Wednesday, February 19, 7:00 P.M.
Members $85, guests $110

There are few better ways to warm your winter-weary bones than a plateful of robust French regional food. And there are few chefs more capable of ridding you of the February blues than Brittany-born chef Philippe Roussel, whose elegant renditions of French bistro favorites are both comforting and compelling.

This month marks one year since Roussel became chef and partner of Montparnasse, breathing new life into the cozy Midtown eatery. According to New York magazine, he "reinvigorated the classic French kitchen and added his trademark flair to dishes like 'smoked to order' salmon steak with horseradish vinaigrette, duck two ways (roasted and confit), and wine-braised chicken casserole."

Introduced to the culinary world by his father, who was a chef and restaurateur, Roussel attended the École Hotelière in Rennes before making his way through the most respected kitchens in France. He started his career at the Michelin three-star Troisgros in Roanne before moving on to the Michelin two-star Le Lion d'Or in Liffre and the Michelin-starred Château de Marcay in Chinon. While waiting for a chef de partie position at the world-renowned Les Près d'Eugénie of Michel Guérard, Roussel was invited to New York by Daniel Boulud, who was then at Le Régence at the Plaza Athénée. Roussel returned to France to work with Guérard, but he knew he'd return one day to take a bigger bite of the Big Apple.

He was welcomed by several top New York City kitchens, including Windows on the World, where he was a sous-chef, before becoming executive chef at Chelsea Bistro & Bar. There he met Karim El Sherif, now his partner at Montparnasse. Roussel went on to become executive chef at restaurants such as Rive Gauche and Park Bistro.

In his Virtual Gourmet Newsletter, John Mariani wrote that his fine training shows in the precision of his cooking." But despite his being steeped in the classics, Roussel also has the ability to "ring new pleasures from familiar culinary bells," according to Bob Lape of Crain's New York Business.

Now, as chef and partner at Montparnasse, Roussel is cooking the true regional cuisine of his beloved country in the town that has embraced him, and he's more at home than ever.