Open Season
Gavin nazareth sits down for a taste of the new summer menu at L’atelier de Joël Robuchon in Bangkok Photography : kaan suchanin
“my cooking is all about freshness, flavour and texture,” says Oliver Limousin, executive chef at the one-michelin-star Bangkok outpost of L’atelier de Joël Robuchon. It’s a change of season here, moving onto a summer menu, and Chef Oliver has fashioned quality local and imported seasonal produce into a selection of new contemporary and classic dishes.
The organic Royal Project farms in the hills of northern Thailand provide Limousin much of the seasonal produce he needs, including top-notch crayfish, “Bresse-style” chicken, peaches, avocado and fresh coriander. He says a trip to the north gave him the chance to visit farms of the Royal Project and learn about its history. “I was very impressed with this story and the quality of the produce. That’s why [as a chef] I want to help and support the Royal Project as much as I can. The way they produce and use the land is beautiful and respectful of the Earth.”
From France and elsewhere, he sources Dover sole from Brittany, Pyrenees lam, caviar from Sologne, Perigord black truffles, Japanese Wagyu, Alaskan king crab Iberico ham and olive oil from Spain, and Hokkaido scallops. Ingredients that are central to his various menus.
While the roll call of popular signature dishes remains unchanged, the assortment of new dishes added are exquisite expressions of the ingredients they are made from. L’ecrevisse, or roasted crayfish from the Royal Project with young vegetables such as carrot, zucchini, cucumber, tarragon, yellow wine is one. Limousin says he was really impressed with the quality of live crayfish delivered to restaurants. “I wanted to use as well some vegetables from the Royal Project (carrot, cucumber, zucchini and tarragon). For the sauce I do an emulsion with crayfish stock and yellow wine, so this dish gets some very delicate flavours from individual ingredients,” he says.
Other exciting additions include Le Bar; sea bass tartare flavoured with fennel and slightly lemony, and the L’agneau De Lait, milk-fed lamb cutlets from the Pyrenees with fresh thyme, while seasonal white and green asparagus also play a hand in others.
“Cooking,” Joël Robuchon once said, “is creating emotion. That’s success.” And Limousin echoes that pithy sentiment in his new threecourse special menu (2,950 Baht ++) celebrating the best season of the year and the beautiful produce it affords chefs. “It’s the chance to give pleasure to all the guests,” he says, adding that he focuses on
SEARED HOKKAIDO SCALLOPS SERVED WITH CAULIFLOWER RISOTTOSTYLE LOBSTER SAUCE
giving pleasure not just to his customers “but to my team members as well in the hope that they will give their best for the customers.”
Pleasure comes in a small shot glass to kick off this special menu. A foie gras flan is layered with an aged port wine reduction, and topped by Parmesan foam. It’s a sophisticated starter; rich, buttery and delicate all at once with a hint of sweetness from the wine, and the Parmesan lending an air of nuttiness.
The second course offers two options: Le Saumon D’ecosse or L’asperge Blanche.
The former, my favourite of the meal, is a wonderfully poached egg, rolled in finely cut brick pastry before being deep-fried. Accompanied by a delicate sour cream and tiny smoked Scottish salmon cubes and roe, it’s the perfect dish, pleasing both the eye and the palate. Cut into it the outer shell of straw-like pastry and it bleeds golden yolk. It’s summer in a mouthful. The lush taste of the egg is counterbalanced by the tang of the ocean from the fish and popping
roe, while the cream steps in with a hint of acidity.
White asparagus from the Rhone Valley is the star of the latter. Poached, and then lightly griddled on the teppanyaki, the delicately sweet flavour profile of this spring vegetable is amplified by a jus of Iberico ham veal and fine strips of meat.
The final course also offers a choice, a difficult one nonetheless. Do you settle for the flawlessly seared Hokkaido scallops served on a bed of the most delightful cauliflower risotto-style with lobster sauce? Or, do you plump for the filet of lamb cooked sous vide and rolled in a parsley crust, and served with a thin summery green pea mousse? Both are excellent, though the first dish has a slight edge. Limousin has elevated an everyday vegetable into haute cuisine here, the cauliflower florets cooked slightly al dente, absorbing the moreish flavours of Parmigiano Reggiano and the decadent crustacean sauce.
Great food like this is best enjoyed with good wine. And the good news is that the restaurant has recently changed its policy to allow diners to bring in their own wine for a corkage fee of 1,500 Baht. However, Sommelier Jordan Cortes is also on hand to help you navigate their extensive wine list of prominent New and Old World vintages such as the 2015 Pinot Blanc ‘Mise du Printemps’ Domaine Josmeyer; the 2015 Riesling ‘Brauneberger’ Qba Fritz Haag; the 2015 Arbois Pinot Noir ‘Sous la Tour’ S.tissot; 2015 Chablis Grand Cru ‘Le Clos’ Domaine Christian Moreau; and the 2012 Brunello di Montalcino, Renieri. Diners looking for more premium wines can opt for the 2002 R.D Extra Brut, Maison Bollinger; 2005 Mersault 1er Cru Les Caillerets, Domaine Jean-francois Coche Dury; or the 1996 Clos-vougeot Grand Cru, Chateau de La Tour.
One of the staff wheels the fantastic dessert trolley closer to signal the end of the meal. It’s filled with a long list of summery sweet confections that I could detail here, but then, why spoil the surprise?