Bouchon Bakery

Yes, I know that couple of weeks ago, I said that I hate Thomas Keller because his Bouchon Bakery in New York City closes so early and doesn't open on Sunday and that I would not go and visit his Bouchon Bakery. Nonetheless, my friend insisted that I go with him this past weekend, so even though I did, it was not by my own willingness, but instead, it is through peer pressure. (Living in denial ...........)

Anyway, there is a wait for the section of the bakery that you can seat down, but wasn't too long, about 15 - 20 minutes. We were there around 3pm on Saturday afternoon. I ordered a seafood salad, which, to my surprise, has a lot of seafood and very little salad, but hey, I am not complaining about that, I actually like it like that. However, what I would complain about is that it costs $18, and it is something that I really could make at home, since the "salad" portion is really just a piece of lettuce, and the seafood portion is not difficult either. The food does taste pretty good though and the dressing for the salad is this orange vinegarette, light and tangy. I think would be nice as a summer picnic companion. My good buddy Kevin ordered a duck confit sandwich. It was alright, good but nothing to write home about, except for the bread, which I have to say is one of the better (if not one of the top) bread on a sandwich I have ever tasted. Dessert was a little disappointing, as the Millie Feuille was too rich and creamy without something to counterbalance the taste, and leaving me a little sick afterwards after eating the whole piece. The seasonal tart (I think it was apple with cinnamon) smelled absolutely wonderful, but the taste does not live up to the aroma, the whole tart was not harmonious enough as the mousse of the tart taste like one thing while the fruit portion of the tart taste like another, and if you combine them together, it does not work, and you are better off eating both part separately but even doing so, you still felt something is missing.

One interesting thing to note though, is that most of the items in the seat-down area of the bakery is available at the take out area (there is some seperation between the two area, so people wont be comparing prices, haha), and there is about a 30% markup if for the same food in the seat down area and you have to add tips on top of that, so . . . . . . . .