Margaret and I dined at “L’Oasis” last evening – it is a beautiful, 2 star (Michelin Guide) restaurant in La Napoule, a small village on the outskirts of Cannes.

La Napoule.

As an aside, Ernest Hemingway lived and worked in La Napoule although it was his later and not so well received work that he completed while there – “ .”

As a further aside, we had lunch on Wednesday at the Columbe d’Or, an inn/restaurant in St. Paul de Vence situated in the hills between Nice and Cannes that is famous for its food and, more particularly, for the art on its walls. (Margaret’s only complaint is that she is getting fat and can’t stop eating this faire – good point!)

At Columbe d’Or at one time, struggling artists such as Pablo Picasso, Marc Chagall and Henri Matisse paid for their meals with their work. So, while eating you are surrounded by millions of dollars of art. Quite agreeable!

But, I digress, L’Oasis is truly, a divine dining experience as everything is exquisite from the food itself to the presentation to the décor to the attitude and attentiveness of the ever alert waiters.

Due to its formally recognized status as one of France’s fine dining establishments (2 stars is tops and there are only 50 of them), you are offered many small dishes as the meal goes on – for e.g., a petite, jellied soup to begin as a “house signature” and a special, but tiny, sorbet-based dish to clear the palate before moving on from one main dish to the next.

Dessert plate.

There are only a handful of 2 star restaurants in this area and only one 3 star (as far as I know). L’Oasis had been my favorite for many years and it was an experience of excellence in cuisine that we experienced last night.

After dinner, we toured the kitchen – a gleaming and large, inner universe of the establishment – dominated by stainless steel and three chefs who direct the operation in the manner of a military campaign. (We first met them in a photo on the back of the menu after admiring the gold plated dishes and solid silver antique settings.) This is an extremely, serious business. The running of an excellent restaurant in France, is I suppose, extremely stressful. I’ve heard that the losing of a star has resulted in at least one chef/owner suicide!

But it is clear that in order to deliverer such food consistently and on time requires a level of skill, knowledge and creativity that is very demanding. The recent best-seller “Heat” by illustrates this quite dramatically as , former editor of the New Yorker

and amateur chef, decided to spend a year “gratis” in a top New York restaurant learning how the pros do it – a good book!

Gaston et Gastounette, one of the finest restaurants in Cannes.

Our meal at L’Oasis was excellent, “Loup en croute,” Mediterranean sea bass for two baked in a pastry crusted molded fish accompanied by a sauce and vegetables that complemented the fish perfectly. (Yes – Margaret had a point – my pants are a bit snug too!)

It was a lovely evening and this report should be accompanied by the sleeper movie “Big Night” starring and directed by Stanley Tucci – a superb character actor for years who won his director’s spurs with this quiet and elegant movie.

And as a special bonus, the bizarre and (according to at least one critic) verging on the pornographic, "The Cook, The Thief, His Wife and Her Lover."

Movie Review:

Big Night

Directed by Stanley Tucci and Campbell Scott — Rysher Entertainment 1996
Starring: Stanley Tucci, Tony Shalhoub, and Ian Holm

This small, independent film is set in a struggling Italian restaurant on the New Jersey Shore during the 1950’s. The bank is set to foreclose and the two immigrant brother who own the “Paradise Restaurant” are at odds with each other as to how to survive.

Primo (Shalhoub) is the chef, an “artist” who values the art of creating good cuisine beyond the business sense of his younger brother, Secondo (Tucci), who functions as the maitre’d and runs the balance sheet of the enterprise.

The Paradise is about to open.

The struggles of the Paradise are seen against the success of “Pascal’s”, a perfect manifestation of the kind of Italian eatery that thrived during this period. Ian Holm plays the flamboyant Pascal who knows that he is a businessman first – no art in his establishment! All three roles are played with distinction.

The Paradise is attempting to provide simple but elegant cuisine based on loving preparation of old-world recipes and traditions with just the right amount of creative innovation from the dedicated chef.

But the public is having trouble accepting these unusual menu offerings – and, of course, Primo resists all attempts by Secondo to temper the menu; less risotto and more spaghetti, for e.g.

Confused patrons stare at special risotto.

The big night of the title refers to an all-out gastronomical party where the special guest is to be Louis Prima, a popular singer of the era, described as a “boisterous jazz crooner”, a sort of an oxymoron-like description but a fair one of Prima as I remember him. This special night is thought of as a kind of salvation for the Paradise – just enough press, notoriety and success that will kick start the faltering restaurant into the black and to begin its inevitable ascent into the prosperity that comes to all immigrants who work hard.

The movie is very human, the characters well-drawn and the clash between art and business is depicted perfectly. The feast itself is mouth-watering and the scenes of the dinner’s preparation are exquisite.

The fabulous dinner and party at The Paradise.

You cannot help identify with both brothers as they strive to reconcile their love for one another with the predicament of the Paradise and their increasingly desperate views of its operating fundamentals.

“Big Night” is a celebration of the human struggle, told with good humor, understanding and set against an unfamiliar movie environment. It’s good fun, bursting with empathy and somewhat of a surprise in its deft and skillful use of the background of cuisine.

Movie Review:

The Cook, The Thief, His Wife and Her Lover

Written and Directed by Peter Greenaway — Miramax 1989
Starring: Helen Mirren and Michael Gambon

This extraordinary movie is set in Le Hollandais restaurant, a fine establishment which features haute cuisine. All of this is true but the restaurant itself is a set – outlandish in many way: from the constantly changing washes of primary colors to its size, to its design to its activities.

Violent, nasty, and shocking environment both inside and outside of Le Hollandais.

This is a violent, nasty, shocking film that at times verges on the prurient! But it is highly entertaining; both sensual and sexy with both Helen Mirren (who is utterly and very seductively naked much of the time) and Michael Gambon gives bravura performances.

Sensuality reigns supreme at Le Hollandais.

This movie is a perfect companion piece to the sensitive, delicate and beguiling “Big Night” because it bludgeons our sensibilities with its outrageous situations and action, it’s brilliantly-hued costumes, its operatic music and demeanor including a boy soprano singing in the kitchen white preparing food. It is surreal, impressionistic, powerful and brutal! Time Out says, “Greenaway’s film begins with a man being stripped naked, force fed shit and pissed on, and it ends in cannibalism.”

The disturbing — and for some, unacceptable — conclusion to the film.

An utterly stylized movie, it “exerts stately power” (Time Out) as it examines the fundamental characteristics of life within the conceit of a fine restaurant.

I loved watching it again along with “Big Night” – but, not for everyone!