Issue link: http://papercitymagazine.uberflip.com/i/907630
FOOD LE COLONIAL NICOLE ROUTHIER, HASSAN OBAYE I was visiting Manhattan in 1993 when an old friend who worked at The New York Times suggested we go to dinner at a new Vietnamese restaurant across Central Park, on East 57th Street. On one hand, I k n e w J e r r e l l e w a s o n e plugged-in New Yorker; on the other hand, I believed that Houston had the best Vietnamese restaurants in the United States — and I had eaten at many of them. How authentic could a Vietnamese restaurant in the neighborhood t h a t h a r b o r e d Bloomingdale's really be? Le Colonial turned out to be different from any restaurant I had tried before, and it was very, very good. The decor was subdued and elegant. Even a quarter-century later, I remember the perfect, tiny dumplings, delicate as flower petals. The kitchen goddess who presided there, Nicole Routhier, moved to Houston in 1997. And now, a mere 20 years later, she has overseen the re-creation of her New York concept in River Oaks District. Her title is culinary director. The executive chef is Hassan Obaye, a Moroccan who grew up in Southwest France and came to the U.S. to expand his skill set. He met his wife in California; she is from Houston, and in 2008 they relocated here. The menu at Le Colonial in Houston reflects not just the haute cuisine of Imperial-era Vietnam (as the original New York location sought to do), but also Obaye's Franco- Moroccan background and dishes from other countries of Southeast Asia — a combination of their culinary heritages. "The green curry, our best seller, is Thai," Obaye says. The Bo Luc Lac, a salad of warm caramelized filet mignon slices with watercress salad, is dressed with a vinaigrette flavored with nuoc mam, Vietnam's famous fish sauce. Items not native to Vietnam, such as salmon or kohlrabi, appear on the menu alongside traditional entrees such as caramelized fish in a clay pot. The interiors, meant to evoke 1920s Saigon, resemble the New York location, and the walls are hung with framed enlargements of black- and-white photographs "from noble families in Vietnam — and they are not for sale," says director of operations M a r t i n T h e i s ; t h e images were given to the restaurant by friends who are descendants of the subjects. And those delicate little dumplings I remember from 24 years ago? They are called Sui Cao Chien — and, yes, they are still on the menu. LE COLONIAL RESTAURANT AND BAR CA CHIEN SAIGON Crispy whole red snapper with a light, spicy garlic glaze Accoutrements: Gentner Design brass crumpled-metal bowl $250, Tina Frey Designs brass-and-cream sugar set $150, and Schwung Home vintage European tobacco container $135, all at Found. Juliska bistro flatware in gold $145, at Kuhl-Linscomb. 94