Last night we met some friends from Sam's school days at WIS and headed over to ZEPHIRINE, where we have been several times and always adored the food. While one has a choice of ordering just 3 choices (entree, main, dessert for 69 Euros), we had to try the get everything choice for 89 Euros, which includes everything on the tiny blackboard. This means the table shares 3 starters, 3 mains and 3 desserts. It sounds like a lot, and the first time we did it, it was just right. Last night it seemed like a lot more and we ended up taking home virtually all of the main meat course for another night (almost a whole meal at home).
We were there for over 3-1/2 hours and it was another spectacular dining experience. Our server was the adorable Milot, who is student and was our server before, but we were sad to hear this was his last night at Zephrine after 2 years! Bertrand and (I think her name is) Marie are in charge and also help the servers in the small space, while Chef Romain Corbiere always welcomes us along with the whole kitchen team as we pass by the open kitchen to the dining area. It was such a beautiful night, we sat on the small terrace which is not windy at all as it is surrounded by four walls. My only issue was the hard wiry chairs are not too comfortable and literally leave an impression on you as they are intertwined metal seats!! A small pillow would have been welcome. The wine list here, as in so many places, is really superb offering rare wines at super prices. We chose a superb Rhone blend (Roussane/Marsanne) Crozes Hermitage Blanc "Cour de Recre" from Francois Villard that was so ideal with so many of the dishes, we ended up having a second bottle.
The first plates arrived with the signature Terrine de campagne (pate of pork & poultry), salade d'herbes fraiches, Pickles and the fabulous bread and butter (photos on FB) which is in a silver holder that is squeezed through a sieve on the top to make the butter softer and more spreadable! Next came two starters: An amazing Taboule aux betteraves, laitue et Feta (hand-crafted semolina tabouleh with beets, feta and lettuce-also a hint of mint and crunchy onions), but the Salade de tomate et haricot vert, pain vinaigrette, jambon was a revelation. Five kinds of local heirloom tomatoes (including one called pineapple tomato) were mixed with French green beans in a vinaigrette made from vinegar-soaked bread that had been decomposed. On the side were thin toasted bread topped with the amazing local jambon from Bayonne just an hour away. We all were in heaven as we ordered that second bottle of white.
The mains came slowly and one by one starting with Riz de Camargue aux epinards, legumes du moment mijote aux jus de tomate et marjolaine, this rice dish is unique from the south of France(Rhone) and is akin to Risotto in that the rice is thick and creates a thick and delicious sauce here cooked with tomato and marjoram.
Maigre de ligne dore a la plancha sauce facon "soubise" acidulee au sumac was next, a gorgeous grilled local line-caught sea bass in a caramelized onion sauce with BBQ eggplant, zucchini and red onion. It was so simple and delicious, and the sauce was indeed amazing. We switched to red wine at this point and I chose a 2017 Vaqueyras from Domaine la Pigeade made of Syrah & Grenache, another superb Rhone blend indeed that we all adored. Vaqueyras can be very tannic and tight and often needs much time to mature. The 8-year old wine was just coming into maturation, so I hope this vintage is on the menu next time we go to try again!
The meat main dish was Faut filet de veau roti, jus aux olives and while the term "faux" or fake is used here, this small roasted veal tastes as good as any superb loin cut of meat. The once again simple (seeming) yet flavorful olive sauce was not overpowering and it came with fennel artichoke, Jerusalem artichokes, artichoke chips & parmesan chips.
The red wine was the perfect foil to this fabulous meat.
As I said Will & I ended up packing 90% of ours to go and will finish it this weekend! Needless to say, we all knew the cheese course option was not happening. The first dessert is the signature Zephirin(the namesake for the restaurant and simply round doughnut-like fried dough balls), served on every menu, and last night it was Zephirin a la mirabelle, sorbet tagete. Mirabelles are the seasonal tiny yellow plums here in France which are at peak now and full of flavor and tagete, Milot and Bertrand explained, was the small bush growing in the courtyard on the wall near us. It is a marigold variety, but a bush, and apparently each person tastes different things when it is eaten! My taste was definitely passionfruit and superb.
The Amandine Rhubarbe-Fraises was a gorgeous almond cookie/cake pastry topped with marinated rhubarb and strawberries and topped with almond slices that was a favorite indeed for us all. The Gourmande de vanille-chocolat was simply a homemade vanilla cream with Madagascar chocolate gelato/ice cream on top with chocolate and mascarpone. What's nor to like?
Zephrine is another favorite spot for us, but next time perhaps we will do just the three course choices! What we love about Bordeaux as well is the variety of French cuisines and styles all using such local and farm-to-table ingredients and, of course, the super friendly welcomes and service we get in so many wonderful places here.
We are off on a short week-long trip next week to the north of Aquitaine and the Loire, so stay tuned for many gourmet meals there!
Bonne weekend!
