Petrossian - West Hollywood

[lizziee]

You don’t go to Petrossian if you don’t like caviar or salmon or foie gras, Stating the obvious, Petrossian highlights the ingredients it sells. You are going to get a lot of dishes with caviar and a lot of dishes with salmon.

Benjamin Bailly is the chef and I did meet him at the Rising Star Chef event at the Fairmont in Santa Monica. We were having a late lunch/early dinner and met at Petrossian en famille (3 of us) at 4 pm. We requested a tasting menu and not only did Chef Bailly oblige, but he added courses that only appear on the dinner menu that doesn’t start until 6:00 on Saturday. My son (who is in the restaurant business) informed me that was above and beyond the call of duty as prepping for each service is demanding and overlapping dishes can de daunting. For the record, –service for brunch starts at 10am until 4 pm, service for lunch starts at10 am and ends at 6 pm and service for dinner starts at 6 pm until 10 pm – all with different types of menus.

Boutique offerings and Menus here:
http://www.petrossian.com/restaurant-west-hollywood-restaurant-and-boutique-7.html

In advance, thank you Chef Bailly for your consideration.

Blinis with a dollop of crème fraiche and topped with trout roe, salmon roe and caviar – the product is extraordinary.

Caviar Surprise – In a Petrossian caviar tin was a multilayered dish of crab, crème fraiche, apple cider gelee, chives topped with a generous helping of caviar. It was served with toast points and warm blinis.

Salmon Tartar with passion fruit dressing, more caviar and topped with a gently fried quail egg – I did say Petrossian was known for its caviar and salmon.

Napolean tartar – hand-sliced steak tartar with capers, topped with a layer of caviar

Foie Gras salad, haricot verts cut into tiny pieces, toasted walnuts, black truffle vinaigrette – I think if I had been ordering a la carte, I would not have thought to order this dish. Boy, would I have missed a great dish – just perfect and evidence that Chef Bailly is a gifted yound chef.

Foie Gras Crème Brulee with Green Apple Espuma – this had a decidedly sweet component – huge contrast to the foie gras salad.

Panko-encrusted crispy egg, onion soubise, smoked salmon, the crusty egg topped with caviar – a fabulous dish witth a lovely runny yolk encased in a crusty shell

Crispy Shrimp “Papillotte” – Passion Fruit, Spicy Ginger dressing – this reminded me of two dishes –one that Michel Richard does with katafi and one that we had at Atelier de Robuchon in Paris. This was more like a shrimp tempura, however.

As a special treat and not one on the menu – Veal Sweetbreads with morels (I think) and baby spinach – I just didn’t do justice to this dish – I was very, very full and only managed a few bites.

We thought about cheese and dessert and then thought maybe we should just call it an early evening.

Bottom line – there is no doubt that Chef Bailly is a rising star. His skill and expertise is completely in evidence. Next time I go to Petrossian, though, I will organize an a la carte menu of splits and eat what entices me at the moment.

Pics and full commentary here:
http://lizziee.wordpress.com/2010/04/...

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Green Apple
6256 Wilshire Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90048

[Porthos]

Was the caviar surprise for the table or per person?

Looks nearly identical to caviar amuse bouche served at Joel Robuchon in Vegas. It was by far the most luxurious amuse bouche I've ever had and also one of the best. At Joel Robuchon, it was one tin per person.

[lizziee]

We had a tasting menu per our request so it was for the three of us. Trust me, it was plenty of food. If I am not mistaken, Chef Bailly worked at Robuchon in Vegas.

[Porthos]

This would explain why some of the dishes look Robuchon-esque (eg caviar surprise, shrimp papillotte).

[lizziee]

Porthos I was right.

http://www.chefdb.com/nm/20224/

Duration
Place
City
Position
2009 - Present Petrossian
West Hollywood
Executive Chef
2007 - 2009 L'Atelier de Joël Robuchon
Las Vegas
Sous Chef
2005 - 2007 L'Atelier de Joël Robuchon
Paris
Chef de Partie
2004 - 2005 Restaurant Joël Robuchon
Monaco
Commis de Cuisine
2003 - 2004 Sheraton Park Tower
London (England
)Demi Chef de Partie