Chef Provocateur

• European
• French
• Japanese
• Mediterranean
• Russian
• Vegan/Vegetarian
• Allergy-Friendly
• Health Supportive
• Can work with Limited Kitchen
• Enjoy Teaching
• Event Catering
• Breakfast & Brunch

My Cooking Style

The man: https://vimeo.com/60684565
Among the wiry Brooklyn hipsters, Cointre stands out as a pompous, medieval butcher type, and is the one you want beside you when your house burns down and there is not a chair to sit on. Hidden behind an awe-inducing lion’s mane of wheat locks and a French accordion of a smile is his generous spirit and infinitely expressive mimicry and jest.

His cooking:

Simple, but misleading in its suggested modesty.

It isn’t 'French cuisine', it isn’t ethnic cooking and it certainly isn’t fusion. Antony does what he feels is best, borrowing ideas from around the globe in creating his own dishes rooted in a natural balance of flavors. His instincts are collaborative, allowing room for a lot of spontaneity and improvisation. He fetishizes on good quality ingridients, which are seasonal, local and organic.

On wine:
A seeker of truth through wine-related enlightenment, Antony is a devotee to artisanal winemaking. Favoring the small producers who harvest and treat the fruit as has been done for centuries with minimal intervention. A truly amazing meal is always paired with a few of his personal selections.

My Culinary Experience

Virtually self-taught, Antony fell in love with feeding others while at the table of a Sarthe legend, Jeannette Rabache. Madame Rabache served market-fresh feasts well into her 90s, welcoming everyone with equal warmth and bounty. Some years later, Antony worked with Raquel Carena at the Parisian cult bistro – Le Baratin. The no-frills matchbox of a dining room is a favorite among such renowned culinary figures as Olivier Roellinger, Pierre Hermé and Inaki Aizpitarte.

Having escaped Paris, Antony opened a Bed & Breakfast in Dingé, Brittany where he also developed a successful restaurant. After working more and more on private events from weddings, to large-scale cultural festivals, he decided to organize a catering company. Founding the annual natural wine festival Vini Circus in Brittany, Antony continues to be an activist for good food and wine wherever hunger takes him.

My Three Favorite Ingredients

desire, quality and balance

A Menu I Once Served 200 People

Buttermilk Soup with Drunken Mussels and Smoked Haddock
Buttermilk, Mussels, Smoked Haddock, Celery Root, Yukon Potatoes

‘This dish is anchored in the smokiness of the haddock, both intense and delicate.

The mussels: capture the ocean’s brine and breath.’

Succulent Pork Chops and Bamboo Clams Over a Spicy Carrot Sauté
Pork Chop, Clams, Carrots, Ginger, Pimentón

‘A decorous version of pork chops shredded in a confit with a layer of flattened, faintly crackly skin. The chewy clams add sweetness, and a ginger-carrot sauté gives a little spice.’

Tarte Tatin with Salted Butter
Flaky Pastry, Apples, Butter, Salt

‘A French classic baked upside-down. The sweetness of the apple paired with the saltiness of the butter concocts a lacquer of a caramel balm.’