Thursday Kitchen: Do the Can Can!!

There are a handful of elements that motivate me to visit a restaurant. For some places, it's just atmosphere. I just like the look, the feel, and what I can accomplish in the space. An example of such an eatery would be Aroma's in Colonial Williamsburg or The Coffee Beanery. The food is not worth writing about and, often, the coffee is only moderately better than Starbucks because it simply is not Starbucks. But, they both feature hardwood floors, warm colors in the interior, either interesting or unobtrusive decor, and usually there are people working on laptops or friends catching up in their own corner. Then there are some places to which one returns for the novelty... like a Rainforest Café or a Williamsburg Tavern. It's not that the food is great, it's just fun to be there. After that, I am obviously drawn to places serving great food such as Morimoto's in the Meat Packing District of New York City or, tucked away here in The Burg, the fabulous Fat Canary.

Can Can, located in the Carytown area of Richmond, has it ALL.

The atmosphere is straight out of a movie. The bulbous lights are dim and there are plenty of corners for private conversations or solitude. I can just as easily go with people and have a glorious time chatting as I can go alone to read. There are big windows along the Carytown strip so one may observe the passerby, the human drama. They also have outdoor tables with umbrellas guarding diners from the sun or the garish street lights. I've never had a bad experience with the wait staff (I probably shouldn't have said that... oh well)... come to that, I've never had a bad experience there at all. The floors are tiled, the bar is long and welcoming, and the bathrooms are rather pretty (very European with wooden stalls, lovely tile work in the walls, old fashioned sinks, etc). There's something about the place that coaxes you into wanting to lounge for hours just enjoying the finer things in life... it combines the elegance of gourmet food with homespun charm of simple white cloth napkins and plain silverware.

The novelty of Can Can derives from its French-ness. The menus are covered in the French name for plates along with the English (so as not to be stuffy but also, I hope, to educate). They bake French baguettes and boules or the absolutely most mouth-watering bread on earth... brioche. They offer the quintessential French foods such as escargot, croque-monsieur, classic oinion soup, etc... I can say, since I visited France once and made a point to eat absolutely everything, that these offereings are really rather close to the originals on the other side of the pond. This place is also the only French restaurant in Virginia (after trying Le Yaca and a handful of options in DC) that my French friend genuinely enjoyed. She is picky even on her turf in Lyon, but she was very content with a glass of French rosé and steak frites (my eyes are tearing at the memory... so lost she felt in America until she found this little corner of home).

But, if all that isn't enough, the food is amazing. Following the French method of fresh ingredients and simplicity, there's something for everyone. They make an excellent béchamel sauce to slather on absolutely everything... and that's more important to good food than it sounds. Jo and I had a fava bean salad yesterday that included argula, diced carrots and celery, with fava beans and dressing. So simple yet so filling and crisp for a summer afternoon. And for all the non-dairy eaters, their sorbet will keep you coming back. The other day, their trio consisted of strawberry, banana rum, and black currant. More flavor than sugar and just SO tasty. The wine list is partial but not bad and they have several entertaining options for the beer drinkers both on tap and in the bottles. They make authentic French cocktails as well such as the classic southern French Ricard.

French cuisine is not everyone's thing, so there are well made American favorites like burgers or even the ocassional and mostly seasonal attempt at Italian classics such as summer vegetable rissoto. Vegetarians can get away with eating here as well as Can Can makes magic with eggplants, salads, fennel, squash blossoms, beans, etc... the vegetables do not dominate, like most restaurants, but it's not impossible for veggie lovers to join the fun.

I am always anxious for excuses to make the drive to Richmond so that I might justify the trip to this, my favorite restaurant near the peninsula. Paint your own pottery night, anyone?

(images from www2.richmond.com and http://farm4.static.flickr.com)