Still having my fresh memories of my recent dinner in La Table de Joel Robuchon in Paris (16th) i was very interested to see how his New York branch has evaluated. Especially, that the only time i dined in L'Atelier de Joel Robuchon in NY (Four Seasons hotel )was more than perfection . To be honest, this time i expected something a little less memorable as normally supervising restaurants all over the world (like Joel Robuchon does) shouldn't help with the quality. But i was once again amazed about the capabilities of this chef. He is able to reinvent and propose something new year after year ( and i have been familiar with his cooking since he opened his L'Atelier in Paris) and the food doesn't get less creative or less delicious. The choices on the menu were almost completely different than in La Table de Joel Robuchon in Paris, which was a very nice surprise.
Except maybe for the amuse bouche of "foie gras cappucino" which seems to the signature amuse bouche of Robuchon. Very good, but i know the taste by heart!
It also seemed to me that the New York L'Atelier has much more choices on the menu than La Table in Paris. I can't speak for L'Atelier in Paris (in the 7th) as its been a while i haven't been there. Not because i wouldn't want , but because they don't take reservations and each time i pass around the dinner time they tell us there is a waiting time of two or three hours! They do propose to wait in the bar of the nearby hotel, but too many cocktails before dinner is not always a good thing :)
Anyway, i was very pleased by the choices on the menu of L'Atelier in NY. The dinner was highly enjoyable. The food, the very professional and pleasant service, beautiful and modern surroundings...
"Bluefin tuna marinated in a tomato oil and sea salt" . I think there was too much oil on the carpaccio, but despite of that ,it was excellent.
"Main lobster in turnip ravioli". Cold,different what i thought when ordering. The only dish i was not so crazy about as all was very straightforward and the lobster was quite flavorless.
"Crispy langoustine papillote with basil pesto" Classics of Robuchon(it was also on the menu of La Table in Paris ).When you bite into that warm, crunchy and crispy langoutine papillote you are the happiest person in the world...
"Pumpkin cream scented with smoked bacon and croutons"Do you remember the Robuchon's chestnut soup with pan fried foie gras , croutons and bacon? Well, it is not on the menu anymore but i loved that soup so much that now each time i eat in one of his restaurants soup is obligatory for me.
What i found interesting is the variation of this pumpkin soup in La Table in Paris. The Parisian version is with Jerusalem artichokes and chorizo "iberico". I preferred the NY version.
"Roasted Japanese hanger steak,sauteed shallots and shishito peppers". Excellent and very different from usual Robuchons meat dishes.
"Turbot cooked " a la plancha",ham, barigoule juice,artichokes and black truffles". Its been a while i didn't eat such a perfect and delicious fish dish. It was served with the classical Robuchon potatoes purée (yes,the same which contains half butter - half potatoes :)) and all the marriage of tastes was genius. Highly recommended.
The dessert was also very very good."Baba, thyme pineapple with rum sabayon and Okinawa black sugar ice cream" The best baba i have ever had. It was infused with pineapple flavor and runm and it was very soft and melting in your mouth.
Bravo, Mr Joel Robuchon!
