Beurre Café de Paris

If Beurre Maître d’Hôtel is a clean, minimalist sketch, then Beurre Café de Paris is a lush, maximalist oil painting. While both are compound butters, the similarities end at the base ingredient. Where the former is light and bright, Café de Paris is complex, savory, and shrouded in the kind of culinary mystery that makes French gastronomy so enduring.

The butter takes its name from the Café de Paris restaurant in Geneva, where, in the 1930s, it became a global sensation. The restaurant famously served only one main course: a ribeye steak doused in this complex, yellowish-green butter, served over a warmer to keep the sauce in a state of perpetual, creamy melt. To this day, the original recipe is a guarded secret, rumored to contain anywhere from twelve to thirty different ingredients.

What makes this butter legendary is its depth. It isn’t just a seasoning; it is a concentrated sauce in solid form. It balances the umami of anchovies, the tang of capers and Dijon, the sweetness of shallots, and a complex bouquet of herbs like tarragon and marjoram. Some versions even whisper of curry powder or cognac. It is designed to “bloom” as it melts, releasing layers of flavor that evolve with every bite of the meat.

In a professional kitchen, this butter is the ultimate “cheat code.” It provides the complexity of a long-simmered sauce with the simple convenience of a cold slice. It represents the height of the Brasserie tradition—decadent, aromatic, and unashamedly rich.

The Recipe (Inspired Version)

Ingredients:

• 225g (2 sticks) High-quality unsalted butter (softened)
• 1 small Shallot, minced very fine
• 1 clove Garlic, mashed into a paste
• 1 tsp Capers, rinsed and minced
• 2 Anchovy fillets, mashed into a paste
• 1 tsp Dijon mustard
• 1 tsp Curry powder (mild)
• 1 tbsp Fresh parsley, minced
• 1 tsp Fresh tarragon, minced
• 1 tsp Fresh chives, snipped
• ½ tsp Paprika
• ½ tsp Lemon juice
• ½ tsp Worcestershire sauce
• Pinch of salt and cayenne pepper

Instructions:

1. The Base: Cream the softened butter in a bowl until light and airy.
2. The Flavor Bomb: Add the shallot, garlic, capers, anchovies, mustard, and curry powder. Incorporate thoroughly.
3. The Greenery: Fold in the parsley, tarragon, and chives along with the paprika and cayenne.
4. The Finish: Slowly stir in the lemon juice and Worcestershire sauce until the butter is glossy and uniform.
5. Setting: Spoon onto parchment paper, roll into a log, and chill for at least 2 hours (or overnight to let the flavors marry).
6. The Service: Place a thick slice on a hot steak. For the authentic experience, place the steak on a warm platter so the butter melts into a pool of golden sauce.