L'Abeille à Côté

[Wilfrid]

Serendipity. Tables for three were scarce this week at restaurants with which I am familiar, but I stumbled across an opening at The Bee Next Door, which is indeed next to the big Bee. And what a pleasure to write that everything was really good.

A small, cozy room, no bar, elegant servers. For a moment I thought they only had a beer/wine license because I saw no cocktail list. Not at all; our server told us they didn't have house cocktails but could make any classic, just name it. So we did.

The menu is short and slightly curious. There is a prix fixe ($88) with choices from three courses; there's also a carte, which for the most part has the same (or very similar) dishes to the prix fixe. There are some supplements including a hefty $65 for a white truffle risotto.

We ate an outstanding sunchoke velouté with tender braised chestnuts, a soft poached egg, little pieces of grape and probably half a dozen other things. A salade gourmande came with a generous hunk of foie gras. 

Black cod marinated in white miso, then caramelized with daikon radish cream, prettily sculpted slices of daikon radish and slivers of regular radish — unbelievably good. One member of the party went for the lobster and received the tail with a mild curry sauce and, on a separate plate, a pile of claw meat on a slice of toast. 

Desserts were truffled ice cream, millefeuille with pear custard and Calvados ice cream, and a dark chocolate torte.

Chenin Blanc with the seafood. After dinner, the sommelier went to some lengths to track down their last bottle of Quinta Dos Pesos Carcevalos 1997, a sort of cross between port and madeira. I was grateful for the effort.

Worth putting on the list and serves to make me more curious about L'Abeille. One thing perhaps worth noting is that none of us ordered meat (there was a filet and a Wagyu burger), so no risk of a chewy hunk of gristle this time.

[backyardchef]

Very pretty. Looks like thoughtfully made food. 

Edited January 6 by backyardchef

[Wilfrid]

Indeed. I felt we were getting the same attention to the food as at the super-expensive next door place. $88 seemed right for three courses of this quality.