any fault of the kitchen's. My daughter had been concerned about how to consume the oysters in an "elegant" way. She was relieved when they came ready to just spoon out of their shell and started to trust her environment a bit more.
Oh, and the bread cart had already come and gone twice by this point, the server explaining that there was a pre selected bread for each course that we'd be enjoying through out the meal. We like bread, but used the utmost restraint.
Because of my accident and the fact that I had a job interview immediately following the meal, I explained to the sommelier that I would not be having any alcohol, but would like some mineral water. They had Chateldon, my personal fave. Every time we had a sip of water, our glasses were re-filled. It became a game to see if we could actually empty our glass before being served. It took most of the meal, but I did manage at one point.
Time for our mains. I had followed the waiter's recommendation. OH NO. I forgot. MY entrée. I had chosen the soup of artichoke hearts with truffles. A house specialty, according to the waiter. It was served with a brioche that looked like a cinnamon bun, but was actually laced with chopped mushrooms and then coated with a truffle butter. We were advised to dip the brioche in our soup, "like a tartine." YUM. YUM. YUM. Even if it is not truffle season, I loved this dish.
Back to the mains. The recommendation had been the sea bass, which is served on a bed of chard whites that with in an ultra light sauce with a vanilla accent. There are still some scales on the fish, and although I was surprised, I did eat them and they were perfect.... a crunchy, crispy texture that perfectly balanced the ultra tender fish. Daughter had the lamb. It is prepared four different was, including three baby chops. Hmmm. Quite the challenge as she wanted to be extra elegant, but NOT eating those with her hands seemed SUCH a shame. The temptation. And then, the waiter appeared with a dipping bowl for her fingers. Not only did Mom thinks she should go digital, but it was proscribed by the restaurant. Yipee. She tells me that the meat was great. There was a small bit of couscous that she went fairly gaga over. A funny note (for me, anyway) was that her vegetables of spinach puree were brought to the table in a small copper pot, stirred at the table and then served on her plate. All this for a teaspoon of food!
At this point, a neighboring table of four, that was enjoying the 275 Prestige menu was served their Mackerel entree. The four bowls were overflowing with dryice fumes that made for beautiful display.
Now time for the good stuff.... dessert. I had Noir. Dark chocolate mousse with lime zest and a dark chocolate sorbet on a dusting of pepper. Good but, somewhat mundane. Daughter had chosen the Autour de la Fraise. With a strawberry jam base, strawberry soup and strawberry granite, all crowned with freeze dries strawberry slices that were so beautiful I was craving my camera. AND the waiter had heard my happy birthday remark, so there was a lit candle above it all. She beamed!
Dessert completed we were each served a small plate with an inverted Ile flottant, a pistachio calisson, a chocolate raisin springroll and a pralined madeleine.
I ordered coffee. But remember the ice cream and old fashioned cookie cart? Priorities, first. We were each served an Earl Grey sorbet to cleanse our palet. Then out came the cart. On the bottom shelf were marshmallows; strawberry basil, grapefruit mint and lemon. Smoked tea scented tuile cookies, Cocoa shaped chocolates, choc and vanilla macarons, and a few more bites that escape me. On the top of the cart there were jam jars of rice pudding, creme caramel and an amazing chocolate mousse. For ice cream there was caramel, chocolate and vanilla.
The coffee was served with some cakes for dipping and chocolate mendiants.
The bill came to 117 euros. I left feeling like I'd taken advantage of the place. An incredible bargain. I even thanked the maitre d' for the teen program and he explained that there are actively cultivating tomorrow's clients. It was a wonderful experience to see my daughter gaining confidence as the meal progressed and watching her enjoy the food. Truly magical.
As we headed out, my daughter asked me a bit more about the place. "It has three Michelin stars." "And what is the maximum?" "3" "What? The place in Ratatouille had FIVE!" "That was Disney, dear, this is real life."
To begin with, you are greeted at an entrance that feels much like a reception desk at a hotel. Two people, computers, phonelines. Very business lunch feeling and not at all my idea of elegant. The people on the other hand, are perfect and one of my favorite things about Savoy is that he hires lots of ethnic minorities to mind the front rooms (as opposed to keeping them out of sight). A rarity in France.
We were seated in one of the three "rooms". Each room is elegant, with tasteful art. One of the pieces was a large bust of Buddah in bright red. The red of match tips, which is exactly the material used to make the bust. We knew this because my daughter had done a report on the artist a year ago and photographed many of his works. It was a treat to see it in-situ.
Beyond the art you also have a view of the bread cart and as the afternoon progresses the cheese and desserts carts come out. Part of the culinary spectacle. Within the first three minutes we were "served" by about five people. My daughter kept saying "merci". As the sixth person approached she mentioned that if she kept saying thanks to all these people, she wasn't going to have time for any other conversation!
Upon being seated we were immediately served a bite of toast with foie gras. Best we've ever had. The man is a master with spices. When the staff saw our reaction we were offered a second "bite". Then came the amuse bouche of a mini springroll, a lobster consommé and a mini samosa. Which I proceeded to eat with my fingers, completely ignorant of the fork and spoon provided for this course. My daughter was concerned that I'd be embarrassed and I explained to her that no, this was the kind of place where one had an OBLIGATION to have FUN enjoying one's food.
The menus arrived and I was disappointed to find that it did NOT include the 100E lunch menu. I had to request it and we were given new menus. I didn't like that. But it did give me an opportunity to see that the two menus are very similar. As we went to order the waiter RECOMMENDED that we share our entrees. He also recommended particular "specialties" of the house. And then he explained that the ice cream and cokies cart that was listed on the menu, was in fact, a given, so my daughter could have that AND the dessert of her choice. "Happy Birthday" I said under my breath.
We began by sharing her entree of choice, a nage of oysters. I don't know what they were swimming in , these oysters, some kind of clear-ish, foamy gel. The oysters themselves were amazing, but with all the extra stuff they made for an enormous mouthful and we were both glad that by sharing we only had to eat three each and not six. They were HUGE! It was our least favorite part of the meal, but more because of our trepedatious relationship with the bivalves than through any fault of the kitchen's. My daughter had been concerned about how to consume the oysters in an "elegant" way. She was relieved when they came ready to just spoon out of their shell and started to trust her environment a bit more.
Oh, and the bread cart had already come and gone twice by this point, the server explaining that there was a pre selected bread for each course that we'd be enjoying through out the meal. We like bread, but used the utmost restraint.
Because of my accident and the fact that I had a job interview immediately following the meal, I explained to the sommelier that I would not be having any alcohol, but would like some mineral water. They had Chateldon, my personal fave. Every time we had a sip of water, our glasses were re-filled. It became a game to see if we could actually empty our glass before being served. It took most of the meal, but I did manage at one point.
Time for our mains. I had followed the waiter's recommendation. OH NO. I forgot. MY entrée. I had chosen the soup of artichoke hearts with truffles. A house specialty, according to the waiter. It was served with a brioche that looked like a cinnamon bun, but was actually laced with chopped mushrooms and then coated with a truffle butter. We were advised to dip the brioche in our soup, "like a tartine." YUM. YUM. YUM. Even if it is not truffle season, I loved this dish.
Back to the mains. The recommendation had been the sea bass, which is served on a bed of chard whites that with in an ultra light sauce with a vanilla accent. There are still some scales on the fish, and although I was surprised, I did eat them and they were perfect.... a crunchy, crispy texture that perfectly balanced the ultra tender fish. Daughter had the lamb. It is prepared four different was, including three baby chops. Hmmm. Quite the challenge as she wanted to be extra elegant, but NOT eating those with her hands seemed SUCH a shame. The temptation. And then, the waiter appeared with a dipping bowl for her fingers. Not only did Mom thinks she should go digital, but it was proscribed by the restaurant. Yipee. She tells me that the meat was great. There was a small bit of couscous that she went fairly gaga over. A funny note (for me, anyway) was that her vegetables of spinach puree were brought to the table in a small copper pot, stirred at the table and then served on her plate. All this for a teaspoon of food!
At this point, a neighboring table of four, that was enjoying the 275 Prestige menu was served their Mackerel entree. The four bowls were overflowing with dryice fumes that made for beautiful display.
Now time for the good stuff.... dessert. I had Noir. Dark chocolate mousse with lime zest and a dark chocolate sorbet on a dusting of pepper. Good but, somewhat mundane. Daughter had chosen the Autour de la Fraise. With a strawberry jam base, strawberry soup and strawberry granite, all crowned with freeze dries strawberry slices that were so beautiful I was craving my camera. AND the waiter had heard my happy birthday remark, so there was a lit candle above it all. She beamed!
Dessert completed we were each served a small plate with an inverted Ile flottant, a pistachio calisson, a chocolate raisin springroll and a pralined madeleine.
I ordered coffee. But remember the ice cream and old fashioned cookie cart? Priorities, first. We were each served an Earl Grey sorbet to cleanse our palet. Then out came the cart. On the bottom shelf were marshmallows; strawberry basil, grapefruit mint and lemon. Smoked tea scented tuile cookies, Cocoa shaped chocolates, choc and vanilla macarons, and a few more bites that escape me. On the top of the cart there were jam jars of rice pudding, creme caramel and an amazing chocolate mousse. For ice cream there was caramel, chocolate and vanilla.
The coffee was served with some cakes for dipping and chocolate mendiants.
The bill came to 117 euros. I left feeling like I'd taken advantage of the place. An incredible bargain. I even thanked the maitre d' for the teen program and he explained that there are actively cultivating tomorrow's clients. It was a wonderful experience to see my daughter gaining confidence as the meal progressed and watching her enjoy the food. Truly magical.
. Very good review too, Phread; I enjoyed it thoroughly.
hahahha