FACES & PLACES
LOCAL COLOR
FEBRUARY 2010

The Last Dover Sole
by Susan Sandor

La Bonne Auberge, a classic French restaurant in New Hope, Pennsylvania, served its last dinners to a full house of loyal gastronomes on December 19, the night a terrific snowstorm swept through the Delaware Valley. Like most patrons at the tables that final evening I would have trekked in snow shoes to get there. Feasting on chef Caronello’s culinary fare has been a particular indulgence for years. And how could anyone pass up the last Dover sole?

This Bucks County icon retained a coveted Four Diamond Award since the AAA initiated the program 17 years ago. The restaurant was also one of the first in the area to receive a Distinguished Restaurants of North America Award of Excellence, known as a DIRONA, and has held the prestigious award ever since.

Owners, chef Gerard Caronello, his front lady and wife Rozanne, and daughter Sophie, who was the jane-of-all-trades in the family business, answer some questions from behind the kitchen door after 38 years in this exclusive interview.

SS: You’ve had a long ride as restaurateurs so tell me about your journey.
Rozanne & Gerard: Challenging, stressful, exhausting and totally rewarding in the long run.

SS: When you were in training did you ever imagine it would lead you here?
Gerard: Where am I? (laughter) I began as an apprentice at age 15, so no, no, no.

SS: What did receiving so many coveted awards over the years mean to you?
Rozanne: Made it all worthwhile.

SS: What were you fed as a child of a high profile French chef?
Sophie: Nothing but veal and I don’t touch it now. Dover sole and baked Brie were also staples.

SS: For the past 6 plus years you’ve traveled nearly every weekend from your home in Washington to work at the restaurant. What was your motivation?
Sophie: It was second nature. I started washing dishes standing on a bucket when I was 6 years old.

SS: Most popular item on the menu EVER?
Rozanne: Rack of lamb and Dover sole. I don’t think we could have lasted so long without them.

SS: What was your greatest extravagance in the business?
Gerard: Silver Cristofle cloches with a price tag of $475 apiece.

SS: What was your greatest achievement as restaurateurs?
Gerard: To be able to run a successful restaurant and raise two kids.
Rozanne: And to retire on our own terms at the top of the game, not owing anyone. Independence.

SS: What was your best perk?
Gerard: Being able to indulge in the finest food and wine at wholesale prices.

SS: How did you feel having to take your own main meal early?
Gerard: Three-thirty was dining time and it was good for the staff and us. We worked it off in the kitchen and dining room.

SS: How did you manage to maintain a healthy weight being in the constant company of such fine food and drink?
Gerard: Good food doesn’t make you fat.

SS: You often referred to Dover sole as “the queen of fish.” Who is king?
Rozanne: The person who cooks it, Gerard.

SS: Did you ever hear a customer say, “There’s a fly in my soup”?
Sophie: No, but because we often garnish with mint from the garden we’ve heard, “There’s an ant on our table.”

SS: Best customer?
Gerard: The dot-commer who frequently purchased jeroboams of the finest wines.

SS: Famous customers?
Rozanne: Ann Miller, Cindy Crawford, William Conrad, Peter Falk, Dr. J, Jim O’Brian, Monica Malpass, and of course, the guy who bought the jeroboams.

SS: Worst customer?
Gerard & Rozanne: We’ve forgotten.

SS: Worst nightmare?
Gerard & Rozanne: A power outage on a Saturday night when the first seating was nearly finished, but not quite, and the second seating started arriving. Not only did free food and drinks fly but we had to discard the entire contents of our walk-ins. The power was out for 20 hours.

SS: Most eccentric?
Rozanne: One notable gentleman who dined with us every week for about 20 years requested the same table and ordered the same entrée every time, served Pittsburgh rare.

SS: Oddest request?
Rozanne: Someone who handed us a list of allergies and demanded that Evian be used in anything requiring water. We were expected to wash her dishes with Evian before serving!

SS: Memorable faux pas?
Rozanne: A serious faux pas was avoided by simply knowing our customers. A couple who dined here often were in the throws of divorce when each made a reservation with their new significant others on the same night. I talked one out of coming. 

SS: If you could change one thing about your past experience what would it be?
Gerard & Rozanne: Retire sooner! (lots of laughter)

SS: What advise for young chefs who are just beginning their own journey?
Gerard: Learn from other chefs before stepping out on your own.

SS: What advice for dinners?
Gerard: When traveling abroad big hotel restaurants are generally a very safe bet.

SS: Biggest peeve eating at other restaurants?
Gerard: Wait staff saying, ‘My name is blah, blah, blah.’ After all, I don’t want to date them.

SS: What chef, dead or alive, do you most admire?
Gerard: My boss when I was an apprentice in Feurs, France. He never cut corners and had the highest standards.

SS: Give us one tip that every home cook can appreciate.
Gerard: Stay simple, especially when entertaining, use herbs.

SS: Where would you choose to have your last meal?
Gerard & Rozanne: Home, The Bristol in Hotel Le Bristol, or George Cinq in Paris in order to feel like a king before saying au revoir.

SS: What would you order?
Gerard: Turbot. It can be prepared so many ways and taste excellent.

SS: Tell us a secret?
Rozanne: Team of two equals success in key areas, kitchen and front.

SS: Did you ever dream of running La Bonne Auberge after your parents retired?
Sophie: It would never be the same and my parents would never wish it upon me.

SS: Now that the door to La Bonne Auberge is closed what do you envision for the future?
Rozanne: Drinking all the wine left in the cellar.