398246 Thu May 03 22:28:38 -0700 2007 0 2 Los Angeles Area 0 2540431 My wife and I made it to Bistro K's final weekend with Laurent Quenioux last Friday and had what may have been the perfect parting with one of our favorite places. Somehow, the night crystallized for me all I've enjoyed about the place- quirky, daring, comfortable, sometimes a bit scattered, yet always more than the sum of its parts. We got an outside table, slightly ricktey, in order to enjoy a perfect spring evening and, after some debate and contemplation launched into dinner. Crab remoulade with grapefruit gelee and uni- an extremely crabby sort of mousse (hmm, was that crab in crab mousse- should have asked), with the slippery, tart grapefruit and a bit of fresh, slightly spongy uni- this somehow really came together texturally with crab and uni playing off each other without either being overwhelmed or indistinct. Tiny crunchy shards of red candy, sharp with cinnamon seemed almost like bits of shell, cutting the various supple textures and flavors with a little surprise, just enough to draw attention back to the primary elements of the dish without insulting or detracting. Sous vide egg with chorizo, grilled smoked duck breast, and chorizo nage- How could anyone not love this? Smoky rich duck, the smoke of the peppers in the chorizo, doubled, lightened and opened by the egg like a few drops of water opening a peaty single malt. I regret not licking the plate. Touchon of foie gras- the way I like foie gras- unadorned. A classic tourchon done perfectly, with a few surprises on the plate- a clove of garlic confit skewered with frisee, splashed with a little truffle oil. Pot au fea of duck and squab in vanilla jus- the vanilla contributed a subtle, sweet background note, cutting the richness of the game. Very nice, but not my favorite. 'Brick" of lamb loin with pastilla stuffing and ras al harout sauce, accompanied by roast pasilla chiles with some cotjilla- the pastilla stuffing was a pistachio based concotion- this was exquisite- incredible flavors somehow coming together to make something quite exceptional, north african french fusion, counterpointed perfectly by something profoundly Californian. Desserts were similarly marvelous, but are a bit foggy for the wine involved in dinner. Somehow, through the course of the night, I finally 'got' Quenioux's cooking- he seems to love creating perfect wholes out of odd pieces, to take a joy in unlikely combinations which result in viscerally tasty fantasies. He doesn't to try to shock for the sake of shocking (like Lefevre), but simply has a vast and eclectic experience of food which he turns to without predjucice or preconception besides those of his own artistic judgement. Quenioux is a chef at the height of his powers, mature and confident, and somehow he exercised that same alchemy which characterizes his cooking to take this odd little portion of Pasadena and take what in another place might be flaws and turn them to character, making it feel the quintessence of all that is good in the tradition of cuisine, the tradition of food as not merely craft, but art. "exceptional cuisine, worth a special journey" Thu May 03 22:28:38 -0700 2007 23790 AndrewS