Release Date: January 9, 2006

ESCAPE TO THE SOUTH OF FRANCE
AT THE NATIONAL GALLERY OF ART’S CAFÉ PROVENÇAL

Washington, DC—Winter-weary visitors and residents of the capital city can escape to the south of France when the National Gallery of Art transforms its Garden Café into “Café Provençal,” in conjunction with Cézanne in Provence, an exhibition on view at the National Gallery of Art West Building from January 29 through May 7, 2006. The restaurant will open to the public on January 24.

One of the most distinctive dining spots in the capital, the West Building café will feature a new à la carte menu and buffet offering dishes inspired by the cuisine of Provence. The menu has been created by chefs Francis Robin of Le Mas du Soleil in the Salon de Provence and René Bergès of the Relais Sainte Victoire in Aix-en-Provence, France, along with Executive Chef Thomas Marr of Restaurant Associates at the National Gallery of Art. The menu features such Provençal specialties as vegetable pistou, fish soup, eggplant caviar toasts, braised beef with carrots and olives, tomato and basil flan, stuffed braised artichokes, salade Niçoise, Provençal cheeses, apple tarts, crème brûlée, and much more. The menu will also feature a selection of French wine, bottled water, soda, cappuccino, and espresso. The price of the full buffet will be $17.95; à la carte items will be priced individually.

The two French chefs will present a cooking demonstration and provide samples of regional dishes on Tuesday, January 24, from 11:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. in the Café Provençal.

Café Provençal is located on the Ground Floor of the West Building and is open Monday through Saturday, 11:30 a.m. to 3:00 p.m., and Sunday, noon to 4:00 p.m. A special concert menu will also be served on Sundays from 4:00 to 6:00 p.m., in conjunction with the free Sunday evening concerts in the West Garden Court.

Provençal dishes will also be among the many offerings in the Gallery’s Cascade Café, located on the Concourse between the East and West Buildings from January 24 through May 7. For more information about the Gallery and its restaurants, visit www.nga.gov

Café Provençal is one of many restaurants throughout the nation’s capital offering a taste of France during “Provence Week” in Washington, DC, January 30 through February 4. Provence Week has been organized by the Marseille Provence Chamber of Commerce in France to coincide with the Cézanne in Provence exhibition.

Cézanne in Provence was organized by the National Gallery of Art, Washington, the Musée Granet and the Communauté du Pays d’Aix, Aix-en-Provence, and the Réunion des musées nationaux, Paris.

The exhibition is made possible by a generous grant from the DaimlerChrysler Corporation Fund.

The exhibition is supported by an indemnity from the Federal Council on the Arts and the Humanities.

General Information

The National Gallery of Art and its Sculpture Garden are at all times free to the public. They are located on the National Mall between 3rd and 9th Streets at Constitution Avenue NW, and are open Monday through Saturday from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. and Sunday from 11:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. The Gallery is closed on December 25 and January 1. For information call (202) 737-4215 or the Telecommunications Device for the Deaf (TDD) at (202) 842-6176, or visit the Gallery's Web site at www.nga.gov.

Visitors will be asked to present all carried items for inspection upon entering the East and West Buildings. Checkrooms are free of charge and located at each entrance. Luggage and other oversized bags must be presented at the 4th Street entrances to the East or West Building to permit x-ray screening and must be deposited in the checkrooms at those entrances. For the safety of visitors and the works of art, nothing may be carried into the Gallery on a visitor's back. Any bag or other items that cannot be carried reasonably and safely in some other manner must be left in the checkrooms. Items larger than 17 x 26 inches cannot be accepted by the Gallery or its checkrooms.

For additional press information please call or send inquiries to:

Press Office
National Gallery of Art
2000B South Club Drive
Landover, MD 20785
phone: (202) 842-6353 e-mail: pressinfo@nga.gov

Deborah Ziska
Chief of Press and Public Information
(202) 842-6353
ds-ziska@nga.gov

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ESCAPE TO THE SOUTH OF FRANCE AT THE NATIONAL GALLERY OF ART’S CAFÉ PROVENÇAL

ESCAPE TO THE SOUTH OF FRANCE
AT THE NATIONAL GALLERY OF ART’S CAFÉ PROVENÇAL