Sunday Supper at Lucques

So, I dined at Lucques (pronounced Luke--very important) this past Sunday. The Sunday Supper is a Lucques tradition and a great way to experience Lucques if you are on a budget. The Sunday Supper consists of a three course meal for $40. Considering the fact that Chef Suzanne Goin is a James Beard award winner and Lucques was just named the best restaurant in Los Angeles, $40 is a steal. I had the great pleasure of dining with another member of my food group. As I said before, although we were strangers, we just chatted away. I could talk about food all day.



The first course was a salad of james birch's baby escarole with mustard, lemon, parmesan and garlic croutons. I'm of the opinion that a salad is a salad. But, I will admit that the salad was really tasty. Fresh greens, nice creamy dressing, and the crunchiness from the croutons. It was a rather large salad, and I ate the entire thing. Again, fresh ingredients can elevate the mundane.



The second course was the ragoût of beef shortribs and spring vegetables (asparagus and french green beans) with farro and savory crème fraîche. I love short ribs...love them! Since they are so hearty and it is spring, I thought my short rib window was closed. But, alas, here they were. The short rib was tender and nicely flavored. It was one of the best short ribs I have ever had. The creme fraiche was dolloped on top of the entree. I was able to identify chive. It was delicious and added a pleasant creaminess to the dish. The veggies were nice and crisp. A surprising and nice contrast to the tender short rib. Farro. Wow. This was my first experience with farro. Farro is a wheat grain. It had a very unique texture. I can totally see people not appreciating the texture. However, I thought it played well with the meal. It was simply delicious.

And then there was dessert. The dessert was almond cake with citrus zest, candied rhubarb and strawberries, and vanilla custard. The cake was moist, yet had a deliciously crunchy top. The custard was smooth and a perfect consistency. As for the fruit, I was not particularly fond of the rhubarb. But, the strawberries were nice. Frankly, I would have enjoyed the cake with a little bit of the cream. Yum!

Sunday Supper at Lucques is divine. I highly recommend it. I have a feeling I will make my way there again very soon.