For years Le Bouchon had the best roast chicken in town, not to mention the most convivial atmosphere, especially if you like the sardine effect imposed by huge popularity and only 44 seats. So when the owners decided to go upscale and –more significantly–up-capacity, I was ready to wriggle into La Sardine. The new place, right across the street from Oprah’s studios, tries to keep up the buzzing bistro ambiance, though it does a better job looking the part than tasting it.
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Roasted duck breast This dish looked almost exactly like the lamb, right down to the sprig of thyme sprouting from the polenta. Tasty duck, smooth sauce spiked with green peppercorn zip. Still, the two shouldn’t spend a lot of time together. The incredibly rich, heavily reduced sauce was way too potent for the indulgent, fat-topped duck slices. Accompanied by some brown stewed onions.
Art accompanying story in printed newspaper (not available in this archive): La Sardine logo/ menues.
