Bise: Tradition with Vitality

François Bise’s is one of the shortest three-star menus. This is partly because he would rather cook for fewer customers than he does. Perhaps, too, it reflects the diffidence which he has always felt as a result of his parents’ fame. One senses a reluctance to stray too far from their celebrated standards. The poularde braisée à la crème d’estragon, which appears as soon as fresh tarragon comes into season, and the gratin de queues d’écrevisses were two of his mother’s most famous dishes. These, and several others of the formidable Marguerite Bise’s recipes, are still the foundation of the menu at L’Auberge du Père Bise.