La Balance

Tucked away as what I like to call a hidden gem of Katy, is La Balance Cuisine. We’ve been a few times now and I have never been disappointed. I recently teamed up with the Cinco Ranch Foodies and with our first dinner I happened to choose La Balance. The chef and owner Manuel Atenco was excited to host us and designed a wonderful menu for our guest to test. The reason I chose this place is because it’s off the main road and a lot of people pass by it all the time without knowing it’s there. The chef/owner recently told me he’s thinking about other locations to get a larger space and be more easily seen. With being the only French restaurant in Katy, it’s also something not everyone thinks of trying due to being unfamiliar with what French food is.

For the first course we had Les Betteraves (roasted beets, blue d'Auvergne, walnuts, arugula). I have to say the dish is simple yet sophisticated. The beats where roasted just right and thinly sliced. My favorite part of the dish was the blue cheese cream. Hopefully I can get this recipe from the chef. The candied pecan gave you just enough sweetness to balance out the tang of the blue cheese.

For the main course we dined on fresh Lemon Sole with mashed potatoes, lemon caper sauce and green beans. The fish was freshly flown in and stuffed whole with lemons and herbs in parchment paper. Accompanying the fish was a well balanced lemon caper sauce. If I was a lone I might have licked the plate and probably asked for extra sauce just so I could soak it all up with a roll! It’s hard to find a place that cooks fish just right and this is a place that knows how to do it. It came out so moist and flaky I tried not to eat it fast and enjoy every bite.  

Dessert ended our night with home made Profiteroles with vanilla ice cream and hot chocolate sauce. You can’t go wrong with a dessert that’s made all from scratch! The pastry is light and flaky, topped with creamy ice cream and a hot chocolate sauce with nuts on top. Yum yum and more yum!

Overall my favorite course would happen to be the fish. I can’t stop thinking of it and how well it tasted married with the lemon caper sauce.

I can’t wait to come back and enjoy a wine pairing dinner, wine tasting or just a simple meal from their menu. Be sure to check out the web page or Facebook for upcoming events.  

Thank you to Agnes for letting me partner up with you, Chef Manuel for hosting us and all of the foodies in our new club! Stay tuned for our monthly dinner review coming soon.