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L’Auberge Basque

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Cédric Béchade, 32, onetime protégé of Alain Ducasse and chef commis at the Hôtel de Crillon, is now proprietor of this nine-room inn and restaurant. When he moved to the Pays Basque, Béchade brought with him Samuel Ingelaere, who logged five years as head sommelier at Marc Veyrat's restaurants in Megève and Annecy. He also brought a refined design sensibility, having commissioned the Belgian furniture-and-textiles house Flamant to create bespoke interiors for every room of the 337-year-old building. here's a custard of creamy <em>brebis</em> (sheep's milk) and foie gras topped with a velouté of spring peas and tiny honey-cider croutons. Atlantic salmon arrives parcooked in a consommé of Granny Smith apples, then again in sashimi form, atop nutty quinoa cakes with a healthy dusting of the regional Espelette pepper.