One of my favorite restaurants was called “Au Pied du Cochon” in Georgetown,
D.C. I loved it not so much for the food, which was tasty and fresh, nor the
great atmosphere that was a classic bistro style with honeycombed floor tiles
and banquette seating topped with mirrored backsplashes. It was for the fresh
baguettes with European-style butter served before every meal. Every time I
would go, first with my father as a child and then with friends as an adult, I
would exclaim, “My God, isn’t this butter amazing!”
My dinner partners would look at me incredulously as I slathered on heaping
spoonfuls to my toasted bread, their disbelief abating when they, too, took a
bite. I knew something was special about this heavenly spread, even before my
palette had matured. This butter was better that the quarter-pound grocery
sticks my mother kept sparingly in our home.
Who would go back to a restaurant solely for its butter? I would, and I was not
alone. Au Pied, or the Pig’s Foot, was that kind of place where you would see
diners order a bottle of wine with the bread and butter, and it would be a
complete meal. Au Pied is sadly now closed, and I mentioned to one of my friends
how sad it was to lose such a great venue for such a delectable dairy product.
In an age where butter has walked the line between the butt of cardiology jokes
and a revered ingredient in a protein diet, it felt somewhat embarrassing to
admit my sadness, and to admit how much I love butter especially one that can
be savored and enjoyed on a simple piece of bread.
Photo Caption: Homemade banana bread goes better with Kate’s homemade butter.
Photo Credit: Kristin Fuhrmann-Simmons
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