2008-05-26
By Emmanuel TresmontantFacing the ocean, a stone’s throw from the old port of La Rochelle, the Coutanceau restaurant is not just the finest restaurant in the Charentes region, it’s also one of the cheapest two-Michelin-star establishments in France… As the fine days of summer arrive, tourists and lucky holiday-home owners take the bridge that connects the continent to the now very upmarket Île de Ré: “Once they get there,” explains Christopher Coutanceau, “they never leave!” Which is a shame, because for the Île de Ré price of a two-course brasserie meal, here they would have a real 2-star menu with scallop carpaccio lasagna, “Cou-Nu” pullet with pumpkin jam and foie gras with truffle and, for dessert, tiramisu with a refreshing mascarpone sorbet, all for (just) €52! Since its creation 30 years ago and since obtaining its second star in 1986, the Coutanceau restaurant has joined the big league, with elegance and generosity. In 2007, Christopher – the youngest son of Richard Coutanceau – took over after an apprenticeship with two masters at opposite ends of the spectrum: Michel Guérard, who instilled in him the basics of great French cuisine (sauces and types of cooking), then Ferran Adria, with whom he discovered the techniques of molecular cuisine (such as spherification, which makes it possible to obtain liquid mixes surrounded by a membrane, like an egg yolk).
 © E. Tresmontant/ViaMichelinSo, playing with both continuity and innovation, Christopher is 100% chef: “Being a chef also means being a butcher, baker, pastry chef, chocolate maker, confectioner”… One could even add “fisherman”, because Christopher’s greatest pleasure is to go and catch sea bass off the Île de Ré himself, with a snack and a bottle of white Fief Vendéen down in the hold. Every morning, Christopher Coutanceau goes to La Rochelle fish auction to buy his fish and seafood. “At my place, 85% of the products come from the Atlantic ocean and the port of La Rochelle. All the fish are wild and line-caught by small boats, then weighed to the nearest gram: so for turbot, the customer is guaranteed to have 165 grams net on their plate.” In fact, his sea cuisine, full of pizzazz, lively, energising and iodine-rich, is also one of the most inspired there is, as illustrated by his stew of Breton lobster braised in shellfish butter, served with seasonal baby vegetables and a mushroom raviole… A dish of extreme precision that expresses all the flavour of the produce! Christopher also likes to roast real suckling lamb from Castile (“not the older grazing lamb that is usually passed off for it”), which he serves with Jerusalem artichokes with foie gras and a cream of sweet peppers.  © E. Tresmontant/ViaMichelinConvinced that chefs must today commit themselves to the defence of the environment, or else they will soon no longer be able to obtain a supply of healthy, tasty products, Christopher gets his fruit and vegetables from Philippe Bailly’s organic farm in Angliers, which follows the rhythm of the seasons and uses only natural fertilisers. At the Coutanceau restaurant, the cheese board is also exceptional, with its Pigouille, Chabichou, Losange, Briquette, Bonde de Gâtine, Couhé-Vérac and Cabri de Parthenay cheeses… All of these unpasteurised ewe’s and goat’s milk cheeses from the Charentes and Poitou regions have been specially selected and ripened by Madame Élianne Galenne, whose cheese shop is in La Rochelle’s central market. As for wines, sommelier Nicolas Brossard, who started out with Senderens then Ducasse at the Louis XV, has completely changed the old wine list, which focused mainly on the great Bordeaux wines. Starting from €23 a bottle, you can now treat yourself to fine Chenins from the Loire or wines from the Rhone Valley. The treasures that are the old vintage wines nonetheless remain comparatively affordable, with a bottle of 1978 Vieux Château Certan (neighbour of Pétrus in Pomerol) selling for €280, or a 1998 Gruaud Larose offered at €180. 950 wines are listed, including 120 served by the glass or half bottle. Practical information Richard & Christopher Coutanceau 1, plage de la Concurrence 17 000 La Rochelle Tel: +33 (0)5 46 41 48 19 The restaurant is open all year round. Market menu at €52, sampler menu at €95 (one starter, two main courses – including the compulsory lobster stew – and a dessert). To whet your appetite, I recommend walking to the restaurant, taking the pretty rue Sur-les-Murs that connects the Tour des Chaînes and Tour de la Lanterne towers and passes over the top of the medieval rampart (not destroyed by Cardinal de Richelieu): a magnificent walk that you can continue along the beach after your meal. |
