因為米其林指南，臺中的星級餐廳越來越多，也讓此一地區頓時成了饕客心 中的美食天堂。然而，若要提及法式料理，那麼深耕許久的鹽之華與新開幕的小樂沐 Le Côté LM，絕對是必須搶先訂位的首選。
自從《臺北臺中米其林指南 2020》 將臺中地區納入美食評鑑的範圍之後， 臺中的美食實力便越被重視，而去年摘 星的眾多餐廳之中，又以深耕台中最久 的鹽之華法式餐廳(Fleur de Sel French Restaurant)最受矚目。不只是因為主廚 黎俞君是台灣第一位拿下米其一星榮耀 的女主廚，她出身於彰化鄉下的貧窮人 家，但憑著對於廚藝的熱情，隻身前往歐 洲，從義大利文、法語開始學習正統義 大利菜與法國菜的苦心學習經過，令人 敬佩之外，最令饕客所讚賞的是黎俞君 不惜成本對於品質與細節的講究與堅持。
總是一身紅色的廚師服，看起來精神 奕奕的黎俞君首先談起，她耗費重金邀 請香港的 Erik Amir 與 Dora Chi 所組成的 Spatial Practice 國際設計團隊打造的餐廳 建築，外型充滿設計感之外，無論從什 麼角度觀賞都沒有死角，就連空拍都有 著幾何造型呈現出的美感，而對於食材 的講究，她更是到了極致，像是在冬季 菜色中的一道烤明蝦佐番紅花洋芋醬， 她便特別選用多數餐廳不常使用，且量 少價高，不過口感細緻的南非玫瑰龍蝦， 加上西班牙購入 La Melguiza 的頂級番紅 花加以調味，為人頗為海派的黎俞君說 笑說:「光是番紅花每次出手便動輒花 費高達 20 萬。」
除了自歐洲進口大量食材，黎俞君也與 中台灣附近的眾多小農合作，專門 鹽之 華生產眾多優質食材，從水果、蔬菜，到 高山玫瑰都在品項之列，光是在冬季所推 出的法式蔬食套餐中，便運用了多 達 50 種的小農蔬果，雖然耗 費鉅資，但也呈現可由此 看出她對於食材高要求。
除了黎俞君，曾以位居台中的樂沐法式餐廳(Le Moût)入選亞洲最佳 50 餐 廳(Asia’s 50 Best Restaurant) 的陳嵐舒，在 2018 年突然關閉餐廳，當 時讓不少人聞訊後惋惜不已，不過，籌備 了將近 10 個月時間，近期，她以 Le Côté LM，又稱小樂沐的餐飲品牌再度開設， 消息一出，立刻成為台中的美食熱點，甚 至不少北中南的饕客專程前往品嘗。
不同於過往樂沐主打 Fine Dining 路 線，在LeCôtéLM主打法式餐酒館 (Bistronomy)，中午單點、晚間為套餐的形式呈現，因此，菜單上可見火腿 盤、法式鄉村肉派或是川滷牛小排等菜 色，饕客不需拘謹以輕鬆心情就可享受 美食，因為每一道都是以優質食材所呈現 的 comfort food，就連手作麵包都美味， 陳嵐舒說:「從麵包開始就非常用心在 製作，因為不論鹹甜，香氣都來自麵粉 與發酵的本體，不需要加過多的點綴就 很好吃。」此外，午餐則是以法式經典 料理味道去發想，只是在層次與食材上 加以變化，晚上則是創作型的菜單為主， 但是製作的複雜度不會比照以往樂沐的 形式，但是保留有趣與好吃的部分。
而有著「美女主廚」封號的陳嵐舒，以 Le Côté LM 再次回歸餐飲市場，不只所 推出的菜色同樣美味，餐廳內所使用的 美麗餐瓷，一個個如詩如畫，則是來自 於夫婿張法國麗固(Legle France)量身 訂製打造的獨家系列，讓饕客享受美食 的同時，就連視覺也能得到滿足。 （本文刊登於富豪人生Vintage Square 2021年2月號）
Since the announcement of the 2020 Michelin Guide Taipei & Taichung, the excellent restaurants in Taichung have drawn much attention from foodies. Among the newly added restaurants, Fleur de Sel French Restaurant has received a lot of acclaim since it opened many years ago. The chef Yu-Chung Li is the first female chef who won a Michelin star. She was born in a poor family in Changhua; however, she went to Europe alone, and learned to speak Italian and French, and then orthodox French and Italian cooking techniques. Her admirable hard work and insistence in quality gained praises from gourmets.
Li always wears a red uniform which makes her look energetic and spirited. For Fleur de Sel French Restaurant, Li invited the Hong Kong based architecture firm, Spatial Practice, to design the building. This team built by Erik Amir and Dora Chi gives the restaurant a beautiful exterior full of various geometric shapes. Li still put a lot of effort into designing the dishes, such as the baked lobster with saffron and potato sauce in the winter menu. Li uses rose lobster imported from South Africa which is seldom seen in other restaurants, and seasons the dish with the high quality saffron purchased from Le Melguiza, Spain. “We spent over 200,000 dollars just for the saffron,” Li said.
Outside of the ingredients from Europe, Li also sources some of the restaurant’s produce from small-holder farmers in the middle of Taiwan. She asks them to plant excellent ingredients only for Fleur de Sel French Restaurant, including fruit, vegetables, and even roses. For the winter vegetarian menu, Li uses over 50 types of fruits and vegetables produced by these farmers. Despite the high costs, this is merely a showcase for Li’s high standards and insistence on quality.
Like Li, chef Lanshu Chen led the French restaurant Le Moût in Taichung as it was voted as one of Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants. However, Le Moût closed in 2018. Fortunately, after 10 months’ preparation and planning, Chen will restart with the new restaurant Le Côté LM. Since it was opened, Le Côté LM has attracted many visitors from different areas of Taiwan who have come to enjoy Chen’s new dishes. Le Côté LM has thus become a tourist hot spot.
Unlike Le Moût, which focused on fine dining, Le Côté LM runs as a French bistronomy, offering à la carte dishes in lunch time and set meals in dinner time. Foodies can choose between a ham plate, paté de campagne or stewed beef ribs, and freely enjoy the dishes without the restraints of manners. All the dishes are comfort food made of excellent ingredients; even the handmade breads are extremely impressive. Chen said, “We made the bread diligently. No matter salty or sweet, the breads all have an attractive fragrance of fermented flours. It is really delicious and requires no dressings.” In addition, the lunch menu emphasizes the classic tastes of French cuisines. For dinner, Le Côté LM offers a creative menu. But, Le Côté LM won’t make complex dishes like those of Le Moût, choosing instead to stick to the good, interesting and basic.
By opening the new restaurant Le Côté LM, Chen has returned to the Taiwanese food scene. The restaurant also uses beautiful bespoke bone china tableware made by Legle France. During the meal, foodies can enjoy the poetic and picturesque tableware as well as the food!
