Introduction to Maison Passerelle
Printemps, the decadent Parisian retailer doling out luxury garments and goods since 1865, has branded itself with the tagline, “not a department store.” In appointing Gregory Gourdet as culinary director of its first New York outpost at One Wall Street, the high-fashion hub ensures its new fine dining restaurant, Maison Passerelle, is “not just another French meal.” Gourdet, who first rose to fame on Top Chef in 2015, has since won three consecutive James Beard Awards, including Best Chef, and opened a thriving Haitian restaurant in Portland, Oregon.
Location and Ambiance
Maison Passerelle is situated on the first floor of a 50-story Art Deco landmark in the Financial District. It opened on April 17, nearly a month after Printemps debuted dressed in whimsical, aquatic glass installations on the first day of spring. While Maison Passerelle has some dishes one may expect to eat in a luxury Parisian department store in New York, such as a $52 lobster cocktail, splayed open and smothered in Creole cocktail sauce, and $150 steak frites, Gourdet doesn’t stay in the lines of static French fare. Instead, he colors outside old trade routes, infusing the menu with Haitian, Caribbean and African flavors.
Design and Interior
Designed by Printemps’ architect Laura Gonzalez, the restaurant’s interior is a vivacious sea of emerald green and burnt orange. Like the rest of the store, it is maximalist and romantic, yet down to earth with leafy encaustic tile floors, natural wood accents and a stained glass wall. The only element that does feel like a department store is the lighting—more akin to a fitting room than an evening with a James Beard Award-winning chef like Gourdet.
Menu and Cuisine
Through cooking, creativity and first-hand knowledge as a second-generation Haitian-New Yorker, Gourdet celebrates the foodways of people who persevered through oppression, slavery and French colonization. The chef turns ingredients like sugarcane—symbolic of Haiti’s history and the successful rebellion of enslaved workers against French rule in 1804—into beautiful sauces draped over meats at one of France’s long-standing luxury shops.
Signature Dishes
I began the meal with the creamy asparagus soup and a warm plantain bread loaf, served whole with cultured local and spicy plant butter ($16 and $14, respectively). The duck leg confit, which Gourdet recommended as a personal favorite, is bathed in a cane syrup glaze and jus made from tamarind, an indigenous African fruit—melty-sweet like a date and encased in a thin, rustic shell. Priced at $72, the duck breast, sliced thin and served rare, is accompanied by a fall-off-the-bone drumstick with crisp skin that, when swiped through the syrupy brown sauce and bitten into, really steals the show.
Other Notable Dishes
Dishes like diri ak sos pwa, a recipe Gourdet learned from his mother, are yet another testament to how the chef honors his personal history at Printemps. The depth of flavor in this simple side reflects the generations who preserved African food traditions in Haiti and the Americas. Served in two separate bowls for $16, the rice is fragrant and buttery. The beans are not whole and peppered in, but a thick soupy mixture layered with spice. To top it off, Gourdet squeezes a drizzle of olive oil across the top, which adds earthiness to the comforting dish.
Beverages and Desserts
The cocktail and dessert lists salute the tropics with sweets such as a hibiscus-guava sorbet, shaved ginger-lime ice and mint, and a caramelized pineapple cake with fermented pineapple sorbet. The creamy kokoye punch is made with Glenlivet, rum, sherry, oolong tea and clarified coconut milk, while the Tamaren Royale is avua cachaça, pineau de Charentes, brown butter and tamarind. Cocktails range from $20 to $28. Wines by the glass and bottle lean heavily on French classics.
Conclusion
Some may reserve a seat at Maison Passerelle because of the reputation that precedes Printemps’ fanciful shopping experience. But what makes a dinner here truly worthwhile is the attention Gourdet pours into his craft—defining, one diri ak sos pwa at a time, what French-Haitian-Afro-Caribbean food can be.
FAQs
Q: Who is the culinary director of Maison Passerelle?
A: Gregory Gourdet is the culinary director of Maison Passerelle.
Q: What type of cuisine does Maison Passerelle serve?
A: Maison Passerelle serves French-Haitian-Afro-Caribbean cuisine.
Q: What are some signature dishes at Maison Passerelle?
A: Some signature dishes at Maison Passerelle include the creamy asparagus soup, warm plantain bread loaf, duck leg confit, and diri ak sos pwa.
Q: Are there any other dining options available at Printemps?
A: Yes, Printemps offers several other dining options, including Café Jalu, a champagne bar, the Red Room bar, and Salon Vert.
Q: What are the hours of operation for Maison Passerelle?
A: Maison Passerelle is open from 5:30 to 10:30 p.m., and is accessible from a separate entrance.
