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A Big Letdown at a Seafood Cathedral
By Patricia Wells
PARIS - Few things are more difficult to cook than
fish and shellfish. They are delicate, fragile, frighteningly
perishable, sometimes unpredictable and almost always
expensive. Overcook a chicken or a lamb chop by a minute
or more and usually no one will notice. Breach the limit
on an expensive sea bass and you'll be wailing in despair.
I think one would have to be crazy to open a fish restaurant.
Not only are you subject to the weather, to fishermen's
whims, to skyrocketing prices, you also must be aware
of the fact that you are dealing with a constantly limited
resource. In France, add to the downside the nation's
numerous holidays, when fishermen don't go out, as well
as the threat of strikes that hinder transport.
All those reasons aside, fish and shellfish are of
course among the greatest of gastronomic pleasures.
So we go ahead and buy and cook them and people will
always go on finding reasons to open a fish and shellfish
restaurant.
Craving all of the above, I returned the other night
to the grand Goumard Prunier off the Place de la Madeleine,
with memories of sparkling fresh fish that seemed to
have jumped from the Atlantic onto my plate, of shellfish
that carried like a fine perfume that distinct, refreshing
iodine aroma of the sea, of respectful preparations
designed to flatter the fish and shellfish with a minimal
amount of culinary fan-dancing.
Alas! From start to finish the meal was bland, boring
and dull. From the tiny slender fillets of sardines
to the last cool mouthful of fromage blanc sorbet I
sat in depression. How could Jean-Claude Goumard, who
has been able to capture two Michelin stars since he
took over the historic fish restaurant in 1992, let
his place slip to such depths.
What's worse, all the problems were quite elementary.
Sardines, squid, langoustines and sea bass all suffered
from similar problems. Where they should have glistened,
shimmered, arriving tender but firm, each specimen suffered
either from overcooking or from excessive handling.
Langoustines encased in paper-thin pastry and deep
fried were flavorless and mushy when they should have
sent one swooning with their richness, their scent of
the sea breeze.
Encornets were encased in a batter so thick it destroyed
the squid's fragility and flexibility, turning them
into bands of rubber. The grilled loup, or sea bass,
may have been perfect as it left the kitchen, but once
placed on a blazing hot plate and sent upstairs the
poor Mediterranean star arrived soggy, overcooked. The
sole meuniere suffered the same fate. Even the fine
Chateau de Meursault 1992, mellow and just slightly
nutty, did little to assuage my disappointment.
I guess I'd better return to the stove and depend on
my own fish-cooking skills, for I won't be returning
soon to Goumard Prunier.
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Goumard Prunier, 9 rue Duphot, Paris 1
tel: 01-42-60-36-07; fax: 01-42-60-04-54.
Closed Sunday and Monday. Credit cards: American Express,
Diners Club, Visa. Lunch menu: 390 francs (about $65),
including wine and service. A la carte, 420 to 800 francs,
including service but not wine.
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