Church & State | The Downtown Bistro Gets A Boost From Tony Esnault | Tasting Table Los Angeles
Church & State Bistro gets a boost from Tony Esnault
For a city that's undergoing such a dramatic culinary renaissance, Los Angeles has a surprisingly small contigent of French-born chefs.
Even rarer are French chefs cooking classic bistro food. One happy exception is at Church & State, the perpetually bustling Downtown bistro in the Arts District, where former Patina chef and Loire Valley native Tony Esnault has taken over the kitchen.
The Alain Ducasse disciple developed a formidable reputation at Patina, where he was known for his deftness with farmers' market vegetables. At Church & State, he's returned to his classical roots.
It's wise to begin with a wooden platter of his charcuterie ($17), a gem-like array of vinegar-tinged head cheese, cured pork belly, velvety pork rillettes and a quenelle of robust chicken liver mousse.
A light chicory salad perked with fresh citrus segments ($15) contrasts with a stellar French onion soup ($11) blanketed in melted Gruyère.
Entrées could have been pulled directly from an Escoffier tome: Canard à l'Orange ($36) is presented as a fan of tender pink slices of breast and confit leg, drizzled with a balanced sauce lightly perfumed with orange. Steel pans of sumptuous cassoulet ($32), stocked with plump garlic sausages and tender white beans, make you long for a blustery day.
In true Parisian fashion, service from your well-groomed waiter can seem brusque and aloof, but end your meal by cracking a spoon into a perfectly executed créme brûlée ($9) and all will seem right with the world.