Petit Louis (Bistro)- Columbia, Maryland lakefront

Bonjour Petit Louis, it has been awhile. 

Arranged by my high school French teacher Madame Doff, Petit Louis welcomed my French class for a 3-course lunch to introduce us to French cuisine. 
During the course of two days, Petit Louis served lunch to over 200 French students from Centennial High School. This is actually my first time eating at the bistro section of Petit Louis (click here to view our Petit Louis comptoir post).

Me with my friends  at an enormous table

Me meeting CEO Tony Foreman (r) the special event coordinator (L)

My first impression of Petit Louis -  it made me feel as though I had been transported halfway around the globe to an authentic parisian bistro. The dark wood paneling, bistro chairs and tables and the intimate lighting all create a cozy and sophisticated atmosphere that screams French. 

Once our student group was seated, we were warmly greeted by CEO Tony Foreman who spoke to us about the restaurant and our lunch ….and ready for this -  IN FRENCH. That's right, Mr. Foreman, the noted celebrity restauranteur - who along with acclaimed chef Cindy Wolf has several other award winning establishments including Charleston, Pazo, Chinghiale, and Johnny' -  took the time to help high school students improve their French. That's really cool. 

Immediately following Mr. Foreman's speech, a parade of servers with family style-food trays rushed out of the kitchen. It was reminiscent of the "Be Our Guest" movie scene from Beauty and the Beast. The waiters were so happy to serve us and explain each dish. We were off to a great start.

Gourgères

The hors d'oeuvres included gourgères, canapé de bettrave, and gravlax canapés. What's a good french bistro without remarkable pastries, right? Petite Louis did not disappoint. Even though this was my first time trying gourgères, this certainly won't be my last. This savory and puffy choux (light pastry dough) pastry filled with gruyere cheese was perfection - warm and buttery, melt-in-your mouth goodness. 

Canapé de bettrave and gravlax canapés

The canapé de bettrave (red beets, chèvre, walnut vinaigrette, and belgian endives) was also terrific. I'm now totally enamored with endives. It tastes like a less bitter and thinner version of celery. When paired with beets and chèvre cheese it was a great mix of sweet, salty and crunchy.  The gravlax canapés were a hit for me too and had the same feel (sweet, salty and crunchy) but in a different way. The combination of the house-cured salmon with salty gravlax capers and sweet crème fraîche sitting atop crunchy, thin toast slices is mighty good.

Pomme frites

The second course arrived with pomme frites, quiche aux legumes, salad verte and croque monsieur.

The pomme frites were quickly eaten up at my table, but I can't blame them. Long and thin fresh cut potatoes, lightly crispy with a hint of salt.  It was hard not to eat the entire bowl.

Quiche aux légumes

Each slice of the quiche aux légumes (butternut squash and chèvre) had a deliciously light pastry crust filled with generous amount of sweet butternut squash topped with fluffy cream, eggs and cheese filling.  PL quiche is tall and thick, just the way I like it. Some students got full on the other entrees before they ate their slice, which just meant more for me. Yep, I had 2 slices.

Salade verte

French food emphasize fresh, simple ingredients. This salade verte is a prime example of an authentic french salad- mesclun greens, reggiano, and red wine vinaigrette. Simply delicious.

Croque monsieur

The Croque Monsieur was probably the biggest hit at my table. Again, the emphasizes was on fresh, homemade ingredients. Each individual ingredient was perfect in and of it self. Put together and grilled it was  a masterpiece. The students at my table commented that they could eat this "ham and cheese" sandwich everyday for lunch.

For dessert, we received an "assortment de patisseries" (housemade cookies and French pastries). Unfortunately, I couldn't take a picture because it was eaten up so quickly but trust me when I say it was all good too.

After trying Petit Louis' bistro section, I have a newfound appreciation for all the effort that's put into making the meals. There's a lot of love going on in that kitchen. I really respect that a well noted restaurant would take the time to help 200 local high school French students in their educational endeavors. I hope they invite us back next year.

Merci beaucoup Petit Louis et Tony Foreman.

- Thomas Regnante

"The Counter" at Whole Foods in Columbia, Maryland

Whole Foods in Columbia, Maryland recently debuted their new menu at "The Counter", the in-store diner-like area, open from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m.

Charles and I were invited to a private taste testing party for bloggers to try some of the new menu items. We were allowed to bring two guests. We choose two of our favorite Centennial High School teachers, Mrs. Bagley (Independent Research) and Madame Doff (French).

Charles and I with our teachers

You might look at The Counter pictures and say "wait, hasn't that spot always been there?" Yes, it has but now it features new menu items to enjoy.

Chickpea Fries with Truffle Salt

Here's some of the items we tasted -

At quick glance, the Chickpea Fries looked like regular steak-cut fries. The taste, however, is completely different. It's much more bland.It doesn't really tastes like chickpeas. It's hard to really compare the flavor to some other dish, it is just so unique. On the bright side, these fries are healthier than normal fries, and you won't notice the difference if you dunk them in ketchup.

Sweet & Spicy Brussel Sprouts 

Although the Brussels Sprouts were billed as"sweet and spicy", but they were more sweet than spicy. I'm not necessarily a huge fan of brussels sprouts, but this dish changed my perspective entirely. The brussels fluctuated from being initially crispy to a soft state, which made an interesting quasi crunchy texture.

The Stack

"The Stack" (wheat-less pancakes served with apple butter and maple syrup) was surprisingly good. I wasn't too sure how wheat-less pancakes  would taste but I was pleasantly surprised. The pancakes were delicate and fluffy. I've actually never tried pancakes with apple butter before, and after tasting this, it certainly won't be my last time.

The Counter Fave

The Counter Fave consisted of braised kale, caramelized kielbasa, fried egg, and aged cheddar on a whole wheat english muffin. Although this sandwich has many similarities to The Biscuit (see below), the kielbasa sausage is what gives this dish a true distinctively sharp taste. Madame Doff ate kielbasa as a child and thought the potent sausage was a great choice for a breakfast sandwich. If you don't like kale, don't worry. It didn't stand out in the sandwich, it just complemented the other ingredients.

The Biscuit 

The Biscuit breakfast sandwich consists of fried egg, sautéed spinach, chipotle remoulade, and American cheese on a biscuit. I'm a huge fan of sautéed spinach, so this ingredient made the dish all the better. However, the biscuit was just a bit too flaky for my liking. I enjoyed the Counter Fave the best, but The Biscuit came in a close second.

The Scramble 

The Scramble includes southwest tofu and aged cheddar scramble. The tofu tastes like egg whites, which I very much enjoy. If they had a choice, both of my teachers would prefer regular eggs instead of tofu. However, I think the dish is a nice change up from the traditional eggs for breakfast, definitely worth a try.

Currylaska

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                        One world to describe the Currylaska soup -  inferno. This is the spiciest soup I have ever tried in my life, and I don't mean spicy in a good way. I mean it can send you to the hospital spicy. I couldn't even take two sips without running to get an entire glass of water. My teachers had the same reaction, waaaaay too spicy. But, hey, if you like VERY spicy foods (can't emphasize this enough) THIS is your dish.

Chicken & Biscuit
fried chicken thighs, buttermilk biscuit with sausage gravy 

The Chicken & Biscuit photo doesn't do it justice. The aesthetic of this dish can be quite deterring. However, you'll be in a state of serendipity when you indulge in this dish. It satisfied all my taste buds - crispy, buttery, sweet, salty and flakey. If you like fried chicken, I'd give this one a try.

Avocado Tacos:
deep fried avocado, cabbage slaw and chipotle remoulade

I've dubbed these tacos "The Bomb" because they explode vegetarian goodness in your mouth - the combo of the avocado, crunchy on the outside & velvety ripeness inside, with sweet slaw and tangy chipotle sauce. Perfection!!!!

Tuscan Kale Salad
The salad is comprised of shredded kale, cranberries, sunflower seeds and citrus vinaigrette. In all honesty, I can't eat kale by itself. The vinaigrette proved that all you need is the right dressing to make a dish taste amazing. The dressing made each kale leaf radiate with zest. In additions, the raw onions' firm texture acted as a foil to the pliable kale. Whole Foods knows how to make a salad. 

The Columbia Burger
1/2 lb short rib blend, brioche roll, caramelized onion, mushroom and
special sauce

Doesn't this picture look beguiling? Just look at the beauty of this burger. It tastes exactly as it looks - big, juicy, sautéed golden onions, gooey warm cheese on buttery brioche. Incredible!!! It deserves to be called The COLUMBIA Burger. Hail to the CB!!

                                               My brother Charles (left), one of the amazing WF chefs, and me                                                  

Cacio e Pepe
Spaghetti, Pecorino Cheese, Butter and Cracked Black Pepper 

The Cacio e Pepe Italian pasta dish is something we make at home often. Although we don't call the dish anything special, just pasta with butter and cheese, it's a feel good meal. Cheesy sharp pecorino melted with sweet butter over warm pasta. This is comfort food at its best and WF does a pretty good job (and it's not even an Italian restaurant).                                                                                              




                                                                       


The Counter is a great place to chill whether you are eating alone on a counter stool watching your food being prepared or with friends at the very long wooden communal table. It's open for breakfast through dinner - serving breakfast all day long (how cool is that!)

We've been back since we attended the taste tasting party. If we see us hanging out at the counter, come say hi.

Thank you Whole Foods for inviting us "Dudes" and our high school teachers to this special party. It was a great night and we loved trying all the new menu offerings at The Counter.

 - Thomas

Gift bags for the taste test participants

Union Oysters House - Boston

Recently, I traveled to Boston to participate in the Harvard Model Congress conference with my school delegation. During the duration of the conference, my roommates and I found some great places to eat in Boston. One of them was Union Oyster House, the oldest restaurant in the United States. Known for its seafood, this famous restaurant has been operating since 1826. In fact, the Union Oyster House building itself has been deemed a national historic landmark by the National Park Service.

At the front of the restaurant, there is a large glass tank filled with humongous Lobsters. 

The restaurant interior was magnificent - an incredible bar and seating area with several large screen TV's and Boston & sports paraphernalia all nicely decorated in an antique fashion.

Dinning with a few members of my high school Harvard Model Congress delegation (right to left): Brian, Muhammad, Amy, Suqi, Drew, me, and Ben.

Everybody got a fresh piece of Cornbread on
house

For an appetizer, I ordered a small cup of Boston Clam Chowder.
The sweet flavor of the cream joined with the
salty clam broth made for one killer soup. I enjoyed how
the oyster crackers were mixed into the soup for extra texture.

For my main course, I had a fried fish filet sandwich served with fries and a pickle. The sandwich: crisp lettuce, savory tomato, and fried fish inside a soft bun. The fish itself was outrageously good: tender and lightly battered but crisp to the bite - didn't even need tarter sauce. I don't think you can go wrong with any type of fish at this restaurant.

We drank so much water
that the waitress brought us this
cool looking pitcher. 

My friend Muhammad ordered the Ye Olde Seafood Platter.  This platter was a seafood smorgasbord - fried fish, clams, oysters, scallops, shrimp and calamari served with french fries 

and cole slaw.  This probably wasn't the healthiest dish but OH BOY was it delicious - a delicate batter that hugged the seafood but was light and airy at the same time. This entree was so big that my friend had to take half of it back to the hotel.

 My friend Drew ordered the Lobster Salad Roll.  Drew said that it was full of unbelievable fresh, large chunks of lobster meat that was complimented by, but not overpowered by, the other ingredients of  melted butter, mayonnaise, diced celery, scallions and a sprinkle of parsley. 

Well done Union Oysters House! 

Wooden Sculpture of a Fish

- Charles

Walking through Quincy Market en route to
Union Oyster House