Le Bernardin Cookbook

August 31, 1998
The first cookbook from Le Coze (owner) and Ripert (executive chef) of Le Bernardin, New York City's only four-star seafood restaurant, may spark the frustration of readers who have had difficulty getting a reservation at this culinary landmark. Such an appetizer such as Poached Baby Lobster on Asparagus and Cepe Risotto or entree like Pepper and Fennel-Crusted Salmon with Shallot-Madeira Sauce and Truffle-Scented Polenta promise a nirvana-like experience that will be hard to replicate at home (despite the collection's subtitle). This is four-star restaurant fare prepared by a master (and staff), requiring of home cooks a source of ultra-fresh seafood, deftness in esthetic presentation and considerable patience. There are some widely useful tips--capitalize on fresh herbs; use top-quality ingredients--and some recipes are indeed simple, e.g., Salmon Baked with Tomato and Mint; Broiled Shrimp with Garlic Butter; and Coffee Creme are within reach of anyone. But many recipes will challenge adventurous chefs. Baked Sea Urchins require nerve and dexterity. Salmon and Black Truffle Strudels aren't even attempted at the restaurant when it's busy, says Le Coze, and Ripert admits it took him two weeks to master Lobster with Coral Sauce, Asparagus, and Mushrooms. With an introduction recalling the restaurant's history, opened by Le Coze with her late brother Gilbert, this volume illustrates the best that a restaurant cookbook can offer, as well as the drawbacks.

September 15, 1998
In 1986, Le Coze and her brother, Gilbert, opened Le Bernardin, an offshoot of their popular Paris restaurant, in New York City and almost immediately received a rare four-star rating. (They went on to open brasseries in Miami and Atlanta.) Ripert, the executive chef since the early 1990s, has been in charge of the kitchen since Gilbert's death in 1994. The Le Cozes came from a restaurant family in Brittany, and fish and seafood have always been the specialty of Le Bernardin. Although some of the recipes feature truffles and foie gras, others are surprisingly simple--but their success, of course, depends on ingredients of the highest quality. Most headnotes offer comments from both authors, with some of Ripert's assertions "tempered" by Le Coze's response to them. Le Bernardin's reputation is well known, and its cookbook is recommended for most collections.

June 1, 2001
Cook with one of today's hottest chefs.

Copyright 2001 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

August 1, 1998
When Le Bernardin opened in Manhattan a decade ago, critics lauded its new approach to seafood that stressed total freshness and simple preparations that enhanced, rather than masked, a fish's essential character. This brainchild of a Breton brother and sister team quickly dominated the New York restaurant scene. Then chef Gilbert Le Coze suddenly died, leaving his sister with a leaderless kitchen. Eric Ripert stepped into the breach, and Le Bernardin's reputation grew even greater. This cookbook begins with Maguy's retelling of the family saga and her brother's brilliant, self-taught culinary genius. Ripert's recipes demand the best, most costly ingredients: foie gras, truffles, lobsters. Thus, home chefs will find simply assembling the ingredients daunting. Nevertheless, a few of the simpler recipes properly executed, such as roast cod on a bed of navy beans, can turn into dazzling dinner party successes. Only communities with access to top-of-the-line seafoods will find demand for this volume. ((Reviewed August 1998))(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 1998, American Library Association.)