La Tulipe

Last updated
La Tulipe
La Tulipe
Restaurant information
EstablishedMay 1979 (1979-05)
ClosedFebruary 1991 (1991-02)
Owner(s) Sally Darr, John Darr
Head chef Sally Darr
Food typeClassic French cuisine;
Nouvelle cuisine
Dress codeCasual [1]
Street address104 West 13th Street,
Greenwich Village
New York, NY
Coordinates 40°44′12″N73°59′53″W / 40.736778°N 73.997945°W / 40.736778; -73.997945
Seating capacity65 [2]
ReservationsRequired [1]

La Tulipe was a French restaurant in Manhattan owned and run by chef Sally Darr. It was located in Greenwich Village from 1979 to 1991. The restaurant served classic French cuisine and nouvelle cuisine , and was often referred to as a bistro. [3] [4]

Contents

Though small and intimate, the restaurant proved influential, and after Mimi Sheraton awarded it three stars in The New York Times six weeks after it opened, it was favored by chefs such as Julia Child, James Beard, and Jacques Pépin.

History

Chef Sally Darr and her husband John Darr opened La Tulipe in May 1979 in the renovated ground floor of a townhouse on West 13th Street in Greenwich Village. [3] [4] John Darr handled the restaurant's dining room, and was its business manager and maitre d’. [3] [4] The restaurant was small, with about 65 seats. [2]

In July 1979 The New York Times rated the restaurant 3 stars, [3] and in September 1979, in an article about nouvelle cuisine in the Times, Mimi Sheraton wrote "Several Americans who do their own versions of this French cooking are also of interest. The best is Sally Darr, who cooks at her restaurant La Tulipe, 104 West 13th Street". [5]

In 1985 The New York Times stated "La Tulipe has maintained its high altitude over the years ... Mrs. Darr ... stays at the controls and personally prepares every dish to order. It is evident that Mrs. Darr's entrees are nearly always well-conceived; she stresses flavor over flashiness." [6]

In December 1988, The New York Times changed its rating to 2 stars. [7]

After 12 years of operation, the restaurant closed in February 1991. [8] The high-flying Wall Street years of the 1980s had ended, and a recession had set in. [4] The venue was sold to a pair of restaurateurs, Donald Evans and Lora Zarubin, who planned to open a new establishment, called Lora. [8]

La Tulipe served classic French cuisine and nouvelle cuisine . [9]

The menu was à la carte, [3] with five entrées on the ever-changing menu each night. [10]

It was open from 6:30pm to 10:00pm, Tuesday through Sunday, and closed on Mondays. [1] Reservations were required. [1] La Tulipe also hosted private parties for up to 50 people, with a four-course dinner, open bar, and wine. [11]

The restaurant advertised its recurring specials as "papillote de red snapper aux légumes fondants", and "langue Valenciennoise"; [1] [4] the former was a fillet of red snapper baked with vegetables and cream en papillote, and the latter combined smoked beef tongue with chicken‐liver mousse and foie gras de carnard, seasoned with green peppercorns. [3]

In a retrospective, The New York Times wrote that "Ms. Darr served what is known as cooking 'à la bonne femme' — classic but simple French dishes like roast chicken with 40 cloves of garlic, as well as her own innovations, like soft shell crab meunière and an extravagant terrine of what seemed like hundreds of layers of smoked tongue and foie gras mousse." [4] The Times added that "Desserts were Ms. Darr’s forte: She was a skilled pastry chef, and her apricot souffle, shaped like a minaret and served table-side with a dollop of whipped cream flavored with kirsch, was a best seller." [4]

Influence

After receiving three stars from Mimi Sheraton in The New York Times in July 1979, La Tulipe became popular with notables, celebrities, and celebrity chefs. [2] [4] The restaurant was also a precursor to the nouvelle cuisine trend in the U.S. [2]

Julia Child quickly became a fan, [12] [13] [4] and invited the Darrs to her cottage in Provence. [14] Child coopted some of Darr's recipes, [15] [12] and Darr appeared on her new television show, Dinner at Julia's . [13]

James Beard frequented the restaurant. [16] [4]

Jacques Pépin was periodically a guest chef at the restaurant. [17] [18] [19]

Sara Moulton, who went on to be a popular cookbook author, magazine cooking journalist, and cooking-show host, was chef tournant (filling in as needed on any station in the kitchen) at La Tulipe between 1981 and 1983. [20] [21]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Julia Child</span> American cooking personality (1912–2004)

Julia Carolyn Child was an American chef, author, and television personality. She is recognized for bringing French cuisine to the American public with her debut cookbook, Mastering the Art of French Cooking, and her subsequent television programs, the most notable of which was The French Chef, which premiered in 1963.

<i>Haute cuisine</i> Type of French cuisine

Haute cuisine or grande cuisine is a style of cooking characterised by meticulous preparation, elaborate presentation, and the use of high quality ingredients. Typically prepared by highly skilled gourmet chefs, haute cuisine dishes are renowned for their high quality and are often offered at premium prices.

Sara Moulton is an American cookbook author and television personality. In an article for The New York Times, Kim Severson described Moulton as "one of the nation’s most enduring recipe writers and cooking teachers...and a dean of food television and magazines".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jacques Pépin</span> French-American chef

Jacques Pépin is a French chef, author, culinary educator, television personality, and artist. After having been the personal chef of French President Charles de Gaulle, he moved to the US in 1959 and after working in New York's top French restaurants, refused the same job with President John F. Kennedy in the White House and instead took a culinary development job with Howard Johnson's. During his career, he has served in numerous prestigious restaurants, first, in Paris, and then in America. He has appeared on American television and has written for The New York Times, Food & Wine and other publications. He has authored more than 30 cookbooks, some of which have become best sellers. Pépin was a longtime friend of the American chef Julia Child, and their 1999 PBS series Julia and Jacques Cooking at Home won a Daytime Emmy Award. He also holds a BA and a MA from Columbia University in French literature.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Thomas Keller</span> American chef, restaurateur, and cookbook author

Thomas Aloysius Keller is an American chef, restaurateur, and cookbook author. He and his landmark Napa Valley restaurant, The French Laundry in Yountville, California, have won multiple awards from the James Beard Foundation, notably the Best California Chef in 1996, and the Best Chef in America in 1997. The restaurant was a perennial winner in the annual Restaurant list of the Top 50 Restaurants of the World; the voting process has since been changed to disallow previous winners from being considered.

<i>Salade niçoise</i> French salad with anchovies or tuna

Salade niçoise is a salad that originated in the French city of Nice. It is traditionally made of tomatoes, hard-boiled eggs, Niçoise olives and anchovies or tuna, dressed with olive oil, or in some historical versions, a vinaigrette. It has been popular worldwide since the early 20th century, and has been prepared and discussed by many chefs. Delia Smith called it "one of the best combinations of salad ingredients ever invented" and Gordon Ramsay said that "it must be the finest summer salad of all".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Daniel Boulud</span> French chef and restaurateur

Daniel Boulud is a French chef and restaurateur with restaurants in New York City, Palm Beach, Miami, Toronto, Montréal, Singapore, the Bahamas, and Dubai. He is best known for his eponymous restaurant Daniel, opened in New York City in 1993, which currently holds two Michelin stars.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ris Lacoste</span> American chef

Doris (Ris) Lacoste is an American chef, restaurateur, philanthropist, and community leader based in Washington D.C. She has been a chef in DC for over three decades and is the owner of RIS, an American bistro in Washington, D.C.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Culinary Revolution</span>

The Culinary Revolution was a movement during the late 1960s and 1970s, when sociopolitical issues began to profoundly affect the way Americans eat. The Culinary Revolution is often credited to Alice Waters, the owner of Chez Panisse restaurant in Berkeley, California.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alain Chapel</span> French chef (1937–1990)

Alain Chapel was a French chef, credited with being one of the originators of Nouvelle Cuisine. He earned three Michelin stars.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Frédy Girardet</span> Swiss chef

Frédy Girardet is a Swiss chef who cooks in the French tradition. Often considered one of the greatest chefs of the 20th Century, his self-named restaurant Chez Girardet in Crissier, Switzerland earned three Michelin stars and before Girardet's retirement in 1996 was often called the greatest restaurant in the world.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gilles Epié</span> French chef

Gilles Epié is a French chef who was the youngest chef in the world to receive a Michelin Star at the age of 22. He was the owner and executive chef of Citrus Etoile restaurant in Paris near the Champs-Élysées which he operated with his wife Elizabeth from 2005 to 2017. As of 2022, he works as the executive chef of L'Avant-Garde, a modern French brasserie in Georgetown, Washington, D.C., which was named one of the "Very Best Restaurants" by Washingtonian magazine. He is a member of l'Académie culinaire de France.

Roger Vergé was a French chef and restaurateur. He is considered one of the greatest chefs of his time. The Gault Millau described him as "the very incarnation of the great French chef for foreigners".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jean-Michel Diot</span> French chef and restaurateur

Jean-Michel Diot is a French chef and restaurateur at Tapenade Restaurant. Chef Diot has received high recognition such as Best Chef in America and America's Finest Restaurant while holding his first French bistro creation in America, Park Bistro, and has received recognition as the Exemplary Achievement in the Culinary Art by Gault Millau.

Gordon Hamersley is an American chef based in Boston and cookbook author. Arguably his roast chicken is his most acclaimed recipe. It was part of a meal he cooked for Julia Child in her show In Julia's Kitchen with Master Chefs. His personal trademark is his ever-present Red Sox cap.

Madeleine Kamman was a French chef and restaurateur, cookery teacher and author of seven cookbooks, who spent most of her working life in America bringing the rigors of French technique to American ingredients and audiences.

Jody Adams is an American chef and restaurateur. Adams owns and operates TRADE and Porto in Massachusetts. She was owner and executive chef of Rialto in Cambridge, Massachusetts, for over 20 years. In 1997, she won the James Beard Award for Best Chef in America Northeast.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jean-Louis Palladin</span> French chef

Jean-Louis Palladin was a French-born chef who introduced French Nouvelle cuisine to the Washington elite at his restaurant, Jean-Louis at the Watergate, and influenced a generation of French and American chefs.

The James Beard Foundation Awards are annual awards presented by the James Beard Foundation to recognize culinary professionals in the United States. The awards recognize chefs, restaurateurs, authors and journalists each year, and are generally scheduled around James Beard's May birthday.

Sally Darr was an American chef. From 1979 to 1991, she was the chef and owner of La Tulipe, a French bistro in Greenwich Village, New York City.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 "Restaurant Directory". New York . August 12, 1985. p. 84.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Newman, Donna (October 20, 2016). "One on One with Chef Guy Reuge". TBR NewsMedia. Retrieved April 22, 2024.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Sheraton, Mimi (July 6, 1979). "Romantic bistro in the Village". The New York Times. Retrieved April 22, 2024.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Green, Penelope (November 16, 2023). "Sally Darr, Formidable Chef of '80s-Era French Bistro, Dies at 100". The New York Times. Retrieved April 22, 2024.
  5. Sheraton, Mimi (September 5, 1979). "The Not‐So‐New Nouvelle Cuisine". The New York Times. Retrieved April 22, 2024.
  6. Miller, Bryan (March 1, 1985). "Country French in a brownstone". The New York Times. Retrieved April 22, 2024.
  7. Miller, Bryan (December 23, 1988). "A homey Greenwich Village husband-and-wife spot that seems frozen in time". The New York Times. Retrieved April 22, 2024.
  8. 1 2 Miller, Bryan (February 15, 1991). "Diner's Journal: La Tulipe Closing". The New York Times. p. C 28. Retrieved April 22, 2024.
  9. Brooks, Patricia; Brooks, Lester (1988). Crown Insiders' Guide to New York City & State. Crown Publishers. p. 171. ISBN   9780517568613.
  10. Greene, Gael (May 19, 1980). "La Tulipe in Bloom". New York . No. 13:20. pp. 66–87. Retrieved April 22, 2024.
  11. "Party Places". New York . November 20, 1989. p. 76.
  12. 1 2 Frum, Danielle Crittenden (December 3, 2015). "The Best Latke Recipe. Ever. Thank You, Julia Child". Huffington Post . Retrieved April 22, 2024.
  13. 1 2 Hanes, Phyllis (June 8, 1983). "The 'French chef' cooks American on new TV series". Christian Science Monitor . Retrieved April 22, 2024.
  14. Darr, Sally (August 15, 2012). "Julia Child and Me". Gourmet.com . Archived from the original on August 16, 2012.
  15. Child, Julia (2010). Julia's Kitchen Wisdom: Essential Techniques and Recipes from a Lifetime of Cooking: A Cookbook. Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group. p. 36.
  16. Jacobs, Jay (2003). "James Beard, An American Icon: The Later Years". Endless Feasts: Sixty Years of Writing from Gourmet. Random House Publishing Group. p. 271. ISBN   9780375759925.
  17. Handy, Jolene (May 6, 2022). "A Brilliant Career: Sara Moulton talks Gourmet Magazine, Cooking on Live TV, being mentored by Julia Child and more". Time Travel Kitchen. Retrieved April 22, 2024.
  18. Pépin, Jacques (2011). Essential Pépin: More Than 700 All-Time Favorites from My Life in Food. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. p. 46. ISBN   9780547607382.
  19. Moulton, Sara (2016). Sara Moulton's Home Cooking 101: How to Make Everything Taste Better. Time Inc. Books. p. 7.
  20. Handy, Jolene (April 29, 2022). "Sara Moulton, Sally Darr and La Tulipe's Signature Soufflé". Time Travel Kitchen. Retrieved April 22, 2024.
  21. Franson, Paul (April 18, 2016). "'Home Cooking 101': Sara Moulton, TV chef and author, promotes new book in Napa". Napa Valley Register . Retrieved April 22, 2024.