When you are invited to celebrate the 40th birthday of a Pretoria restaurant which has managed to remain on the top ten list in the city from beginning to end, the excitement is huge. DIANE DE BEER pays homage:
Pictures: Hennie Fisher
Chef patron Daniel Leusch and maitre’d Abu Fofana
I have known chef patron Daniel Leusch for as many decades and been a huge fan but I haven’t had a meal for a few years. I’m expecting nostalgia, reminiscing, and glorious food. What I didn’t expect from the classicist is a makeover, subtle as is the secret of his special craft, yet with a specific modern slant which proves why diners keep coming back.
But before I get to the menu, I returned on a Sunday at 2pm for a chat to catch up on the history as well as future dreams.
I walk into a buzzy restaurant where family and friends have packed the room for a hearty and probably heavenly Sunday lunch as my bubbles and freshly baked La Madeleine bread with cheese attest.
Cappuccino of fresh peas
Chef Daniel has long ago tapped into the Tshwane ethos. He knows we are still a traditional society when family rituals come into play. He has many regular diners who started with the grandparents and the parents and eventually, the kids are now the diners. La Madeleine is part of their dining DNA.
He first arrived in Johannesburg in 1976 as part of an adventure which he didn’t know at the time would shape his life. Johannesburg’s Carlton Hotel’s iconic Three Ships restaurant was his first port of call before he moved to the capital city where he started at the Alliance with Chez Daniel, an obvious beginning for a young chef (’77 to ’80) and was then gifted a sponsorship by the director of Boland bank where he opened his own restaurant.
La Madeleine had its start in Esselen Street, Sunnyside in 1984 where Daniel would be cooking for 16 years. This is where he made national news with his famous champagne-injected crayfish. There was a huge outcry but the foodies around the country took note – and with reason.
And finally, today’s setting for La Madeleine which has been the home for this extraordinary chef since 2000. And now he is celebrating one of Pretoria’s best and its 40th anniversary. It’s the longevity, the sustainability, the years of maintaining standards – and never losing his drive to excite diners as we discovered a few weeks ago at our celebratory dinner.
Carpaccio Japanese style
I hadn’t been for a few years because even though I’m still reporting on food and restaurants, I seldomly dine out. It’s been a privilege for a number of decades to be treated by many city restaurants and to share in their triumphs. Daniel and I come a long way and I had visited every restaurant, from the Alliance days, all these years. He has always been able to marvel at the experience he presented me with from the early days and I should have expected it now.
What I didn’t expect is that he was going to excite us (party of four with myself, chef Hennie Fisher and our partners) with beautiful classically based modern food.
I should have known. His generation of European chefs, Daniel notes, were influenced and inspired by the great Paul Bocuse. I had to smile when the cappuccino of fresh pea arrived. He had refined a masterful green pea soup that I remember from earlier days and I knew we were off on one of Daniel’s food fantasies and we were going to have an extraordinary meal.
This was followed by a carpaccio Japanese style (where his son is in the hotel management business) served with diced daikon. Simply sublime and it transported me back to that island of fine cuisine.
Paying tribute to his roots, next were some exquisite Provencal inspired tartlets with delicate fresh and cooked vegetables, a pastry that’s melt-in-the-mouth, shavings of Parmesan and a hint of basil pesto. Heavenly!
And then he came with a delightful surprise. The mains were a classical paella. And as any chef will do, he went to find fish where he knows it will be fresh as fresh can be, in Cyrildene’s Chinatown. The picture tells the story. He couldn’t have picked something more delicious. How can one not feel utterly spoilt when a fine dining chef presents you with something as wonderful as that Spanish classic.
Classic Daniel Leusch Paella
So in a sense, even though his imagination was on high alert, he did opt for the classical. Only it wasn’t what I had imagined it would be.
Then came what he cleverly called a pre-dessert tartlet, filled with a paste of tomato jam and a raspberry sauce. A marvellous transition to what was to come.
The dessert was next and he showed off his spectacular skills with four different sweet delights. It simply started a merry-go-round at the table as we moved from one to the next and started all over again.
From a homemade ice cream with a salted caramel sauce between crackling brandy snaps; meringue filled with marmalade of fresh strawberries, coconut cream and raspberries; brandy snaps filled with cream, ricotta, raspberry sauce and ice cream. The combo was spectacular and the way a meal should be concluded, all sweetness and light.
Daniel’s wife Carine who many regulars will remember was the pastry chef in earlier times and his daughter Anne, who followed in his footsteps and now cooks in France in the Paris environs, was also a pastry specialist amongst all their other skills, but he’s no slouch and he has obviously well-trained staff.
Like his maitre’d Abu Fofana from Côte d’Ivoire who recently returned to his former post where he is a huge favourite, he takes his cue from Daniel and is perfectly attuned to diners and their needs.
Daniel of course has not changed a jot from when I first met him probably at his first post at the Alliance. He has kept his accent and his familiar manner of introducing the menu and mingling with the diners throughout the meal. He’s wonderful to watch as he moves between tables chatting away while observing what may be needed.
While I was writing at a table on the side, I could hear his voice as he explained the different dishes which meant I was smiling all the time. There’s a charm, a warmth and generosity of spirit when you dine and a desire to keep everyone happy while dining. That’s worth going back for time and again.
I knew – as always – what to expect from the man himself. What was unexpected was the meal and the surprise element, the menu. I wouldn’t have been let down if I was served what I had come to expect as classic Daniel.
But the way he invigorated the menu on the day, the thoughtfulness of inviting us (myself and chef Hennie Fisher who not only took these pictures but also wrote for many decades raving about all his accomplishments) and then overwhelming us with a spread that simply took our breath away, made this 40th celebration something extraordinary. And when I look back and reflect, should have been expected.
That’s why Daniel Leusch could sustain La Madeleine for 40 years. That’s where his heart lies. He still chooses all the produce himself. He knows that’s where the heartbeat is established.
And simply stated: “It’s my life!” says Chef Daniel. What an honour to be given a taste of just that!
De Beer Necessities 