Why Did The Gander Cross the Road?
By Steve Herte
My
Stay-cation started with a bang for sure: A movie that I had expected
to blow me away (and it did) and a restaurant that evoked a previous
one (The Guilty Goose). How can it get better than that? Well, I'll
tell you. This past week, a representative of OpenTable.com (the ONLY
source of my restaurant reservations) acknowledged that she had read
my review of Hercules and requested to be a link on our Blog!
(It's forthcoming.) How good is that? I thought, after 2,620
restaurants, that is pretty good. I welcome OpenTable to our family
and hope they continue to read the best reviews of movies both past
and present, and continue to enjoy restaurants as much as I do!
Enjoy!
The
Hundred-Foot Journey (Amblin/Harpo/Touchstone,
2014) – Director: Lasse Hallstrom. Writers: Steven Knight (s/p),
Richard C. Morais (book, The Hundred-Foot Journey).
Cast: Helen Mirren, Om Puri, Manish Dayal, Charlotte Le Bon, Amit
Shah, Farzana Dua Elahe, Dillon Mitra, Aris Pandya, Michel Blanc,
Clement Sibony, Vioncent Elbaz, Juhi Chawla, Alban Aumard, Shuna
Lemoine, Antoine Blanquefort, & Rohan Chand). Color, 122 minutes.
It’s
a love story, it’s a battle of wits, it’s a comedy, and it’s
serious business. It’s the most beautiful movie of the year so far.
Every superlative of praise applies to The Hundred-Foot
Journey. I laughed, I cried (bring at least three tissues) tears
of joy, I salivated, and rejoiced. The solid backing of Steven
Spielberg and Oprah Winfrey and the superb direction of Hallström
combine with the flawless performances of Mirren, Puri, Dayal and Le
Bon to create a breath-taking cinematic experience.
I
admit I’m a little biased. I’m a foodie and two of my favorite
cuisines are featured, Indian and French, but the storyline is also
delicious. Papa (Puri) and his family have a restaurant in Mumbai,
India, that is attacked by a faction in a major election war. Not
only is the restaurant burnt to the ground, his dear wife also dies
in the fire. Before the attack we see her and her son Hassan in the
kitchen and she’s saying, “Cooking is about killing. You’re
dealing with 'ghosts.' Can you taste the ghosts?” Though he’s a
child (Chand), he seems to understand.
Papa
decides to take the remainder of his family to Europe (anywhere but
India) so that they can cook and live in peace. England is their
first stop but the weather puts a very wet damper on their hopes.
Once on the mainland, they pile into a rickety rattletrap of a van,
and its brakes fail on a mountain road overlooking a picturesque
French town. Fortunately, Marguerite (Le Bon) happens by, and can
speak English. She helps the family down to the town (they literally
have to push the disabled van) and opens her home to them for the
night. The fresh vegetables and cheese she serves them lets Papa know
that “brakes break for a reason,” and that this is where Mama
meant them to be.
He
finds a property for sale across the lane (exactly 100 feet away)
from Madame Mallory’s (Mirren) single-star Michelin-rated French
restaurant. Though she (and his sons and daughter) try to dissuade
him, Papa is adamant and the Chateau Mumbai is born (complete with a
false front Taj Mahal entrance. Hassan Kadam (Dayal) is the Chef,
though he humbly calls himself a “cook.”) He learns through
association with her that Marguerite is a Sous-Chef at Madame
Mallory’s. She loans him essential books on French cuisine and
gives him hints as to how to win over Madame Mallory (“Make her an
omelet, if she likes it, you’re in”). A love affair begins to
blossom.
Meanwhile,
Madame Mallory and Papa are both beleaguering the town mayor (Blanc)
with various allegations of infractions of the law and through their
battling are becoming more and more attracted to each other. Papa’s
daughter Mahira (Elahe) is the first one to notice what is happening.
It’s not until Marcel (Aumard), one of Madame Mallory’s line
cooks, has his friends toss Molotov Cocktails into the Indian
restaurant and spray paint “La France a la Francaise” on the
front wall that Madame Mallory realizes how serious the situation is
getting. She fires Marcel (“I don’t pay you to BURN things”).
Hassan’s hands are burned in the fire, but he invites Madame
Mallory over to make an omelet (under his direction) and she is
stunned at how good it is.
After
haggling with Papa over the salary, Hassan goes to work at Madame
Mallory’s restaurant and helps her achieve a second Michelin star.
Then, as Madame predicts, the clamor arises from three-star hopefuls
in Paris for this new Chef, and Hassan finds himself in an
ultra-modern restaurant creating food art using all the latest
break-through techniques in preparation. He’s lionized in Paris on
magazine covers and news articles – that is, until his brother
Mansur (Shah) appears one night with a traditional Indian dish. (Be
ready with the tissues here.)
The
Hundred-Foot Journey should receive several nominations for
Academy Awards, not just for the acting, the story and the direction,
but also for screenplay, cinematography, soundtrack and best movie.
Mark my words. Up to now (in my humble opinion) it has no
competition. Even children will like this film, though I’m not sure
babies and toddlers will appreciate it. Maybe the two hour and two
minutes will grant them some sleep time.
When
Shakespeare wrote Romeo and Juliet I just wonder whether
he knew how timeless his story would be. There are elements of it
throughout this movie and they’re just as poignant today as they
were in Elizabethan times. If you never see another movie this year,
see The Hundred-Foot Journey.
Rating:
5 out of 5 Martini glasses.
The
Gander
15
West 18th Street (Between 5th and
Broadway), New York
The
unassuming exterior of The Gander humbly invites you (the name etched
onto the front window is in lower-case gray lettering) to the
warmly-decorated interior. You pass by the bar with its bright copper
swags and are led into the main dining area lit by clusters of
large-shaded lights looking like bongo drums. The bare-wood tables
and comfy avocado green banquettes state their welcome simply and do
not prepare you for the amazing feast to come.
As
soon as I was seated and my server, Chad, presented me with the menu
and wine list, I knew there was something different and special about
this restaurant. The entire staff seemed genuinely friendly and glad
to see you there. No pretensions. While Chad was off getting my
water, I found a cocktail I just had to try. It was called Paloma de
Barrameda (the Dove of the Canary Island People, as far as I could
discover) – a bewitching brew of Tequila, lime, grapefruit, Agave,
Manzanilla Sherry, Cardamom bitters and Mezcal Mist. (The cardamom
ingredient made it a perfect segue from the movie I just saw.)
The
dinner menu was broken down into categories of “Snacks,”
“Charcuterie,” “Cheese,” “Starters,” “Pastas,”
“Mains,” and “Sides.” Everything appeared intriguing and
innovative. Chad listed the specials, which were every bit as
interesting as the rest of the menu. I thanked him for his advice on
various dishes and he left me to decide on a wine. The wine list was
as impressive as it was diverse (and comprehensive!) but I finally
settled on the 2012 “Le Cote” Pinot Noir from Millton Vineyards
in Gisborne, New Zealand. It was a bright flavored red with a spicy
after-taste and it proved itself worthy of every dish I chose.
For
sheer “outré” shock value I started with one of the “snacks”
– the “Buffalo” Sweetbreads with Bleu Cheese dressing and
celery. I couldn’t imagine the combination of the delicate taste of
sweetbreads with the bold spice of the Buffalo preparation. But it
worked! The spice did not destroy the sweetbreads and they in turn
did not succumb to it. The resulting dish was simply amazing! I
learned later on that Chef Schenker has just published a book this
year entitled All or Nothing, and this dish was “all.”
Next
on my list was Beet Tortelli, with goat yoghurt, coconut and almonds.
The succulent beets (a little smaller than ping-pong balls) were
wrapped in tender pasta, sprinkled with coconut and almonds, and
resting in the yoghurt. The menu did not mention the braised spinach
wrapped around this wonderful delight. It was colorful and well as
delicious.
On
to the main course, which, if you know me, was duck. But not just
duck cooked crispy. This was breast meat over summer cassoulet (lots
of beans) and crispy hominy (corn grits). It wasn’t your familiar
cassoulet or your familiar duck filet, it was both. With the crunch
of corn grits, it became an amalgam of styles and cuisines that
tantalized.
Now
you may say, “After all this, he couldn’t possibly want dessert!”
and you’d be wrong. The brown sugar corn cake with a slice of plum
sorbet, lemon verbena, sesame flax pecans and ginger topped the meal
exactly. (That and the Brooklyn-produced coffee made the dinner.) Did
I mention an after-dinner drink called “Cardamamo?” You’d have
to try it to understand. I will be taking another “gander” at the
Gander in the future.
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