Tamara is dead, long live Tracé! Opened in place of his previous address, Tracé is the sign of chef Clément Vergeat's revival, already well underway during the three years of Tamara's existence. While his first restaurant was opened in collaboration with Andreea Barroca in a bistronomic spirit (and according to certain wishes of the owner, such as the name of the establishment), Tamara quickly skirted other summits, those of great gastronomy and unlimited creativity.
Clément Vergeat wasted no time in bridging the gap between the original project and the way things turned out, by completely reinventing the 15 rue Richelieu address to better match his own image of the setting and cuisine, both of which were tending to be even more refined.
To go back to the chef's origins, we need to recall his stint at Les Bouquinistes and the three-starred restaurant at La Monnaie de Paris, both owned by Guy Savoy; his meeting with chef Toshitaka Omiya, who would become his mentor, at Alliance; his acclaimed performance on the 2018 edition of Top Chef.
Fascinated by Nordic cuisine, Clément Vergeat continued his apprenticeship in Copenhagen, at Kokkeriet, then at Le Copenhague on the Champs-Elysées, before heading back to the Netherlands, on the North Sea, at Sergio Herman's two-star Pure C restaurant.
From these cold lands, he returns with a deep and inexhaustible desire to invent new things, in complete freedom. Disregarding the seasons, the chef preserves foods using a variety of techniques picked up here and there - something he was already doing at Tamara, but takes a step further at Tracé - and transforms them through fermentation, maturation, pickling or garum techniques. This leaves plenty of room for surprises, both good and not-so-good.
"The chef at Kokkeriet was setting traps for himself; he didn't know what he'd discover when he opened a jar. Having ingredients that live their own lives, alongside what I cook every day, reassures me. I dread exhaustion, breakdowns, laziness, the routine of returning again and again to what I know how to do, the old cook's tricks. Knowing that things are waiting for me somewhere, that they'll be there when I'm looking for an idea, tastes, to bring volume and relief to a dish, is true freedom for me." explains this chef who describes himself as on a "perpetual quest for purity", continuing: "My dream is to have a cold room for every day, with fresh produce, and a cold room for jars, to play with without knowing what the outcome will be."
The dishes changed, the wine list fine-tuned, the menu outlined, the team briefed - gently supported by the restaurant manager Félix Bogniard, whom he met at Copenhagen - and so Tracé opened, a name that had been on Clément Vergeat 's mind for a couple of years, and which should even have adorned the façade of what should have been his first restaurant in Montpellier had the opening of Tarama in Paris not decided otherwise.
Twicewon over by Tamara, our Arlésienne devant l'Eternel, ignored for far too long by the famous red guide to our great despair, we're back just a stone's throw from the Palais-Royal to rub shoulders once again with one of the most exciting and moving chefs of his generation.
Combining rigor, great technical skill and vibrant sensibility, Clément Vergeat and his team play the game of gastronomic cuisine to heights rarely seen in recent years. His quest for thepurity of his culinary identity and his eye for detail allow him to focus on other things, without bluster but with greatemotion.
A few winks in memory of the previous address - this flower, delicate premise of what awaits us; and then, stunning novelties to be discovered through an 8-course tasting menu for dinner (€130 skilfully spent) complemented, as desired, by food and beverage pairings - non-alcoholic, with kefir and homemade kombucha; with wines from small producers; or with exhilarating cuvées, selected for their singularity.
And since a picture is worth a thousand words...
Knäckebröd, bottarga
Floraison 2.0 signature
Radish, roasted sunflower seeds, cosmos flower petals, caviar
Nest of smoked trout and herring roe
Sabayon
Dehydrated tomato style
Tagetes and fig leaves vinaigrette
Artichoke, crab, Kalamata olives
Yellow wine emulsion
Scampi broth
Lampung pepper oil
Raw langoustine tail, steamed in seaweed
Squid blubber, sea grapes, oyster cream
Turbot and mussels
Pigeon cooked on a trunk, preserved spring shoots
Effiloché of leg confit
Redcurrant and basil tartlet
Field flowers
Meadowsweet ice cream, pollen insert
A culmination and a taste for excellence, that's for sure. Let's face it, the road to a well-deserved star seems clear. And if that's not the case, we'll hand in our apron.
This test was conducted as part of a professional invitation. If your experience differs from ours, please mention it in the comments.
Location
Restaurant Tracé
15 Rue de Richelieu
75001 Paris 1
Official website
www.xn--restaurant-trac-pnb.com
