L’Express and the Bouchon – New York Bistros

L’Express

249 Park Avenue South (at 20th Street)

New York, NY 10003

(212) 254-5858

https://www.lexpressnyc.com/

L’Express is a Lyonnaise Bouchon, open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, serving up classic bistro dishes such as mussels, steak and escargot.

From the L’Express Website

What is a Lyonnaise Bouchon?

L’Express bills itself as a Lyonnaise Bouchon. Let’s examine this unusual claim in the bistro world and see if it holds up. The threshold question is: what is a Lyonnaise Bouchon?

Lyon claims to be the gastronomic capital of France. Although I image that Parisians would dispute this claim, nevertheless, Lyon has many strengths that weigh in its favor. The opinion of a personage no less than Stendhal, for example.

Stendhal, passing through Lyon in 1837, described Lyonnaise cuisine:

I know one thing that is done very well in Lyon. One eats admirably well there, and in my opinion, better than in Paris. Vegetables especially are divinely prepared. In London, I learned that there are twenty-two species of potatoes, in Lyon, I saw twenty-two different ways to prepare them, and at least twelve of these are unknown in Paris.

Lyon sits at the crossroads of several regional culinary traditions of excellence. Its poultry comes from Bresse, cattle from the Charolais and game from the Dombes region. It has fine local produce and wine.

Lyon is also the home of Chef Paul Bocuse, who is the most celebrated chef of the post-war era. Paul Bocuse died on January 20, 2018. From the New York Times obituary:

Certainly he did more than any other chef in the world that I can think of to bring the chefs in the dining room and to make the profession respectable and to make us who we are now,” Mr. Pépin said in 2011, when Mr. Bocuse was named “chef of the century” by the Culinary Institute of America. “Now the chefs are stars and it’s because of Paul Bocuse.

Among his many contributions, Paul Bucose created nouvelle cuisine. Nouvelle cuisine, which we consider the unremarkable and rather obvious today, emphasized fresh and local ingredients, lighter sauces, unusual flavor combinations and innovative recipes. It was a revolution against the old fashioned Escoffier-style cooking with its heavy sauces that hid the ingredients and emphasis on executing traditional recipes.

Before Escoffier’s time, the Grande Cuisine was laden with excess — overly complicated recipes, ponderously extravagant dinners, sauces and garnishes that disguised main ingredients nearly beyond recognition. In accordance with his admonition, “above all, keep it simple,” Escoffier developed a new gastronomic philosophy, a sense of finely honed and highly refined simplicity in dining, ideals that have been espoused by the finest chefs of the twentieth century.

Nouvelle cuisine became a global trend that reverberated around the world, and was even heard by Alice Waters who started Chez Panisse in Berkeley.

From the Chez Panisse Website:

Alice and Chez Panisse are convinced that the best-tasting food is organically and locally grown and harvested in ways that are ecologically sound by people who are taking care of the land for future generations. The quest for such ingredients has always determined the restaurant’s cuisine. Since 1971, Chez Panisse has invited diners to partake of the immediacy and excitement of vegetables just out of the garden, fruit right off the branch, and fish straight out of the sea.

Bouchons have existed for centuries and are an essential part of Lyon’s identity and cultural heritage. There is no equivalent to a bouchon found anywhere else in the world. A bouchon is a modest bistro located in Lyon with limited regional dishes. Wine is served in pitchers and they are known for having a warm and comfortable atmosphere.

Bouchons arose in taverns and inns where silk merchants stopped in the 17th and 18th centuries to have a meal, clean their horses, and stay overnight. The word “bouchon” refers to the handful of straw used for rubbing down their horses; taverns hung bundles of straw over their doors to advertise their business much like a trade guild in the same way that bakeries would hang out pretzels.

Les Bouchons Lyonnais is a trade association in Lyon that publishes standards that buchons must meet to obtain a certificate of authenticity. Its website has a list of certified, authentic buchons. The association created the certification to guarantee the respect for Lyon’s culinary tradition, the quality of local products, and a warm and friendly ambiance in a historic setting. The website is listed in the Resources and is the definitive resource on Lyon buchons.

From the Les Bouchons Lyonnais Website:

The genuine Lyon bouchon is also recognizable by its setting and atmosphere. It is a warm and friendly place, with tables close together, customers coming for a bite to eat or standing at the counter, the sound and delicious smell of food. It always features a bar, made of wood, zinc or Formica. The red and white checked tablecloth is also typical of the bouchon’s décor, as are the menu on a slate, pot lyonnais (wine carafe), copper pans, old posters, Guignol puppets etc. Every bouchon however has its own décor, a reflection of the owner. Marble or wooden tables? It’s up to the owner! All these elements help create the bouchon atmosphere. The family spirit makes people feel at home in a bouchon.

Bouchons use fresh produce which comes from the local markets. Starters often include Lyonnais saveloy (cooked cured sausage). For the main course, quenelles are a standard. These are dumplings consisting of fresh breadcrumbs, veal fat, and poultry, fish or meat, minced and arranged in the form of a sausage. The tablier de sapeur (fireman’s apron) is another common dish which is made from flat tripe.

L’Express

L’Express is a modest bistro, with simple tables and chairs, a few old French posters on the walls, and a well-worn and comfortable ambiance. However, there is nothing to suggest that it is a bouchon. Where are the Gnafron puppets (the slightly drunken shoemaker) or the guild sign of straw? Where are the red and white checker tablecloths, the pots and pans hanging over the grill, the chalk board menu, the local and seasonal produce from Union Square Market? Where is the friendly, warm and welcoming atmosphere created by its on-site owner? Where is the Lyonnaise cuisine? The menu has the bistro standards: grilled salmon, mussels, steak au poivre, steak frites, half chicken, etc. but where are the quenelles, the truffled hen, the sausages, the pots of wine?

On an early Saturday afternoon there were families with children, bar flies watching sports, the brunch crowd, and solitary diners relaxing over their coffee and a newspaper. It was busy but not frantic. The service was prompt and efficient but impersonal. The food was surprisingly good, considering that L’Express has one of the lowest price points of any bistro in New York. My onion soup was better than most (but nowhere near the Odeon’s), and my croque monsieur (“crunch sir”) was rich and slightly salty, although the pommes frites were soggy and stale. The salad was fresh but dull. The coffee was good-a French roast that was not heavy and bitter like I so often see.

L’Express is an average bistro but if you are looking for a bistro that is always open with adequate food and a reasonable price point, L’Express is a good choice. If you are looking for an authentic buchon, you will be disappointed. I will happily return the next time I am on lower Park Avenue.

Ratings:

Service: 6 (Busy but efficient; not personal)

Archetype: 7 (Decor is squarely in the bistro tradition. If you are looking for an authentic Lyonnaise buchon, look elsewhere)

Food: 6 (Good overall, especially for the price point)

Energy: 6 (Tends toward being busy and crowded but the noise level is reasonable. I have not been there late at night but I imagine the bar crowd at 3:00 a.m. would be obnoxious)

Resources

The Bouchons of Lyon

http://lesbouchonslyonnais.org/

https://www.saveur.com/article/Travels/The-Bouchons-of-Lyon

http://www.moretimetotravel.com/what-is-a-lyonnaise-bouchon/

New York Times Article on Paul Bocuse

https://www.nytimes.com/2018/01/20/obituaries/paul-bocuse-dead.html

Reviews

https://www.theinfatuation.com/new-york/reviews/lexpress

http://nymag.com/listings/restaurant/lexpress/

http://www.clubplanet.com/Articles/9490/Late-Nite-Bites-LExpress-NYC

Auguste Escoffier