Inventing Cuisine: Pascal Barbot

Paris's famed L'Astrance restaurant blossomed from the creative union and efforts of two protégés of maestro chef Alain Passard, proprietor of the trés chic L'Arpège: dining room supervisor Christophe Rohat and chef Pascal Barbot. These gentlemen left Passard to found L'Astrance in the fall of 2000, They quickly took Michelin and Frommer's by storm, racking up several coveted stars, and in the process effectively rewrote the rules of cuisine; specialties include sautéed pigeon with potatoes au gratin, turbot with lemon and ginger, and ravioli made from avocado and filled with crab. Curiously, in introducing the audience to Barbot, Rohat and their maison de cuisine, this program approaches not the proprietors themselves but three food connoisseurs, who speak with great candor and enthusiasm about their reactions to the restaurant and its food - thereby shining a light on the complex relationship between dining room and kitchen.