THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, November 20, 1994 TAG: 9411220776
SECTION: FLAVOR PAGE: F2 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Restaurant review
SOURCE: BY DONNA REISS, RESTAURANT CRITIC
LENGTH: Long : 120 lines
THE NAME ``Le Yaca'' is a French contraction meaning ``let's,'' as in ``let's eat,'' and ``let's have fun,'' says owner Jane Dunston.
Her restaurant, Williamsburg's Le Yaca, resembles a French country inn. Comfortable chairs with cushions and high backs invite leisurely dining in the European manner.
Pale pink walls, creamy table coverings, low candles and staff in dark trousers and brocade vests maintain the mood established by founder Danielle Bourdereau in 1980. Now retired in St. Tropez, she maintains contact with Dunston, who bought the restaurant from her boss in 1987.
Cozy touches abound. A collection of dolls, for example, resides in wooden hutches. A large foyer fireplace is decorated with flowers in warm weather, and holds a crackling blaze for roasting lamb when nights are chilly.
At dinnertime, a menu of prix fixe options looks more complicated than it is. Diners choose fish, chicken, beef, veal, duck, a vegetarian specialty or the lamb leg that has become a trademark of Le Yaca. Main dishes are accompanied by three, four or five other courses.
During two visits in October and early November, we sampled most of the appetizer and soup offerings and a variety of main dishes and desserts. Altogether, these evenings were delightful despite some temperature discrepancies in the main courses.
Even before ordering, diners are offered a small appetite stimulant, perhaps a mushroom-anchovy spread or a capered cream cheese on toast - just a tang to whet the appetite. Dinners come with a choice of soups that always includes the house specialty, a creamy French onion with a hint of sweetness, a whiff of smokiness and an American accent from a swish of Jack Daniels.
Other options were pea soup with a mildly creamed vegetable base or duck consomme, a clear golden-brown broth laced with crisp vegetable pieces.
Appetizers were excellent. Escargots came in individual glass cups and the classic garlic butter. Pate was country-terrine style with a layer of fat to eat or peel away, and French bread for spreading. Unusual on local menus were the fine and surprisingly large frog legs, green-tinted by a scoop of parsley-pesto cream.
With the degustation menu came one additional prelude, an enormous tender scallop swirled with parsley-pesto cream. This six-course selection also included a sorbet before the main course.
The main courses brought the only iffy area of the evening. On our first visit, the lamb and vegetables were less warm than we expected; on our return, the main items were more satisfactory but the vegetables once again were room temperature, as if they had been sitting on the plate too long while the meats were prepared.
Dunston admits that with some new help in the kitchen, timing for the food has been less than perfect but promises the staff is back on track. Given the excellence of the rest of the meal to entice us back, we certainly hope so.
On both visits, the medium-rare leg of lamb was deliciously tender, served with a light thyme-scented sauce. The latter, while tasty, was unnecessary because the rosy slices worked so well on their own. In the cold season, lamb legs are suspended over the hearth before the wood fire; periodically, a chef appears and taps the limb, swinging it round in front of the heat.
A beautifully poached salmon fillet came with a fresh-tasting but almost cold hollandaise. But once again the main item was well enough prepared to make the sauce a true garnish rather than a necessity.
A quail special one evening brought two slightly overcooked birds with a pleasant dried cranberry sauce. And a rockfish with pesto cream was especially good. All came with rosettes of mashed acorn squash, well-seasoned scalloped potatoes, and a blend of crisp green beans with red peppers and carrot flowers.
Lightly dressed leaf lettuces garnished with a slim slice of brie and a few grapes arrived after the main course in the French manner to cleanse the palate and ease the way to some very rich sweets.
Chocolate legend is the piece de resistance here, an exquisite chocolate truffle slice in a pool of vanilla cream. Other desserts are respectable - for instance, a cheesecake, a classic creme caramel and good homemade ice creams. But if you're serious about buttery-creamy-airy chocolate, the legend is your only option.
Everything but drinks and gratuities is included in the prix fixe menus. Diners choose from a four-, five-, or six-course plan that can be as low as $17 for a four-course vegetarian dinner or as high as $38 for a six-course tenderloin of beef dinner.
Wines come from France, of course, but also from California, Oregon and Virginia; they include several moderately priced bottles and a few half-bottles for under $20; the average wine price is about $25.
Considering the quality and quantity, the setting and the service, the prices are reasonable. We've never lunched here, but the two solarium rooms look as if they'd be even more delightful by daylight. Light meals, salads and sandwiches (including brie and lamb on a baguette) range from $5.95 to $10.95.
Relaxed fine dining in the French manner is the trademark of Le Yaca. So if you're in Williamsburg for a leisurely dinner, just say ``Let's.'' MEMO: Reviews are based on a single, unannounced visit by a party of four,
unless otherwise noted. The Virginian-Pilot and The Ledger-Star pay for
the reviewer's meal and those of the guests. ILLUSTRATION: Photo
ROBIE RAY/Staff
Cozy touches abound at Le Yaca, which resembles a French country
inn. The Williamsburg restuarant's name is a French contraction
meaning ``Let's.''
Graphic
BILL OF FARE
Le Yaca
U.S. Route 60 East, Williamsburg
1-804-220-3616
Cuisine: Four-, five-, and six-course dinners based on recipes
and training from French chefs.
Atmosphere: Cozy French country-inn decor with pale pink walls,
creamy table coverings, floral accoutrements, low candles, and staff
in dark trousers and brocade vests. Charming country inn. Special
dietary needs accommodated on request.
Prices: Lunch a la carte from $5.95 to $10.95 (average $6.95);
prix fixe dinners from $17 to $38; children's portions on request.
Hours: Lunch from 11:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. and dinner from 6 to 9:30
p.m. Monday through Saturday.
Reservations: Recommended.
Smoking: about 20 percent of seating.
by CNB