Chez Billy Sud: Splendid, Delightful post-Restoration
By • November 30, 2023 0 1003
Chez Billy Sud, Georgetown’s beloved haunt for le vraie chose (the real thing) in French dining, has reopened after a pause for renovations. Happily, it seems that little has changed – the bistro at 1039 31st Street is as welcoming and delicious as ever.
A charming, white-walled dining room exudes a country-house feel. Across the sail-shaded courtyard, sister establishment Le Bar à Vin features a cozy wood- and brick-accented wine bar. Chris Janiak, the complex’s manager, explains that while the restaurant’s décor is refreshed, the major changes are things customers don’t see – a revamped kitchen and a private dining room upstairs.
Le Bar à Vin adjacent to Chez Billy Sud. Instagram photo.
Brendan L’Etoile, the bistro’s veteran chef is excited about the kitchen upgrade. Now, he can add new tastes to the menu. Of course, he assures us, menu classics (like onion soup, escargot and steak frites) “never change.” As always, they are “made with French technique, love and attention to detail.” The ever-popular onion soup is a quintessential example. The “secret,” says the chef, is to “properly” caramelize the onions – a slow, painstaking process. Then L’Etoile adds masala wine for sweetness and a light poultry stock. Steak frites, another menu staple, feature a carefully sourced strip steak that’s “close to prime and has lovely marbling.” The accompanying frites are made with Idaho potatoes “blanched many times to remove the starch and make them crispy.”
Classic steak frites continue to delight at Chez Billy Sud. Instagram photo.
One of the new dishes on the menu showcases mussels. “The preparation is on steroids,” L’Etoile says. That means “strong flavors paired with strong flavors,” underpinned by bivalves in “perfect condition.” The restaurant sources mussels grown in Maine along ropes that dangle close to the sea floor.
L’Etoile test drives new dishes as weekend specials. Right now, he’s working on bouillabaisse – the intensely savory fish soup from the south of France. Leeks, fennel and “multiple variations” of anise flavor a broth “made the traditional way.” He builds a “giant vat of boiled fish and broth” that he “makes suitable for a white tablecloth restaurant.” L’Etoile believes there is “magic in the soup” itself. It comes to the table loaded with fish filets, head-on prawns and a classic rouille accompaniment.
Courtesy Chez Billy Sud.
Brunch service has resumed with omelets, a croque madame and a burger – as well as many of the classic soups and dinner entrees. Of course, says the chef, some see it “as an excuse to start drinking early.” The restaurant’s French-focused wine and beer and its interesting cocktail roster offer many options.
Although “dessert is not a focus,” says L’Etoile, he points with pride to the rice pudding. He uses a technique he learned from a chef in Paris. Rice is cooked in milk for a “long, long time.” Then whipped and flavored, the result is like sweetened whipped cream. L’Etoile gives the pudding an American touch by topping it with sweetened, toasted Rice Krispies.
Chez Billy Sud’s management is looking into opening for lunch service – for at least a few days a week. That’s good news for Georgetown.
