I’m sure if I say caviar, some of you will picture Greta Garbo in her fur coat and diamonds around her neck dipping a mother-of-pearl spoon in a bowl full of caviar.
Well, time has changed and Charles de Saint Vincent, with his brand Boutary, has taken the challenge to shake the image and the reputation that people have of caviar. Don’t get me wrong, you will not, in the next ten years, be spreading caviar on your bread like peanut butter!
© Caliwa Photography
Caviar is still a refined and sophisticated product, and it is of course quite expensive. Other products like champagne, salmon, and oysters are also luxurious products but paradoxically, over the years, they’ve lost the image of being inaccessible. This is what Charles de Saint Vincent would like to achieve; make caviar accessible again!
Charles de Saint Vincent © Caliwa Photography
To learn more about caviar, you can read the full article I wrote for the magazine Inspirelle.
Boutary is also a restaurant in the 6th arrondissement where Charles de Saint Vincent recreates the spirit of his family castle in Tarn-et-Garonne: le Boutary! With the help of the artist Anne Grim, he reproduces the space by reinventing different rooms: the garden, the chapel, the red room, and the ballroom.
© Caliwa Photography
It’s in this atmosphere that he invites you to discover the caviar and make your experience come to life. The cherry on the cake is when Charles de Saint Vincent brings a tray with the caviar box and mother-of-pearl spoons and invites you to taste the caviar of the day in the royal tasting way.
© Caliwa Photography
It’s a tradition that started with the tsars’ tasters. They used to put a knob of the tsar’s meal on their hand, at the anatomical snuff (intersection of the thumb and the index) and brought it to their mouth to taste it and make sure the meal was not poisoned. The fishermen in the Caspian Sea seized the tradition, by irony first and then kept it as a ritual.
Royal tasting © Caliwa Photography
The tasting occurs at the beginning when you arrive. This is a nice way to loosen people and introduce them to the caviar. Charles de Saint Vincent is not alone for this enterprise; two charming women lead the restaurant with rigor and professionalism, Fatima Meftah, the restaurant manager, and Chef Kelly Rangama in the kitchen.
Fatima Meftah © Caliwa Photography
Chef Kelly climbed the ladder of the profession by working with Michelin-starred chefs. She worked as a sous-chef at L’Arôme with chef Thomas Boullault, her mentor, and draws her creativity from Reunion Island, her country of origin. On the menu, we can see different dishes with ingredients coming from Reunion Island such as combava and L’aloe Vera.
Chef Kelly Rangama © Caliwa Photography
Chef Kelly suggests different dishes where she carefully combines caviar with other ingredients. The potato with caviar is a true success and the presentation is spectacular. The crab with caviar, avocado, and sweet pepper of the Vera is absolutely delicious!
© Caliwa Photography
From the sea: The Sea bass with asparagus. The blood orange sabayon brought a citrus flavor that accompanies the fish very well. From the land: Pluma Iberica glazed with licorice served with vegetables of the season. Both embody chef Kelly’s creativity.
© Caliwa Photography
The desserts are exquisite and quite impressive. The île flottante with Victoria pineapple roasted with galabé sugar from the Reunion and coconut cream served with combava meringue is a killer. The presentation is beautiful and the taste very elegant. I also tried the strawberry & chocolate with lemon sorbet and Aloe Vera gel cubes; it was truly divine!
© Caliwa Photography
There are many ways to appreciate the caviar at Boutary. Savor it with the meal created by Chef Kelly or share a box with your guests. The restaurant offers a fun way to discover caviar, a blind tasting of three different caviar kinds.
© Caliwa Photography
I really appreciated my experience in the caviar world and particularly enjoyed the royal tasting! To my great happiness, caviar is always tasted twice.
Don’t hesitate to tell them you come from my side, I assure you, you will love the experience!
Boutary
25 Rue Mazarine, 75006, Paris
📞 +33 (0)1 43 43 69 10
Price: $$$
