"Spring" has sprung, I liked this place

[JimD]

I read about a small place Spring, Rue Tour de Auvergne, .01-45-96-72., that opened in October in the 9th with an American chef/owner, Daniel Rose, formerly a cook at Le Meurice. Very soon after opening it got a good review in the French press [Figaro] and has been busy ever since. It is open Tues thru Fri, one seating at 830PM, reservations essential..
I called on a Thursday and got a table for one the following [last] Wednesday. That morning I was jogging in the area around noon, saw that the owner was in prepping, popped in and asked if it would a problem if I had a guest, it was not as he explained a table for one is easily converted to two
It has only 16 seats, minimalist design, open kitchen at rear where you can observe the chef prepare the meal. It will not be everyone’s cup of tea, as he presents a Menu du Marche according to what is available.---2 entrees, plat and dessert for 36Euros. There is a small but interesting and reasonably priced wine list. You may also bring your own for a corkage fee.
We arrived 15-20 minutes early as we had traveled from the 5th. and were asked to return in 10 minutes, my friend had formerly lived in the neighborhood so we wandered a bit.
On our return we were seated and the place filled up fairly fast.
The chef was in the kitchen, assisted by one person and a young lady was the wait staff. She presented the carte du vin, brought around the large bread basket from which you choose your bread and explained the evening’s menu:
The place was about ½ full at that point. After hearing the menu for the evening we chose a white, a Cremant de Bourgogne priced at 25 euro:.
The first course was Veloute de celeri avec pintade, the little pieces of pintade were curried.
The 2nd entrée was espandon [swordfish] with betteraves cru[shaved beets]
The plat was pigeon with parsnips. The pigeon was cooked sous vide and finished with a tasty sauce. Perfectly done it was nice and rosey in the middle with a crisp skin.
Dessert was a chocolate brownie covered with sort of a citrusy pear confiture, dusted with fresh grated lime zest and accompanied by a stripe of chocolate and freshly made caramel.
By the time that dessert was served the entire dining room was in synch. We were at table from 0830 until 1030 or 11, it was enjoyable to watch the food preparation. We had been given our choice of seating and had chosen a window seat, this allowed us to observe the kitchen. Iif seated next to it one would have less of a view as it is up a couple of steps and overlooks the dining area.. The entire meal was excellent, just right portions, and properly paced. We left sated but not stuffed.
We thoroughly enjoyed the place and will return. My friend, who lives in Paris, intends to take her mother there the next time she visits. My only criticism is that as all tables finished their plats the noise level was quite high, due partly to the hard surfaces. [I should note that we were the only Anglophones other than the chef and his sous chef] The place became reverently quiet though as soon as the dessert was served.
After the meal Daniel Rose came down and spoke to everyone. As we were leaving he came outside with us and we chatted for about about another ½ hour. He is very open and gracious and has his own blog which is the website for the restaurant where you can read the history of the place and see an occasional menu. www.springparis.blogspot.com

[mnwinship]

Hi JimD,
Thanks to yours and other recs, my friends and I tried this place tonight and it was fantastic. Met the chef afterwards, and mentioned we'd found you through Chowhound, and I believe he showed us your business card! Such a small food world. Thanks again!

[JimD]

Glad that you liked it. What was the menu? And yes the chef has my card.
Jim

[mnwinship]

Veloute of carrot with foie gras and pidgeon, second entree of asparagus with blood oranges, main of gigot of lamb with an apricot puree that was delicious, and a chocolate ganache type dessert, with vanilla sauce, an amazing almond brittle and a candied kumquat.

[mayjay]

Wow--I must have been there the same evening b/c we had the same menu! Thursday?

[mnwinship]

Ah, I think I missed you by a day Mayjay, I was there Friday!

[ChefJune]

Wow! this sounds like a "Don't miss!" Merci!!!

[PhilD]

We visited "Spring" last night and we really agree with the posts. It is very, very good food.

We started with a carrot soup with ginger garnished with a slice of toast with rocket and parmesan. Next we had foie gras garnished with a coco bean, served with shaved beetroot with a vanilla sauce. The main was pintade with white aspargus garnished with thinly sliced baby radishes. And for desert chocolate mousse in a coconut froth and an orange and basil salad. A nice glass of gwerztraminer to start and a bottle of Morgon to complement the pintarde brought the bill to 130 euros for two. Very good value.

We loved the style of the place but it will not appeal to those looking for "traditional Paris" for this is very much "now Paris".

It is a small room (16 covers), minimalist decor (very Sydney - our home) and the meal served served simultaneously to all tables. So you sit down at 8:30 and eat at the pace of the whole restaurant. We left at about 11:00. It is much more like a dinner party than a restaurant - do not go if you want a quick meal. Daniel and his server are the only two running the place - he is very friendly and gives a warm, genuine welcome. At times the service loses it's rhythm but that's no problem if you simply go with the flow.

[John Talbott]

Daniel's new truc is lobster rolls with goose fat fried potatoes, Saturday afternoon (12-8), reserve lobsters but not table(s). Great place, cool idea, July 4th couldn't have been better.

[pammi]

We are going to Paris shortly. This place sounds great! Can you please give the exact street address and a complete phone number? After the 01 there are eight digits in a Parisian phone number.. many,many thanks..

[PhilD]

It is easy to Google: http://www.springparis.blogspot.com/

Yes there are 8 digits, but drop the "0" if dialing from outside France, so +33 1 XX XX XX XX

[pammi]

thank you. have you dined there recently? is it still as fabulous as the earlier posts? how far in advance do I need to make reservations for a mid-September visit?

[PhilD]

I last ate just before Chrismas which is shortly before he closed for a period of time. It was slightly better than I remember (I went early on). Best bet forgetting a booking is to try his Friday lunch (if he is doing it), otherwise the advice is "as early as possible" he books out months in advance and often closes the book.

[pammi]

thank you for your information and time. I'm calling now ! :)

[hong_kong_foodie]

I called Spring earlier this week and they said they will be serving the lobster sandwich until Aug 8 and then closing up. I asked when they would re-open but they said they're going to be closed for good until they find/move to another location. The person on the phone spoke fluent English so I'm pretty sure I understood him correctly, but can anyone else verify what I'm saying? This sucks because I was really excited to try the lobster sandwich!

[ricodanles]

We are just back from Paris and had the happy experience of dining at Spring thrice: once for a mid-week dinner and twice for the Saturday lobster roll + fries treat. As we understand it, Daniel & Co. will be closing its current location, taking a vacation, then returning to Paris to supervise the work on the new location. Best estimate is that they will be reopening in January (but, of course, you never know how these things go). Moreover, they expect to keep the current space for use as a "communal" dinner space for small to medium-size groups.
Perhaps there are others on the board with more detailed, inside info. But this is what we learned from Daniel Rose as recently as last week.

[PhilD]

Sounds like the work on the new restaurant is taking far longer than expected and he reopened the old Spring to generate cash.

[hong_kong_foodie]

How unfortunate for me because I was soo looking forward to trying this place and savoring the lobster roll!

[John Talbott]

Well, the reason the guy speaks good English is that it was Daniel Rose himself, from Chicago. And yes, he'll be away late August (who won't?) and the new place is a travail. So, do what Daniel is doing as he states on his website - go to Maine and have the lobster roll from the source.