Nestled in the folds of the Salhiya Mall, a new concept has emerged – Le Gourmet Café by Fauchon. Two menus appear on your table once you take your seat, the gourmet menu with gold accents and their highly recognizable cafe menu. While the cafe menu continues to offer our beloved selection of Fauchon’s timeless delicacies, their new one – exclusively created for Le Gourmet – was a bit of a mystery. Walking past the diners to our table, we noticed some of the dishes they were enjoying weren’t the usual go-to selections.
Curious, we hurriedly opened the new menu to explore the contents and were pleasantly surprised. While the selection may be small, it was exotic and guaranteed to shake things up – gastronomically speaking of course. Introducing quintessential Parisian elegance in meal form, you no longer need to journey to Paris to enjoy those dishes – or the fresh-baked bread with a side of olive oil and fresh herbs to dip in to.
Brought in fresh from the USA, the Premium Tenderloin of Kobe Beef selection is glorious. You can enjoy the beef depending on how adventurous you are – in fillet form, as a Carpaccio or Tartare. We decided to indulge in their Beef Steak Tartare. The meat was tender and melted in our mouths accompanied with a beautiful crunch from their baguettine crisps and fresh greens. Bursting with flavor, the finely chopped raw beef steak is mixed and marinated in condiments and a bouquet of fresh herbs and spices. Perfection with every bite, the meat was prepped expertly and presented beautifully.
Following our admiration of the Beef Steak Tartare, we welcomed a gloriously pink platter of freshly prepared Norwegian Salmon, the Salmon Fillet Gravlax. Wonderfully thin slices of salmon fillet are cured with fresh dill and citrus zest. Have it alone or with a dab of dill cream, the flavors will impress either way. The freshly julienned vegetable medley, served with a subtle soy vinaigrette, added a delicious depth to the salmon’s flavor. Nothing was too overpowering and the concoctions complimented each other, giving the entire dish an uplifting flavor profile.
Next on our selection of dishes was their Homemade Foie Gras (duck liver) Terrine. Traditionally slow cooked to perfection in a clay pot, the Foie Gras was served with beautifully buttered and seared brioche slices and a date chutney. The Foie Gras had a naturally nutty texture while the date chutney cut into its sharpness with the added smoothness from the flamed loaf. Each bite offered a medley of sweetness and tartness, while the expert use of the date chutney gave this quintessential French dish a modern Middle Eastern twist. Just remember, a little goes a long way with the Foie Gras, so be sure to spread some on your bread before adding the chutney and indulging in this smooth and subtle dish.
We continued our French dining journey with a platter of Fresh Oysters. Presentation and additions are key when it comes to oysters. Freshly opened, the oysters are ready for consumption on an iced bowl of sea salt. With a squeeze of lemon and a splash of shallot vinegar, you take your little spoon and wriggle the oysters out of the shell and enjoy. You can almost taste the delicate flavors of the sea amidst the shallot vinegar concoction. Enjoy it with a side of sliced rye and some herbed butter. Thinking this was the last of the savory dishes, they presented us with their piece de resistance.
Beautifully arranged shells filled to the brim with garlic parsley butter and a side of bread sticks, we sat amazed at how delectable they looked. The Escargot, or Snails Burgundy as they referred to in their menu, were wonderfully baked with the garlic parsley butter filling. You’re presented with a device to hold the shell in place with one hand while with the other, negotiating a small fork into the shell to pull out the contents. Slather the garlic parsley butter onto the bread, top it off with the cooked snail and take a bite – you’ll thank us later. Overflowing with flavor, the snails were perfect and the accompanying bread gave them an added crunch that only enhanced the dish as a whole. We were pleasantly surprised and equally delighted.
Molecular gastronomy is a fairly new concept in Kuwait, and Fauchon are giving people a spectacular introduction through their Le Gourmet’s exclusive desserts. Let’s start off by saying the dessert is never entirely assembled until they reach your table. To start our sugar-fueled journey, we had the Black Forest Cream Brûlée. From the bottom upward, you get a silky smooth Manjari dark chocolate cream topped off with perfectly spiced cherry compote covered entirely by a subtle rose cream – the Brûlée came in the form of a crispy caramel galette that is then up to you to crack to reach the delicious layers. Then came the Blooming Lotus which was literally plated to appear as a flower in bloom. At the center you have a dark chocolate mousse with a delicious mango compote over a delectable pistachio sponge. It’s then topped off with a caramelized lotus crumble before being encased in dark chocolate petals – the blooming effect comes with the warm lotus sauce that is then poured over it, forcing the petals to literally bloom.
Leaving the most spectacular for last, we were presented with the Egg’spectation. Made with a beautiful coconut cremeux, it is then topped with dark chocolate cream and chocolate crumble giving it a dirt-like effect with chunks of coconut sponge and poached pineapple pieces. The egg part comes in the form of a white chocolate egg that is then cracked over the dish, revealing a runny pineapple compote yolk and coconut glaze egg-white. This, was our absolute favorite dish from the start of the presentation to the last spoonful of delicious creamy goodness – bringing our visit to a delightful end.
An experience not to be missed, visit Fauchon’s Le Gourmet Café now! Located opposite Trafalgar inside Salhiya Mall in Kuwait City, you can follow them on Instagram for more information and glorious food images @Fauchon_Kuwait.
