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Check out our dining section for a complete list of Berkshire restaurants.
Wandering Off the Beaten Path to Baroods
By Bess Hochstein
May 2008
Lenox, brimming with restaurants, clothing stores, galleries and gift shops, is well traveled by tourists and locals alike. But it’s possible to wander along the circuit of Lenox’s main streets and miss one of the town’s newest culinary bright lights: Baroods Restaurant.
 Baroods is owned and run by a charming young French-American couple. Parisian-born chef Sylvain Noel, who grew up in a family of restaurateurs, mans the kitchen while his wife Melissa, who had never been to a French restaurant before falling head over heels with her soon-to-be husband, runs the front of the house. I’m privy to their personal story because I profiled the couple this year in a story for Berkshire Living magazine.
Sylvain worked in the top-two French restaurants of Westchester County before the couple decided to move to the Berkshires in 2005. They were familiar with the area because Melissa had completed a yoga teacher-training course at Kripalu. (When she’s not at the restaurant you can occasionally find her taking yoga classes at nearby Rhythms.)
 Their first stop was in Lee, helping out at Chez Nous, which is run by another Franco-American couple whom Sylvain had met when he was a “chef-in-training” at CitiGroup’s executive kitchen, his first job in the United States. Soon after moving here, the young couple decided to open their own restaurant.
Their original concept for Baroods was to introduce the Berkshires to the classic crêperie. “Crêpes used to be for poor people in Brittany,” explains Sylvain. “It was their bread. It was cooked on hot slates. In France, with friends you go out to have a crêpe at night.”
 In contrast to the American perception of crêpes as a breakfast food, in France they are commonly eaten for lunch or dinner. At Baroods, customers will find two kinds of crepes: sweet and savory. The savory crêpes are made with hearty buckwheat flour and filled with toothsome combinations of meats, cheeses and vegetables—such as the Ratatouille, the Alps (with raclette cheese, potatoes, caramelized onions and bacon) and the Cordon Bleu (chicken, ham, Swiss cheese and spinach).
There’s also a selection of Gratins—rolled crêpes with different fillings, topped with béchamel cream and cheese and baked in a deep dish. Sweet crêpes, made from a lighter batter, are filled with indulgences such as jams, honey & lemon, sugar & butter, fresh fruit, Grand Marnier and the particularly tempting “Smore” variation.
While crêpes may be the restaurant’s raison d’etre, Baroods provides many other dining options.  The lunch menu offers a selection of soups, salads, sandwiches (including the classic Croques Monsieur and Madame), and a soup, tarte, and quiche of the day. It’s light on the wallet—nothing costs more than $13.
Dinner starters include French classics such as Sautéed Foie Gras, Escargot Provencale, and Mouclade Rochelaise (mussels in either a curry cream sauce or creamy green pepper sauce). Main courses include Petit Poulet Basquaise (braised Cornish hen in ratatouille with saffron arancini), Long Island duck breast with crispy cauliflower & truffle cannelloni and a raspberry balsamic beet gastrique, and the vegetarian risotto du jour, which can be served with bay scallops. There’s also a Poisson du Jour (fish of the day) as well as the full array of crêpes.
To enjoy this delightful menu, you’ll first have to find Baroods. That will require you to meander down Main Street or Church Street in Lenox, stroll along Franklin Street, then amble into the parking lot, past the bagel shop, to the last storefront on the left.
 You’ll be rewarded for all this wandering with a great French meal in casual atmosphere with an added bonus in the warmer months—Baroods enjoys a large, quiet, private outdoor dining space, cheerily strung with twinkling lights. That it’s slightly off the beaten track is quite appropriate; the restaurant’s name comes from the French word Baroudeur, for traveler or wanderer, so it’s only fit that you need to wander a tiny bit to find Baroods.
Hot off the grill: For four consecutive Thursdays in May – the 8th, 15th, 22nd and 29th – Baroods will host a series of special dinners featuring Chef Lina Paccaud re-creating some of the most popular dishes from her late, great Lenox restaurant, Spigalina. Each dinner will include an amuse bouche, appetizer, two main courses, and dessert for just $50 per person, including tax (beverages and gratuity not included). The Noels are hosting this special event to celebrate Chef Paccaud’s upcoming cookbook. Menus for each evening’s dinner will be posted on the Baroods website. Space is limited, so reserve your seat tout de suite!
 Second Helpings: Rachel and Franck of Chez Nous in Lee, where the Noels got their start in the Berkshires, are hosting a special Provencal Wine Dinner on Friday, May 16. This five-course extravaganza features food and wine from the French region of Provence. The meal starts at 6:30 and costs $75 per person, with wine (excluding tax & gratuity). Check the Chez Nous website for the sumptuous menu.
About Bess Hochstein
Bess J.M. Hochstein came to the Berkshires as a second-homeowner before deciding to move here full time. Previously a communications executive, she's now a freelance writer living in Tyringham with her corgis Duffy and Hobbs and K. She writes for several publications, including Berkshire Living, the Boston Globe, New England Wine Gazette, and Healing Lifestyles & Spas magazine.
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