
Briarcliff Middle School students recently had the chance to combine their love of art and fine cuisine during a recent trip to the Union Church of Pocantico Hills and the restaurant Le Jardin Du Roi in Chappaqua.
Students in eighth grade French class with Brooke Toomey and in Art Through the Ages enrichment class with John Brooks went on the trip.
They began with a visit to the church, which was built by John D. Rockefeller. His son, John D. Rockefeller Jr. commissioned French artist Henri Matisse to create a stained-glass window in the memory of his wife who died suddenly in 1948. Twelve years later, when he died, his son, David Rockefeller commissioned Russian artist Marc Chagal to make a large stained-glass window in his honor. The large blue window is based on the story “The Good Samaritan.” After its installation, Chagall was commissioned to redo the eight remaining windows, which are based on eight prophets from the Old Testament.
“We spent an hour-and-a-half at the church and met with a docent, who spoke about the stained-glass windows,” Mr. Brooks said. “The Matisse window, called the Rose Window, was finished in 1954 and dedicated in 1956. After Chagall created the Good Samaritan in 1964, he wanted to design the other eight windows and use the same colors as Matisse, so the works interact with each other.”
Students received worksheets to complete during the visit.
“Art students wrote about shapes and colors and French students answered their questions in French. The first French question was to “ask” Mr. Matisse a question about the making of his window,” Mr. Books said.

“We also prepared in French class by learning about Matisse and Chagall, who lived in France,” Ms. Toomey said.
After the visit to the church, it was time for lunch. Students went to Le Jardin Du Roi – a French restaurant in Chappaqua.
At the restaurant, they began with appetizers, which were served family-style. Students had escargot (snails), Pigs in a Blanket and grape and cheese skewers. For the main course, they could choose from quiche, Croque Monsieur or Madame, grilled chicken and ratatouille, Oeufs Du Roi (eggs) or a Caesar Salad. For dessert they could choose between Nutella crepes or fresh fruit.
“I worked together with the restaurant to come up with the menu,” Ms. Toomey said. “We didn’t want the students to go hungry, so there was classic American fare, but I wanted them to be exposed to French fare as well. The food was quite good. The restaurant did an amazing job.”
Ms. Toomey prepared the students ahead of time.
“We discussed the menu in detail, and the history of some of the cuisine,” she said. “A lot of students tried the escargot. It was an authentic French experience. We also spoke about etiquette and how they represent Briarcliff. They were very good about it.”
Devna, an eighth grader who studies French, enjoyed both parts of the trip.
“I liked seeing the stained glass at the church and how the pieces interacted with each other,” she said. “I have never been to a French restaurant before, but I liked the food. I tried one piece of the escargot, but I personally didn’t like it. Some students had a lot of it. My favorite was the quiche and I had the Nutella crepes for dessert.”