food
Later this month foodies, journalists, chefs, and visitors will have more reason thanever to ock to Lancaster. On May 22, the buzz-worthy French-American restaurant Amorette will open its doors to the public. O ering prix- xe, multi-course tasting menus in an intimate environment, Amorette is about to set the benchmark for ne dining and sophisticated service for South Central Pennsylvania and beyond.
e restaurant has a powerhouse team of Michelin-trained sta including executive Chef Daniel LeBoon, a Lancaster native who studied under world-renowned chefs Alain Solivérès and Alain Ducasse at Hotel Vernet in Paris, a 2-star Michelin restaurant that was once dubbed the “Best Restaurant in the World.” Most recently, LeBoon was the chef and owner of the renowned French restaurant Josephine’s in Marietta, PA.
“Our menu will be eclectic, American style with French and Asian in uence; but more importantly, it will be made with the best product we can nd,” says LeBoon. “ e idea is to bring ingredients to the table that you won’t be able to nd anywhere else in the county.”
In addition to rare tru es, LeBoon’s cuisine will feature only the best red Argentina shrimp, ve di erent caviars, Nantucket scallops, and A5 Kobe beef. LeBoon is known for his unusual style of cooking seafood, called Beurre Monte and nicknamed “magic butter.” Diners will have the opportunity to sit at the private chef ’s table inside Amorette’s kitchen and experience an intimate, 12-course, blind tasting menu prepared just for them by LeBoon and his talented culinary team.
“My goal has always been to make you stop eating,” says LeBoon. “It sounds kind of funny, but I really want you to pause while you’re eating my food and think, oh so that’s what that’s supposed to taste like.”
Wine pairings, available with any of the multi-course menu options, will take center stage at Amorette. Michelin-trained Parisian Level 3 Sommelier ierry Lesparre has made it his mission to create an experience that will educate diners and open their palates to new, rare vintages. He has brought 500 di erent labels to Amorette from 10 major countries, with deep French and American lists.
Lesparre has plenty of his own Michelin-starred experience, too. He was mentored by the legendary sommelier Olivier Poussier, recog- nized as one of the best sommeliers in the world by the UDSF (Union de la Sommellerie Francais). Lesparre himself trained throughout France at Michelin-starred Le Pavillon Elysée-Lenôtre and Le Drouant before coming to the U.S., where he worked with French-American culinary luminaries such as Jean-Louis Palladin and Georges Perrier.
“Our vision is to provide a list full of boutique wines that nobody here has seen, and nobody else has,” says Lesparre. “Amorette’s wine list will be a place for nouveauté, which is a French way of saying newness.”
Yet another Michelin-trained member of Amorette’s executive team is Parisian-born Pastry Chef Renaud Besnard. Besnard trained at the landmark Joël Robuchon atelier in Paris as well as the Parisian Bristol Hotel. He was most recently at Aureole in New York. Rounding out the Michelin-trained executive team is maitre d’ Jillian Besnard.
Owner Tom Ponessa, a Lancaster businessman who also owns Cafe di Vetro and co-owns Marion Courtroom, is an avid foodie who travels the world seeking out Michelin-star restaurants with his wife, Donna.
“In our travels, we’ve o en thought how special it would be to bring a new level of dining to our home.” says Ponessa. “We see this restaurant more as a gi to the city of Lancaster. And it wouldn’t have been possible without the local team of champions behind the May 22 opening.”
Ponessa worked with David Lyall Interior Design to decorate the space at 401 N. Prince Street. YOHE Architecture + Design, Two Dudes Painting, and Paul Risk Construction all helped transform the bottom oors of the Press Building in downtown Lancaster into the swank, lush space that houses Amorette. e bar opens Tuesdays through Saturdays at 4:30; the dining room will open at 5. Reservations are available through opentable.com or by calling (717) 947-7710.
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