Bordeaux, France

Bar a Vin

I tasted Bordeaux wine at this wine bar offering a selection of wines from the region that can be tasted by the glass, a nice option for a single traveler. 

I had a white 2021 Pessac Leognan, a 2016 Canon Fronsac from the left bank, and a 2018 Pauillac from the right bank. 

Cent 33

I genuinely enjoyed everything presented at this restaurant. The ambiance was a welcoming and warm and the food was creative and perfectly executed.

Cuttlefish

This was served like linguine over confit of tomatoes with pine nuts and black garlic. It was surprisingly pleasant, as cuttlefish is not typically a favorite for me as it can be a rubbery texture without a definitive flavor for me. This was really innovative in my opinion! 

Truffle

The truffle was presented on a rice cracker with a delicious black truffle puree. No words are exactly adequate to describe the creamy and rich texture and flavor offered in this bite.

Mushroom 

A contrast to the richness of the truffle, a simple mushroom was presented on a rice cracker and I appreciated the juxtaposition of these two, as each were really lovely, but a strong contrast to each other. 

Parmesan crusted hake

This was presented with clams and white beans in a frothy seafood sauce with a memorable depth of seafood flavor as it contrasted with the light fluffy and froth texture that delivered the powerful flavor. The parmesan crust was incredibly thin an crispy, almost unbelievably delicate.

Tonka bean madeline and custard

The madeline cookie offered a delicate and tender crumb alongside the creamy and rich custard served with a perfectly portioned dot of caramel. A somewhat simple, but lovely final punctuation to the meal.

Les Abeilles de Malescot

While wandering through Bordeaux, I found myself at a specialty shop filled with honey. The honey was special as there was a particularly large variety of "flavors", meaning that the bees sourced the honey from different plants. The bee keepers facilitated this by moving the bee hives to be near various different plants at different times and it was undeniably evident in the tastes captured in each jar of honey!

Reims, France

Charles de Casanove

Avoiding the really large champagne houses, I found myself at Casanove. I was the only person present when I happened to stop in, which afforded me undivided attention. I requested to taste the larges variety of flavor profiles that they offered. Each glass that i had was delicate and nuanced, but ranged from being more clean and dry to dynamic on the palate, including experiences of plum and concord grape. I also tasted a vintage 2013, blanc de blanc, blanc de noir, and special cuvee. 

Tresor de Champagne

Another champagne experience was visiting this establishment that offers the opportunity to taste a variety of grower champagnes. Each is carefully curated and a different selection is open each day. Not only was the ambiance playful, but it was delightful to select the type of tasting that I would do across many different producers.

La Foch

Service at this restaurant was formal and lacked personality with the restaurant housed in an equally formal space with clean lines and lacking warm touches. I left with highly deviant impressions on this Michelin experience, as there was clearly technique that somehow missed the mark on flavor integration for me.

Mushroom puree

This delivered a simple umami bite, definitively mushroom with a thick and creamy texture, but lacked in highlighting flavors such as acid or spiciness. 

Sushi with celery root and nasturtium 

This was a pleasant bite of perfectly tender fish and I appreciated the creativity to utilize nasturtium as the spiciness rather than wasabi. Overall, tasty without being memorable. 

Mussels with leek

This dish provided a curry spicing to the mussels, which I anticipated enjoying, but found that the leeks detracted significantly from the plate. The leeks were presented as raw with a tough texture that was not cohesive with the rest of the dish.  

Seared Tuna

This was served with a beautifully delicate dashi broth with endless depth and the most perfect vegetables each the most perfect version of their variety that I have ever eaten. Absolutely presented with perfect taste and texture! However, the seared tuna did not have a detectable seasoning and the simple sear did not integrate well with the remainder of the plate. 

Bread and Butter

A gluten free bread was presented with algae butter and salted butter. 

Pineapple 

Poached pineapple that was cloying sweet and highly sticky texture with the foam atop it not adequate to compete nor balance the extreme sweetness of the pineapple. I was uncertain how to appreciate the intention behind the dish as it lacked other flavors and depth.

Fruit

The final palate cleanser was diced fruit. It was prepared without regard to acidity as each fruit included was high in acid, actually to such an overdone degree that my palate stung as though it was being burned by the acidity, which may have also been impacted by the prior dish of pineapple, an equally acidic fruit. 

Overall, I did not find that I appreciated the cuisine at this Michelin restaurant for my preferences, but others give it high regard.