Qu'est-ce qu'on mange ce soir?
This is L'Auberge Chez Francois, and it is a beautiful and amazing place containing a very old, respected, and talented chef and his intelligent and dilligent staff. I seriously have nothing but the highest praise for this place: I will never forget what a wonderful night we spent there,
We got dolled up and headed over. Got there early, and got to sit outside on the beautiful terrace. There was a little herb garden, as well as quietly running water and soft lights on the trees. My starting drink: champaigne with raspberry liqueur and a fresh raspberry floating in it. Delicious fresh bread came out as Matt and I chatted in the cool breeze, served with imported butter and fresh cottage cheese mixed with chives.
Amuse bouche is like a teaser for your mouth - the appetizer before the appetizer. (So overindulgent, I know...) It was a small slice of quiche with tomato, bacon, leeks and herbs - very light and tender. The appetizers: I had tuna tartar in lime and salt, topped with vodka sour cream and a little caviar. Matt had bouillabaisse with mussels, scallops, and other seafood floating in a very lovely saffron broth. (When food is this good and rare, you share with each other - it's a must!) For salad, I had a gorgonzola and candied pear salad, while Matt had a tomato salad with smoked gruyere and big chunky bits of bacon (which I stole - that's smokehouse top-notch stuff, there). There was lemon sorbet to cleanse our palates, and then we settled into the main course. (I will admit now that even though I'm a fat girl who loves the food, I was having a hard time packing in such rich, decadent, lovely food - I had to reach deep.)
Main courses: Matt had duck l'orange, served with wild rice, candied walnut and pear, and roasted veggies. Matt let me have a bite (since I had never had duck before) - duck tastes like a gamey, yummy porkchop, and the sauce it swam in was definitely light and citrus-y. I had a 12 ounce Delmonico steak, served with au jus, bearnaise, roasted vegetables, and a glass of the house red - AMAZING~ The onions and tomatoes melted in my mouth, since they roasted so well, and the steak itself was marbled so nicely... ...with a little bit of the bearnaise, I was in heaven. There are few things in this world that are better than a good quality, masterfully cooked steak. There was also some nice root veggie puree with carrots (and I'm pretty sure parsnips, too).
You'd think we were done, but nooooo. Dessert was coming. They brought out some homemade merengues on dark chocolate ice cream with a candle to celebrate the occasion, and then our formal desserts. Matt had a plum tart with cinammon ice cream, while I had the lime tart with lime sorbet. I couldn't eat it all, so I took the rest of the tart home with me and ate it for breakfast (it was good when I first had it, but the next day, it was even better!). The tarts had light, flaky crusts, and the fillings were so wonderfully made.
After a brisk walk on the terrace, we headed out - a first anniversary that was indeed as memorable as our wedding one year ago. <3