La Petite Bouchee’s Croque Madame

Croque madame from La Petite Bouchee, Sydenham

This weekend I found the perfect croque madame in the back of a van in Sydenham.  Those are words I never thought I would type.  Allow me to explain…

To be honest, I was wondering when this was going to happen.  My search for a good croque madame has been a long one.  For there are many in London, but few that are actually any good.  Usually they fall down on the cheese.  I’ve seen it all from the poor-quality cheese that somehow refuses to melt, the cheese that tastes of practically nothing and the cheese that is so stingy in portion size that it is barely cheese at all.  I was beginning to give up, but then I was invited to a brunch that had a croque madame on the menu and thought I would have one last go at finding a good one.

There was to be no restaurant at the end of this invitation, but something altogether more special:  a 1973 Citroen H van that had been transformed into a perfect little dining room.  It is called La Petite Bouchee, which literally translates as “the little mouthful” and is parked up opposite a lake in this pretty little south-east London park.  It has everything you might expect when out for brunch: orange juice on the table, the weekend newspapers and a pot of fresh coffee with milk and sugar.  It can accommodate four people and is remarkably spacious considering its diminutive size.  An outdoor kitchen, where all the food is prepared, transforms it into a French bistro serving up local, organic and seasonal foods.

The brunch menu is typically French.  As well as the two croques (monsieur et madame), there are eggs Benedict, Florentine and Royale; and a selection of omelettes.  And like every good brunch, there is booze.  Either prosecco or a bloody mary made with their house-infused vodka.

So, about the croque:  this is not only the best croque madame I have ever had, but one of the best sandwiches I have ever had.  Every element is so well-chosen and executed with such care that when it comes together it is sheer perfection.  The bread is a good-quality white loaf, sliced thickly enough to hold together the filling and lightly crisped in the pan.  The ham is decent and a little smoked and the egg placed on the top perfectly cooked with a soft yolk.  The cheese, often the disappointment of a croque madame, was perfectly melted in the middle of the sandwich, and on the top made into the most delightfully oozing cheese sauce, spiked with just a little mustard.  I asked Anita-Clare, our cook, which cheese she used and she replied “Emmental in the morning and Gruyère in the afternoon.  Gruyère is too much in the morning.”  And she was totally right.

Try as I might, I couldn’t finish it. This is one huge sandwich.  Fortunately there were three other eager diners, forks poised, ready to polish off what I left.

La Petite Bouchee, Sydenham Wells Park, London SE26.  BOOKING IS ESSENTIAL.

For transparency I should mention that I was a guest of La Petite Bouchee, but not in return for a review, simply because they are kind … I just had to share the croque!