Le Coq au Vin - Classic French Cusine

Yesterday was Ken's Birthday (of Ken & Len fame)and I wanted to select a comfortable place to eat, that had good service and delicious French food. Based on the criteria we could only think of Le Coq au Vin.

This was our second visit to this wonderful restaurant and again we were very impressed with their delicious food.
Le Coq au Vin has been an Orlando institution for the past 25 years at 4800 South Orange Avenue.
It is owned and operated by Chef Louis Perrotte and his wife Magdalena. The restaurant seats 100 people in three separate dining rooms. The cuisine reflects their French heritage; travels and knowledge acquired through friendships with cooks around the world; and contemporary changes in cuisine and customers preferences.

There has been a rumor for the last year, that it is going to close soon due to the well deserved retirement of the chef and owner, Chef Perrotte. That rumor, which I tend to believe is true, has led me to consider having dinner there more frequently
in the near future so that I can enjoy the wonderful flavors that have made them the best French Restaurant in Orlando for the last 20 plus years.

Last night the flavors were delightful.
We started with three shared appetizers because we like to maximize the number of dishes that we each get to sample.

First, we had the Escargots A L’Ail (Snails in garlic butter). They were delicious tender snails, served hot, in their shell. There was plenty of bread to soak up the bubbly garlic butter on the escargot serving plate. Too bad they only serve 6 snails per order. I could eat 50 of them.

The second appetizer was the Steak Tartare (Traditional hand cut raw beef steak).
This was very good. They serve it differently than most places, which usually serve paper thin slices of the raw beef sprinkled with olive oil and served with arugula.
They cut up the raw beef steak and mix it with some herb, onions and garlic and serve as a spread. It was very good served on buttered crostini however it would have been better if it had a little more "flavor" to it. Perhaps a little Tabasco to spice it up a little more than it was.

The last appetizer course was the Foie Gras Maison (Whole duck foie gras, toasted brioche, fig preserve) This was very good for a Pate. We have become huge fans of duck liver, and we love it as a spread or sauteed whole.

The bread served throughout the evening was warm and delicious French bread with morsels of butter shaped like a rooster.

Now it was time for the main course.

Ken ordered the Canard A L'Orange (Duck 2 ways - leg confit crisp with lavender honey and breast roasted medium rare, seasonal oranges, grand marnier sauce, sweet potato parsnip pie). The duck was delicious but it was not prepared exactly as advertised. Ken noted that the duck leg was not crispy. In fact it had no skin.
Perhaps this is one of those things where they are sacrificing flavor to satisfy the health conscious diner. I don't agree with sacrificing flavor for the health conscious. How many times do diners eat duck anyway? I do not think that having crispy duck skin three or four times a year is going to affect anyone negatively in a way that is measurable. Please note that the duck was superb. We just missed the crispy component.

I ordered the Black Angus Steak (Center cut sirloin steak "Black Angus" with béarnaise sauce or peppercorn sauce, haricots verts, roasted Yukon gold potatoes)
at the waiter's recommendation over my other choice, The Rack of Lamb.
The beef was excellent and cooked to order, medium rare. Ken though that the beef was better than the duck but we ate them both both, heartily.

Then, of course, no trip would be complete to Le Coq au Vin without having the Gran Manier Souffle for desert; our favorite. Le Souffles de Jean Baptiste. It was heavenly.

Service was prompt and unobtrusive and we even got a visit from Chef Perrotte himself. He is a very nice gentleman in his 60's and responsible for the success of Ken's delicious Birthday dinner. They even placed a lit candle in a bowl of meringue so that Ken could blow it out, since they do not serve birthday cake.

It was unfortunate that Chef Perrotte suffered a little mishap at our table when he extended his hand to shake Ken's hand he inadvertently knock over the glass of red wine that spilled on the table and on his Chef's Apron. To be honest, we both agreed that the wine was better suited as a stain on the table cloth than for consumption. Afterall it was an inexpensive bottle so we were not too disappointed with what we got.
Overall, we had great food, good service in a nice atmosphere. Ken and Len give Le Coq au Vin, 4-Forks