Report on Paris Restaurants
Leaving late this weekend for NY after 2 months. Want to thank all for help especially Souphie, whose level of knowledge is encyclopedic in scope. Here are some of restaurants eaten in . Broken them down into 4 categories, from wonderful (1) through dreadful (4), granted my opinion, but that is what this is all about.
1. CHEZ L'AMI JEAN- three times, always inventive, always excellent, constantly gave extra
tastes, great service, perfect
TEMPS AU TEMPS- twice, very small, reserve far in advance- perfect food and ambiance
CHEZ DENISE- six times-while portions much smaller, still enormous. Great food, morue
auvergnate is unbeatable. Service and fun factor untopped
LE GRAND PAN- twice, cotes du porc, veau, boeuf, that is about it, but as good as it gets
all wines in carafe and there are about 20, far 15th but worth schlep.
STEIGER-CONSTANTIN-Salon de The, chocolate chaud unbelievable, makes Angelina
seem like chocolate light, and l love Angelina
2. HUITERIE REGIS- great oyster bar, very small, but oysters great, god wines as well
L'AVANT GOUT- very welcoming,food diverse and very well prepared, cheap lunch
LE BISTROT PAUL BERT-Bustling, greak steak frites, chocolate souffle
MAI AU CHOISSY-Very small and unpretentious, but shrimp raviolis are fab
JACQUES MELAC-Great ambiance, 60 or so wines by glass with good charcuterie
or fromage plates, food not bad as well
3. LE TROQUET-Cerdon excellent, busy but in a flustered way, very hot, way hot. Special for
supplement of 20€ was palombe with buckshot, but was old and too tired
LE TERROIR-Friendly, good but not worth 170€ with one bottle of wine for two
4. COTES ST JACQUES- (Joigny)One excursion out of Paris.A three star while looking OK,
very, very stuffy. Far more importantly was the food/wine. Amuse were three cold fish things
not interesting, then warm salmon thing, good but easy. Entrees were composition of oysters
assembled with first one ingredient, then two, up to five. Clever, but did not taste great and
used small oysters. Other was boudin noir, homemade with quince and apple and was
wonderful. Plats were a small cabbage with tasteless black truffle inside, looked neat, no
taste at all. Wood pigeon was overcooked and served in gloppy sauce that was oversalted
and masked all flavor of bird. Looked like something from the fifties. Cheese cart was good
and dealt with admirably by staff. Desserts skipped and coffee excellent. Ravaneau grand
cru first, perfect; no red burgundy under $200 on list, got an ok one from Gevrey Chambertin
wonderful Quarts de Chaume for cheese and dessert. It was not as good as l have written
this to look. Cost close to 600€ for 2
Best new Discoveries
Chocolate chaud as mentioned
Bread- Le Paume at Pottier on Rue Vaugirard, by Volontiers metro
Vegetables- small green tomatoes from Brittany that are like the best romas ever
Confiture-Bonne Maman makes a fruit intense line that is awesome, and is free compared
with fussy ones around, try framboise and rhubarbe, 60% fruit
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I'm so sad to hear your experience at Cote St Jacques was so dreadful. My meals there are some of the best in my memory, as well as our cooking class. And Jean Michel Lorain is such a lovely man, and not at all stuffy.
How sad.
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re: ChefJune
Delucacheesemonger
Nov 3, 2007 12:35 AM
Indeed, chef seemed nice, but on conversation, almost like he was going through the motions at tables checking off a short list to say hello. Dining room was one-third full on a Friday lunch. Expect better on a better day, but l was here on that day.
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Thank you for your report. If you have it; please supply address, hours and contact number for STEIGER-CONSTANTIN-Salon de The.
›2 Replies-
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re: An American Living in London
Delucacheesemonger
Nov 2, 2007 11:38 AM
To add to Dodo's exact facts, shop is run by little old lady, a delight who has been there for 14 years. If shop is busy she cannot do chocolate, since each cup made from scratch and by hand, but in four trips only busy once
ENJOY
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