Issue link: http://papercitymagazine.uberflip.com/i/793905
THE PARC C h e f P h i l i p p e Verpiand and his wife Monica Bui's French provincial eatery, Étoile in Uptown Park, was an instant hit when it debuted in 2012. The French-born chef had been employed at seven Michelin- starred restaurants throughout Europe (where critical standards are among the most rigorous) before he made his way to American shores, landing first in La Jolla then Houston. Bien sür, the city crackled with excitement when rumor had it Veripand was planning yet another French haunt, this one downtown. It opened quietly just as Super Bowl crowds descended last month: Brasserie du Parc on the ground floor of One Park Place high-rise, with a view du Parc — which in this case happens to be the lush grounds of Discovery Green. Unless you're dining solo at the copper-lined bar, book a reservation for one of the marble-topped tables in the terrace room. At lunch or dinner, this bright, light, glass-enclosed dining room can literally be opened up to the landscape beyond its four walls, letting the outdoors in (but temperature controlled, of course). Beloved holdovers from Étoile include raviolis aux champignons ($12) and tartare de boeuf ($13/$26), but don't miss brasserie classics including les moules (three varieties of mussel concoctions). I adore the plump Galveston mussels napped in a smoked tomato sauce chockfull of crabmeat, with jalapeños and Gulf shrimp ($14/$22). Try the 8-ounce flat-iron steak with twice-fried pommes frites and a spring mix salad ($24) — béarnaise sauce or bordelaise au poivre take it to the next level. At dinner, coq au vin ($18) is another specialty, as are crepes anytime, both salé et sucré, served from the walk-up creperie window next door. Varieties range from crepe aux fruits de mer (a mélange of seafood blanketed in a saffron veloute sauce) to the Nutella-smeared crepe of so many French childhoods. Open lunch and dinner seven days a week. Brasserie du Parc, One Park Place at 1440 Lamar St., 832.879.2802, brasserieduparc.com. Laurann Claridge 118 TARTARE EN PLEIN AIR A WALK IN The new Brasserie du Parc MAURICIO HERNANDEZ Baies Rouges crepe