On a recent afternoon, two men no longer young are seated together at a table in the rear of Kiki’s Bistro, a modest, comfortable hangout for the French Foreign Legion on North Franklin Street.
“How about a glass of wine?” the silver-haired man wearing a sport coat inquires. “Bonne idee!” responds his companion, a burly man wearing a chef’s white jacket. A few sips later, their laughter interlocks as they exchange tales of their careers for a visitor. It seems that the Sundance Kid has found his Butch Cassidy.
Georges “Kiki” Cuisance, owner of the Bistro, came to Chicago from Paris in 1964 to help open Maxim’s de Paris here. A veteran front-of-house man with a command of a handful of languages, including English, he made friends, found backers and, in 1969, opened Le Bordeaux at the corner of State and Madison Streets for what turned out to be a 21-year run in the Loop. Two years at another nearby location are best forgotten. Then the space at 900 N. Franklin, formerly Chez Jenny, became available. “Too far off the beaten track,” people said, but came nonetheless and now, 12 years later, return customers account for 70 percent of his business.
At 55, Chef Michel Saragueta, a Basque, is nearly 15 years younger than Kiki, but they share the values and tastes of French restaurant people who learned their craft prior to the introduction of nouvelle cuisine. His impressive resume includes the Savoy and Berkeley hotels in London, the Plaza-Athenee and Lancaster in Paris and the Mayfair here, where he served as executive chef.
“For some time,” the chef says, explaining his latest career move, “I had been wanting to go back to making the food I made early in my career. Also, I wanted to work with Kiki. I knew I would be comfortable here.”
The opportunity arose last October when Kiki’s chef resigned. Michel made himself available and a deal was struck quickly.
The changes have been subtle. Kiki’s always popular ragout of mushrooms and snails is still on the menu, as are the duck pate and steak-frites. Wine prices remain moderate. Diners are discovering new dishes, however, that are intensely flavored and very tasty. Among them, sea scallops posed on beds of mashed potatoes with saffron sauce, a rich shrimp Provencale, duck two ways (leg confit and breast cooked rare) with green peppercorn sauce and a pair of savory tarts (Nicoise and mushroom-leek).
“He’s easy,” says Cuisance of his “rookie” chef. “He’s not even temperamental.”
“I was a good little boy,” concedes Saragueta. Here is a recipe from the chef’s home region, where he began cooking at age 14.
MICHEL SARAGUETA’S POULET BASQUAISE
Four servings
6 tablespoons olive oil
1 onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 green and 1 red bell pepper, seeded and sliced
6 plum tomatoes (very ripe), peeled, seeded and sliced
2 small bay leaves
1 sprig thyme
Salt and freshly ground pepper
1 chicken, about 3 pounds, cut into 10 pieces (4 legs, 4 breasts, 2 wings)
1. In a heavy-bottomed saucepan, heat 2 tablespoons olive oil with the onion and garlic and cook over medium heat until soft but not browned, about 5 minutes. Add the bell peppers and stir-fry them for 1 minute. Add tomatoes, bay leaves, thyme, salt and pepper. Adjust heat to a simmer and cook 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Do not allow sauce to boil. If necessary, set aside until chicken is cooked (see step 2).
2. Meanwhile, heat the remaining 4 tablespoons olive oil in a deep skillet (cast-iron preferred) over medium-high heat. Season chicken pieces with salt and pepper, transfer to pan and cook for 10 minutes, turning to brown all sides. Remove chicken pieces to a platter. Drain off grease and wipe out pan (do not wash it). Return chicken to pan. Pour the sauce over the chicken. Cover the pan and simmer an additional 20 minutes.
3. Transfer chicken pieces to four warm plates. Taste sauce and correct seasoning as desired. Remove bay leaves and thyme and discard. Spoon hot sauce over the chicken. Serve with rice or boiled new potatoes.
