Spring Break
Brasserie Tatin is a surprising letdown
Issue date: 3/6/08
Last month on a rainy Friday evening, I met a friend for what we hoped would be an enjoyable culinary adventure after a hyper-intense week of the Hopkins grind. Our original destination was France, but after a quick Internet search showed how pricey round-trip tickets to Paris are, we were convinced to pursue this adventure locally.
We settled on Brasserie Tatin, which is the closest French restaurant to Hopkins, a mere two blocks away from Homewood Field.
My first impression of the restaurant was, "Oh crap, we are severely underdressed." The large and spacious dining room was decorated with modern teals and oranges, glass-flecked black marble tables and large mirrors - a harsh contrast to the jeans and T-shirts our hectic week had driven us to.
Fortunately, we were not shunned and instead were seated and presented with a deliciously warm and toasty bread basket.
Unfortunately, baguette and butter was to be the highlight of the meal.
We started with the parfait de foies, which was described on the menu as "a creamy mousse of quail, duck and chicken served with warm brioche, grape and frisée salad." What we got were four slices of meat that were the same color as a dissected sheep brain. On the side there was a clump of pale green frisée with half slices of run-of-the-mill purple grapes.
Besides its unappetizing presentation, the flavors were also sub par - sweet cream flavor with essence of mystery meat. My companion for the evening swears he detected a hint of rubber band flavor.
The sweetness of the mousse was a poor pairing with the sweet toasted brioche on the side. On a positive note, the frisée salad garnish was enjoyably tangy.
Our taupe appetizer was followed by two entrees, each suffering from the same poor execution of promising ingredients and abysmal plating. We ordered the monkfish osso bucco and the venison special of the day.
The monkfish was the premier example of poor plating for night. It arrived as a cross section of fish, exposing white flesh, gray skin and a very prominent chunk of spine. Although this dish does traditionally call for an emphasis on the bone presentation, it was definitely more horror film than fine dining.
We settled on Brasserie Tatin, which is the closest French restaurant to Hopkins, a mere two blocks away from Homewood Field.
My first impression of the restaurant was, "Oh crap, we are severely underdressed." The large and spacious dining room was decorated with modern teals and oranges, glass-flecked black marble tables and large mirrors - a harsh contrast to the jeans and T-shirts our hectic week had driven us to.
Fortunately, we were not shunned and instead were seated and presented with a deliciously warm and toasty bread basket.
Unfortunately, baguette and butter was to be the highlight of the meal.
We started with the parfait de foies, which was described on the menu as "a creamy mousse of quail, duck and chicken served with warm brioche, grape and frisée salad." What we got were four slices of meat that were the same color as a dissected sheep brain. On the side there was a clump of pale green frisée with half slices of run-of-the-mill purple grapes.
Besides its unappetizing presentation, the flavors were also sub par - sweet cream flavor with essence of mystery meat. My companion for the evening swears he detected a hint of rubber band flavor.
The sweetness of the mousse was a poor pairing with the sweet toasted brioche on the side. On a positive note, the frisée salad garnish was enjoyably tangy.
Our taupe appetizer was followed by two entrees, each suffering from the same poor execution of promising ingredients and abysmal plating. We ordered the monkfish osso bucco and the venison special of the day.
The monkfish was the premier example of poor plating for night. It arrived as a cross section of fish, exposing white flesh, gray skin and a very prominent chunk of spine. Although this dish does traditionally call for an emphasis on the bone presentation, it was definitely more horror film than fine dining.
Viewing Comments 1 - 4 of 4
oldscope
posted 3/11/08 @ 9:54 AM EST
Just wondering, how was the service? That is always part of the price ... was it commensurate with the cost ... or the disappointing dinner?
tatin?
posted 3/13/08 @ 5:45 PM EST
Why not a back to back comparison with Petit Louis? By all accounts it is the best in the area, and really not too expensive.
orchard
posted 3/26/08 @ 9:29 AM EST
Your experience is different from any that i have had at Tatin. While there are dishes i like more than others, I have eaten there nearly 20 times and always found the food fresh and flavorful. (Continued…)
mike
posted 3/31/08 @ 2:45 PM EST
This is a lame review of a good restaurant. The reviewers mostly seem concerned with the color and presentation of their food, as well as a desire to show off their science metaphors and terminology ("sheep brain"), "notochord. (Continued…)
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