Turning Tables: La Bastide by Andrea Calstier Opens in New York’s Westchester County
Who’s behind it: La Bastide by Andrea Calstier is a new endeavor from chef Andrea Calstier and his wife Elena Oliver, the restaurant’s general manager. It is located above the duo’s Cenadou Bistrot, which opened last year in North Salem, N.Y., in Westchester County. Offering a chef’s table experience, La Bastide features just six tables, each of which can seat one to six guests.
Calstier and Oliver were the husband-and-wife team behind New York City restaurant Papilles, which closed in early 2022. Previously, Calstier worked at restaurant Abbaye de La Bussière in Burgundy, France, and with celebrated chefs Daniel Boulud and Christophe Bacquié.
“We have been working on this project for many years now and to finally be able to share it with our community and customers is such an amazing feeling,” said Calstier and Oliver in an original statement sent to Wine Spectator. “We have high hopes that this restaurant will become as dear to our guests as it is for us. The response we’ve had so far is really encouraging and we can’t wait to see how the restaurant will evolve over the years.”
[article-img-container][src=2024-04/restaurant-news-la-bastide-elena-oliver-andrea-calstier-040424_1600.jpg] [credit= (Max Burkhalter)] [alt=Chef Andrea Calstier and his wife Elena Oliver.][end: article-img-container]
When it opened: La Bastide by Andrea Calstier opened on Feb. 14, 2024, Valentine’s Day.
The culinary approach: True to its name (a term for a Provençal country house), the restaurant spotlights French culinary influences through Hudson Valley ingredients. Calstier’s tasting menus ($225 per person for a six-course menu, $175 for a four-course menu available Wednesday, Thursday and Sunday) feature dishes like a bouillabaisse amuse-bouche (a tribute to Calstier’s native Marseilles), black sea bass with caviar, and white asparagus with seaweed pistou and jamón Iberico lardo. Also featured are cheeses from New York and France, as well as desserts from pastry chef Andy Chorda, including a dish of Coeur de Guanaja chocolate with goat cheese. There is also an optional cheese course as well as a cheese-pairing addition for $35 and $25 per person, respectively.
[article-img-container][src=2024-04/restaurant-news-la-bastide-interior-040424_1600.jpg] [credit= (Max Burkhalter)] [alt= The dining room of La Bastide, with a forest peeking through the windows.][end: article-img-container]
What’s on the wine list: France stars on the 600-label wine list overseen by Calstier. Champagnes and crémants from wineries like Egly-Ouriet and BIllecart-Salmon join Burgundies from Taupenot-Merme and Armand Rousseau and Bordeaux from Lafite Rothschild and Cos d’Estournel, as well as Loire Valley whites and Rhône Valley reds. Beyond France are picks from Napa Valley, Oregon, Italy and farther afield. The program features about 15 wines served by the glass, including Domaine du Bagnol Cassis, Bernard Baudry Chinon and more. Guests can add wine pairings to their meal for an additional $150.
Nina Compton Brings Compère Lapin to Miami
This spring, Miami diners can enjoy a taste of Nina Compton’s celebrated New Orleans restaurant Compère Lapin: Compton is bringing the restaurant—which has held a Wine Spectator Award of Excellence since 2023—to the Four Seasons Hotel Miami for a four-week residency.
“I can’t wait to cook on the magical blue waters of Biscayne Bay,” Compton told Wine Spectator via email. “I’m grateful this incredible collaboration with the Four Seasons Miami came to fruition and excited to get back to Miami, where so much of my career unfolded.”
[article-img-container][src=2024-04/restaurant-news-compere-lapin-miami-nina-compton-040424_1600.jpg] [credit= (Courtesy of Compère Lapin)] [alt= Nina Compton.][end: article-img-container]
When it’s happening: The pop-up runs April 18 through May 19, 2024.
The culinary approach: As at Compère Lapin in New Orleans’ Arts/Warehouse District, the residency menu will reflect Compton’s distinctive combination of Caribbean, French and New Orleans culinary influences. Smaller plates will include stone crab with spicy aioli, hamachi crudo with passion fruit and tuna tartare with crispy dasheen chips. For entrées, guests can expect whole-roasted striped bass with papaya, blackened lobster with black-eyed peas and collards and Compton’s fried chicken with coconut grits and pickles.
The beverage program: The Compère Lapin residency will feature a new wine program that complements Compton’s cuisine with bottles from primarily California, France and Italy. There are about 120 labels on the list, including Champagnes from Krug and Bollinger, Chardonnays from Burgundy’s Chanson and California’s Pahlmeyer and Cabernets from Napa Valley’s Nickel & Nickel and Chateau Montelena, not to mention many other impressive selections such as Antinori’s Tignanello. The pop-up will offer nearly 25 wines by the glass, including Argentine Malbec, Napa Merlot, Oregon Pinot Noir, Sancerre and more.
Alongside these wines are several cocktails such as the Tropical Vesper Riff (coconut-infused gin, pineapple-infused vodka, Cocchi Americano and Taylor’s Velvet Falernum) and A Night at the Oloffson (Clairin Le Rocher rum, passion fruit and lime with a ginger, salt and chile rim).
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The space: The Compère Lapin residency will take over a rooftop setting with both an indoor dining room and an outdoor terrace. Located within the Brickell neighborhood of Miami, the pop-up will be near Simpson Park and a wide range of well-known hotels and restaurants along the Magic City’s waterfront.
The Compère Lapin residency will be open daily from 12–3 p.m. for lunch and from 6–10 p.m. for dinner.
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