HOUSTON – Houston is renowned for its cultural diversity, and its culinary landscape reflects this melting pot of cultures.
As KPRC 2 prepares to showcase the 2024 Paris Olympics, anchor Daniella Guzman stopped by a couple of French restaurants around town to get a feel for the cultural dishes that Houstonians can enjoy.
A quick trip down the Southwest Freeway, you’ll find Chef Phillip Schmidt inside his kitchen adding more and more garlic butter to his popular classic appetizer, escargot, “You can never have too much garlic butter,” he says in a thick French accent while laughing.
Chef Phillipe is the owner of the casual but authentic French restaurant, PS 21.
Chef Phillipe and Chef Jose Manuel Hernandez are friends, they used to work together at a French restaurant in New York City.
At PS 21, we dug more into the savory side of what French cuisine has to offer.
We tried the classic croque-monsieur, escargot, and some main dishes, “There is nothing more French than escargot and steak frites,” said Chef Phillipe.
A classic dish from the south of France was like having a flavorful party in my mouth. The seafood bouillabaisse is a seafood stew with mussels, fish, shrimp, potatoes and a warm broth, “Fisherman used to prepare this dish for themselves in Marseille. They didn’t always clean the fish from the inside so it was very flavorful and by that I mean it had a strong fishy taste to it,” said Phillipe.
The popular sharable Raclette came out next. A charcuterie board with cold cuts, a salad, and potatoes with gooey, melted raclette cheese on top. Just when I thought I couldn’t eat more, Chef Phillipe brought out the classic French souffle.
”It has a lot of flavor but you can put chocolate, vanilla, or Gran Marnier in it, so many variations to consider,” said Phillipe.
Chef Phillipe is also a big-time Olympics fan. His father grew up watching the Olympics with him.
He’s proud Paris will be the backdrop for such a big global event that he says will bring people together for the love and passion of sports.
