Philadelphia PA - From Thursday, December 15 through Friday, December 30, reservations will be available for the annual Dîner de Noël at Bistrot La Minette. This lavish five-course meal emulates the once-a-year feasts prepared in the homes and bistrots of Paris on Christmas Eve, when famously svelte French diners indulge in an hours-long celebration of the holiday season.
At Bistrot La Minette, the meal is available for $65 per person, with an optional $35 per person wine pairing, plus a variety of optional luxe upgrades befitting the occasion. Reservations are available nightly beginning at 5:30 p.m.; the restaurant will be open on Christmas Eve and closed on Christmas Day.
“My wife is French, and her family expects us to eat dozens of oysters and escargot, plus two types of foie gras – both duck and goose! – and that’s just the Christmas Eve appetizers!” explains owner Peter Woolsey. “Chef Bush’s Dîner de Noël menu honors those traditional dishes in a contemporary way.”
Bistrot La Minette’s Chef Kenneth Bush crafted the menu as an “approachable indulgence,” and included several customization options so that guests’ decadence is limited only by how much foie gras or how many truffles they want to add to their meal. The menu includes:
- Huîtres a la Crème Fume, five oysters with smoked bacon cream and chives
- paired with De Perrière Blanc de Blancs NV Chardonnay from Burgundy
- Velouté de Cèpes et Tominambours, porcini and Jerusalem artichoke soup with foie gras crouton and watercress
- paired with Christophe Thorigny Vouvray 2014 Chenin Blanc from the Loire
- Coquilles St-Jacques à l’Américaine, seared scallops with white asparagus, wild mushrooms, frisée and lobster sauce
- paired with J. Moreau & Fils Chablis 2014 Chardonnay from Burgundy
- An optional mid-course Trou Normand, Apple Sorbet (+$7)
- paired with Calvados Coquerel
- Tournedos de Chevreuil Sauce Chasseur, bacon-wrapped venison loin with pommes duchess, crispy Brussels sprouts and sauce chasseur
- paired with Chateau Rocher-Bonregard Pomerol 2012 Merlot blend from Bordeaux
- Buche de Noel, almond jaconde Yule log with chestnut buttercream, caramel ice cream and meringue
- paired with Domaine La Tour Vieille Banyuls NV Grenache Noir from southwest France
Guests can also add three ounces of foie gras (+$11) or truffle supplements (MP, subject to availability) to any course of their choosing.
About Bistrot La Minette…Chef-Owner Peter Woolsey established himself as one of the city’s most capable French chefs at Bistrot La Minette, which he owns along with his wife, Peggy Baud-Woolsey. The cozy restaurant is a family affair, with Peggy’s photos adorning the walls and tables that Chef Woolsey built with his father from wood reclaimed during the restaurant’s construction. Despite the beautiful setting, The Philadelphia Inquirer’s Craig LaBan wrote that “…it is Woolsey’s authentic French menu that had me most excited,” praising the “beautifully rendered appetizers” and “numerous other highlights” on the authentic French bistro menu. Chef Woolsey is also responsible for the well-received menu of contemporary American fare served at knock-out riverfront restaurant La Peg at FringeArts, named “Best American Restaurant” by Philadelphia magazine in their 2016 “Best of Philly” issue. The restaurant effortlessly combines dinner and performing arts, and the one-of-a-kind setting integrates the city’s newly revitalized waterfront into the thriving Old City cultural and dining scene.
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