For American wine-lovers visiting French grape growing regions, no matter whether Bordeaux or Burgundy, Champagne or Alsace, the last night abroad can prove bittersweet. That’s not only because their wonderful vacation is about to end, but also because they’ll probably need to be at the airport–usually Charles de Gaulle outside of Paris–fairly early the next day. Unless they’re willing to get up before dawn and drive like a bat out of you-know-where, they need to find a hotel, and a restaurant, nearby.
I can’t help with the hotel, but I do have a restaurant recommendation. Two weeks ago, when returning from just such a trip, my wife Marguerite Thomas and I ate at L’Auberge de la Brie in the small town
of Couilly-Pont-aux-Dames, about a thirty minute drive from the airport. It was the best meal I’ve had anywhere this year.
Carrying one Michelin star, this is a fairly unpretentious restaurant serving quite sophisticated fare. Its small dining room, painted in warm pastels, looks out over a small garden and feels very inviting. As at most good French restaurants, a dinner reservation gets you a table for the whole evening. We arrived around eight, and didn’t leave until after eleven. On a June evening in northern France, dusk lingers long, and the light faded ever so slowly during our time there.
The highlights of our meal included a very imaginative cold fois gras dish served in a small bowl made out of brioche, with Spanish Ibérico ham and diced, marinated artichokes lurking underneath; a rich, satisfying sweetbread entrée; and a deep, earthy dish of squab, spinach, and shallots, with more (this time warm) fois gras beneath the bird for good measure. While the desserts were fine, they didn’t match the quality of these savory dishes, the memory of which makes my mouth water as I write. The cheese cart, though, was well worth ordering. As the restaurant’s name suggests, this is Brie country, and we sampled a variety of different ones.
The wine list at L’Auberge de la Brie, though not especially big, offers many reasonably priced choices, including a small but well-chosen set of wines by the glass. Drinking well there won’t break the bank. We enjoyed a glass of sumptuous off-dry Jurancon with the fois gras, and bottle of deep, rich St.-Joseph with the rest of the meal.
As at most French restaurants, you’ll do best ordering a set menu rather than a la carte. There are a number of options, starting at forty-six Euros and going up to sixty-nine–not cheap certainly, but more than fair given the high quality of chef Alain Pavard’s cooking.
On the Saturday evening when we were there, the restaurant was filled with happy couples and families, talking softly but amiably, the sound of laughter joining with the clink of glassware to set a festive mood. L’Auberge de la Brie appears to be more of a special occasion restaurant for locals than a destination spot for jet-setters. It’s very comfortable and relaxing, a perfect place to spend a final evening in France. I can’t recommend it more highly.
Auberge de la Brie
14, avenue Alphonse Boulingre
77860 Couilly-Pont-aux-Dames
tel : 33 (0)1-64-63-51-80
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