February Is Choucroute Month At Brasserie Les Halles

FEBRUARY IS CHOUCROUTE MONTH

AT BRASSERIE LES HALLES

Four different Choucroute dishes and Alsatian-style wine list

featured for the entire month of February

Free Riesling Tasting

Monday, February 7th

at Les Halles Downtown, 5:30PM



January 2005 - With the creation of February Choucroute Month six years ago, Les Halles helped to spark the come-back of the venerable Alsatian dish, and brasserie staple, Choucroute. "We wanted to celebrate one of the most original and authentic brasserie dishes - Choucroute," notes Les Halles Owner Philippe Lajaunie. Choucroute has earned its popularity because it is not only delicious, but represents the spirit of what is a brasserie - conviviality, comfort, welcoming and a place with deep roots in good food, beverage and company. "We began the Choucroute Month as a small, fun promotion," notes Lajaunie. "But it really took off because people loved it - we served as many plates of Choucroute for the month as we did of Steak Frites! People were ready for an authentic rustic comfort food," adds Lajaunie. At around the same time, the wine world was experiencing a new growing interest in Alsatian wines. "The Choucroute (and all of the food here for that matter) is so authentic I've seen old French people weeping tears of nostalgia," notes Les Halles Chef-At-Large Tony Bourdain.



The origin of the brasserie as a concept lay in the early beer halls that moved to Alsace from Germany. Soon food was introduced to these establishments, originally bar bites of sausage and pork morsels, small bowls of sauerkraut (not unlike Tapas), were served with the beer. Eventually, these nibbles were all put together into one delicious heaping dish - and thus Choucroute was born. The sense of a convivial, lively meeting place for people of all walks of life remained an integral part of the brasserie as it moved from Alsace to Paris. In the nineteenth century, the beautiful Belle Ipoque designed brasseries that we now associate with the vibrant centers of night life for intellectuals, artists and boulevardiers, came into being. The brasserie was truly "democratic", a place where high society in black tie mingled with artists and writers, out till wee hours, would overlap with the workers, fishmongers, butchers, and office clerks having their breakfast.



Beginning Sunday, February 1st, for the entire month, all of the Les Halles restaurants (New York, Miami, Washington D.C.) will offer four different Choucroutes. Featured of course is the classic Choucroute Garnie ($21.50), a mountain of tangy sauerkraut that has been slow cooked in a Pinot d'Alsace white wine, with juniper berries, heaped with white veal sausages, smoked pork breast, and served with boiled potatoes. For the seafood lover there will be Choucroute de Poisson ($23.50) with smoked salmon sausage, sea scallops, smoked herring and salmon caviar, slow cooked in a Riesling wine. Les Halles introduced Duck Choucroute (an urban take on the traditional Alsatian country Goose Choucroute) ($23.50), with duck leg confit, foie gras and duck sausage on a bed of sauerkraut, slow cooked in Gew|rztraminer. Also on the list is the Choucroute Royale ($24.50), slow cooked in Champagne.



On Monday, February 7th, Les Halles' own Master of Wine, Scott Carney will host a free Riesling wine tasting at Les Halles Downtown (15 John Street) from 5:30 to 6:30PM. Seating is limited and reservations are recommended. (212) 285-8585.



The restaurant's Wine Spectator award-winning wine list will be augmented with a selection of hand-picked Alsatian and Alsatian-style wines available by-the-glass, as well as a large selection of bottled wines. Bringing Alsace home to New York, Les Halles will feature the widely acclaimed Rieslings and Gew|rztraminer of Dr. Konstantin Frank. This Fi