Bistro LQ (www.bistrolq.com)
While eating with S.P. the other day, I became overcome with a feeling that I could not shake off. It wasn’t melancholy. It wasn’t deja vu. It wasn’t elation.
It was gratitude. Gratitude of time. Gratitude of space. And specifically gratitude of my particular time and space.
Despite Time Magazine overzealously dubbing the last ten years as the “worst decade in history”, this feeling of gratitude, along with wafts from the wonderful cheese cart, permeated my sense of being in the most unlikely of places: the brightly lit if not slightly stuffy dining room of Bistro LQ. How did I get here? It starts with the French B.M.O.C. himself, Napoleon Bonaparte. According to Larousse Gastronomique (thanks to Mae’s Food Blog at maefood.blogspot.com), back in the day Napoleon celebrated a victory over the Austrians with the following meal:
Napoleon’s meal
- three eggs
- four tomatoes
- six crayfish
- a small hen
- a little garlic
- oil and water panade
In contrast, we had a slightly different French-themed experience:
Our Meal
- sea urchin over yuzu tapioca
- kumamoto oyster in yuzu gelee
- torchon/marjolaine/terrine foie gras (“foie gras 3 ways”)
- poached hen egg in red wine, bacon & mushrooms
- scallop with basil minestrone and chorizo
- wild boar shank braised in mole
- the richest Scottish hare of all time, engulfed in foie gras and blood
- various cheeses with a vast array of condiments and accoutrements
- chocolate cromesquis with orange water-scented sour cream
Other than pointing out our piggishness, what the hell is my point you ask? For at least one night, two ordinary modern citizens ate more richly and interestingly, nay ate better than a man who at one point ruled half of planet Earth.
Thus the gratitude. Napoleon can have his mighty navy. I’m quite happy with the kind of access modern society grants its ordinary citizens. Napoleon was probably not aware of the sexual indiscretions of his military officers. Yet I receive a text message every time one of Tiger Woods’ bimbos gets a breast augmentation. God bless our geological era!
If you ever want to feel superior to a powerful despot, venture over to Laurent Quenioux’s Bistro LQ. You can construct a terrific meal from the uni over yuzu tapioca, the Scottish hare, your choice of fresh cheeses and a glass of tempranillo. And you can enjoy the meal with a shit-eating grin draped in historical perspective. - H. Lee
Bistro LQ, 8009 Beverly Boulevard, Los Angeles, CA 90048, (323) 951-1088
