Daniel et Denise, Lyon France

Daniel et Denise

Warm Bread

Jus Framboise

La Cervelle de Canut – au vinaigre de vin vieux, parsley, chives, shallot, garlic

Le Pâté en croute – au foie gras de canard et ris de veau – (Champion du Monde 2009) accompanied by an onion jam

La Quenelle lyonnaise au brochet, sauce Nantua

Pommes de Tere Dorees au beurre et gratin de macaronis

Le Baba maison ivre de rhum St. James

La Tarte Tatin aux pralines de Saint Genix and a collar of cream

Booked for dinner based on the recommendation of a friend whose palate I’ve come to know and trust it was with high hopes that I approached a meal at Daniel et Denise, but beginning with the GPS first landing me at a closed location on Rue Tramassac to the original being ‘sold out’ of foie double just thirty minutes after service began it would be difficult to say any of the savories were otherwise memorable, the meal only proving memorable in its waning minutes while service was a far cry from that offered at any number of bouchons and brasseries experienced in the following days.

Apologetically arriving late at Rue de Crequi, yet nonetheless treated as if I’d committed a great affrontery to a restaurant that was at no point more than 20% full, it was with no choice that outdoor seating was offered as the ‘only’ option and informed shortly after ordering that the main reason for the visit was unavailable a “Plan B” selection was made mostly based on the otherwise limited selection, a basket of warm bread without butter and a small sampling of creamy cheese with crostini offered as if to excuse the fact that the kitchen simply did not want to prepare the tripe, there simply being no way it was sold out when no other table had any present or delivered during my stay.

Watching other tables of locals receive the Chef’s most famous dish gratis, something I can accept as repeat visitors are certainly entitled the benefits of their patronage, it was at full cost that a thick slice of the Pâté en croute was presented to me and although not quite on par with the terrine offered from Café Comptoir Abel the combination of duck liver and sweetbreads with a dollop of sweet onions was still far better than anything one is likely to find stateside, the richness of each bite nicely cut by a layer of aspic that was thankfully not over-salted, thus allowing the voluptuous meaty notes to shine.

Generally lower in price than other places around town, course two featured a small quenelle of pike placed at the center of a low bowl with traditional seafood sauce serving to enhance the flavor of a fluffy yet meek iteration of the Lyonnais classic, and offering two sides alongside all main plates both the au gratin noodles as well as the pan fried potatoes presented a hunt-and-peck sort of experience, the golden top of the former far outperforming the soupy base while the slightly burnt bits of potato were admittedly quite delicious, the less-cooked spuds going uneaten as they were little more than filler in the face of two desserts to come.

Unabashedly approaching every menu in town in search of baba au rhum, and here promised that theirs was ‘the very best in town,’ suffice it to say that those looking for a truly boozy interpretation of the dish would be well served to make their way to Daniel et Denise, and yet as good as the yeasty roll was beneath two types of cream it was actually the signature apple tart topped in a lacquer of pink pralines that proved to be the best dish of the whole affair, each bite featuring a sweet crunch that soon gave way to soft apples atop the flaky butter crust.

http://www.lesbouchonslyonnais.org/en/restaurants/daniel-et-denise/