Chez Bruno The Ultimate Truffle Dining Experience Provence, France

Chez Bruno is one of the most unique restaurants in the world, specializing in dishes that include one of the rarest and most prized ingredients: black truffles.
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Foodbuzz 24, 24, 24: Black Truffle Dinner

Inspired by my recent truffle vacation to the South of France, I decided to host a black truffle dinner as part of this month's Food Buzz 24, 24, 24 series. If you have ever been curious about truffles, this post will give you a couple of ideas for how truffles can be used in appetizers, the main course and dessert.

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TRUFFLE HUNTING IN PROVENCE

 

Journey a land where the earth breeds precious nuggets of black gold, where men roam furtively to uncover such treasures, and where secrets to such an odyssey is passed on from one generation to the next in discreet whispers.  As elusive as the description of the truffle hunting appears, my experience at Joel Gravier truffière or truffle orchard was much tamer. Truffle hunting on closed grounds in broad daylight with a group of gleeful women gasping and squealing each time Mr. Gravier dug up a knobby black truffle, made it seem more like an Easter Egg hunt than a speculative adventure. But make no mistake, the thrilling tales of truffle poaching, robberies and scandals heard on the trail were more than enough to supplement my expectations of excitement and danger.

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HOW TO MAKE TRUFFLE CHEESE

 

Over the course of truffle week, I picked up a few lessons of how to incorporate this precious ingredient into interesting dishes. As with any rare ingredient, preparation and additional ingredients should be simple to avoid too much competition in flavors and to respect the essence of the truffle. Truffles and cheese are a common paring given the truffle's earthy flavors and aromas. Truffle cheese should be prepared at least two days, and preferably three days, ahead of time to allow flavors to infuse and develop.

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TRUFFLE LUNCH AT LE JARDIN DU QUAI

Following an fascinating and fun-filled truffle hunt, which I will be posting soon, we headed to Chef Daniel Hébet's restaurant, Le Jardin du Quai.

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FIRST OF MANY TRUFFLE DINNERS

When I signed up for Culinary Getaways' truffle week, I knew I was in for something good, but had no idea of the extent of the extravagance ahead of me. Every meal, including breakfast, offered an opportunity to eat something with truffles. When I entered into the kitchen I thought I had just about died and gone to heaven.

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HOW TO CHOOSE A BLACK TRUFFLE

 

As we gathered around the table for our welcome dinner at the farmhouse in Provence, our host Sherry Page gave us our first lesson on the Perigord black truffle, which is scientifically known as tuber melanosporum. Of the black truffles, the Perigord species is generally the most highly prized, and is most commonly found in the south of France. 

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WARM WELCOME TO PROVENCE

After a day in Paris I was ready to head south to the farmhouse in Luberon to kick off truffle week with Sherry Page of Culinary Getaways. From Gare-de-Lyon, Paris's largest train station hub, I took the TGV, a very impressive high speed train to Avignon, which is some 470 miles away. Within two and a half hours, I was transported to the countryside in the South of France. That is almost 200 miles per hour. How impressive is that?  I wish we had a TGV at home!

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LESSONS FROM DAY 1 IN PARIS

Eight inches shorter than me, half my dress size and brimming with a fire pistol temper, she is my cousin from Paris. When my mom suggested that I stay with my cousin on my first days in the city, I had no idea what I was getting into. Maly is the feisty pint-sized version of me, who took charge of guiding me through France's largest city. Don't let that sweet photo of her fool you, she is a feisty one!

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