Perfect Symphony of Senses: The World of Michel Guérard

Two meals at Michel Guérard’s gastronomic restaurant in Eugénie-les-Bains put me in a strange and contradictory mood: ecstatic, yet resentful. I was ecstatic because I rarely experience simultaneous awaking and satisfaction of all my senses. I also became resentful because total satisfaction deriving from dining out is becoming increasingly rare in the brave new world of the “star chefs”. Let me explain.

The sight is beautiful, with a pretty village and many attractive gardens. One may stay in the property. Our room was bright and cozy, comfortable and user-friendly, without being self-consciously trendy and luxurious. One can sit on the patio, decide on the menu, and select the wines accordingly (as we did three hours prior to the meal). There are two dining rooms, and the one in which we sat both times reminded me of the country estate of a French gentleman, as I fathom it from a Tavernier or Assayas movie, with its refined elegance and informal yet well thought out comfort. There is a separate part of the house that I will call the library room where one can drink a good espresso (a rare occurrence in France), sip some aged Calvados and nibble the petit fours. Delightful!

My ears rarely find the optimum balance in modern restaurants. They are either too noisy, or, especially star chef-centric ones, overly quiet. One either has to yell at the top of one’s lungs to be heard or one has to whisper lest you cause a disturbance in the “temple”. The latter is often the case in minimalist multi-starred Western restaurants where the chef is inspired by Japan. Guérard’s dining room, in contrast, puts the customers at ease. It is a happy place where multiple servers never miss a beat, but if one is in the mood for humor, they reply in kind.  

The overall setting and well-spaced tables in the L’Orangerie room are conducive to the sensuality of intimate contact with your partner. Nowadays this is a rare occurrence in high-end restaurants which take themselves too seriously and mistake formality for seriousness. Guérard, in contrast, puts a premium on bucolic themes of relaxed luxury that makes us forget the level of orchestration and high effort which underlie his team’s ballet-like performance. The restaurant and its environment exist for the full satisfaction of the customer and not vice versa. In the brave new world of the so-called 50 best restaurateurs beset by inflated egos, patronizing attitudes vis-à-vis paying clients, and corporate globe-trotting chefs who engage in shrewd PR via the so-called “social projects”, the well-being of paying customers often takes a back seat.

This is not the case here. Judging from the results, tremendous know-how and effort go into the preparation and presentation of the dishes. This is not a “wow and dazzle” type cuisine chasing the latest trends. Nor is it a classical cuisine harking back to Escoffier. It is a personal and unique signature cuisine rooted in tradition, but highly sensitive to the incorporation of new elements. 

Talking about tradition, here I can’t help but lament the transformation of the Michelin Guide after it became global. In the past, a chef had to perfect his dishes and create quite a few memorable dishes—the so-called plats d’anthologies—before receiving the highest accolade of three stars. Today, three stars are distributed like throwing confetti to chefs who follow a standard formula and offer 10+ half-baked conceptual dishes which look beautiful on Instagram. They get away with it, arguing that their dishes are conceptual and that taste is subjective.

The experience at Guérard is sensual, not conceptual. It awakens all of our senses, which then stimulate our intellect. Hence, dining at Guérard approximates the meaning of sensual in French culture, which does not put bodily pleasures and intellectual satisfaction in opposition to each other. These two are intricately linked in French cultural sensibilities, and this symbiotic relationship finds expression in the world and cuisine of 87-year-old Michel Guérard.

The first indication of pleasures to come is the amuses. There are two sets of amuses and both are exceptional. The man is a great pastry master, and this is evident in the first set of amuses. In our first visit in September we had two tarts and a shrimp beignet. I was especially impressed with the tomato-basil tart in September that oozed with flavor. In November they served a different set of trios: mushroom tartlette with pesto; fried langoustine encased in brick, wrapped in lard and its dipping sauce; and, beef tataki in a tartlette sitting on a custard flavored by shellfish coral. 

As the second amuse, we were served an interesting concoction called Zephyr.  This is basically a Vichyssoise soup bordering on a blancmange in texture and topped by soft meringue infused with truffle taste. It is a masterpiece. Since we also had pre-ordered it as a main course in a more elaborate form I will discuss it later.

We shared the first courses.  (One selects one of them from the menu.) One was cold ecrevisse (crayfish) broth with fresh garden herbs and seasonal vegetables (peas, fava beans, carrots) and bavarois flavored with heirloom tomatoes. The other was an egg dish with Petrossian Oscietra caviar and cold-hot potatoes cooked in ash. They paired the caviar with a shot of white Armagnac, i.e. an Armagnac which is not aged in oak barrel.

The cold ecrevisse bouillon had a clean and deep taste. The richness of the shellfish broth was balanced by crisp vegetables, aromatic herbs, and the acidity of tomatoes. The ecrevisse tails were sweet and fresh. The caviar dish, on the other hand, was more decadent. The scrambled eggs were creamy, and they were topped with a jelly of oyster, black diamonds, i.e. caviar, and asparagus tips. The iodized, briny and sweet flavors blended perfectly, and the silky texture of the scrambled eggs was remarkable. Coarsely chopped potatoes were equally remarkable and their earthy flavors were emphasized by a smoky flavor imparted through cooking them under ashes. Ashes and diamonds together would have rendered A. Wajda happy!

In our November 2019 visit, we both chose caviar as the first dish. This one was a different, but an equally sumptuous preparation. A homemade agrume brioche was filled by a cream of hareng and topped by an abundant quantity of Petrossian Oscietra caviar. A thick green onion veloute which was flavored by vodka jelly was presented next to it. I had the sensation of intense flavors without losing the clarity of various ingredients.

Truffle Zephyr is a dish that should be pre-ordered. It is worth requesting it as this dish may set a new reference point for dishes with truffles. The texture itself is unique, but there are no molecular gimmicks. It is a cold and creamy Vichyssoise soup infused with Langhe white truffle paste and a coulis of Perigord black truffles, on which an airy soft meringue topped by round and thick black truffle pieces is placed. It is served with a thin slice of warm rye bread. This is an amazing dish that grows richer and more complex with each bite, yet remains light and aromatic. It pairs well with 2015 Le Clos, a potentially extraordinary Chablis from Raveneau. At any rate, a good white Bourgogne often pairs well with the delicate aroma of white truffle. 

The Chablis was a perfect match with another Michel Guérard signature dish called L’Oreiller. This dish is not as original as the Zephyr, but it is a time tested classic, as satisfying and comfortable as a goose feather pillow. Instead of goose, we have various kinds of wild mushrooms (cèpes, mousserons, morilles), in a creamy sauce, and in the middle of the plate there is a thin raviolo filled with duxelle mushrooms. Some asparagus tips add crunch and color. What is most memorable in this dish is the silky texture and the deep taste of the cream sauce. It is sweet and very earthy, the essence of fungus. The presentation of the dish is also beautiful. This is one of the rare occurrences where form and content are in synch.

Don’t miss the lobster dish. Normally it is not easy to ruin or excel with a lobster dish. Guérard excels with it. We liked it so much that we ordered it both times. There are three reasons for this. The Brittany lobster is very good quality, and the cooking method works. It is roasted on an open fire—the menu says fireplace—and the flesh is tender but not cottony. The cooking process also imparts a slightly smoky aroma.  I like the subtle beurre blanc sauce with good quality saffron. The slightly bitter saffron works well with lobster. Last, but not least, is the sweet whole white onion which is roasted and served with a silky peach puree and parmesan. This is not a simple garnie, but a statement about the potential of a product, i.e. white onion, which is rarely found at this level. The only problem is that, given the sweetness of the peach, Chablis does not work with the dish. So I asked if they had a Huet Vouvray by glass. Well, they had a Montlouis from Chidaine which worked well with the lobster.

Pigeon pie was the last dish on the menu: “Antoine Careme” style pigeon pie. It is very rich, so they typically divide one pie for two. But, we felt transported to early 19th century French Court the first time we tried it, and therefore we requested a whole pie per person in our second visit. It is worth the calories as one rarely finds immortal classics of the French cuisine as, I imagine them, in their original form. The pastry work here is only equaled by Bernard Pacaud of L’Ambroisie who makes a wild game pie with Alba truffles in late fall.  Both chefs concoct pies which are thin, crisp, and humid without any trace of heaviness, sogginess, and dryness. In Guérard’s version, the thin “pâte feuilletée” is filled with diced pigeon breast, truffles, sweetbreads, and duck liver. The sauce is deeply flavored and gamey. The richness of the dish is balanced by a side serving of caramelized pears and apples which are probably cooked on fire as there is a smoky note. This pie worked very well with both the Bandol from Tempier and the elegant 2015 Antoine Sanzay Saumur Les Poyeux.

Desserts are also exquisite here. In our first visit we had a cloud-like verbena soufflé and a soft béchamel cake with melted rhubarb ice cream and rhubarb. The “glace fondue” (melted ice cream) was memorable.

We chose to order less original desserts the second time because they were different forms of pastries. The feuillete with coffee and dark chocolate with crème Anglaise was indeed very good. But the apple tart was more than very good; it was a reference point for fruit-based tarts.

Indeed, some dishes here set up new reference points for dishes in the same category (lobster, meat pie, l’oreiller, apple tart), while others are truly original and immaculate (zephyr, caviar dishes, some desserts).  Overall from the very start to the end one becomes aware of all one’s senses and how one can feel content, satisfied, and reinvigorated when the senses are aroused and work in harmony.

EVALUATION: 19.5/20