Interlaken's chef works his magic on guests

LAKE PLACID — If I asked you who your favorite chef was, what would your answer be? Emeril Lagasse? Julia Child? Wolfgang Puck?

My favorite chef is Richard Brosseau. He's not on the Food Network. He's at the Interlaken Inn.

In the early 1990s, he had his own restaurant in Lake Placid called Patois. As head chef at the Wawbeek resort in the Adirondacks he took dining to the next level. People came in droves to experience his innovative cuisine at Richard's Freestyle on the main drag in Lake Placid.

Richard has been executive chef at the the Interlaken for several years now.

The Interlaken is an expansive, stately Victorian inn with a dozen guest rooms, a large sitting room with a grand piano, a cozy pub, an impressive wine cellar and an elegant dining room.

Actually, the whole place is elegant, and Richard's food complements the elegance, making the Interlaken an extra special dining destination.

You can get good food almost anywhere in Lake Placid. Richard's food is way better than good. It's way over the top. Carrot coriander soup. Foie gras sandwich. Peking duck breast. Phillo-wrapped crème brulee.

The Wine Spectator Honoree wine list — more like a book than a list — contains well over 200 well-chosen selections from around the world. We got started with a bottle of malbec, an El Felino Paul Hobbs 2005 from the Mendoza region of Argentina ($35). It had a fruity, earthy flavor that went well with our appetizer and salad courses.

An unexpected treat from the kitchen — an "amuse bouche" — was presented, a bite-sized roasted apple slice topped with a touch of tangy goat cheese encircled with a balsamic drizzle. A great non-filling way to light up the taste buds and a prelude to the dining experience ahead.

The menu offers five first courses. Our intrepid quartet sampled four, passing on the lump crab cakes in a basil beurre blanc sauce. (Crab cakes seem to be everywhere these days, even though Richard's would have been spectacular, I'm sure).

Carrot coriander soup ($14) was the official start to our evening of amazing flavors and interesting pairings. Pureed carrot, crème fraiche and a little fish stock were enhanced with coriander, which has an aromatic flavor akin to a combination of lemon, sage and caraway. A single seared scallop was devoured in an instant.

I love risotto. Richard's risotto Milanese ($12) was the best, bursting with flavor, Italian rice perfectly slow cooked with distinctive saffron and finished with Parmesan cheese. Apparently everyone at our table loved the risotto, because we passed this delightful dish around and it was gone in one pass.

Chocolate cannoli ($14) for an appetizer? Only Richard could pull that one off.

A crisp cannoli was filled with smooth goat cheese, set on arugula, drizzled with Meyer lemon honey vinaigrette and topped with candied sweet onions. The slightest hint of cocoa powder colored and flavored the filling. The dressing magically complemented the goat cheese.

Foie gras sandwich ($16) was a triumph. First, the plate was painted with Concord grape jam and a spicy peanut butter sauce. A miniature brioche was placed over the sauce, cut horizontally with the seared foie gras placed between the two halves.

The foie gras was a sensation, tasty and buttery with a slight "grilled" taste from the searing. The entire sandwich came off as an elegant cross between a slider hamburger and a child's peanut butter and jelly sandwich.

Our attentive waiter suggested the traditional glass of Sauternes ($8) to accompany the fois gras.

Two salads are offered. We tried both, and our waiter was kind enough to suggest the kitchen divide them for us to share.

Tri-color salad ($14) elicited visions of that spiral pasta so popular on picnic tables in the summertime. No pasta in this version. A colorful mix of greens and red radicchio paired well with a judicious amount of Minus Eight ice wine vinegar and virgin olive oil, crunch provided by pistachios, julienned apples and slices of red onion. A memorable, powerful blue cheese from Great Hill Farm in Massachusetts provided the third color.

Like every dish we had enjoyed so far, there was a lot going on in this salad, and it all worked very well together.

In comparison, the mixed field greens ($10) were a bit ordinary, but with lots of complex flavors provided by, among others, peppery arugula and highly nutritious beet greens, tossed with maple vinaigrette and toasted pecans.

At this point, we are about halfway through our three-hour culinary adventure, and our wine bottle was on empty. Another malbec was selected to fortify us for the rest of the evening, Argentinian Alto Las Hermigas ($35), an interesting contrast with complex, spicy flavors.

There were six entrée courses. We chose our four through the process of elimination, opting out on the grilled New Zealand venison chop with celery root puree, crispy artichokes and spiced demi-glace and the Kilcoyne Farms (Brasher Falls) ribeye steak glazed with barbecue sauce, served with caramelized onion and cheddar mashed potatoes.

Pan roasted Peking duck breast ($30) was set on twice-cooked turnip and soufflé drizzled with anise honey butter. The skin was cooked till crisp, the duck was tender and tasty, the turnips expertly prepared. The butter added sweetness and spice to the dish.

Braised halibut ($35) was the only seafood entrée, but there didn't need to be another — this was lovely. Steamed mussels were neatly arranged in the bottom of a large, rimmed soup bowl. A layer of sliced butterball potatoes followed, then tomatoes, crowned with the flaky, flavorful halibut. A broth of saffron and parsley oil underneath everything resulted in a fish soup of sorts as all the components combined.

An expert take on chicken cordon blue was provided by Richard's pan-roasted and rolled Misty Farms chicken ($29). This naturally raised chicken from Vermont was rolled with prosciutto and Fontina cheese, sliced into medallions and set on a fennel white bean ragout with a browned butter sage sauce. The ragout and the sauce absolutely complemented the poultry.

Short ribs ($34) from New England Family Farm were braised with porcini mushrooms, pearl onions and red potatoes. This high-end version of bone-in pot roast rendered the meat tender and juicy, the vegetables and the meat drippings combining to make a hearty dish for a late winter evening.

Desserts, priced at $10 each, were as amazing as the rest of the meal.

Coconut cream "pie" was literally a tower of coconut cream and whipped cream with chunks of roasted pineapple served over a bed of crumbled homemade ginger snaps.

A large portion of double chocolate sourdough bread pudding was served warm, placed in a pool of luscious roasted banana sauce.

Crispy roasted pear was poached in rum with maple ice cream and cranberry coulis. The pear was fork-tender; the cranberry balanced the sweetness of the maple and the rum. The crispy coating we believed to be ground nuts set the dish off perfectly.

Here's one that you'll want to try to make at home. Phyllo-wrapped crème brulee, the ceramic ramekin switched out for a flaky phyllo crust, with an excellent, creamy custard that oozed from the pastry as you cut into it with your fork. Truly amazing. Good luck. ...

The price for this unforgettable culinary adventure for four was $288 for food and $70 for wine before tipping our waiters. Yes, that's plural. Each course was served by the duo, plate in each hand, placed simultaneously on the table in front of each lady, followed by the men, with a brief verbal description of each dish.

It's clear that chef Richard Brosseau is creative, confident and fearless. In the words of guests of the Interlaken Inn, "He's no ordinary chef ... he's a magician."

We hope you get to experience his magic.

The Interlaken Inn
39 Interlaken Ave.
Lake Placid, New York
1 (518) 523-3180
1 (800) 428-4369
www.theinterlakeninn.com

Elegant fine dining in a stately Adirondack Victorian inn

HOURS: 5 to 9 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday

(Note: The restaurant will be closed March 29 to April 26)

APPETIZER PICKS: Chocolate cannoli, foie gras sandwich

ENTRÉE PICKS: Pan-roasted Peking duck breast, braised halibut paired with saffron, tomato, potatoes and mussels

DESSERT PICKS: Phyllo-wrapped crème brulee, double chocolate sourdough bread pudding with roasted banana sauce

RATING: 5/5