I met Chef Pierre Calmels of Bibou two years ago at Feastival and after tasting his incredible food, I knew I had to get over to his restaurant. After two years, I’ve finally made it over there and I can easily say that his food was worth the wait!
Bibou is a quaint little restaurant with a smaller number of tables, so to get a reservation there, you have to be really lucky! Our 7 course feast started with an amuse bouche, and having tasted it, I can safely say my bouche was definitely amused!
To start, there was a little polenta disc with a blue cheese foam. The second course was a rabbit terrine en crute, with a thin layer of aspic and candied pistachios and an unbelievable puree of cranberry with mustard. The tartness from the cranberry cut through the fattiness of the terrine perfectly.
One of the cleverest courses was the lobster bisque. Rather than serving something super heavy and creamy, he served a bisque almost in the style of a thick lobster stock poured over baby zucchini. It was topped with a lobster filled cannelloni that was served perfectly al dente. To get this texture just right with fresh pasta, you have to be a master, so hat’s off to you, Chef Calmels!
The next course was dover sole filet, which is one of my favorite kinds of fish, served over winter root fricassee with a brown butter sauce and a piece of savory.
The next course was what I was most looking forward to, the seared foie gras that Chef Calmels is known for. It was easily the highlight of the meal for me because it was cooked to perfection—the thinnest crisp coating that just sticks to your teeth contrasted with the creaminess of the foie gras on the inside. It was served with a few poached clementines, crème caramel, pumpkin bread and a red wine duck sauce. I could’ve eaten six!
Next up was beef oxtail wellington with black truffles and spinach. The cheese course was tiny, but it was perfect and packed a punch. The first cheese bouche de chevre, which was almost as soft as mascarpone. The other was a brillat-savarin with truffle, which was also delectable.
The other course I cannot get out of my mind was the dessert course and if you know me, I’m not a dessert person, so this is saying something! He gave us this mini pecan pie and a scoop of cardamom ice cream served on top of star fruit with a strawberry drizzle. It looked so festive for Christmas! Admittedly, I didn’t try the pecan pie, but I inhaled that cardamom ice cream! If I could’ve taken 5 gallons of that ice cream home, I would have!
After the meal, Pierre came out to talk with us and shared a bit more about his menu writing process. Each week, he sits down to create a new menu, giving diners a taste of his creativity as the dishes change weekly! If you haven’t gone out to Bibou, get yourself over there! Five toques from me!
