Restaurant review: Michel Bras

Last summer, my beloved wife Carla and I went to World Youth Day in Madrid, Spain.  Early in the planning process for this trip, my mind turned to the fact that since we happen to be going to Europe, we should look into eating at a decent restaurant or two nearby.  Not that one suffers terribly eating anywhere in Spain or France, but by making a point to eat at a "decent" restaurant, I mean Michelin rated - I mean prepare yourself for a show.  Places like this, apply for a reservation months, if not years in advance, then plan the rest of your vacation around the reservation you are given.  With Michel Bras, we made our arrangements for a late August meal back in January.

foie gras

Michelin favours those restaurants which have something "special" about the location - in addition to a good meal, is there something else that serves to make the journey memorable.  With Michel Bras, yes, yes, yes.  The restaurant is in Laguiole, l'Aubrac in southern central France.  There is no train station.  You will likely have a hard time even pinning it down on a map.  It took me forever between the restaurant website in one tab and Google Earth on the other just to find out exactly where it is.  With no train station, we decided to rent a car from Madrid, then I had to find a map big enough to even show Laguiole.  Luckily, someone also lent us a car gps - huge help.  Driving into Laguiole from the south, it's all rolling green hills and beautiful farmland.  When the gps told us we were two minutes away from town, there wasn't a building in sight, then we rounded the bend and up popped the prettiest little hamlet you could imagine, a little cluster of stone buildings watched over by a church on the hilltop and guarded by a scattering of contented cows in the surrounding fields.  They say people have tried to lure Chef Bras away from here - I can see why he doesn't want to leave.  For such a tiny place, Laguiole is world renowned for three things:  Laguiole cheese, Laguiole knives, and one of the best restaurants anywhere.  Indeed, in an informative video at the cheese factory, even Michel Bras' mother is interviewed.

aligot potato!

remain calm

Maison Bras is situated a little ways out of town, and also serves as a small hotel.  By custom design, the rooms are set into the hillside in rows so that each room has its own little lawn and garden and a totally unobscured view across the valley towards town and the meadows beyond.  If you are going for dinner, might as well spend the night.  After checking into our room and taking a walk around the grounds, we made our way to the lounge for dinner "come by anytime after 7pm" they told us.  It was strange not to have a set time to show up, but it's all part of a well planned system of service.  Give the guest their freedom, they will come when they come.  We sat in the lounge, were given the colossal wine list (98% French of course) and served a couple cocktails.  We also received the first few amuse-bouche in the lounge, which let the restaurant pace people in accordingly for a smooth kitchen service.  Eventually we were led into the elegant dining room for the show.  The meal?  Superb.  Not so focused on "molecular" food like many top restaurants, rather flawless execution, inspired and natural feeling food.  One dish was a salad where every vegetable has been prepared in a slightly different way.  The foie gras had no monkey business, just a perfectly cooked slice with appropriate accompaniments.  The almost mandatory aligot - mastery.  The cheese cart could have killed me - really, it's huge.  We each tried about 5 different varieties (declining the Laguiole varieties since we had earlier been at the factory) and still didn't try them all.  The dessert courses were creative, delicious and have proper substance - no plates with a collection of powders, airs and gels that leave you wondering if something was forgotten.  The "Biscuit" with the encased warm compote was fantastic and the flight of mini "ice cream cones" was great - they all looked the part to perfection, but only one was actually a sorbet, the rest were all compotes, cheeses and concoctions made to appear as such.  They also brought us a special course to celebrate our anniversary with a candle obscured by a huge cloud of spun sugar - pure technique.

"ice cream"

Staying the night, we were also treated to a wonderful breakfast - breakfast amuse anyone?  Fresh cheeses, charcuterie, breads and juices.  To start your day with such a variety of flavours and not walk away over loaded takes skill.  The administration knew that I was a chef, and took this time to introduce me to Michel's son Sebastian and show me the kitchen - again the service anticipating and extending itself to the guest experience.  It was special to be able to thank them personally for an amazing stay.