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UPDATE: Dinner Review: Encore Bistroby Paula Eisenberg UPDATE (May 13, 2004) Popular as ever, Encore continues to draw crowds with its homey charm and friendly, professional service. But charm and professionalism in the dining room can go only so far when the kitchen seems to have lost its way. Over several recent visits, the food was disappointing, especially considering how delightful it was earlier in the restaurant's history. Any restaurant can have an "off" night, and we are not quick to call attention to temporary or sporadic problems at well-loved establishments. But over many visits in the past six months, we've had too many un-Encore-like meals for us to consider the situation a minor aberration. One of our favorite dishes, the classic steak frites, disappointed on several occasions. While never Peter Luger-quality meat, the steak used to be flavorful and juicy, chewy but not tough. Recently, however, the only pleasing thing about the dish was the tangy, creamy bleu cheese sauce. We ordered escalopes de veau panées on two separate evenings, and both times the result was unacceptable. The slightly breaded veal cutlets, sautéed with a mushroom sauce, should feature a crisp crust and tender meat. Alas, the spongy breading clinging damply to the rubbery meat reminded us not of Paris but of our grade-school cafeteria. Salade de chêvre chaud, warm goat cheese toasts over mesclun salad, used to be an appetizer favorite. Lately, though, the mesclun greens have been wet and under-dressed on several visits, showing a disturbing lack of attention to detail. On a happier note, the gravlax appetizer was fresh and simple, and the roasted duck with orange and sesame seed sauce was tender and complex. As we left the restaurant on a recent April night, strolling down Chatsworth Avenue, we chatted with a couple who had also just finished dining at Encore. What did they think of the experience? "It's not what it was," the Larchmont woman said. "We've been coming here since it opened (in 2000), and the food is definitely not as good as it used to be. But we still come, because the atmosphere is great, and the people are too. It's a little bit of France in Larchmont." We hope Encore will return to its former quality and again be worthy of such loyalty. Earlier Review: A return visit was in order, this time for dinner. Good news! Encore's chef has returned to earlier glories, producing fine examples of the best of the French bistro tradition. From the regular menu, assiette de saumon et truite fumés is a flavorful duo of smoked salmon and trout, with a light, garlicky mayonnaise sauce, arranged over mesclun greens. The fish, while pleasantly chewy, was not dried-out, as it was on previous occasion. Mild garlic sausage, a special appetizer, arrived on a bed of mesclun greens. Sautéed coquilles Saint Jacques, with a light provençale sauce, used fat, juicy sea scallops, cooked perfectly al dente. Encore has always served decorative vegetables with the main course, and these tasted as good as they looked. Small, buttery batons of zucchini and carrot accompanied a timbale of fresh-tasting couscous, always a welcome change from potatoes. The grilled pork chop, served with cornichons and a Dijon mustard sauce, was plain, but plainly delicious. This is good, solid home cooking, or rather, it's home cooking if your mère happens to be a talented French chef with the freshest ingredients and a professional kitchen at her disposal. There are few more pleasant ways to spend a warm late-summer evening than sitting at one of Encore's sidewalk tables, enjoying the excellent, simple food.
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(September
6, 2002) In this space recently, Encore's lunch offerings received
a rather negative