La Femme French

Left: Valrhona chocolate and hazelnut coulant. Right: Warm green pea soup emulsified with extra virgin olive oil and Iberian ham flakes. Photos provided to China Daily

Wagyu beef shortribs lovingly braised in port-wine sauce.

Beijing

Ja'an is building a reputation as one of Beijing's most refined French restaurants. Pauline D. Loh finds out why.

There was a delicacy to the meal that was intriguing. There's French cuisine and there's French cuisine, but the menu at Ja'an seemed to be just a little more.

Perhaps it was the setting. Eating at a lavishly renovated and retrofitted wing of the oldest and most illustrious luxury hotel in the capital city is already history enough.

The Raffles Beijing sits on the E block, the oldest wing of the Beijing Hotel, an edifice that has seen countless Chinese and international leaders, movers and shakers come and go through its doors. Once the tallest building on the fringe of the Forbidden City, it rubs shoulders with the seat and symbols of government at Zhongnanhai and Tian'anmen.
Ja'an, of course, is the Raffles Beijing's jewel in the crown, carefully placed in an alcove to the left of the entrance lobby.

It is all an appropriate setting for a gourmet meal and our taste buds were already primed for the treat.

A beautiful green pea soup arrived in a glass, and the eyes were won over. The soothing verdant hue was topped by a froth of snowy white, on which flecks of pink Iberian ham provided contrast in color and taste. It is a soup you want to savor slowly while suppressing the urge to slurp it up and lick your chops.

The description of the Australian Wagyu beef short ribs was tempting enough that all three of us wanted to order that for the main course. One of us dithered slightly and lingered over the yellow fin tuna accompanied by organic vegetables. The other two decided she should opt for that so we could also have a taste.

We did, and while we liked the freshness of the fish well enough, we were content to fall back on our short ribs, rich tender morsels that were almost caramelized in their sweetness.

It was a generous portion, too, and ideal for bigger appetites. Still, it is one of those dishes that you cannot stop eating until the last rich juices are carefully mopped up.

Then came the dilemma of space. There was still dessert, and the Valrhona chocolate and hazelnut coulant stood out from the menu page. Would we have room even though our middles were already bulging? There would be a 20-minute wait, we are told. Perhaps that would be enough time for our short ribs to settle.

We took the plunge and ordered.

When the platter arrived, we knew we had made the right decision. The fragrance of the chocolate as its molten center flowed verified its pedigree. This is Araguani chocolate by Valrhona, arguably the best chocolate in the world.

After the meal, I had the pleasure of meeting the chef for a short chat, and she was a surprise. Pretty and petite, Chef Laia Pons Gonzales seemed as delicate as the dishes she presented. But you knew she was made of sterner stuff. Anyone who survived working in Michelin-starred French kitchens had to be.

The Wagyu ribs, she says, took two days to prepare, and they had to be slowly simmered in a port wine sauce that reduced to a final syrupy coating that dressed the ribs with their own essence.

Chef Laia is from Spain but had trained in France, combining two major European culinary influences with a natural aptitude. And we have to believe her when she says her philosophy is: "We are what we eat", and that she translates that philosophy in the kitchen.

That delicacy in the menu that intrigued us so? It's her feminine touch.