We had been very busy on this cold, wet, rainy day. Winter in the Rhône
Valley. A night before we'd splurged, dining in a restaurant highly
recommended by American wine critic Robert Parker.
We had paid one-hundred Euros each for the restaurant meal and then added a few
pricey bottles of wine on top of that! The menu was curiously constructed
and the wine service was clearly lackluster. Being polite foreigners, we
were unsure whether or not to say anything to the chef and owner who stopped by
our table at the end of the evening.
We surmise Mr. Parker must dine at this place as the guest of some famous
winemaker, so his view of the wine and food is most certainly from a perspective
far different from ours:
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Having had a lackluster meal in a famous temple of haute cuisine, it was a
pleasure to dine on "home cooking."
We were seated at a comfortable table in the "dining room" Chez Gap.
Madame arrived with a pot of a fabulous soup.
This was as superb a fish soup as I can recall. In fact, I can still
remember, vividly, the wonderful spice and intense garlic in this Provençal-styled
soup.
We enjoyed a bottle of Rolland's dry white wine, a rendition of Viognier!
And seconds on the soup were obligatoire and most welcomed!
The next course was an omelet featuring black chanterelles.
The fragrance of the chanterelles was terrific.
The French will tell you the worst French chicken is superior to America's
best. I have had wonderful roasted chicken (Bob does a fabulous rendition,
so ask him for the recipe) in California, but the French do raise great
birds.
Here's the bird, straight from the oven in the Gap kitchen.
Rolland set about carving.
Having spent a fortune on a truffle dinner the night before, this plate of
wonderfully, perfectly-roasted chicken was sublime. But the mashed
potatoes, studded with bits of black truffles, were the most noble version of
that comfort food I have ever had!
We may not have been in heaven, but we were not far!
Rolland brought out a 1990 bottle of Cairanne which I noted as being "very
fruity...still very bright and berryish and quite drinkable."
Some people, seeing this photo, guessed this fellow's identity as "Eddie
Munster." But they are wrong. It's Charles Neal, who's
attempting to cut the cheese.
That empty glass didn't stay empty for long!
Dessert featured a bottle of Alain Veselle Brut Champagne and a treat from the
local bakery.
After solving all the problems of the world, we rolled ourselves out into the
cold Cairanne air and motored back to the hotel.
A big thank you to the Gap's for a splendid evening and most memorable meal!
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