Steak tartare in Paris

[dmjordan]

Hi all,
On Friday, we will have a ten hour layover in Paris (yay!) and I'm looking for a non-touristy place to have steak tartare. We are willing to spend up to 30 euros per person, not including wine. If it is far flung I prefer that it is near a metro stop. I've found a lot of places on the web, but for every good review, there seems to be a bad one. But I can always trust you all.

Thanks,
Dana

[forestcollins]

I cannot say personally, but I had Adrian - who I haven't seen around here lately, but perhaps he can confirm if he shows up - tweet me recently that Les Fines Gueules has the best steak tartare in paris.

[Parigi]

Laidback and I had a very - really not to be recommended - bad experience with the steak tartare at Les Fines Gueules, in a way that Chowhound will not permit one to explain. Let's say that, of the 4 of us who lunched there, the 3 who had the steak tartare would not, I repeat, not, recommend the steak tartare. The fourth diner did not order the steak tartare. She was smart.
I must point out that the rest of the lunch, as well as the service, was very good.

[forestcollins]

good to know!

[Laidback]

I must say that while eating the steak tartare at LFG I thought it one of the best ever, but the aftermath was Draconian...3 out of 4 ate it; the same 3 out of 4 spent the remainder of the evening in close communion with white porcelain fixtures. coincidence? Possibly, but I will avoid the tartare in the future.

[souphie]

You should avoid the restaurant in the future.

[hychka]

Well, I have it on good authority that you don't want to go to Les Debats. See comments offered below.

[John Talbott]

My comments on the steak tartare (and poisson tartare) at Les Deats were posted here http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/7188...

[ManhattanLawyer]

I just returned from a trip to France and, while it will take me a few days to put together a full dining report, I can say that I had the best steak tartare of my life at Josephine Chez Dumonet, prepared tableside by Chef Dumonet himself. I know that I will spend the rest of my life eating tartare that will fail to live up to that. The meat was so fresh and beautifully red, and the flavors were so well balanced. The portion was humongous and try as I might I couldn't even finish it.

[Parigi]

All the recommendations are interesting, but allow me to point out that the temp on Friday is supposed to get up to 34°C. Not really steak tartare weather…

[souphie]

Why not?

[Parigi]

On a very hot day I had steak tartare in one of the restos recommended above. Did not go well for reasons that this board will not allow me to say.

[forestcollins]

must say, I'm in complete agreement with the weather/tartare comment. Just had someone recount a very bad experience with it in the warm weather yesterday.

[John Talbott]

"Did not go well for reasons that this board will not allow me to say."

As a physician and public health nut, I think the policy of internet sites banning all discussion of eColi, Staph and other food pathogens to be counter productive and perhaps more liable to damaging suits than revealing problems to be. In medicine we have errors of commission and omission - et voila!

[souphie]

Joséphine.

[Ptipois]

Indeed, Joséphine.
Also the tartare at Brasserie Lipp might be a good excuse to go in and admire the mosaics, for I have found it to be the only decent food served there. It is indeed quite decent.
(I also bet Le Severo makes a good tartare.)

[fishskis]

I second the recommendation for Lipp. I love Lipp; the food is generally pretty good (not great), but I really like the overall authenticity of the place. I like Lipp's tartare; it is very good. The accompanying french fries can be good to very good. Strangely enough, even though Lipp's food is not their strength, I did have a fantastic steak there one night; not sure if this was an aberration, but it was a world class steak, and completely unexpected. Additionally, they are very close to the Metro (I believe Odeon).

[Dodo]

For more recommendations, look here:
http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/688473

La Rotonde (M° Vavin) has the great advantage, that it serves continuously.

And you'll always find negative comments among positive ones.

[John Talbott]

Ptipois, hey.
Yah I third Joséphine.
Also Meating in the 17th.

[PhilD]

It is good to see a positive post on Lipp. The steak tartare is indeed a fine dish, and the ambiance and history of the place make it a great place to eat. I agree the rest of the menu is far from stellar, but that said I never had a bad meal there. Choose carefully and it can be quite fun, especially when it is full of the Grand Dames of the 7eme, it can almost take you back to another era.

We dressed up in our Sunday best and took my father there for his 80th birthday and the staff treated him (and us) wonderfully, demonstrating fantastic Parisian hospitality.