After the success of The French Laundry, Thomas and his brother, Joseph Keller (currently owner/chef of Josef’s in Las Vegas), opened Bouchon in 1998. Located down the street from The French Laundry, it serves moderately priced French bistro fare, with Bouchon Bakery opening next door a few years later (in 2006 Keller opened a branch of the bakery in the Time Warner Center in Manhattan). Keller has joked in the past that the motivation for Bouchon’s opening was to give him somewhere to eat after work at The French Laundry. [via]
Last year I had the great opportunity to hang out with my food buddie Erik in Yountville. As you might remember, the main stop was Thomas Keller’s The French Laundry, but the very next day we continued onto Bouchon and Bouchon Bakery. Here’s our adventure continuation in pictures:
Ready for another great meal!
Quiche Lorraine
Cream of asparagus
Steak Tartare
Bouchon Bakery, being right next to the restaurant has absolutely amazing desserts: breads, pastries, macarons etc. A must stop.
Erik trying a Foie Gras Dog Buscuit….and not totally liking it.
We spent the rest of the day wondering around Yountville:
Hungry Cactus’ verdict: B+ and A
I felt the Bouchon restaurant was just ok…mostly standard fare. I’d rather grab a more interesting meal at, say Redd or AdHoc. However, I would absolutely make Bouchon Bakery a must stop — there’s always something new there, and the flavors crafted into each baked good there is just phenomenal.