Since July 2015, the elegant Shangri-La Hotel, Paris hosts its vegan 100% Green Dinners on the first Thursday of each month. They are prepared by the great, two Michelin star French chef Christophe Moret.
Working as head chef at Alain Ducasse’s legendary fusion restaurant Spoon, Food & Wine in Paris, Christophe Moret started to offer vegetarian dishes from 1998 until 2003. At Shangri-La Hotel, Paris he goes a step further with vegan food.
On April 5, 2018 together with a friend, I tasted the 100% Green Dinner at the very recommendable restaurant La Bauhinia at Shangri-La Hotel, Paris. Last, but not least, because it was aspargus season.
Christophe Moret told me that, in France, the asparagus season starts earlier than in Germany because they from the commune of Piolenc in the Vaucluse department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur region in southeastern France. Since 1997 already, the producer Jérôme Galis not only sends him asparagus, but truffles as well.
The chef told me that the asparagus needs four to five years to grow and, then, can be exploited for five to seven years, after which the area needs some 50 years to regenerate!
In addition to white and green asparagus, Christophe Moret offered purple asparagus. According to the chef, they come originally from Italy, are violet on the exterior and green on the interior. In addition, among the green asparagus available in April 2018, was thela prébelle variety, which we had of course the chance to taste.
All 100% Green Dinner photos on this page are the copyright of Skiss / Shangri-La Hotel, Paris.
First, we had a glass of champagne. The Pommery Pop Earth with 12.5% alcohol tasted sour and fruity and was appropriate for the evening because its an ecological champagne, prepared without the use chemicals.
As an amuse-bouche, the chef sent us a refreshing, green juice made of apple, cucumber, celeri and lime as well as japanese rice with vinegar, fermented, spicy chili and marinated, matured cabbage.
The starter consisted of a Kimchi, fermented, salted vegetables, prepared by Japanese chef excusively for the restaurant. The green peas came from Jérôme Galis and were prepared together with avocado and white asparagus. The primavéra was seasoned with passion fruit, radish and cashew nut cream. The white asparagus guacamole with green peas and green beans was accompanied by a rocket salad.
We continued with a geen peas velouté with blond morels, accompanied by country bread (pain de campagne). It was followed by a green and purple asparagus barley riso, perfumed with citrus. All excellent, light courses.
Our dishes were accompanied by two white wines: a biological, 2017 Sancerre from the Domaine Vacheron with 12.5% alcohol and a dry, mineral Chablis 1er Cru “Montmains” from the Domaine Benoît Droin in Burgundy with 13% alcohol; the sommelier chose those two white wines to enhance the flavor of our dishes.
We ended our 100% Green Dinner with a brillant dessert: ciflorettes strawberries shortbread with a ciflorettes sorbet, avocado and lime cream; the ciflorettes strawberries had a strong taste and came from the region of Carpentras. I had of course to taste an additional dessert: a praline-chocolate tarte with caramel and a vegetarian citrus gelée. I tasted it together with an Oolong Tie Guan Yin Tea.
In addition, we tried a dessert wine too. The biological, Sud-Ouest-Jurançon Moelleux from the Domaine de Souch by Marie Kattalin with only 12.5% alcohol is often used to accompany the not so vegetarian foie gras. Nevertheless, with its fruity and sugary marzipan taste, it turned out to be an excellent choice. That’s how our great, vegan dinner in Paris ended.
View of the elegant restaurant La Bauhinia on April 5, 2018. Photo copyright: Skiss / Shangri-La Hotel, Paris.
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Photo of the great French chef Christophe Moret. Photo copyright: Shangri-La Hotel, Paris.
Review article added on August 1, 2018 at 12:20 Paris time.
