A meal in France I

We stopped at a small, unassuming restaurant in Auxerre, “Le Trou Poinchy”. There was nothing special about it from the outside; the prices were reasonable, the place was crowded. I can’t remember what everyone else ordered, but I had the jambon persillé and the pork cheeks in coarse mustard sauce. The side dish for the pork cheeks was a vegetable ragout made with piment d’espelette. For the second time on the trip, my dad insisted on asking for the recipe—they love being asked, he said—and for the second time he was rebuked.

The two ladies next to us were enjoying their chèvre chaud salads at the end of their meals. I had, as I always did, the cheese.

I got an email from my brother the other day. It turns out that the chef at this restaurant has moved to Las Vegas, where he is the chef at Garfield’s, known more commonly as Chef JD. Here, he turns out Anglo-French classics such as Blackened Mahi-Mahi and, to be fair, 7-hour lamb. No jambon persillé or braised pork cheeks anywhere on the menu.

My favorite recipe for jambon persillé is from the Saveur cooks Authentic French cookbook. You can find the recipe at http://www.saveur.com/article/Recipes/Ham-and-Parsley-Terrine. You don’t have to make a loaf—it works well in ramekins (which, in their turn, work well as appetizer-sized portions).