What do you do next after obtaining an Economics degree in Spain and then stumble into a budding career as a male model? Open up a French vegan restaurant in New York City, of course. Such is the tale of Christophe Caron, who takes us behind the scenes of his family's exquisite French vegan restaurant - Delice & Sarrasin. Delice & Sarrasin is a 100% vegan restaurant offering a range of authentic French dishes, along with savory and sweet crepes. It's located in a beautiful space right in the heart of the West Village.
Leaving Toulouse, France for New York City was a dream that Christophe Caron had since he was a young man since he can remember. After 5 years in NYC as a model, he convinced his parents to quit their jobs back home and move to the Big Apple to open a French vegan restaurant. The dream became a reality in 2013 when he opened Delice & Sarrasin with his mother Yvette and father Patrick. Yvette is the head chef and garnered her cooking prowess at Le Garenne, a prestigious restaurant and hotel in the south of France.
Having grown up in a meat and dairy heavy culture, Christophe's plant-based roots always went against the societal grain. In fact, social pressures meant that young Christophe's parents hid the true reasons for his plant-based diet, instead blaming it on food allergies. Things are slowly changing back home, as French millennials are embracing veganism more than ever, says Christophe. Is France ready for a vegan revolution? Certainly Delice & Sarrasin puts long standing traditions to the test.
In real time, we recently dined at Delice & Sarrasin (fortunately we had a reservation because it was a full house on a Tuesday night!) and Christophe suggested a few of his menu favorites. We can personally vouch for the Foie Gras and the Escargot as starters, the Steak Frites with Truffle Fries and the Mr. Petrossian (smoked salmon crepe) for entrees. There wasn't quite enough room left for dessert but we couldn't turn down the temptation of La Toulousaine (roasted banana, salted caramel, whipped cream). The true reason for success is that the cuisine at Delice & Sarrasin uses all traditional preparation methods, while working with 100% cruelty free ingredients - as Chrstophe says, we keep the tradition but change the suppliers.
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Restaurant: Delice & Sarrasin
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