Casino de Morges, a Pithiviers as an excuse!
Even though we’ve already talked about it recently, the pleasure was too great not to give in to temptation: back to the Morges Casinoin the new year, guided by a single beacon in the gourmet night: the Pithiviers.
The Pithiviers pretext
This devilishly generous, bourgeois dish sent us on our way, almost on a pilgrimage, to the gates of this place on the shores of Lake Geneva. A perfect excuse to catch up with two entrepreneurs and, above all, two talents: Thibaud Gardette and Remy Gravelaine, who, in just a few months, are blazing an elegant trail and, day after day, composing some very fine gastronomic scores.
I’ve dreamed of this Pithiviers. I imagined it, drew it, tasted it in my dreams, over and over again, until that Saturday lunchtime when I pushed open the door of the restaurant which, over the coming months, will be getting a much-deserved makeover.
Tournedos Rossini
Sometimes, Instagram does things right. Chef Remy Gravelaine’s post on the making of Pithiviers literally bewitched me. A classic like no other: beneath a light, golden puff pastry lies a tournedos Rossini with black truffle. Matured Swiss beef tenderloin, duck foie gras, all encased in a crispy case. The trumpet-of-death stuffing lends its vegetal depth, while a Périgord sauce coats this shareable dish like a veil of happiness.
But I’m getting carried away. Before that, there was a similar starter, with artichoke and black truffle. Purple artichoke in texture, a little crunch, a lot of greed and lightness. In the center, like a precious treasure: a candied egg yolk. The chef was clever enough to add a few slivers of crispy Etivaz, the cheese we love so much. Here, nothing is left to chance. There’s seriousness on the plate, and a great deal of precision.
Wind of youth
There’s courage, too, in these two young bosses who are on their way to becoming household names. At a time when the restaurant business is as battered as it is passionately (un)loved, let’s take our hats off to those who dare. To those who commit themselves with guts, heart and head.
At the Morges casino, a wind of youth and insouciance blows in from a solid foundation. In the dining room, Thibaud Gardette, with his knowledge of wine forged over the course of his career, most recently at the Hôtel de Ville in Crissier, leads the way with elegance. In the kitchen, Remy Gravelaine, who has been to similar gastronomic heights in Lausanne, composes a bewitching, comforting and sincere cuisine.
And as the seasons come and go on Lake Geneva, day after day they write a story that makes you want to come back. Sometimes for a drink. Often for a dish. And, if you’re lucky, for a Pithiviers that stays with you long after you’ve left the table.
