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"Spoon by Byblos" Restaurant in St. Tropez.
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Filled with a clean, modern blend of styles and cuisines of the Mediterranean rim with a touch of Asia.
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Peter and Linda D'Aprix 2005/2010
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Opened in 2002, "Spoon by Byblos", with it's accent on the Mediterranean cuisines, of the Riviera, Italy, Catalonia, Andalusia, Tunisia and Morocco, not to mention a host of Asian influences, gives you the option of mixing and combining your own imaginative choices. Located in the hotel complex of "Hotel Byblos" and just off the main market square Place des Lices in the center of St. Tropez, this is one of the many, world wide "Spoon" restaurants of famed chef Alain Ducasse.
The decor is as modern as is the cuisine both inside and out. The interior is ultra modern chic lit in puddles of light from hanging fixtures, an illustion of privacy is created. Outide the tree shaded deck is a lovely place to eat especially as the light in the sky fades into dark and the patio lighting slowly reveals itself. The massive, backless seating is fun for those with young, strong backs, but for those whose backs needs some support, you can find your way to other more regular seating. And the eating, alfresco or not, is excellent and a fun experience.
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Many various palatte teasers start the meal.
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The exterior dining patio under the trees.
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Green Pea Cappuchino with Iberian ham.
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Another version of the famous country dish made famous in the book "The Tastes of Provence" but cooked and served in M. Ducasse's own line of ceramic cook ware. A lovely traditional taste of Provence done with modern perfection!
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Ultra modern interior dining room designed by Patrick Jouin.
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Click on the "zoom+" to see larger version.
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© 2005-2010 photos Peter D'Aprix
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At "Spoon by Byblos" the culinary philosophy focuses on short cooking times. Spoon leads the way to healthy, hearty and entertaining meals. The new menu is a condensation of flavors in the spirit of the times. Every dish offers purity, nature and thinking about the roots of taste. Priority is given to legumes, grains and other seasonal products from organic or sustainable agriculture.
Ducasse likes to throw off traditional constraints. At "Spoon by Byblos" anything is allowed. Everything is oriented towards the guests' freedom. The dishes are adaptable; each guest can make up their meal according to their culinary desires at that very moment, choosing from a vast range of savors and flavors. The combination of cultures and produce from the Mediterranean bring about the birth of a new vision of dining. Each person can create unknown combinations thanks to the choice of condiments and garnishes.
The menu, comprising of several sections (Soups, Salads, Steamed Fare, Spoons, Tajines, Pasta, Cereals and Vegetables, Egg, Fish, Poultry and Meat, Desserts) allows maximum freedom, especially the liberty to choose the order in which you wish to organize your meal.
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Cocotte de Legumes with watercress sauce
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The bar at Spoon Byblos. © Roméo Balancourt
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Farm lamb served on market fresh vegetables.
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Tuna with wok stir fry vegetables with orange sauce.
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The marvelous olive oil and balsamic vinegar at every table.
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"Spoon by Byblos" offers a menu with influences from all over the Mediterranean; vegetarians will be delighted with some of the dishes. Moreover, some recipes from the Riviera, Italy, Catalonia, Andalusia, Tunisia and Morocco have pride of place: skatefish rubbed with citrus, chachouka and tomato sirup; Dorade, crevettes and tomatoes hot-cold; beef tournedos “Stratespoon”, “Devil” marmelade and vegetarian moussaka. The restaurant also offers a selection of two prix fixe menus inspired by the flavors of the Riviera and Africa.
With this in mind, Linda started with the inventive combination of tastes with the Ceviché surrounded by a ring of finely chopped vegetables and tomatoes. I had the green pea cappuccino that was an intense taste of the peas in several different textures (whole peas, paste and broth) each of which gave a different take on the pea taste. I sampled the ingredients individually and all were interesting but all together they were marvelous. Linda tried the Cocotte de Legumes done in one of the new line of baking cook ware from Ducasse. It was his new signature "Cookpot” a stunning white porcelain oven-proof dish, made by Pillivuyt and designed by Pierre Tachon, in which he and his chefs cook vegetables, fruits, fish, meat and seafood. “It's taken me about twenty years to get to this point. When I first opened at the Louis XV I created “Cocotte de legumes” which was my way of cooking simple products to offset the majesty of the Monaco dining-room. Over the years I've continued and now all my restaurants will feature Cookpot dishes on their menus. The chefs will improvise what I call “glocal” dishes, that is they'll use local ingredients in the best possible way."
The dish was a modern take on the fabulous Provencal vegetable dish from "the Taste of France" and featured lines of finely sliced squash, tomatoes and eggplant over caramalized onions with herbs of Provence. Along with the very modern creations from the fertile mind of Ducasse, he has introduced in many of his restaurants dishes he first developed in the early days of his own little auberge in Haute Provence, La Bastide de Moustiers, that focuses on the clean tastes of the ingredients done in an old fashioned cooking pot but with the light and delicate touch of the master chef that he is.
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4 Chocolate on chocolate dessert.
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Rhubarb and raw and cooked strawberry dessert with vanilla ice cream.
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Bubble Gum ice-cream Dessert.
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Linda enjoyed a main course compsed in that same approach; the "Farm Lamb" served with mainly whole, baby vegetables. It was excellent. I tried the tuna with wok stir fried vegetables in an orange sauce that was very good indeed although it was less successful than Linda's perfect lamb.
Since last time we tested Spoon in 2005, Peter could not resist the chocoholic’s delight (Choco of Chocolat) of four mini desserts starting with one of the best chocolate sorbets ever, dark and rich chocolate mouse, the obligatory but superb chocolate biscuit with liquid chocolate center and the only small flaw was the a coco cone with a crème brulée center that could be better, this time he decided to to wild with the Bubble Gum Ice cream. He should have remembered he does not like bubble gum but the originality of the idea was just too irrisistable. Linda, loving anything rhubarb, sampled the Strawberry/Rhubard/Almond Sundae that was quite nice although not as good as the of raw and cooked rhubarb and strawberries with vanilla ice cream that she had had last time that was marvelous..
“Spoon by Byblos” stays faithful to the philosophy of all the "Spoon" restaurants of Alain Ducasse. The main difference is the focus on the Mediterranean tastes. It is accessible from the street just up a few stairs on the "Hotel Byblos" site. Like the one in Paris, it is a fun and reliable place to dine.
Executive chef Vincent Maillard runs the kitchen brigade of the “Spoon Byblos” as well as restaurant "B" up at the hotel and executes both his own creations and those of his boss and mentor, Alain Ducasse, to perfection.
How To Get There:
Driving:
As you come into town, follow the signs for the Citadel.
It is right opposite the park.
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