The system of dividing France into provinces sometimes has its weak points, and they arc evident in the case of Dauphiny, a purely political formation Without geographical unity. One part of the province is the placid valley of the Rhône. The other contains the wildest and most primitive ranges in the Alpine chain, replete with immense panoramas of spine-tingling beauty. It is an exciting province in which to travel. The mountainous stretches of Dauphiny are as dramatic as anything rig in Europe. The road is hacked through breath-taking gorges, past cascades and waterfalls Northern Dauphiny is largely Alpine, glistening with the majesty of snow-clad mountains and creeping glaciers. In the south the land flattens out somewhat, and you feel the garlic-scented proximity of Provence in every village. It can be sparse and sun-baked here. Raging winter torrents become parched river; beds in the intense summer heal, and the silence can become oppressive.
Mountain life in these rugged hills is picturesque in summer. The silence of the pastoral heights is animated by troops of cattle and sheep and the blooms of wild flowers. Sheep herds travel hundreds of miles, and the cheesemakers are busy. But in winter it is a different story. In the isolated chalet and hillside hamlets the inhabitants are dug in for the season under an impenetrable blanket of snow. There the Dauphiny housewife makes her gratin, and the farmer tends his cattle and sheep in the lower reaches of his chalet. Luckily for the farmer's morale, good simple country cooking is a deepset tradition in every farmhouse. The architecture gets a bit more primitive as you penetrate into the mountains, and so docs (the cooking. But how good those hearty dishes taste on a cold night!
This land of mountain streams and lakes is especially kind to the lover of crayfish and fresh-water fish, particularly trout. The more gifted local gourmets can tell by the taste of the fish the altitude at which it was caught. As in the case of mountain game, the higher the altitude, the finer the taste. The most delectable mountain trout lives on wellwashed water insects and those which fall from overhead branches. The fortunate fish which has a predilection for small fresh-water shrimp, and can find them, acquires that tempting 'salmon-pink color when prepared for the table. But the “industrial” trout from (the hydroelectric Streams is a vastly inferior character—so says the expert. The cooking in the southern fringe of Dauphiny has a distinct Provençal cast, but one senses the refinement of Grenoble and Lyon in most of its dishes. Garlic's conquest is not complete. Cream enters into a multitude of dishes, but with more restraint than in Normandy. The olive tree makes its appearance here, leading to a cooking which is half oil, half butter, full of finesse and subtlety.
It is hardly necessary to point out that Dauphiny is blessed with beautiful wines, for it can claim some of the most famous vintages of the Rhône Valley as its own. Hermitage Rouge and Côte Rôtie are two classics among French red wines, and Hermitage Blanc and Mercurol occupy comparable high rank among the whites. The rocky slopes of the Isère and Drôme yield interesting local wines of vigor and short life, and in the vicinity of Die you will find the highly individual vins de clairette, fresh, fruity nectars, some of which possess a natural sparkle Some of the world's best liqueurs, Chartreuse among them, come from Grenoble and Voiron.
But space isn't going to allow me a long discussion of the wines, the flora, the fauna, or the natural beauties of Dauphiny this month. There arc too many marvelous restaurants scattered through its three dépariements of Isère, Drôme, and Hautes-Alpes. This springs from the fact that it lies squarely across the path of the two major roads from Paris to the Riviera. The more leisurely motorists, and apparently the better-heeled ones, roll down the Rhône Valley. Here, naturally enough, the more opulent shrines of gastronomy arc strung along. The alternate route is the one that Napoleon took, and it informally bears his name. You'll find fewer palaces along the Route Napoléon, but the scenery is more inspiring and there are better-than adequate stopovers. It is no overstatement to say that Dauphiny's strategic setting across these two highways has brought it some of the finest restaurants in the world. Let's begin by working down the Route Napoléon, thus saving the juiciest plums for the last:
Sassenage (Isère)
Grenoble, the capital of Dauphiny, with all its impressive past as a center of culture and gastronomy, seems to be eclipsed in the latter field at the moment. There are plenty of adequate dining places among the hotels and brasseries of Grenoble, but the local epicures still travel outside the city limits to regale themselves. They go, as they have for decades, to the quiet riverside village of Sassenage, some three miles away. Here along the main highway is the HÔTEL PARENDEL, an inviting establishment with a charming garden concealed behind its yellow ocher walls. Generations of university students, many Americans among them, have saved their spare francs for a regal feast at this epicurean stronghold. The host, Monsieur Rostang, is a genial gentleman who takes pains to present unusual dishes, One of them is feuilletè de ris de venu au porto, an amazing way of sublimating the pancreas gland of a mere calf. Another is poulet au cbampagne, and they certainly do go together The prices are fair. Dining in the garden is a charming experience, and if it rains, a pleasant, airy dining salon awaits you.
Moirans (Isère)
In this pleasant town in the valley of the Isère, some twelve miles from Grenoble, is a fair-weather hotel well worth attention. It is on the outskirts of the town, down by the viaduct, and it is called the HÔTEL BEAUSÈJOUR. Fortunately its food is more individual than its name. Monsieur Seigle is your affable host, and he knows the fine points of regional cooking. If proof is needed, try his poulet grillé sauce diable as pièce de résistance or if the season is right, a sublimated bécusse flambée. The setting may be either a sheltered garden or a rustic dining salon, each with a fine view of the mountain-hemmed valley.
Lus-la-Crok-Haute (Drôme)
The more adventurous souls who choose this highway between Paris and the Riviera find more exhilarating scenery hut fewer good overnight slops. The latter are adequate, however. One of the good ones is the TOURING HÔTEL in this mountain-shrouded hamlet. This simple hostelry facing the railway station is a favorite with skiers and summer trippers alike. They enjoy its commanding view of (he valley of the Trabuëch but appreciate even more. I suspect. the subtle culinary offerings of Monsieur Garzon, specifically his famous gratia daupbinois. The atmosphere of this inn is cordial and gay, even though you seem very far from civilization.
Serres (Hautes-Alpes)
Another good stop along the Napoleonic road is in this hillside town, where the HÔTEL FIFI MOULIN perches above a dramatic panorama of the valley. Your hostess in this gracious establishment is Mademoiselle Jean, a lady whose culinary prowess is evident as soon as you are seated at her hospitable table. Her gratin will compare favorably with the best, and her foie gras maison is a beautiful way to begin a luncheon. Here is a country hotel in the good old tradition.
Gap (Hautes-Alpes)
In this valley town, which has much of the savor of Provence, you will find a charming retreat for a quiet luncheon under the trees. This is called simply LE RELAIS, and you have to walk some fifty yards down a private walk to get there. But the menu is posted on the street, allowing you to assess the gastronomic pleasures which compensate for that much footwork. Madame Arnaud's carte du jour may list truites Cbampsaur or rable de lièvre à la' crème, or it may promise caneton à l'orange or grives-sur-canapé. Whatever it is, the fifty-yard trek will be well invested.
La Roche-de-Rame (Hautes-Alpes)
You arc several miles from nowhere when you come upon this remote village, hemmed in by overwhelming mountain ridges. We arrived there at dusk in a dismal autumn drizzle, tired, ravenous, but hopeful, since the guidebooks had all said complimentary things about the HÔTEL FOURRAT. Its brightly lighted bar was a soul-warming sight to our travelweary eyes. Over the apécritifs we talked with Madame Fourrat and planned the kind of dinner which goes with a chill October evening: onion soup, truite meunière. poulet à la crème, gratin daupbinois, all particular specialties of the house. It turned out to be a lovely evening, even as the mist sank lower and the moisture dripped more and more disconsolately from the eaves. A chilled Chablis Vaudésir, followed by a languorous Hermitage Rouge, followed by satanically hot. strong black coffee and some old Chartreuse —all these helped us to realize how lucky we were to choose this gustatory outpost.
Vienna (Isère)
So much has been written about Monsieur Fernand Point and his astonishing RESTAURANT DE LA PYRAMIDS in Vienne that it would seem needless for mc to dwell long upon the subject here. Without question, this restaurant enjoys the best word-of-mouth publicity in France today. Most informed Frenchmen consider that it is the finest dining place in their country, and hence in the world. Monsieur Point's name creeps into the foreground in any gastronomic discussion. Rightly or not. he is considered the “premier restaurateur du monde,” and a step ahead of the most revered names in Paris. Lyon, New York, and London.
There must be an explanation, and it may very well lie in the fact that Monsieur Point has more imagination than his confrères. He appears to be more of a student of historic French cooking than most of his rivals. He perceived long ago that the automobile will bring the whole world to his doorstep (if he provides enough parking space), even if he is located near the factories on the outskirts of an unremarkable city (save for its Roman relics) on the Rhône. He has combined lavish plenty with the irreproachable grande cuisine of the early 1900's and with what is even more a talisman of aristocracy: faultless, smiling, unhurried, considerate service on the part of everyone in the establishment from the bus boy to the patron himself.
His technique of providing neither a carte du jour nor a wine list for his patrons seems, at first sight, to be preposterous. Yet nobody objects, first because everyone knows the meal will be magnificent anyway, and secondly because his wine cellar is probably the best one in France. People have learned that practically any bottle which (hey request will be furnished with casual ease by the sommelier. Do you want proof ? Monsieur Point's cellar has eleven of the best years of RomanéeConti and ten of the most celebrated Château Yquems. One can only surmise the extent of his holdings in various treasures from the Rhône Valley. But I can assure you that the best Côte Rôtie I ever tasted appeared at his table with a succulent partridge last autumn, and few Burgundies could touch it.
As you probably know, you can approach the Restaurant de la Pyramide in various ways. You can write ahead (which is wise) ; you can have a preliminary conference and discuss the fare; or you can arrive unannounced and take (do I dare use the expression?) potluck. In any case, the result is fabulous. Last October we arrived cbez Point late on a Sunday afternoon with the way unpaved even by a postcard. We were utterly famished, with a day's premeditated fasting behind us, and quite willing to put ourselves at the mercy of the maître d'bôtel, and to be told what we were going to have.
Perhaps you know the ritual which follows. First there are four incredible bors-d'oeuvre served as four separate courses. These were, in turn. pâté en croûte, foie gras en brioche, feuilleté niçoise, and escargots de Bourgogne. (The sandwich, glass o' milk, and apple pie executive would stop right there!) This was followed by the world's lightest but most unctuous quenelles de bracbet(pike quenelles) with a sauce Nantua, then by a bécasse flambée. (woodcock), quail, partridge, or steak of your own choosing, followed by salad, cheese and a kaleidoscope of desserts, pastries, ices, coffee, liqueurs—all this without a menu of any sort.
It is a complete experience, and it's not Monsieur Point's fault if our untuned Anglo-Saxon stomachs are not geared to it. They aren't, so if you can force yourself to nibble at and not devour this divine fart, you will probably be happier the next day. Of course it's expensive, of course it's too copious for most of us, but Monsieur Point, his gracious wife, his kitchen staff, and his waiters, his garden, his wine cellar, and his glorious individuality provide something unlike anything else in this world. Skimp on plenty of things, but don't mass Monsieur Fernand Point, Restaurateur!
Valence-sur-Rhôuh (Drôme)
This animated city on the Rhône is a natural stopover for travelers. Comfortable hotels and excellent dinners await the motorist who encircles Valence on his map. Along its broad, tree-lined thoroughfare arc two gratifying hotels. One is the HÔTEL CROIX D'OR, at 8 place de la Republique. Spacious and patrician, its reputation dates back for decades, and its chef is capable of producing a commendable dinner. The other is the HÔTEL DE L'EUROPE, facing the esplanade. Its chef, Monsieur Tortel, comes from the celebrated Hôtel de la Poste in Saulieu, which means that handsome fare awaits you.
But the fairest and most famous flower in the gastronomic bouquet of Valence is unquestionably the RESTAURANT PIC, at 285 avenue Victor Hugo on the southern outskirts of the town. The illustrious Monsieur Pic is one of the great cbef-bôteliers of France, and he has the gift of choosing and training a remarkable staff. At present his principal chef is Monsieur Reboula who served for a score of years Chez Mahu, one of the soundest restaurants in Normandy. You may count upon an unforgettable dinner at Monsieur Pic's celebrated board. Furthermore, his prices arc very considerate for such regal fare. You will have a more Lucullan meal than your host, for Monsieur Pic is permanently engaged in a slimming process, and very successfully, too. The saddest thing is that the doctor makes him give up tobacco also!
Lamastre (Ardèche)
I can't resist taking you a little out of bounds at this point, for the most memorable epicurean episode of our recent Dauphiny trip occurred in the old hill town of Lamastre, some twenty-five miles west of Valence. Here on the main square is a neat, unostentatious place called the HÔTEL DU MIDI. You wouldn't look at it twice (except to make a mental note that its sheltered awning was inviting), unless you were conscious of the name BARATTERO lettered upon the door and knew its gastronomic significance. For this unusual name has signified the highest peak in French regional cooking for decades. Generations of gourmets have made the detour from the Rhône Valley just to taste the splendors of Monsieur Barat tero's cuisine. For a quarter of a century and more it has been a mecca for most of the fins bees of France. Monsieur Barattero is no more, alas, but his gracious widow is still there to greet her guests and a gifted young man from the Barattero family is installed in the kitchen, a worthy heir to the master's cooking secrets.
Over a glass of port in the smiling Madame Barattero's salon, we planned our dinner, choosing a seductive sequence of dishes and exploring her wine list. We can't recall a more pleasant formality. The dinner turned out to be a balanced symphony, but one dish stood out majestically from the others. It was truly extraordinary, and we have decided that is was by far the best dish we tasted during the entire four months' trip. Its name: pain d'écrevisse sauce cardinale, a lighter, larger, more fragrant variation of quenelles, I suppose you could call it. with a sauce that defies description. We splurged on a Montrachet 1937 for this dish, and they were seraphic companions. Later we visited the large, immaculate kitchen and met the keeneyed young chef and his staff. They were in a stale of subdued excitement, for Madame Barattero had just told them that she had been selected to present the annual “regional week” at the famous Maxim's on the rue Royale in Paris, and that the whole staff would soon he spending a week in those celebrated kitchens. It did, and the handsome widow was the toast of Maxim's.
We found the recipe for her crayfish loaf, sauce cardinale, and tried to adapt it to Maine lobster. The result was good, but we have decided that you can't inherit one of Monsieur Barattero's inspired secrets from a casual recipe in a French cookbook, So we haven't the impertinence to give you an approximation, But we beseech you to make the detour to Lamastre (the winding mountain road is very picturesque, by the way) and to sample this superlative dish on the spot and to enjoy the refined essence of French simplicity, courtesy, and culinary genius. That is what the name Barattero signifies.
Montèlimar (Drôme)
This town in the lower Rhône Valley is known to every French child as the fountainhead of nougat, but it has other distinctions. For one thing, it was a favorite stopover point for Napoleon. His chosen hostelry is still there, waiting to receive you under the name of LE RELAIS DE L'EMPÉREUR. You may still sec the room which was Napoleon's, but you will also notice plenty of modern improvements. Recently the Relais has been taken over by the Messieurs Latry, père et fils, who arc skilled hoteliers indeed. Monsieur Latry père was for years chef des cuisiniers at the Savoy in London. You will find comfort, cheer, and an excellent dinner with all taxes included in the tariff, at Bonaparte's former rendezvous.
Grand (Drôme)
If you happen to turn inland from Valence, as some travelers do, this quiet, picturesque village awaits you with an epicurean reward. It is the HÔTEL BILLARD, known also under the sobriquet of the Restaurant Gras. You enter a wide Provencal gateway to be received by Monsieur Gras (if he isn't too busy in the kitchen) and to choose a shaded spot in the garden for an apéritif. Monsieur Gras is a chef of quality, who has had a wide experience in patrician kitchens, and you may be sure that his poularde en vessie or his langouste à l'orientale is a notable dish. As an horsd'oeuvre, few dishes are more appetizing than his oignons à la grecque. The odds are long on your being in Grane at luncheontime, but if you are, you're in luck! Also, his prices are reasonable.
Here are a few noteworthy dishes from Dauphiny, adapted to your American kitchen. Gratia daupbhiois is perhaps the most famous and certainly one of the simplest of this region. It bears little resemblance to its neighbor in Savoy where the potatoes are usually cooked in meat stock. There is a continuous argument as to whether eggs and cheese should be added to this dish, but such authorities as Bertrand Guegan, Curnonsky, and Eugène Herbodeau insist upon pure thin cream alone, considering that any additions are “professional deformations” which have been developed in hotels and restaurants and which denature the purity of the true Dauphiny flavor. Here is the way they would have you prepare it:
Grain Daupbinois (Potatoes au Grasin)
Slice raw potatoes as thinly as possible (a slicing machine will be helpful) and put them in a buttered shallow porcelain baking dish, sprinkling salt and pepper between the layers, until the dish is ¾ full. A touch of nutmeg is sometimes grated in between the layers with the salt and pepper. Pour in light cream just to the level of the top layer of potatoes. Dot the surface with bits of butter and place the dish in a slow oven (300° F.). Cook for about 1 ½ hours, or until a good deal of the cream is absorbed and the gratin is brown on top.
In Dauphiny this dish is made with little wild button mushrooms known as mousserons.
Tournedos Daupbinoise (Beef Tenderloin with Mushrooms)
Slice ¾ pound of firm white mushrooms and sauté them in 3 table-spoons butler until the liquid is evaporated. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and ½ tablespoon flour, blend well, and stir in 1 cup cream. Keep this hot.
Meanwhile, sauté quickly 6 tournedos, or ¾-inch slices of beef tenderloin, in hot butter for 2 ½ minutes on each side. Sauté 6 slices of French bread, cut ½ inch thick, in a good quantity of butter, turning the bread often to prevent the butter from being all absorbed into one side. Put the tournedos on the bread and arrange on a heated platter with the mushrooms around them. Make a sauce by stirring ½ cup port or sherry into the juices of the pan in which the meat was cooked, boil up once or twice, pour a spoonful on eath tournedos, and serve the rest in a small sauceboat.
Ris de Veau Daupbine (Sweetbreads with Chicory)
Soak 3 pairs of sweetbreads in cold water for an hour. Blanch them in boiling water for about 5 minutes, plunge them into cold water, and drain. Lard them by piercing here and there with a sharp knife and inserting small strips of salt pork. Butter the inside of a shallow earthen baking dish and spread it with 1 onion, sliced, 1 carrot, sliced, and 3 strips of bacon. Arrange the sweetbreads on this inviting bed, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and bake, covered, in a medium oven (350° F.) for about ½ hour.
Remove the cover, place the dish high in the oven, and turn up the heat. In about 15 minutes they should be brown on top. If they seem dry. add 2 or 3 tablespoons consommé to the juices in the dish, basting the sweetbreads several times. Drain the juices into a small saucepan, skim the fat from the top, and add 1 teaspoon meat glaze. Heat until it is reduced to a slightly thick consistency.
In the meantime, wash 2 Iarge heads of chicory and cook in salted water for about 6 minutes, or until tender. Drain the chicory, chop it fairly finely, and mix it with 1/3 cup cream. Place the sweetbreads on a heated platter surrounded by the chicory, glazing each with the sauce.
This sauce may be served with any broiled meat and is also delicious with sweetbreads which are soaked and parboiled as above, then sliced and sautéed in butter. In such a case the dish is known as ris de veau valentinoise.
Sauce Valentinoise
Chop finely 5 or 6 shallots and wash them in a fine cloth under running water. Extract the moisture by squeezing the cloth and put the shallots in a shallow saucepan or metal serving dish over very mild heat. Add to them 1 tablespoon finely chopped parsley, 3 tablespoons butter, and 1 ripe tomato, peeled, scaled, and finely chopped. Sprinkle with salt, pepper, and the juice of half a lemon. Add 1 tablespoon concentrated meat juice from a roast, skimmed of fat, or 1 teaspoon meat extract. Stir gently over a low flame until the ingredients arc blended and heated through and serve without further cooking.
One of these little balls of concentrated richness is a dessert in itself.
Trulfettes Daupbinoises (Chocolate Truffles)
Melt slowly ¼ pound bittersweet chocolate with 3 tablespoons milk in the top of a double boiler, stirring continually, Add slightly less than 2 ounces of sweet butter, stirring until completely blended. When this has cooled a little, stir in the yolk of 1 large egg. Put this in the refrigerator until firm. Form small balls about half the size of a walnut and roll them in powdered cocoa until thoroughly coated. Keep under refrigeration. This quantity makes about 18 truffettes.
Checklist for French Provinces Available
For those fortunate gourmets who are sailing or flying to France this spring and summer, we have assembled a handy checklist of the restaurants and hotels recommended thus far by Samuel Chamberlain in “An Epicurean Tour of the French Provinces,” which began in GOURMET in March, 1919. We will be happy to send this checklist to you at your request.