Kimbo's Day Out

Lovely weather, a French bistro, yummy cuisine, and a great book make for a perfect day off. :) Plus, I got two big items on my "To Do List" knocked out. Nice!

Croque Monster

Croque Monster

So tonight I tried my hand at creating the classic French sandwich, Croque Monsieur. It came out looking a little scary and slightly overcooked, but my sandwich was wonderfully delicious! My Béchamel was a bit thick and was more so painted rather than poured on. After consumption I'm feeling bold enough to even go toe-to-toe with Coquette Brasserie's Croque Monsieur sandwich.

*Cue "Gonna Fly Now" Rocky theme music...

My ingredients: 

• 2 slices of Wonder Bread
• 3 slices of Oscar Mayer ham lunch meat
• 1 slice of Kraft Swiss cheese
• (Lots of preparation giggles)

Coquette Brasserie Review

I took a long awaited Spa day over Labor Day weekend this year, complete with my first trip, for lunch, to Coquette Brasserie! I was very excited. The decor is very chic and inviting with a true café feel. I was immediately drawn in and wanted to stay, if for nothing else then to drift away to the smooth sounds of music that ranged from Ray Lamontagne to Carla Bruni. My service was friendly and efficient; while some of that might have had to do with the light crowd, my server was also friendly and helpful.

Now to the 'bon appétit' portion of my visit. My Croque Madame was creamy and my taste buds danced at every bite. I ate every last one of my warm, crispy frites dipped in delicious, rich aioli sauce, and the small salad in vinaigrette was as fresh as if it was right out of the produce department. For dessert, the crème brulée had fresh blueberries, raspberries, and strawberries. The savory tart of the fruit was a wonderful contrast to the sweetness of the custard. For the quality and portion of the dishes, the prices were very reasonable.

I recently went to brunch at Coquette, but my second visit was a little less than stellar. While my pancakes were yummy, my Croque Madame somehow ended up a Monsieur and was dry and a bit on the cold side. Although the crowd wasn't too heavy, I felt as if my server might as well have been on a different side of the world. The service was slow and a bit lackluster. Here's hoping that was just a glitch and that my third visit, most likely during lunch hours, will be a charm like my first visit.