2 weeks in France-5-26 to 6/8/2022

2 Days in Le Mans, France-6/31/2022 to 6/1/2022

Dinner at L'epi Curieux-5/31/2022

Today we are visiting my nephew Alex and his girlfriend in Le Mans.  The train ride is about 3 hours.

My brother Charlot and his wife Xinh drove from Troyes (about 4 hours drive to Le Mans) and my nephew Christopher will also meet all of us at Alex's house.

L'epi Curieux is a French Bistro located in the heart of the Plantagenet City, a historic medieval center in the city of Le Mans.

Chef Francois Ricordeau a graduate of the French School of Gastronomy in Paris, passed through such prestigious establishments as the Georges V or the Carré des Feuillants in Paris.

He then joined the kitchens of Beaulieu under the leadership of chef Olivier Boussard who later entrusted him with the reins of the restaurant La Réserve.  But the young chef has desires elsewhere, and ends up flying to Montreal.  It will only take a year for Olivier Boussard to convince him to come back but François Ricordeau has other ambitions so he looked for a place to settle down and bought this place an created L'epi Curieux.

Chef Francois Ricordeau was awarded: Young Talent of the West Trophy from the Gault & Millau gastronomic guide.

This is the main dinning room on the ground level, there is another dinning room in the lower level.

Tonight we are dining with my brother and his family.  Our table is on the lower level.

Lea, Alex, and my brother Charlot.

We decided to go with the 5 course chef menu at 40 euros/person.

The chef described himself am an instinctive cook who works with seasonal products and 95% homemade and French.

Cheers to family!  It is not very often we get to spend time with my brother and his family.

The first course is a fresh local oyster with cucumber gelee on a bed of rock salt.

Fresh, sweet and smelling of the sea.  Delicious!

Cheers to all of us.

Hoa, me, Christopher, Xinh, Lea, Alex and Charlot.

Beautiful Scallop crudo with nuts, and celery confit

A beautiful presentation.

Tuna with foie gras, sesame seed, thinly sliced asparagus, and mashed potatoes with herb.

What a delicious dish.  The Tuna is perfectly cooked and the foie gras just melted in our mouth.

Cheers with white wine.

Roasted monkfish with champagne beurre blanc emulsion sauce, wild arugula, and whole grain barley.

I love the consistency of the monk fish.  The sauce is light, flavorful and perfect with the fish.

Home made Andouillette on a bed of a creamy seafood risotto, poached leek.

   Andouillette is French coarse-grained sausage made from the intestine of pork, pepper, wine, onions, and seasonings.

If not made properly it can generate a strong and distinctive odor, thankfully this andouillette was delicious and plump.

Chocolate lava cake, Poppy whipped cream, and pomegranate.

Beautiful presentation and a great end to a great meal.

It is now dark by the time we are done with our dinner.

NEXT.... Day 2-Lunch