I was spending a couple days in Nyon, Switzerland. I decided to take an afternoon to Yvoire, a small medieval village in France. Only a 30min ferry away.
La Perche is a small restaurant in a fisherman's house. I entered and received little attention, other than from a couple locals who were mistified by 1) I was ordering beer and 2) my unmistakable (Quebecois) French accent. I decided to sit outside.
After a couple minutes, the chef actually joined me outside. I told him that I wanted the "echine de porc dans sa tuile romaine" (pork loin, I believe). He asked me what inspired me about the dish, and frankly it was just that it sounded good and was on his daily menu. You could tell that although the restaurant has a regular menu, he was excited I was letting him play around with whatever was available.
After at nice 20-30min wait outside (they have a nice little patio right), the food came. Little did I know that the food was actually served in a roman tile (see picture) and that the meal was actually cooked in it. Not only is it awesome for presentation, but I believe the narrow shape really made all the flavors stick and the result was outstanding. The lardons gave a salty taste to the meat and vegetables (carrots, peas and potatoes), and the pork was juicy and soft.
The chef joined me again, asking me about the food while smoking a cigarette (not in my face). It was nice to have a little company. Plus, paying 15 euros for this meal was a super cheap, considering that I paid about 12 swiss francs for coffee and a croissant in Switzerland the previous day.
So, La Perche turned out to be the highlight of my visit to Yvoire, and I can't help but recommend it to anyone visit the area in search from a place a little bit less touristy. read more