november-2010

TASTE
BUDS
LONDON
Pig Out
IF YOU’VE EATEN
out in London
recently, chances are
you will have noticed
a snail here, a perfect
reduction there,
and a smattering
of sweetbreads
everywhere. It’s no
coincidence – three
big-name French
chefs that were
causing a ruckus on
London’s culinary
circuit some 15
years ago have
recently resurfaced
with exciting new
restaurants.
First Bruno Loubet
returned after a
hiatus down under, to
open Bistrot Bruno
Loubet at the Zetter
hotel in Clerkenwell.
Then came Joel
Antunes, fresh from
a decade across
the pond, to open
in the Westminster
Park Plaza. And
most recently we’ve
seen the return
of the legendary
Gascon chef Pierre
Koffmann, who
ran La Tante Claire
– one of the few
London restaurants
to achieve three
Michelin stars.
Now he’s opened
Koffmann’s (Wilton
Place, London SW1,
tel: +44 (0)20 7235
6000), a more
relaxed restaurant
at the Berkeley
hotel, where he’s
serving his brand of
technically brilliant
but comforting
French country food.
The menu is packed
with new creations,
but the stars of
the show are his
legendary braised,
stuffed pigs’ trotters
(pictured).
“Any pig is good
for the dish, but we
use only the back leg
trotter,” Koffmann
explains in his deep
French tones. “Pigs’
trotters are all
over France – the
traditional way to
cook them is to boil
them, roll them in
breadcrumbs and
mustard and deep
fry them, but this
dish is refl ective of
Gascony because
it’s more refi ned.
The idea for the dish
came about because
I loved eating and
SHORTS | FRENCH CHEFS
cooking pigs’ trotters
and offal – we used
to eat it a lot in my
family. But I wanted
to do it differently,
and at the time in the
70s no restaurants
were serving it in
London. The dish
we’re doing at
Koffmann’s today is
the same as it was 15
years ago – the pig’s
trotter is deboned,
braised in port, wine,
Madeira, brandy and
veal stock, stuffed
with chicken mousse,
sweetbread and
morels, steamed
and served with
mashed potato. It’s
still very popular.”
Rosie Birkett
15 TH BIRTHDAY ISSUE | TRAVELLER | 97