Látelier Du Peintre

L'atelier Du Peintre - Colmar, France

It is such a welcome feeling when you dine at a restaurant when after you finish your main course, you realize you had a great dinner.  The feeling is intensified even more so when you realize that you had just had dinner at a Michelin starred restaurant without any prior knowledge.

L'atelier du peintre was truly a little gem of a restaurant.  Translated from French, it means 'the workshop of the painter' - a reference to Martin Schongauer, a German painter/engraver from the 15th century in Colmar.  Though the dining room echoed signs of transformation from a previous tenant in the past - the modern transition of what is now L'atelier du peintre is quite remarkable. 

Amuse Bouche: Smoked Salmon with Shaved Toasted Almonds, Deep Fried Pork Pastry

Appetizer: Brittany Lobster Ravioli, Carrots, Basil, Verveine Soup

All you need is one bite of this succulent lobster ravioli to understand that Chef Lefebvre knows exactly what he's doing.  Perfectly cooked lobster filled the contents of this delicate ravioli pasta appetizer.  One mouthful was enough to put a smile on my face, put down my fork, and realize that I'd had maybe one of my favorite dishes this year.

After a perfect appetizer, you would have though that the main course would have gotten even better.  Not so at this restaurant.  I couldn't fault the scallops nor the season vegetables but what was the culprit you ask?  Orange jus.  It just made the flavors all too sickly sweet.  It really diluted some of the scallop's flavours of sea and replaced it with sweet citrus?  I think this was creativity taken too far.

Main Course: Seasonal Vegetables, Scallops, & Orange Jus

Dessert: Braided Vermicelli, Lemon Mousse and Sorbet, Mint and Marshmallow

After a dismal main course, things picked up once again with a stellar dessert.  The fluffy marshmallows pressed tightly against the lemon mousse was lovely and the use of braided vermicelli was excellent for a bit of contrast with the texture.  It was great how the mint played against the sourness of the lemon - which was balanced with natural flavours of the vermicelli, and once again paired up against the sweetness of the marshamallow. 

Petit Fours: Powdered Almonds & Madeleine, Chocolate With Lime Jelly & Pate de Fruits

I didn't eat the almonds because I had chipped a tooth so my choices were: madeleine or the chocolate or the pate de fruits.  At this point, most of us were full so I made a choice - I ate all four morsels of the pate de fruits before anyone changed their mind.

Our party had chosen a la carte items from the menu instead of sticking to the restaurant's extremely well priced menu for dinner.  To this day, I'm still not sure why we didn't go for the menu as our a la carte choices totalled the same price of a menu (that included more dishes).

Dinner service has three different menus:

The Goya (3 courses) at 37€
The Petit Galerie (5 courses) at 57€
The Grande Galerie (7 courses) at 72€

I'd highly recommend this resaurant to anyone in search of a reputable restaurant in sleepy Colmar.  It isn't hard to find top notch food in the town but I feel that this restaurant has something a little bit special that sets itself apart from its competitors.

*Side note: If any of you have seen Gordon Ramsay's Kitchen Nightmares, Mr.Lefebvre was featured as the  head chef of the Inverness restaurant, Abstract.  After filming Kitchen Nightmares, it seemed as if things were going well for Abstract and they were poised to get their first Michelin star.  Obviously, it did not pan out that way  Due to a row with Abstract's owner (reasons unknown), Chef Lefebvre relocated to Colmar where he opened L'atelier De Peintre.


My Score: 17/20

Food: 4
Presentation: 4.5
Ambiance: 4.5
Staff: 4

L'Atelier Du Peintre - 1, Rue Schongauer, Colmar, France
http://atelier-peintre.fr/

Reflets par Pierre Gagnaire

Reflets par Pierre Gagnaire - Intercontinental Hotel @ Festival City, Dubai, UAE

 I usually don't dine by myself in a restaurant such as Reflets par Pierre Gagnaire but I was flying solo on this trip and wanted to celebrate a good business that I had done.  I picked up the phone in my hotel room at the Intercontinental Dubai - Festival city and rang Reflets for a table for one.

AMUSE BOUCHE: Almond soup with Pomegranate, Ham and Bean Foccacia with Turkish Delight amongst other amuse dishes (sorry about that!)

Pierre Gagnaire is a gifted chef most would say I'm sure.  Almost all of the little amuse bouches were a delight in flavor especially the almond soup with pomegranate was a welcome choice to balance out the exhausting Dubai heat with a chilled soup like this one.

FIRST COURSE: Brittany Lobster with Avocado and Aloe Vera

Culinary greats worldwide have always stood by the phrase, ''make it simple, let the flavors speak for themselves, and the customer will recognize a beautiful plate of food''.  If that is what the direction behind Pierre Gagnaire's culinary team wanted, then this is the dish that would make it a prime example.  The Lobster (from Brittany, naturally) was amazing with a soft yet meaty texture.  This played ever so well against the smooth creaminess of the avocado.  The Aloe Vera?  Genius.  I know it's not the first ingredient most chefs would consider but in this dish it worked absolutely perfectly. 10/10.

MAIN COURSE: Banana Leaf Wrapped Sea Bass with Crab and Seafood Reduction *

The presentation of this dish did not come to my table as pictured.  Actually, it was brought by a waiter, tableside, wrapped in banana leaves.  As the young waiter carefully unrolled each banana leaf, I could smell the rich aromas penetrating from the banana leaves to reveal a beautiful piece of fish.  The reduction/bisque was poured on top of the fish and tasted wonderful.

DESSERT: Yuze Ice Cream, Shiso Leaf and Tapioca Pearls

Yet another fantastic dish.  The dessert reminded me of home and was remarkable.  (I've lived in both Japan and Hong Kong).  The yuzu and shiso leaf brough back memories of Japan which Mr. Gagnaire has strong roots in his restaurant(s) located in Japan.  I have a fondness for yuzu and shiso leaf.  I find it very underrated worldwide.   The tapioca pearls reminded me of Hong Kong in which he also has a restaurant at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel as well.  Like the amuse of the almond soup, I was ready for a cooling sensation to balance of the rich flavours of the seafood dish I had just finished.

PETIT FOURS: Macaroon , Jellied Pate de Fruits, Sesame Cracker/Mint Chocolate

All three are favorites of mine, especially the Jellied Pate de Fruits.  I love jelly and I love sugary fruit juices. 

For 150 Dirhams ( Approximately 40 USD) I had a spectacular lunch.  As voiced by other bloggers and food reviewers, should Michelin's Guide System be introduced to the United Arab Emirates, I could easily see this restaurant getting a solid 2 stars for its efforts and skills in the culinary scene.  I found the food tasty, explorative and reasonably priced.  Would I come back to this hotel to eat again?  Yes, I most likely would. 

However.

I had made a few remarks to the manager of the restaurant after I finished my meal.  Call it what you like but I had to comment on a few items in the restaurant that I found unsatisfactory.  One assistant manager kept staring at me as if 'what is a young guy doing here eating alone in such a famed restaurant'.  Perhaps he thought I was a critic, but nonetheless everytime a new plate of food arrived, he would stare at me which made the whole dining process very uncomfortable.  Secondly, I took a brief walk around the restaurant to find that many of the table cloths were not ironed or attended to.  Some of the linen was stained.  Other tables revealed obvious remnant marks of plates left overnight  and unattended to for the lunch service.  Last, there are two large chairs in the entrance of the restaurant which had large scratches as if a cat had clawed through them.  They, too, were left unattended as if people wouldn't notice.  If this was in Paris, where the Michelin's watchful eye has inspectors in numerous restaurants, I assure you these chairs would have been replaced immediately.

*Please excuse the two entries under Amuse Bouche and the Main Fish Course.  I remember the fish to be a Sea Bass however it probably could have been another fish as well.  Apologies!

My Score: 14/20


Food: 4.5
Presentation: 4.5
Ambiance: 3.5
Staff: 1.5

Reflets' Par Pierre Gagnaire - Intercontinental Dubai at Festival City

http://www.pierre-gagnaire.com/#/reflets/carte_reflets