It
was finally the moment I'd been waiting for. Monday dinner had been
booked far in advance at Oustaù de Baumanière, a Michelin 2 star in a
little place called Les Baux de Provence. Les Baux is a tiny town
surrounded by a few small cliffs and rockfaces about 20 minutes from our
place in Maillane. It's famous for its bauxite, a raw material that was
discovered there. The drive up the hill is magnificent - you can
actually see the rock faces on the opposite side of the valley, with
little buildings built in here and there. It's one of those pictures
that are too big to capture on the trusty digital camera.
As you drive down to the base of the valley, the setting becomes even
more impressive. This page shows some pictures of where Baumanière is
located. From the terrace where we were seated, the view is just
breathtaking. Rocks appear high above you in all directions, and they
are lit by a beautiful orange glow as the night gets darker. It was
without a doubt the most beautiful restaurant setting I'd ever seen.
Also impressive was the army of waiters at our service - a massive crew
of clean-cut French dudes constantly shifting around the tables.
amuse: fried courgette fritters and rolled eggplant
Soon after we sat down a first set of amuse bouches came -
fried squash fritters flavored with curry and thinly sliced
eggplant wrapped around veggies and topped with tomato and
parmesan. Both were quite good. I think the courgette was the
only time I tasted curry on the whole trip. The eggplant was
less memorable.
amuse: chilled fennel soup
Next came a chilled fennel soup with a cappuccino-like foam
on top. This was very nice and refreshing, with a light but very
definite fennel flavor. My grandma and great-aunt were pretty
unfamiliar with fennel so this was a good introduction for them.
red tuna a la plancha with a gremolata of almonds and foie
gras - 40 euros
When our waiter described this dish and told me there were
little chunks of foie gras sprinkled on top, I couldn't resist.
It turned out pretty good, but I would have liked the tuna more
rare. This was the weakest part of the meal.
truffle ravioli with leeks - 62 euros
My dad didn't mess around and got probably the safest bet for
an app - the truffle ravioli. I had a bite and wished I'd gotten
it too. The truffles were pretty intense in aroma and flavor,
and the raviolis themselves were very well-made.
suprême de volaille de Bresse, sauce Albufera - 49 euros
This was GOOD. The translation is basically
a breast of chicken from Bresse (supposedly the best chickens in
the world) with a sauce of foie gras and topped with truffle.
I'd heard a great deal of hype about Bresse chickens from my dad
and I must say this lived up to it. This chicken was the most
tender breast meat I've ever had (along with Le Meurice later in
the trip) and I remember at the moment I was quite stunned. The
sauce was rich but not overwhelming, and of course truffles make
everything better. :) I should also say that the side of
vegetables in this dish were the most expertly-cooked vegetables
from the whole trip. Those little pieces of carrot, squash and
turnip were absolutely perfect in texture - cooked but still
crisp.
I should give an honorable mention here to the lamb en croûte
that my dad and grandma got. Somehow I forgot to take a picture,
but that was probably the best lamb dish ever.
cheese plate - 19 euros
Baumanière took the cake for biggest and coolest looking
cheese cart of the trip. The cart had two levels, one for cow
and the other for goat, and there was this really awesome
swiveling contraption that could set the levels forward and
back. It's hard to describe. Anyway, I got a fresh local goat
cheese, a St. Marcellin, and a Pont l'Evêque. Over the course of
the trip I think Pont-Levec became my favorite... I just kept
getting it.
petitfours
As our desserts came out, so did these petitfours. Of the
ones I tried, the berry tart was the best - a bit tart, a bit
sweet, and very light. The apricot tart was too sweet. The
financier was just okay.
crêpes soufflées Baumanière with Grand Marnier - 21 euros
I decided to get the dessert that had their name on it. This
thing was really really good - the soufflé was rich and
satisfying. But it was freakin' huge! I could only finish half
of this thing before I just got too full.
freshly made millefeuille of the house - 21 euros
Though mine was good, my dad's ordering skills trumped me yet
again. This was the most straightforward dessert but it was
simply delicious. The pastry was so flaky and light that you
could cut it with a knife without collapsing the whole thing!
My dad is convinced that Baumanière is really making a push
for that third star. From what I can tell, their service is a
cut above most of the other two stars, and the atmosphere
matched. The only problem was that as the sun set, we started
getting seriously attacked by mosquitoes. Would a three star be
able to solve that problem for us? Still, it was a wonderful
meal, and I hope I can go back some day.
© 2005 Arthur Che. Used by permission. All rights reserved. Arthur Hungry "eating one meal at a time"
www.arthurhungry.com
