Proust’s Madeleine
Le Bistrot de Madeleine is packed on this almost wintry Sunday lunchtime (yes, open on Sundays!). Diners laugh, toast and savor top-notch bistro cuisine, while sipping naturally oriented wines. Pierre Lelièvre and Benjamin Breton are a pleasure to be around, and they’re really stepping up their gourmet game. This duo, so much appreciated when they visited Geneva’s culinary scene, continues to surprise well beyond our expectations. Even if Geneva has let go of a brilliant tandem, it’s a pleasure to see them in such bloom.
Edouard Amoiel
Human relations
Pierre Lelièvre has a keen eye, a precise gesture and a wild way with words… especially when he talks about the craftsmen he works with: butchers, market gardeners, cheesemakers and, of course, winegrowers… The owner builds a human and close relationship with these modern-day artists. It’s out of the question not to play the local card. Even if this word has become fashionable and falsely usurped by many, its use remains appropriate when the work of research and product selection becomes a way of life or an ethic. Le Bistrot de Madeleine is proof of this.
Edouard Amoiel
It’s in the dining room that Pierre takes pleasure in living in the company of the efficient and smiling Mallaury Girod. Close to their customers, this front-of-house tandem has perfect command of… two crowded rooms. Is the gastronomic restaurant adjacent to the bistro finally open? Soon, he confirms. Demand is so high that the bistro is quickly sold out, and the duo are using the space in the future gourmet restaurant as well. A resounding success.
Poultry parmentier
It’s no surprise that Madeleine’s mayonnaise takes off so well. The culinary offer is most attractive, and the gourmet titles on the menu are an invitation to taste. The aperitif begins with thin slices of Maison Baud Coppa de Savoie and tarama-style smoked cod roe. Fresh goat’s cheese and rosette-shaped strips of fermented kohlrabi with herb oil electrify the senses, before giving way to the extraordinary hare ravioli and their fearsome game sauce. A dish that will stay with you for a long time, as much for the precision of the pasta ‘s cooking as for the gustatory intensity of the stuffing and the elegant power of the sauce. The yellow Bresse poultry is of the same high standard, accompanied by roasted salsify, black garlic and a subtle poultry jus. The ultimate indulgence: the thighs are served as a parmentier covered with a real purée.
Gourmandise is the order of the day at the Auberge de Lucinges, where a story of friendship is transforming the small French village just outside Geneva. So, why not make a gourmet stopover on your way to Haute-Savoie? It’s up to you…
L’Auberge de Lucinges, 67 place de Lucinges, 74380 Lucinges, France. Phone: +33 4 50 39 64 74
