Country Cooking Cyrille Soenen to open his own bistro By Mickey Fenix Philippine Daily Inquirer First Posted 20:50:00 08/20/2008
MANILA, Philippines—Cyrille Soenen recently announced that he will no longer be executive chef of a big hotel. He will be chef of his own bistro to be called Ciçou (his nickname, pronounced “see sue”).
It will be at one corner of Arnaiz Avenue (Pasay Road) in Makati where it will reside in a small boutique hotel. He isn’t certain yet as to the opening date but, he said it could be in August or September.
On the first day of August, another bistro opened in Makati. Called La Regalade (820 Arnaiz Avenue), it boasts a two-star Michelin chef, Alain Rayé. The place just sort of sneaked up on the restaurant scene because the industry people I asked didn’t even know it’s now part of the dining landscape.
But what is a bistro? I had to consult a book where one section tried to define it. “Remembrance of Things Paris” is a compilation of 65 years of Gourmet Magazine writing about the city, mostly dining, although the haute couture article is a plus for fashion dummies like me.
Joseph Weschsberg writes how a bistro is one’s home away from home. It is a neighborhood café where the men congregate and speak their minds. They know what food to expect, the owners are usually husband and wife, one manning the kitchen and the other the dining room, and who bottle their own wines.
But that has changed through the years. The once zinc-lined bar now sports plastic lining. Now, reservations are sometimes required for the more popular bistros in Paris. Some are now called small chic restaurants rather than bistros.
I was lucky to be in Paris some years ago, and must-go-to place for me was a bistro. We went to three. I can’t remember the names now, but I do know what a grand time we had there.
One was recommended by our French guide because he probably knew that we would swoon at the sight of hot chocolate poured over our profiteroles.
The next one we discovered by chance after our boat tour of the River Seine near the Notre Dame Cathedral, in one of the side streets. Husband and wife prepared our lunch of terrine and cheese. The wines were from their underground cav and our dessert was pastry that was still warm because it had just been baked. I still remember the feeling of warmth and wonder at such simple food that was so good.
The third one we visited on our last day in the City of Lights. I remember reading that it’s known for its beef dishes, but at the entrance, there was a tempting display of fresh seafood, so we had the assorted fruits de mer on crushed ice. It was a cool way to say goodbye to Paris.
Soenen’s menu
Cyrille recently gave a glimpse of what he would be cooking at his bistro to two friends, who reported afterwards that they probably gained 10 pounds that day together.
He had a pork head terrine for them, spread on fresh baguette slices. There were two items that weren’t on the list of what they were to have that day, but Cyrille added homemade sardines and cheese, a brie stuffed with goat’s cheese that was whipped with walnuts and truffle oils. Then he cooked prawn bisque, a thick creamy soup rich in prawn fat and beef in shallot sauce. He ended that rather full lunch with roasted pineapple with rum sauce.
Cyrille said he’s glad he’s cooking again. Being executive chef takes one away from the kitchen because of paperwork, plus having to manage costs and staff tasks. It will be a challenge to face the stoves daily once more, but he seems so much happier because of that.
2-star Michelin chef
Unlike Cyrille, Rayé hasn’t stayed long in the country. He came here first to see whether it’s possible to open a branch of his La Regalade bistro in Vancouver, then decided to do so with former hotelier and restaurateur Bubot Quicho who Rayé calls by his first name, Perfecto. While the bistro was being built, he would come and go.
As to his Michelin stars, Rayé earned those while still in France, the first one in 1975 at his restaurant in Albertville. The next one was in 1992 when he bought the restaurant La Belle Epoque in Chateaufort. He moved to Vancouver because he wanted a less stressful place for his family.
Having the stars, however, exposes a chef to a more severe standard rating. So time will tell whether his menu composed of traditional bistro food such as pork rillete, eggplant caviar and beouf bourguinon will pass the test.
And as to the wines, those can be seen at two refrigerated cavs, the more modern take on the traditional underground cav of French bistros. Rayé also approved the bistro design where the colors are predominantly brown and beige.
The standard blackboard where the specials are written is placed above the kitchen display area. And the music is the chef’s own selection—only French, he told me.
Chef Rayé won’t be here all the time, but he will leave his Vancouver sous chef to keep on training the local staff. He will be returning often, he said.
E-mail pinoyfood04@yahoo.com
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