Le Cinq, Paris

Le Cinq, Paris (150 €, 9/7/2019, 4-Course incl. VAT & Gratuity)

After the financial crisis of 2008, lots of restaurant have been tinkering with a new-style   fine dining concept – casual concept. However, for the ultimate in opulence and “bells and whistles”, you have to head to Paris. In Paris La Grande Cuisine usually goes along with a grand and opulent dining room, and the dining room of Le Cinq at the Four Seasons George V Hotel is a prime example. We arrived a bit earlier than our appointment time at 12pm. While we were waiting to be seated, one guest was politely asked to put on the jacket provided by the restaurant. This is elegant casual, not just ordinary casual.

Geroge V’s setting was absolutely gorgeous. The whole 1^st floor housed a few restaurants, all filled with artistically arranged white flowers varieties. The prettiest white floral arrangement that I have never seen.

Executive chef at Le Cinq is Christian Le Squer, who joined Le Cinq in October 2014, having previous been executive chef at another Michelin 3-starred restaurant Pavillon Ledoyen. In 2002, Chef Le Squer, at Ledoyen, was awarded with the 3^rd star which he held until his departure in 2014. After Chef Le Squer moved to Le Cinq, he was awarded the 3^rd star in 2016.

Le Cinq is open daily for lunch and dinner. You can choose an a la carte menu or the “The Gourmet Stroll” menu or a “The Gourmet Lunch” at lunch time (4 courses €150 or 6 courses €220). I ordered the 4-course lunch. It started with Amuse Bouche.

Amuse Bouche

1-1.Parmigiana Waffle – made of Parmigiana cheese, butter, egg and flour. It was made in a waffle machine and served a portion of the round-shaped waffle disc. It was tasty and pleasant.

1-2.White Cacao Boubon – with pear juice and fennel. Quite refreshing.

1-3.Artichoke Tart – filled with artichoke cream and adorned with a black olive and a cute peddle of Fleur de Souci (Marigold).

1-4.Biscuit with Tuna Tartare, Tomato, Cep Mushroom – September is the season for Cep mushroom mainly from the Loire Valley. Cep mushroom has slightly meaty flavor, whiter color and firmer texture. This dish has an overall pleasant Italian flavor.

2.Eggplant Caviar

It was not real caviar, it was parfait of puréed roasted peeled eggplant, lime, basil, thyme and mozzarella cheese. Parfait was surrounded by Cipollini jelly and juice, and covered by a lot of shaved Cep mushroom and adorned by a peddle of Marigold and micro herbs. It is always a pleasure to have Cep.

Bread and Butter

There were 3 types of bread – original baguettes, whole wheat brioche and multi-grain.

I noticed the yellow luster right away and found out it is Bordier butter from Brittany. Jean-Yves Bordier's team of artisans tailor-make these butters for some of the most demanding chefs in the world. Its silky texture is the result Bordier's signature maturation, kneading and pounding processes.

Appetizers

1.Tomato Tartare/Sorrel Sorbet, Traditional Condiments

It was almost like tomato tartare, except it was slightly roasted (dehydrated) to get a more intense flavor. It was roasted at 80 degree for 10 hours, then flavored with Worcester sauce, olive oil, pepper and onion. It was accompanied by spinach soufflée and adorned with nasturtium, squid ink flavored thin bread crisp and sliced thin crisp made from buckwheat flour. Tomato tartar was surprisingly flavorful and tasty, probably accentuated from the slow cook process.

2.Artichoke and Parmesan Milk, Spaghetti Gratin

This was a variation of Chef Le Squer’s famous signature dish “Spaghetti en timbale truffle”. Spaghetti were aligned along the tart shell. I was informed that the outside wrapping part of spaghetti must use the ordinary dry spaghetti which can hold the shape better. All cooked spaghetti was flavored with black truffle cream, olive oil. In the center of the tart, there were roasted artichoke hearts and 24-month aged Parmigiana cheese sauce. Cheese sauce with capers was also served on the side. On top, the tart was adorned with roasted artichoke heart, micro green and a slice of aged Parmigiana cheese. The aroma of truffle made the taste and flavor even more delightful. 

Main Course

Caramelized Pork Belly, Cabbage and Avocado

Pork belly skin was fried first before roasting in the oven. It was roasted at 64-degree low temperature for 36 hours. Before the roasting process, pork belly was marinated with dry miso, char wood flavor and soy sauce. After roasting, it was glazed with the condensed marinade sauce. The glazed pork was adorned with dry grilled leek, chopped chives and sesame seeds. In addition, there were sheep milk cheese and roasted avocado wrapped by crunchy cabbage leaf wrap around. The veggie wrap was adorned by dry grilled leek, micro green and marigold. It was a true fusion dish with every bite full of satisfaction.

   

Pre-Dessert

There were three parts in the palette cleanser. 1). Pecan caramel, ginger crunch; 2). White chocolate and lime parfait with basil; 3). Peach and pink peach (from France)/ lavender sorbet. Pink peach is called white peach in some countries. It has a pale pink skin and has got more fragrance and flavor than yellow peach. It was refreshing and delicious. Sorbet was extremely delightful.

Dessert

1.Natural Strawberries/Chantilly Cream, Sparkling Granita//White Chocolate Ganache

Strawberry compote was accompanied by white chocolate ganache and Chantilly cream, adorned by crunchy strawberry sheet and crunchy sugar granita/poprock candy. The rather usual ingredient was the 10-year old Balsamic vinegar to balance the sweetness.

2. Trilogy Treat

We had a complementary dessert with 3 items in the plate, chocolate ball filled with dark chocolate ganache, nuts covered caramelized ball with gold leaf and lime mousse. It was always enjoyable to have chocolate dessert at the end of meal.

Petit Fours

We were offered some petit fours from the trolley. There were varieties of caramel – original flavor, passion fruit, raspberry. There were also varieties of chocolate – chocolate truffles, chocolate with nuts and marshmallow.

The ambiance and environment in George V were without doubt opulent, classy, magnificent. Cuisine at Le Cinq was outstanding. Chef Le Squer has different style from Chef Gagnaire. Chef Le Squer is more conservative while Chef Gagnaire is more focused on developing complex, innovative and enjoyable dishes. As for the value of what each dollar can buy, it seemed to be a better deal at restaurant Pierre Gagnaire.