pinky:
hey, how is everyone here tonight?

M Swann:
Anticipatory, no doubt.

josh:
Looking forward to this experience.

FrederickCooke:
Hello everyone! Daniel will be with us momentarily...

pinky:
I've been to the old Le Cirque when Daniel was there. But had not been to Daniel restuarant yet.

FrederickCooke:
Welcome to this month's edition of CusineNet Live! Tonight we will be chatting with chef Daniel Boulud. He trained under some of France's most renowned chefs, then made his way to New York where he worked at the Polo Lounge and, for six years, as Executive Chef at Le Cirque. In 1993, he opened Restaurant Daniel on Manhattan's Upper East Side, a shining spot -- soon to move to the site of the old Le Cirque -- that has been given four stars by the New York Times and has been rated "one of the ten best in the world" by the International Herald Tribune. His latest endeavor is a partnership with François Payard in Payard Patisserie and Bistro.

FrederickCooke:
Welcome to the chat everyone, and thanks for chatting with us tonight Daniel! Feel free to ask away...

josh:
Do you feel an apple tart dessert is better with a pate brisee or with a puff pastry base?

DanielBoulud:
Puff pastry base for raw apple; pate brisee for cooked apple.

Jennifer:
I've heard rumors that Sirio Maccioni is upset with your having left Le Cirque. Is that true?

DanielBoulud:
Sirio who? (Just kidding.)

FrederickCooke:
Where in France did you grow up and how did you get into cooking?

DanielBoulud:
I grew up in the countryside near Lyon, and have been cooking since the age of 10 (at home). By fourteen, I was apprenticing in a restaurant.

steve v:
Hi, Daniel. I went to your restaurant a year ago and had the veal chop. I was wondering, do you use six-bone or four-bone racks? If six, what do you do with the rest, which has too much fat to serve?

DanielBoulud:
Steve, I use the 4 bone racks.

pinky:
Speaking of apple and pastry. I tried making tarte tatin a few times, but it always comes out soggy. Any suggestion for solving this problem, Daniel?

DanielBoulud:
Tarte tatin must bake upside down! That way, you keep the dough dry. Do not unmold it until a few minutes before serving by re-heating the baking mold over the gas flame, then flipping it over.

DanielBoulud:
Yes, I do still buy from Fresh and Wild!

DanielBoulud:
We have been to Connecticut lately. We did a lunch at the Ivy Restaurant in Greenwich for a friend of mine, Vince Roberti. He owns that restaurant.

M Swann:
Even now, some people believe it hopeless to try to find quality French cuisine in America. No doubt, you disagree. Have you any thoughts on the persistence of this prejudice?

DanielBoulud:
Yes, of course, me too. Not all French restaurants are good, just like American restaurants. Just like anyone else. Plus, I believe that a past generation of French restaurateurs, many of them the ones that came to America, were not the leaders of our industry in France. As a result, their restaurants are not, perhaps, the best restaurants in the U.S. today. There's certainly a new breed of chef/restaurateur who has a better understanding of quality and bring something very valuable to the gastronomic map of America.

josh:
How far in advance can we prepare a banana chocolate nut strudel before baking?

DanielBoulud:
I don't like bananas. But half an hour should be fine.

Jennifer:
Do you ever teach classes/courses? If so, where?

DanielBoulud:
Oh yes. I used to teach in De Gustibus at Macy's, the French Culinary Institute, and at Cornell and Syracuse Universities. And also at the CIA. But lately my schedule prohibits it. Now, with 150 employees, I feel like I have my own school!

steve v:
When you first opened, I believe you bought bread from La Gourmandese bakery in Norwalk. I have been working with John to make some new rolls and breads --any new suggestions?

DanielBoulud:
No, I never bought bread from Norwalk. Go and discover Payard Patisserie and Bistro, with its array of pastries, breads, and sandwiches. By the way, the new craze is panini.

FrederickCooke:
Speaking of which, are you happy with how things are coming along at the Payard Patisserie and Bistro?