In the early 1900s, Eugène Cornuché sold Maxim’s, but it continued to flourish as the haunt of the city’s glitterati and began to appear in artwork and literature. With its stunning new décor fashioned by the finest artisans, Maxim’s was once again embraced by Paris’s elite and its run as one of the world’s best-known dining destinations began. It was Cornuché who transformed the modest bistro into an Art Nouveau masterpiece in 1900. Despite her efforts that filled the little bistro nightly, Gaillard’s Maxim’s had financial difficulties and he handed it over to a successful French businessman Eugène Cornuché. Within days, Maxim’s was discovered by Irma de Montigny, a popular socialite (or courtesan or comedienne, according to various accounts) who made it her mission to assure the restaurant’s success by introducing it to her fashionable friends and admirers. Maxim’s de Paris, the restaurant that would become the world’s most famous restaurant during the second half of the 20th century, dates to the 1893 opening of a little bistro on Paris’s Rue Royale by a waiter named Maxime Gaillard. The sangria is a nod to the 1950 hiring of Cardin by Christian Dior as a tailor for the House of Dior. Additional cocktails include The Cylindre (cognac, absinthe, pomegranate jelly, lime juice, hibiscus lime syrup), named after Cardin’s men’s collection, and The Tailor’s White Sangria (white grape juice, pomegranate vodka, Triple Sec, simple syrup, honey, pinot grigio), among others. Germain, gin, lemon juice, hibiscus lime syrup), which is a reference to Cardin’s penchant for designing costumes and masks for the theater. They include the Le Costumier, or The Costume Maker (champagne, St.
On Saturday, they will be at Brooklyn’s Grand Army Plaza market.Ĭocktails inspired by the life of Pierre Cardin (who at 97 is still active with his fashion, licensing and restaurant empire) were created by Loriana Sanabria for Maxim’s at The Norm. On Wednesdays and Fridays, they’ll be shopping at the Union Square Greenmarket in Manhattan. Because classic French cuisine is so rooted in farm-fresh local ingredients purchased almost daily at regional markets, Chef Bolton is taking Great Performances’ hallmark brand promise of sourcing locally one step further: he’s charged Chef Mejias and other members of his culinary team to purchase ingredients locally to coincide with the Maxim’s at The Norm’s Wednesday through Sunday hours. The $45 three-course prix fixe highlights contemporary versions of dishes from the Maxim’s de Paris cookbook, Chez Maxim, including Salade Lyonnaise - seasonal greens, bacon lardons, croutons, poached egg Poulet Rôti aux Pêches - roast chicken, grilled peaches, baby arugula, chimichurri sauce Coquilles Saint-Jacques - pan seared scallops, oyster mushrooms, artichokes, escarole, white wine sauce and Profiteroles - vanilla ice cream, praline, warm chocolate sauce. Offering à la carte and prix fixe options, the menu features French classics such as Gougères, Steak Frites and Marquise de Chocolat. Saul Bolton, The Norm’s executive chef and Andy Mejias, the restaurant’s chef de cuisine, have designed a menu for Maxim’s at The Norm as an ode to French cuisine in general and a homage to Maxim’s in particular. The original Maxim’s, on Paris’s Rue Royale, opened by Maxime Gaillard in 1893, purchased by Pierre Cardin in 1981. One wall provides glimpses of the art nouveau masterpiece that is the interior of the restaurant which opened in 1893, while another has been refashioned as Maxim’s famed exterior on Paris’s Rue Royale, complete with awning. The Norm’s ceiling has been painted Maxim de Paris’s signature deep burgundy, while the bar now boasts the gold that is such a distinctive part of Maxim’s logo, one of the most recognized globally.
This initiative to give The Norm a Gallic makeover comes on the heels of the tremendous success the museum and the restaurant had by giving The Norm a Mexican persona for the duration of the blockbuster Frida Kahlo: Appearances Can Be Deceiving exhibition. The Norm, the museum’s full-service restaurant, has been transformed into Maxim’s at The Norm, with a new look and menu which will be in place throughout the Pierre Cardin: Future Fashion exhibition.
To complement Pierre Cardin: Future Fashion, Great Performances Hospitality Group (GP)-the Brooklyn Museum’s exclusive culinary partner-worked with museum leadership to bring an additional multi-sensory element of the iconic designer’s world to the exhibition: Maxim’s de Paris, the legendary restaurant owned by Cardin.