My friend and I decided to check out the new center in Merrifield called MOSAICthat combines retail stores, a grocer, restaurants and a movie theatre (that serves wine!) with apartments. They call themselves an “Urban Retail Development.” As we walked through and marveled that Last Call Studio by Neiman Marcus lives with Target and Mom’s Organic Market, we happened by Le Pain Quotidien, and wondered what it meant and how to pronounce it!
Le Pain Quotidien (it means Daily Bread and is pronounced luh paN koh-ti-dyaN) is a bakery and eatery that offers homemade treats made with organic ingredients whenever possible. They also use reclaimed wood and recycled Gypsum and other environmentally-friendly materials in their restaurants, right down to cleaning supplies and packaging. What I noticed when I walked in was not the green materials used but the serene feeling when you walk in and what they call “the communal table” where anyone can sit down and “break bread with friends or strangers.”
Le Pain Quotidien serves breakfast, lunch and dinner featuring soups, salads, tartines – open face sandwiches – and, of course, the bakery items which include croissants, pain au chocolat, brioche, and assorted breads. They also feature luscious pastries – lemon tarts, mini mousse duos, cookies and Belgian brownies – to name just a few.
My friend and I were quite hungry, so we sat, ordered a latte and a Jasmine tea and scanned the menu for our lunch treats. She selected the Chicken and Smoked Mozzarella Tartine with Pesto. Le Pain Quotidien serves a variety of these light sandwiches with toppings such as avocado, smoked salmon, tuna with hummus and white beans and many others. I ordered the Goat Cheese and Arugula Salad.
When our food arrived, which it did quickly due to our friendly and efficient waiter, we noticed how fresh the food was and that it was piled high on the plates. My friend ate every bit of her tartine as well as the vinegary little pickles that were served with it. On the other hand, I could not finish the (large quantity of) goat cheese on my salad even though I tried. It was so good! It reminded me of the French goat cheese called Boucheron, which
has a stronger flavored center and a slightly stinky rind. Delicious!
The selections we made were light enough to allow us to order dessert – and you don’t want to miss dessert here! I selected the pistachio tart. It was less of a tart and more of a small cake moistened with syrup and topped with a load of whole toasted pistachios. My friend ordered the apple almond tart, filled with tart apples and a lace of almond flavor. Both were quite good.
Le Pain Quotidien is a chain but it doesn’t feel that way. When you are sitting in their light and airy restaurants sipping your creamy latte and nibbling on a pastry, you feel as if it is as individual as you.
Le Pain Quotidien
MOSAIC
8296 Glass Alley
Fairfax, VA 2203
www.lepainquotidien.com
