Imagine being guided through gastronomic experiences of Paris by someone who knows it well, yet who is still impressed at every turn. That’s what writer Irvina Lew did for her granddaughter, a trip Irvina recounts for Real Food Traveler readers as she sets her post-pandemic sights on a return trip. Find out what it’s like to experience one of Paris’s historic restaurants, Le Grand Véfour.

Now, that I’m double-dosed with the vaccine, and beyond the two-week wait, I’m so eager to get back to Paris that I’ve taken advantage of – or, possibly, squandered – a $300 online deal for a 7-night stay at an unnamed, 4-star Parisian hotel. Meanwhile, in my real world, on my Long Island office shelves, I discovered an over-sized, signed menu by Guy Martin, the chef of Le Grand Véfour, a Michelin two-star – and long-term three-star – fine dining restaurant that pre-dates the French Revolution. Chef wrote:

Pour Madame Irvina Lew,
La cuisine du Coeur et de l’amitié.
Merci de votre visite
Pour le 05 10 15
        – Guy Martin
(Cooking of the heart and friendship. Thanks for your visit. October 5, 2015)

Hungry for more? Listen to this podcast to learn why Paris is so important to Irvina.

Reading the menu reminded me of a memorable lunch there with Emma, my first granddaughter; who, at 19, decided to take a semester off from college. As a former French teacher, I considered it the perfect opportunity to teach FRANCE 101 and introduce her to as much architecture, art, culture, fashion, history, and gastronomy, as a millennial could enjoy in two-weeks.

We stayed at the InterContinental Paris Le Grand Hotel, an elegant building that was part of Haussmann’s design to renovate Paris in the mid-1800s, under Napoleon III’s directive. After arriving, we walked around the block to Café de la Paix, the iconic Parisian brasserie, where we sat inside, glanced up at the chandeliers; through windows, at the folks on the terrace, and across the street, to l’Opera, all while celebrating our first coupe de champagne. (Emma was delighted that waiters served her alcohol, no questions asked!) We lunched well, incredibly better than I would have imagined, considering that the terrace café is an iconic tourist destination.

I had been absolutely clear with Emma, whose usual diet is gluten-free and vegetarian, that she could order  – or avoid – whatever she wished – even a presentation from a chef – which I always feel obliged to try. She decided, quite on her own, to try everything: wonderful steak frites at Daniel Rose’s newest restaurant, the (then) recently opened, La Bourse et La Vie, fresh-from-the-sea raw scallops that Bruno Verjus (a food writer turned one-star Michelin chef) served across the bar, at Table and a multitude of croissants au chocolat. She often ordered fish and was happy at the historic brasserie, Le Procope, which dates to 1686 and is claimed to be the oldest restaurant in Paris. I had enjoyed previous meals, there, and wanted Emma to experience its history; but, I suspected that the tough chicken in my Coq au Vin, that night, was as old as some of the memorabilia.

Le Grand Véfour opened almost a century later; it made its debut as one of Paris’ first society cafés, in 1784, and played an historic role as the place where a passionate revolutionary, Camille Desmoulins, stood on a table and issued his call “To Arms.” Those famous words, “Aux armes citoyennes,” launched the storming of the Bastille (14 juillet 1789) and the French Revolution; they are also the opening lyrics to the French national anthem, La Marseillaise.

We walked to the far end of the long interior arcade, of le Palais Royale, a 17^th century palace first built for Cardinal Richelieu, where we found Restaurant Véfour, on Rue du Beaujolais. When we entered, I was mesmerized by the opulent setting in the dining room; Emma nudged me to acknowledge that Chef, Guy Martin, was waiting to greet me on the far side of the front door. She had the polish of an elegant guest; while I, the supposed “worldly” one, was so intrigued by the palatial ambiance, that I hadn’t even noticed the white-jacketed chef.

The setting, with its Louis XVI carved wood paneling, neoclassical frescoes, serene paintings, delicate mirrors, magical chandeliers and sconces, its 18^th century Italianate ornate ceiling has been so meticulously restored that it remains remarkably intact. And, its imposing windows overlook the arched arcade and Palais Royale gardens. It’s easy in that room, where plush red banquettes are identified by name, to imagine the who’s who list of gastronomes through the ages who dined there: Napoleon and Josephine, Victor Hugo, Cocteau, Jean-Paul Sartre, Simone de Beauvoir, George Sand, Maria Callas and regulars, such as Colette–who lived in one of the adjacent apartments–and Julia Child, for whom it was a favorite.

Sipping a coupe of champagne, we read the menu and selected the fixed price lunch: Les Déjeuners du Grand Véfour. Whenever I see it on a menu, I choose Foie Gras canard en terrine. The rich duck liver was prepared in a terrine (loaf) with a carrot preserve and a bright carrot-yellow coulis. The sommelier chose my wine: a glass of a buttery Burgundy: The Grand Vin de Bourgogne; a Meursault 2012, Clos du Domaine Henri Darnat, which I also drank with the pink, roast lamb filet. Emma chose blue lobster, which was served with bright red, edible flower leaves, sprigs of green, teeny-dices of mango and a swirl of pale foam. Then, she ate a filet of St. Pierre, a white fish topped with delicate purple leaves and golden wedges.

A server brought us each a small baguette, the hint that the cheese course would follow; here, it arrived on a silver platter studded with more than a dozen choices, among them a rich, creamy époisse, a Comté, a Camembert and other cow, goat and sheep cheeses. He cut the six portions that we had selected and placed them on a plate between us. At this point, the two uber-chic, young women at the adjacent banquette, who had ordered sparingly, a la carte, as befits glamourous size 2s, looked over at us, admired the abundance which prompted a “where to go, what to do” conversation. They were first-time visitors, from London and in Paris for Fashion Week.

In France, desserts are served after the cheese course; in gastronomic restaurants, they arrive after a series of pre-desserts. Almost everything else on the menu was served on Havilland china decorated with a delicate floral pattern, designed especially for Le Grand Véfour and signed: Made in France. Patisseries added a new element to the tableware: four macarons were placed on an elongated, narrow, dark dish; six pieces of bi-colored jellied candy – both deep red-wine and blood-orange–decorated a rectangular plate; then, three small glasses topped with whipped cream were placed on the table. The dessert I had ordered, a tall, chocolate cube topped with a burgundy-hued bon bon and decorative pistachio droplets and a few burgundy-colored teardrops, was presented on a two-color plate, half white and half burgundy. Emma got the  Physalis dans un biscuit, served on a large black-rimmed plate centered with a square phyllo dough sandwich, filled with vanilla touched crème anglais and served with ice cream, lime sorbet and a lime gelé.

The penultimate dessert was a specialité, we each received a slice of Gateau Savoie, a light, airy sponge cake from the Chef’s native region. (You can watch the preparation of the Alain Ducasse version on youtube.com). Then, the grand finale, les mignardises, the après-dessert sweets, petits fours and a tray of chocolates that were thin, dry and not too sweet; a huge cacao bean adorned a silver bowl.

Chef Guy Martin has created and perfected his sensuous cuisine at this flagship restaurant, which has been affiliated with Relais & Chateaux for thirty years. His style incorporates authentic regional traditions, an Asian sensibility and creative modern, inventiveness; his veritable multicourse feasts are served with grace.

Hungry for more? When in France, see why Burgundy should be on your itinerary.

A splurge on this kind of gastronomy, if at all possible, is as much about a cultural immersion, art and history, the terroir of a region as about food; but fine dining is not the only way to enjoy that combination of discoveries. Guy Martin’s empire, for example, also includes lower-priced options: I love Paris, his chic, upscale, all-day airport eatery is in Terminal 2 at Charles de Gaulle airport and his new Pasco, a « bistronomique » is located in the 7^th arrondissement, near the Assemblée Nationale.

I do hope that when the world reopens, we can each find that kind of culinary discovery again.

— Story and photos by Irvina Lew