Photograph by Kathy De La Torre

Jeff Breslow is co-owner of Le Mouton Noir. The Saratoga restaurant recently re-opened after an eight-month closing for repairs after a fire.

Le Mouton Noir reopens and reclaims gourmet reputation

By Suzanne Cristallo

Owners of Le Mouton Noir, the longtime Saratoga restaurant serving California cuisine with a French accent, have two extra reasons to celebrate during this holiday season.

The first reason: The 144-year-old Victorian on Big Basin Way that has housed the restaurant for 22 years recently reopened after a fire last December, which kept it closed for eight months. The state-of-the-art kitchen that operates under new chef Tom Donnelly of New York is again pleasing patrons.

"We're having two large parties here a night," says Karen Breslow, who co-owns the restaurant with her husband, Jeff. She adds that the restaurant traditionally has been a place where local residents want to celebrate birthdays, anniversaries and weddings.

The old house, which has been redone in soft, harvest tones, originally was a carriage house and later was reportedly a venue for loggers taking care of their "social needs." It became a dress shop and an antique shop before becoming a restaurant in 1977.

The second reason for celebration came several weeks ago when Le Mouton Noir was named among California's 40 top restaurants in the most recent Zagat Survey, a closely watched national review of restaurants. It is a position the eatery has held in the past, but when the Breslows bought out previous owner Don Durante three years ago, they were considered a new restaurant and were required to go through the long process of evaluation needed to regain eligibility for rating.

"You're scored every year, but can't become eligible until you've maintained a high standard for some time," Karen explains.

The classic dishes regular patrons have ordered for years remain on the menu. This includes Duck a la Mouton Noir, a dish that lives on because Elvira Durante, mother of the previous owner and originator of the dish--now in her 90s--has trained staff to carry out her recipe.

Locally grown ostrich, wild boar and venison appeal to tastes that require a "sense of adventure," according to Karen. They join favorites such as the creatively named Rack of Mountain Meadow Lamb--Dijon roasted with a garlic peppercorn crust--and Black Angus Beef--filet mignon with a gorgonzola demi-glacé.

The Breslows pride themselves on their food being "a la minute"--absolutely fresh and everything made from scratch as it is ordered. "Nothing is taken out of a refrigerator in a prepared state," Karen emphasizes, adding that it takes six people to put out a plate from chef to server. Lunches will be served in addition to dinners for the holiday season (beginning Dec. 6).

Karen, 46, a Mountain View native, and Jeff, 53, a New Yorker, met when he was a school principal and she was a speech therapist at Crittenden Middle School in Mountain View. When Jeff retired, he decided to start another career in the restaurant business, in which his family had worked for years.

---

Le Mouton Noir, 14560 Big Basin Way, Saratoga. Open daily for lunch in December only, 11:30 a.m.-2 p.m. Dinner daily, 5:30-9:30 p.m. 408.867.7017.

---

Photo: Lake Vasona Fantasy of Lights

The Big Game rivalry used to be innocent and fun

PTSA fulfills teachers' wish lists

Photo: 'big, the musical'

Picture From the Past

Sports Briefs

Los Gatos wins field hockey title

Wildcats finish fourth in cross country finals

LG football team suffers season-ending loss

Branham Hills Bobby Sox win championship