[Neuman101]

I haven't heard anyone review L'Atelier de Joel Robuchon and it was the last great restaurant I went to, so here it goes...

The first choice when making a reservation at Robuchons is your seating preference. It is about half tables. The rest of the patrons sit around a bar that surrounds the kitchen and views the food as it is being prepared. While i would find it cool to watch such fine food prepared, I knew my friend would not care much of it, and would prefer a little more personal space than the bar affords. The tables were nice, and probably more comfortable for a long meal than the bar.

The menu is set up slightly differently than some other high end places. While there are a la carte appetizers and entrees, there is also a large section devoted to small plates, like you find on a tasting menu. The beauty of Joel Robuchon is that you can design your own tasting menu and also mix and match small plates with appetizers or entrees. After conferring with our waiter to determine the size of each category we settled on 4 small plates and an entree.

My first course was a fresh langoustine carpaccio with poppy seeds and olive oils. It was cool and had a nice texture but was not nearly as good as my friend's langoustine dish, Crispy Langoustine Papillote with Basil Pesto. His was a marvelously crisped shell around tender langoustine with a light creamy sauce. His dish simply worked.

My next dish was a sea urchin in a lobster gelee with cauliflower cream. Im not normally a big fan of uni, but the waiter recommended it and I was feeling adventurous. I was not disappointed, it was not bland and gooey as other sea urchins I have tasted. The broth/foam/gelee combination provided an exciting taste, one that I cant explain in any relative sense as it was truly unique to me.

My next dish was Crispy Frog Legs with Garlic Purée and Parsley Coulis. I have a thing for frogs legs, and these were good, but not astounding. They were a little too fried for my liking, but the sauce was excellent. (I was spoiled by an earlier frogs legs served with young garlic soup from Jean Georges over the summer)

My next dish was Beef and Foie Gras Burgers with Lightly Caramelised Bell Peppers. These were wonderful little sliders of maybe 3 bites each. The meat itself was so tender and then with a slice of foie gras on top, they went from so tender to whatever the next level of tenderness is. The dish also cames with fries that were very good, i didnt want to fill up on fries as I eat enough of those, so i ate a few and left the rest.

For my entree I got one of Joel's famous dishes, Free-Range Caramelised Quail Stuffed with Foie Gras, Served with Potato Purée and Summer Truffle. It is one of those dishes that simply reading it off the menu alerts your palate of what is to come. It was marvelously rich and not gamey at all. The Potato Puree (mashed potatos) was the best I have ever had anywhere hands down. Trying to describe them is between difficult and impossible because the texture is so extraordinary. Its as if a stick of butter (or 4) was dropped into a cloud and then someone made into mashed potatos. Also, if you don't like quail dont order it just for the potato puree. While it is the only dish that comes with potato puree, everyone gets their own little pot of them during your last course. This is a wonderful touch and ensures that you will leave full regardless of what you have eaten.

Im not a desert person at all, so for brevity's sake, I'll just say I nibbled on some of their house desserts and had a tasting of sorbets.

I had champagne with my small plates and a glass of wine or two with my later plates and entree. My friend was drinking vodka. I believe the bill was around 525 w/ tip.

It was worth the price, and it was thoroughly enjoyable.