Adrian Moore

GYOZA BAR , first look

2012-01-22T23:26:00.005+01:00

It's no secret that I'm a big fan and friend of Guillaume Guedj and Shinichi Sato's Passage 53, my favorite restaurant in the City of Light. So it was with obvious pleasure that his new project, which he's been raving to me about for months now, has finally seen the light of day.

GYOZA BAR, located at 56 passage des Panoramas, just three doors down from the two Michelin star mothership Passage 53, is about to open its doors.

I got a little taste tonight at their private, friends only party, and am happy to say it works: great concept, superb products, good value. Think: gyoza (filled with echine de porc, i.e. pork loin from Hugo Desnoyer , mixed with yuzu kosho ( a chilipepper/yuzu mix) , garlic, ginger, and cooked up in a ravioli shell made in their upstairs lab, steamed on one side, fried on the other) , washed down with chilled Yebisu. The deco is all anthracite grey Italian wall brick, gorgeous wooden floors, and a counter seating fifteen happy diners, not to forget the oh-so-fun Toto toilet.

The gyoza, priced at 6€ for eight pieces, 8€ for twelve pieces and 10€ for sixteen pieces is a bargain. Sides of ponzu laced rice at 2€ and marinated soy salad at 1.50€ are a steal, and beers are priced at 3€ and 4€ is just damn silly (with me in the room, anyway).

Not many know that Shin is a closet gyoza master, and often the cook at parties with friends (which was the original inspiration) so the project is a particular subject of pride for the shy, unassuming chef.

The front door message says it all: "Gyoza is a popular and emblematic Japanese dish. We wanted to honor it with our own special recipe made with the best products possible".

Look for one near you soon.

GYOZA BAR
56, passage des Panoramas
+33 1 44 82 00 62
Open from 18h00-23h00 pm

Le Camion Qui Fume - smoking burgers

2011-12-07T12:24:00.002+01:00

The most recent focal point of the French's burger obsession (yes, they're on pretty much every menu in town, and for the most part badly executed) , is this little food truck, Le Camion Qui Fume. Helmed by Ferrandi cooking school trained California transplant Kristin Frederick, the unassuming vehicle traipses across town, from the place de la Madeleine to the hinterlands of the Porte Maillot, and to the Canal Saint Martin (Point Ephemere). There are five different burgers on offer (see menu below) with sides of homemade string fries, onion rings or coleslaw, of which I tried a scrumptious "classic": buttered and grill toasted baker buns, handmade patties (a mix of base cote, bavette and plat de cote de boeuf with about 20 percent of fat) , tangy cheddar and a nice crunchy salad with pickles. Judging by the local business suit clad bobos and expats hanging around outside in the freezing cold at one of two tiny tables, the blogger buzz is already rolling just days after opening. No doubt this is the first of many food trucks and yet another shakeup of Paris by one of those crazy foreigners ;)

Good luck to Kristin and her team!

Doing Diana

2011-12-01T19:55:00.002+01:00

Thanks to my friend Monica, I discovered the gastro of the Hotel Fouquet's Barriere yesterday at their restaurant Le Diane. No surprises in the menu, just really delicious and slightly inventive dishes: arborio risotto with large chunks of artichokes and shaved white Alba truffles, spider crab with carpaccio of scallops and melon, a perfectly subtle, sweet and savory dish that kept me wanting more. The daily special was lievre a la royal with Alsatian pasta on the side and a gibier sauce, and dessert was an excellent chocolate/ginger soufflé with a ginger ice cream to knock your socks off. The circular dining room was interesting, giving all diners a view of the action, and rumor has it Michelin has been checking the place out a bit more frequently than usual. Well worth checking out if you have money in your pocket and you're around the Champs.

Le Diane

Hotel Fouquets Barriere

Marcel

2011-11-24T11:20:00.004+01:00

Another "Why do I do this to myself" moment.

In lieu of a review of the neo-bobo-Canalside-Indian, here are a few of my iPhone notes taken down during last night's dinner:

Lukewarm naan
Dishes come too quickly, definitely reheated.
More APC per square inch than an architect's office
Sneaking suspicion the basmati rice was that Uncle Ben's stuff you find on Monoprix shelves
Amy Winehouse on loop
Tired bobos with funky beards and vintage glasses desperately looking for the exotic
People tripping over the carpet every four seconds
Annoying and pervasive loud crowd murmur

I wanted to like it as it's in my hood, has a cozy deco and seems to be busy every night. But, as soon as I took in the ambiance and food I knew it was all going south...

L'Office

2011-11-17T10:36:00.003+01:00

Paris is such a pleasant place to eat recently, and it seems every week some hot new table is opening, in a cool gentrifying neighborhood, with a world faring chef doing inexpensive and exciting food. (Le Galopin, Au Passage are two perfect examples) This is certainly the case with L'Office, in a part of the 9th , a sort of multicultural no mans land between the Gare du Nord train station and Galeries Lafayette, in a quarter that counts a diverse local population (African hairdressers and traditional Jewish commerce galore) chain noodle restaurants, various bars and brasseries that merit being closed long ago, and L'Office, a non descript storefront offering top notch cooking. The owner, Charles Compagnon, who funnily enough I knew when he was running the very convenient Bar George V, teamed up with Del Posto-trained American chef Kevin O'Donnell and the result is the kind of bistro you wish was just downstairs.

On the 24€ three course menu was a tender piece of falling apart pork belly with a tomato paste and fried egg. C. had a velouté of coco beans topped with a piece of toast on which were placed thinly sliced pieces of lardo di colonnata , followed by sous vide cooked chicken with girolles mushrooms and an airy, foamy celery root purée. The pot au pen was full of delectable veal replacing the beef, with crunchy celery. Dessert was ok cheese and a decent, dense chocolate cake with banana ice cream. Bread was a little regrettable, but I think they ran out of the good stuff we had at the beginning of the meal.

Wines were predictably, natural and organic from a pretty well chosen list, with glasses of Jacky Blot et co. at around 6€.

This place is a real culinary snapshot of what's going on in Paris at the moment. Love it.

L'Office

3 rue Richer, 75009 Paris

+33 1 47 70 67 31

Akrame

2011-11-11T12:18:00.001+01:00

I've been waiting to try this new table in a barren part of the 16th for quite some time now. What French gastro-critics might term an OVNI (UFO, i.e., strange, iconoclastic) this grey, contemporary and very 80's looking restaurant has young French/Algerian chef Akrame Benallal at its helm. Akrame has finally opened his own table after having worked at a Michelin starred establishment in Tours (and earning an "upcoming young talent" moniker) a stint at the terribly named Hotel Konfidential, and training in the kitchens of both Ferran Adria at El Bulli and with Pierre Gagnaire. The restaurant, perched in a forgotten backstreet somewhere between a Thai massage parlor and various so-to-be-out-of-business shops, offers up some of the most interesting cooking in the city. The menu, decided entirely on what the market offers up is highly personal, inventive, simple (looking?) and delicious. For lunch, there is the choice of of a two or three dish menu for 25€ or 35€ (best lunch deal in town), and for lunch or dinner a four or six dish menu (from 50€-110€ depending on wine choices). My lunch partner and I groaned when hearing the first dish was a "deconstructed taco", but were delightfully surprised by the cubed chicken with avocado purée, coriander foam and corn "dust". Other dishes of Parisian mushrooms (micro planed to look like shaved white truffle) with slow poached free range egg, and Iberico bacon bits, was a memorable dish as was the very simple shaved Granny apple on a bed of gorgonzola cheese. If anyone really cared, Michelin's been murmuring about this one, and Akrame's enthusiasm, imagination and sense of generosity can only lead him to great success.

Akrame

Kunitoraya 2

2011-11-03T10:28:00.000+01:00

In the heart of Paris' Japanese ghetto in what was once the tried and true trad bistro Chez Pauline, this spiffy little New York-y style nippon was just what the doctor ordered for a rainy autumn lunch. Not to be confused with their first establishment, chaotic noodle bar Kunitoraya, this canteen is a bit more refined, drawing a fashionable crowd for chic onigiri,bentos and donburi (rice topped with fish or meat sauce). The 47 Euro bento lunch includes a selection of "tapas" (tofu topped with truffles, strips of tasty duck, steam cooked sushi), as well a little tempura and bowl of steaming shrimp udon. Perfect washed down with chilled Yebisu or something from their comprehensive wine list (7-13€ a glass).

Kunitoraya 2

5 rue Villedo, 75002

Rech Ducassification - Je vous offre un ver?

2011-10-29T22:15:00.005+02:00

I debated with myself on whether to write up my recent lunch at the 1925 fish and seafood bistro, Rech. Normally I wouldn't be caught dead in this gastronomic dead zone (with the exception of maybe Gourmet des Ternes or Fréderic Simonin, both addresses I shunned for no good reason, other than that I'd never been to Rech). I was thinking of winter, seafood, chilled white, I was hungry, and stuck in the hinterland that surrounds the place des Ternes. Rech it was.

My lunch partner's starter of mussel and saffron soup was decent enough, but my bland autumn vegetable "cook pot" came with a side order of worm. Yes, you heard me right. The attitude of the staff was very "har har har, more protein for you". Nice. It happens I know.

When I the sommelier asked what I'd like to drink and I replied "I trust you", his reply (with no humor intended, I'm sure) was: "Tant pis pour vous". I believed him when a little later he knocked my 17€ glass of Condrieu across the table, smashing the glass in two, whisking away the pieces (sans apology). He replaced the glass and we continued on with a tasty baby squid tagliatelli with fresh cepes and parmesan, and a regrettable (especially at 38€) lobster macaroni which was overpowered by something or other I ceased to care about.

Their "famous" camembert was fine. The 40 minute wait for the bill afterwards, however, was not, as apparently the entire staff of the restaurant, except the manager had vacated the premises and forgotten us upstairs.

Note to self: file somewhere between "very disappointed" and "never again". Especially, especially at 100€ a head.

Mussel and saffron soup

Baby squid "tagliatelli" with cepes

Lobster macaroni

Good vibes at Le Galopin

2011-10-11T14:28:00.005+02:00

I did something last week at Le Galopin that I almost never, ever do. I ate there for both lunch and dinner. Firstly for lunch because the place intrigued me and I was at a loose end and needed to escape the pressures of my daily life and just..drunch. A Fooding review tipped me off (noone else outside of a couple Foodreporter types have latched onto this address yet, although rest assured they'll be in this weeks F-scope, followed by a parade of other blaggers and food journos..) and I thought, why not. This twenty-seater in a charming square (except for the dealers smoking hash and lurking outside eating sandwiches grec) is owned by none other than Romain Tischenko, former ZKG alumni and winner of the 2010 French Top Chef award and his (cloned?) brother. The 100,000 € competition cheque didn't cover a whole lot, so they did the deco themselves with the help of their dad, and the result is a friendly little place with a bar counter where neighbors stop by for a drink, and an open kitchen where Romain does his stuff. At lunch is a 19-24€ market inspired menu and in the evening time , 42€ for a no choice , seven dish chef's menu. While there was nothing mind-blowing on the plate (loved the brandade de morue "poppers" with yuzu) , I like this place. There's a positive vibe, good intentions and products, fair prices and I'm interested to see where Romain goes with it. Stay tuned.

Above dishes are: grilled eel with pleurottes mushrooms, roast free range chicken with beetroot and fennel

And a really tasty fig sablé with cream

Le Galopin
place Sainte-Marthe
+33 1 42 06 05 03

Passage 53 - the rumor mill turns and turns...

2011-09-20T14:33:00.004+02:00

It's all rumors peoples. Talk. Nothing official or signed.

Au Passage

2011-09-15T11:37:00.001+02:00

Best little place I've eaten in a while but haven't had the chance to blog about! Au Passage is a tiny table located on a forgotten side street in the 11th more popular with century old silversmiths than anything else. The place has a rickety, funky feel to it with uneven wooden floors, old leather couches and a restrictive, but excellent 16,50€ lunch menu and evening time tapas with brand name charcuterie, natural wines, burrata and the like. If they were in my 'hood, I'd eat here every day. Thanks to ex-Springers Audrey and James Henry the Australian-chef-who-was-temporary-but-decided-to-stay, this place offers quality above the norm, a great deal, and nice friendly vibe.

Au Passage

1, bis passage Saint Sébastien

A au Kei - Bangin' with flavor !

2011-07-31T20:18:00.001+02:00

I've been intrigued by this new table for quite some time: a Japanese former Alain Ducasse second at the Plaza with seven years under his hat, the former Gerard Besson space, now a minimalist zone serving studious, classic and good looking French gourmet cuisine.

All well and good. I'm not sure I can be totally impartial to my excellent experience here, as this drunch (c) was enlightened by the presence of a Maltese/Australian foodie who made me lose my concentration and normal common sense. I remember wine, laughter, humorous blunders and tomfoolery, and an interminable afternoon happily shared with a likeminded friend.

Le Dauphin

2011-07-22T11:40:00.003+02:00

A lot of ink has been spilled on Le Dauphin, so I’ll keep it brief. It’s one of the funnest tables in town. The tapas-y style menu lets you eat as much as you want. The arty farty crowd is perfect to make fun of while swilling decent natural wines and cracking jokes at their expense. The interminable line forming in front of the next door Chateaubriand is also quite amusing. Standout dishes were a delicious wagyu with onions, their usual amazing burrata and roast potatoes on the side as well as the ribaut ice cream. Tandoori octopus needed more spice and the mixed mushroom and ricotta dish lacked zing. But we really didn’t care.

Mixed mushroom and ricotta dish

Tandoori octopus

Melt in the mouth wagyu

Creamy buratta

Lait Ribot ice cream

Agapé Substance

2011-07-21T14:38:00.006+02:00

This “gourmet counter” opened a few weeks back by Laurent Lapaire (former Arpege alumni and creator of the one star Agapé) and David Toutain (the brilliant chef at the helm) is the new insider darling of the Paris blogosphere and one of the best tables I’ve done for a looooong time, IMHO, the numero uno taste sensation of the moment.

After raves of “genius” from the establishment food press , I was understandably cautious, and luckily no critics or undercover blaggers were to be found (although François Simon did pass by the night before) basking in the mirrored neon glare of the communal dining room. Toutain, who did time at L’Arpege, Veyrat, Mugaritz and NYC’s Corton, looks, at the tender age of 30, to be one of the most exciting (and modest) of chefs in Paris. A little birdy told me that Alain Passard once termed him his spiritual heir and that he thought his talent even rivaled that of Astrance’s Pascal Barbot. Indeed, he should have been the chef at the original Agapé, but shit happened.

The menu is composed of a list of ingredients, from which the diner chooses either three (39€) or four (51€) dishes or the carte blanche (65€) surprise tasting menu. We went for the latter. Each and every dish was a subtly kiss ass culinary karate chop to the taste buds with each dish eclipsing the one before. The amuse bouche of berce (a plant coming from the Jura mountains) with a yuzu jelly and crispy rice wafer set the tone for an onslaught of unique and pristine ingredients. Other dishes included fresh hen’s egg with verbana and garlic cream, crab with pink grapefruit and grey shrimp consommé, carrots from Annie Bertin with galanga, zucchini with baby squid, monkfish with tonka bean cream and a fab nutty crumble and red forrest fruits with pistachio sponge cake and avocado ice cream. The wine (nature heavy bottles presented in iPad form) was a delish 2009 Domaine de Montrieux. I won’t go much further (the table has been covered better than moi by others) , but I do encourage to reserve now before it’s too late.

Oops, it already is.

Agapé Substance

66 rue Mazarine, 6th

+33 1 43 29 33 83

www.agapesubstance.com

L'Absinthe - 69 word review

2011-07-15T11:21:00.002+02:00

L’Absinthe Saint Honoré

Good value less than 40€, three course menu in high rent district. Skanky waiters. Menu of hot and cold fish and meat and a few blackboard additions. Annoying smug, self satisfied and all together strange clientele. Starters of shrimp/courgette rolls and ceviche good although uninspiring. Black Angus with béarnaise delicious with side of grenailles. Pork jarret NOT (overspiced). Go again? Jury’s out. I’d say probably not.

Figaro figaro figaro figaro, figaaarrrrrrrr-NO! (Restaurant L'Opera, first look)

2011-07-08T11:30:00.006+02:00

I was pretty excited to check out the new restaurant (and the first since 130 some odd years) at the Palais Garnier Opera House yesterday. It's been open since June 27th and for an establishment which (proclaimed from the rooftops by their PR people), combined cutting edge design by Odile Decq that "affirms the historic building's character" and a cuisine by two star Michelin chef Christophe Aribert, it wasn't that impressive. And even less at more than 100€ per head. The curtain of glass enveloping the front of the restaurant gave strangely distorted views of passing Asian tourist groups and the concentrate of traffic and pollution outside, however the the red-tinged interior with ho-hum furniture, a real let down for a supposed 6 million € investment did resemble the culinary character of the place, a sort of gastronomic equivalent of a Fiat Multipla (with all options). The menu is short. The portions are tiny. We were offered two, yes two! gougéres with our champagne (I was surprised they weren't doled out with white gloves and a pair of golden tweezers). The following "contemporary" smoked salmon with a mustard sorbet was ok, as was the trout, although as with the following Pata Negra pork chop (sprinkled with popcorn and with a honey sauce made from opera honey) , vastly overpriced. The oeufs a la neige in a red berry soup were ok as well. Just ok. When the server explained that they "opened too early" and that the chef "wasn't really in the kitchen, just a consultant" , it didn't really surprise. Clients all around were complaining about their bills. Noone seemed to be having a good time with phrases like "bof.." and "ho hum" being bandied about. The only ones who really seemed to enjoy it were the American tourists next to us being invited out by their French friends: eyes rolling in ecstacy, dribble running down their chin. What curiously deluded creatures!

"Thus begins the story of one of the most long awaited restaurants of all time" says the press release.

Smoked salmon with brioche and mustard sorbet

Pata Negra pork chop with popcorn, honey and side of polenta

Oeufs a la neige

2011-07-07T13:50:00.001+02:00

Tomorrow I shall blog

L'Auberge du 15

2011-05-15T12:55:00.004+02:00

Rising from the ashes of a former "Irish bistro"in the far flung 13th and headed by Nicolas Castelet former chef at (yes) Ralph's is an honest new table offering homestyle cooked dishes designed to be shared around the table with friends. Despite most recently working for the sinking gastronomic ship in the Left Bank Yankee boutique prized by French yupsters and tourist bloggers, Castelet cut his teeth with Passard at Arpege, Lesquer at Ledoyen and in Robuchon's establishments, and has been honing his skills professionally since he was 15. Starters such as watercress soup, served in a tureen generous enough for four or five people, was served with fresh cream and roasted pistachios and green asparagus and morel mushrooms with white wine were followed by a superb farm raised organic chicken from the Aubrac region, accompanied by Paris' best aligot. Raspberry sponge cake finished it all off.

So shall I predict? Food Intelligence, Fooding, three stars in the Figaroscope, L'Express, expat bloggers, etc etc, and ze next big thing. So go now before it's impossible to snag a table.

L'Auberge du 15

Nah-nashi

2011-04-18T11:45:00.002+02:00

I've always loved the Rose Bakery (forgetting the nice but inept Anglo service, overpriced organic fare) for its comfort food, edgy industrial décor, cool-crowd-fallen-out-of-bed-for-brunch vibe, so when Kaori Endo and André opened the first Nanashi in the 10th, my ears perked up. The local food press/blogger brigade did their usually circle jerk putting the the hot new table up their somewhere with the second coming of Jesus, but, as it was okay food at reasonable prices in a funky place, and the staff was really friendly , it got my seal of approval.

The new corner spot in the Marais tries with the same formula (Japonesy food, bentos, expensive RB inspired desserts) but somehow it just left me cold. Service, although friendly, was interminable , the food ugh (salmon onigiri with inedible, mealy rice, papery spring rolls, yuzu fondant au chocolat sans yuzu..) and there were far too many backpacking food blog reading expats and local pregnant bobos with oversized hipster glasses (but what did I expect?). I won't be back, but finally there is a perfect place for the backlog of ravin' hipstas who can't get into the Rose Bakery ;)

Qui Plume la Lune

2011-04-17T13:16:00.008+02:00

Hidden away on a sub level street off of the boulevard Beaumarchais is the latest gastronomic OVNI that has the Parisian food world's panties all in a bunch. Formerly Christian Constant's C'Amelot, perhaps the city's first bistronomique (long before the term became a bobo catchphrase) , the tiny table has been taken over by an interesting chef who dropped off of the face of the culinary scene years back. Jacky Ribault, one of the first to bring the japanesy/French fusion cooking to the French Capital at Shozan (his foie gras sushi and salmon tataki are still on the menu, partly for sentimental reasons), creates a menu with all French produce, hand selected by himself (Annie Bertin veggies, organic meat from the Pas de Calais' Monsieur Boucher) and cooked with a Nippon eye, with a few unusual tastes thrown in from the Land of the Rising Sun. That Ribault worked with Gagnaire, Legendre, Passard and Ladurée-epoque Hermé is pretty evident in the technique, but it's his own poetic generosity that shines through, and the chef promised some interesting things (think market suprise menu) as soon as they are able to maintain cruising speed. The fact that this is the first time he is his own master seemed to please him. His maitre d' (something of a French/Asian fusion himself) worked variously at Rostang, Closerie des Lilas and the Pavillon Montsouris before teaming up with Jacky. The beefsteak with St. Jean de Luz sardine tartar facon béarnaise and the scallops with vanilla'd artichoke (although the apple sorbet seemed out of place) were two standouts. For the moment, thanks to the local foodie blogosphere and press, expect a two to three week wait for dinner and two or three days for lunch. I want to go back and try the rest of the menu.

**Plates tasted (see above):
Shrimp with pea purée
Scallops with vanilla flavored artichoke, green apple sorbet
Turbot with mashed vitélotte (a blue/violet heirloom spud), Thai spring onions and mango
Lamb with matcha tea, quince, ginger and legumes anciens
Just sautéed organic beef with sardine tartar façon béarnaise and potatoes
Rhubarb sable tart with cotton candy**

Menus at 43€ with two dishes or one dish and cheese or dessert, 53€ with two dishes and cheese or dessert and 63€ with two dishes cheese and dessert. The 29€ three course lunch menu (Mon-Fri) looks like a bargain.

Condé Nast Traveler Hot List 2011

2011-04-16T11:12:00.003+02:00

There's a fine line between liking and eating in new restaurants and then writing about them, getting them massive exposure and ruining the possibility of other people getting in because of the increased demand. Sorry peoples..

So, without further adieu, here is my latest sinful work in choosing the Paris and Copenhagen sections of the Condé Nast Traveler Hot Tables List 2011. If you can't get in, it's partly my fault. Consider me your gastronomic Jesus up on the cross to pay for your hot insider tables.

Le Dauphin

Rino

Relae

BTW You should all buy this

2011-04-08T12:41:00.000+02:00

GoGo App

2011-04-08T12:30:00.002+02:00

Posting soon about my flash visits of Florence (JK Place, Michelin one stars, trattorias and general wine-fueled mayhem), London (Wolseley, Mandarin cocktail bar, Bar Boulud...etc) and elsewhere .. stay tuned !

Alice Pizza - off my radar

2011-03-04T10:24:00.002+01:00

I've been blessed (cursed) with restaurant radar. You know, that inkling you get when something just isn't right. The absence of the patron, who in former days was omnipresent, new staff (who seems new to the restaurant business) , groups of English speaking tourists being fawned over. Dishes that bear the marks of culinary ineptitude (ie vegetables that haven't been cut by someone who knows how to cut them, bad seasoning). I got all of these in rapid succession last night at Alice Pizza, and , as usual (to my my general discredit), I ignored what my radar was telling me. I should have walked out after waiting 25 minutes for a menu, but then I told myself they seem pretty busy with all these Anglo/student/tourist groups (ping!), then came the crostini with clumsily cut tomatoes complete with the inedible parts and accompanied by a wilted salad with a mouth puckering sour balsamic vinaigrette (ping, ping!), and the pizza, inspired by the memory of another (a gorgonzola, raspberry balsamic dream of a pie) , that was only a pale impression of what came before: microscopic squirts of sauce, two dollops of gorgonzola, and a crust that tasted like a naan from the takeout a few doors down. I should have gone there.

...but more importantly..

2011-02-27T22:40:00.000+01:00

Michelin Guide Paris 2011

2011-02-27T21:24:00.009+01:00

Everyone will be frantically googling tomorrow the results of France's most well known (and increasingly less relevant food guide) , but here's what's come to pass:

No new three stars. There. Said it.

New two stars: Passage 53 (yay! I told you Guillaume ;) ) and Jean François Piege (open mere months....) and Joel Robuchon's new Atelier Etoile at the Drugstore Elysees (open, again, only a couple of months.......)

Cheers to Frederic Simonin for his first at his namesake restaurant and Les Ambassadeurs for getting back their first with new chef Chistopher Hache. Other new one stars include the relatively off the radar Le Baudelaire (huh?) , Sensing (what??) , Antoine (fish restaurant) and La Fourchette de Printemps (okay..)

And apparently lots of the little tables have been recognized with a total of 601 "bib gourmands" (117 new tables) where one may eat for less than 35€ for a three course meal (29€ outside of the city).

Don't think there'll be many more surprises tomorrow, but then again, we're getting used to it .......

Kudos to Stephane Riss for being first at the jump

A day in the life

2011-02-26T02:50:00.002+01:00

Walking into Inaki and being introduced to Rene Redzipe in front of the Verre Volé and the ensuing couple hours of drinking, conversing and generally having a fun time was the high point of my day. Week. Month. Blogging any more about it seems wrong.

Flo-rida inspiration

2011-02-16T15:06:00.001+01:00

Temporary hiatus with lots of sun, alternating questionable and wonderful food (often on the same plate) , open blue skies, luxury resorts and down home eateries and mucho mayhem. Soon, dear readers, soon.

(One of the) Best burger(s) in Paris? Floréal

2011-01-29T10:46:00.005+01:00

Thanks to Phyllis (although rumours of this place having excellent burgers and cocktails have been infiltrating arcane web food sites for a few weeks now..), I checked out this backside Canal hipster hangout the other day. A former PMU, still hanging on to its funky deco (disco balls, truly funky and disgusting toilets, jukebox) , and a real magnet for local (would be? real?) rockstar types, the friendliness of the staff, excellent quality burgers , although too greasy fries, (an American style 30% mat. grasse instead of the very French 5% that makes all the difference..), cocktails by David who formerly worked at Hotel Particulier (and three absinthe cocktails made with Vieux Pontarlier ! ) , make this a future local for me. Wonder what the revamp (next month) will bring?

2011-01-27T17:31:00.000+01:00

Guess this is what you would call really bad marketing...

Paris Coffee Zeitgeist / Black Book Magazine

2011-01-26T16:39:00.001+01:00

Here's a link to my piece in today's Black Book with my "best of" list of coffeehouses in the City of Light:

Try these:

Alto Café

Le Bal Café , 6 impasse de la Defense, 18th

Le Caféothèque, 52 rue de l’Hotel de Ville, 4th

Café Lomi, 9 rue de Saussure 17ème)

Kooka Burra, 53 avenue Trudaine, 9th

Coutume Café, 47 rue de Babylone, 7th

Dinner at Grand Venise

2011-01-23T16:44:00.002+01:00

Thought I might ring in the New Year with a series of photos from what was undoubtedly one of the best meals I had in 2010 at Paris' best unknown Italian. Located at the far end of the residential quinzieme , this family run restaurant (for thirty years the ever present matron Anne Piprel has been keeping watch) , patronized almost exclusively by well heeled locals , provides (for a price) a veritable deluge of exceptional home cooked fare that literally covers the entire table and for which you'd be hard pressed to find an equivalent in Italy. Although the dining room might be a bit kitchy, I challenge you to find better, warmer service, and more of a table show any where else in the city. Think: chilled champagne cocktails, crudités, hot toasted bread and Normany butter, the house olive oils, marscapone and gorgonzola, endless platters of salads: lentils, mushrooms, mussels in cream with lime, white beans, marinated peppers, mortadella, coppa, salami, Jambon de Parma, deep fried langoustines, all manner of delicious and varied pastas, followed by a must try, gargantuan caramel ice cream. A warning to penny pinchers and last minute bookers: forget it.

Me in L'Express!

2011-01-17T14:17:00.002+01:00

Thanks, Anne-Laure

2011-01-15T23:43:00.001+01:00

"I am a Nespresso fanatic. I love my machine the way some folks love their BlackBerries. I can scarcely imagine life without it. Does it make the best espresso I've ever had? Of course not. Does it make the best espresso I've ever had in my own kitchen at 6 a.m., in my underwear, with about two minutes' notice? Hell yes." -- Colman Andrews

Me and Jacky

2011-01-07T14:10:00.002+01:00

Florida tarragon and mule mules at Px, organic Saint Joseph, burrata and lait de ribot ice cream at Le Dauphin, Inaki coming back and forth from the kitchen for another pression , playing loud music off of his iPhone, and lots and lots of white marble, fun. More soon (in real publications).

"We'll always have KGB"

2010-12-21T21:26:00.009+01:00

What else can I say but that this onslaught of small and delicious Thai tapas makes KGB one of my top tables. With the company of one of my favorite friends makes it unbeatable.

Slivers of wagyu beef, foie gras "poppers", Jerusalem artichoke velouté, shrimp

Crispy duck and foie gras macaroni

Shrimp orecchiette pasta

Lunch at Saturne

2010-12-18T20:14:00.009+01:00

Who would have thought that Sven Chartier, the hottest chef in Paris at the moment, was a Scrabble geek? That the 24 year old Arpege and Racines trained chef came up with the name SATURNE (God of Wine, and anagram of NATURES) during a heated session of the board game, or at least he confessed to me yesterday with a twinkle in his eye. Almost the same childish look that he gets when he talks about his philosophy of cooking:no additives, no preservatives, no sauces, no spices, nothing out of season or imported. Simple, natural. Period. Although the foodie blogosphere's bandwagon- jumping made him the flavour of the month, and filled his tables for the last three months, Sven hasn't had the time to refine his philosophy or put it into action, and his kitchen team isn't nearly ready. He is very excited about becoming fully self sufficient and is putting the touches on his very own garden(s) and within a few months should be coming up with some very interesting things. Sven also seems to be very interested in others aligned with the same philosophy, especially Magnus Ek, and spoke of a recent meal at Rene Redzepi's Noma, which he enjoyed. For someone who hasn't hit 25 yet, this chef has got me more excited than pretty much anyone lately. And when he takes that pilgrimmage to his Grandfather's homeland to explore his culinary roots, gets the experience he's looking for and has a team working in perfect harmony, he's going to kick some gastronomic ass and probably usher in an important new trend.

PS The natural wines impressed us less, and Ewen, Sven's partner in crime seemed a bit more reserved and less voluble than the chef..

Raw scallops, citrus

Raw sardine, salmon eggs

Leeks, radish, smoked mussels

Morteau sausage and mash

Le Bal Café

2010-12-13T09:29:00.004+01:00

Paris' perfect brunch spot? For those with their heads in the sand, the opening of the new Le Bal photographic arts centre has had all the hipsters and bloggers with their panties in a bunch when it opened up a few months back. Located in a tiny, pleasant passageway with a garden view and run by two great girls: Alice Quillet (former ? journalist and chef) and Anna Trattles (Saint John Bread and Wine, Rose Bakery) this modern little table serves up what they call Modern British cuisine.

Yesterday, brunch hunters coming after 12 faced a 30 minute wait, so packed was the dining room with funky lunetted hipsters scoffing down eggs and bacon and pancakes.

High points were (Paris' only?) kedgeree, a dish created by Scottish soldiers stationed in India in Victorian times and composed of basmati rice, smoked haddock, curry and eggs, and, obviously, "Rachel's cheesecake" (there, I said it..).

Bacon and eggs

Welsh rarebit

Kedgeree

Schafted at Frenchie

2010-12-01T22:34:00.005+01:00

Ultimate winter comfort food at Frenchie : speck salad with clementines, mint and parmesan, smoked sardines with brussel sprout leaves and a squash purée, gnocchi and beef ragout with radish and horseradish, followed by rapid degustation of a 1907 artisinal absinthe (brought by my friend Peter) . No pictures, too busy enjoying myself. Go soon: in 2011, lunch will no longer be served..

2010-11-21T12:43:00.000+01:00

My favourite review from the new Le Fooding guide? Genius translation in any event ;)

Inaki Aizpitarte's new restaurant Le Dauphin

2010-11-20T17:35:00.007+01:00

...doesn't look like it's ready for opening anytime soon, and despite having won the Le Fooding prize for "Best Decor", everything I saw looked either unfinished or covered up in plastic. Very much a work-in-progress that seemed to be composed of a lot of mirrored surfaces and marble.

That being said, the fact that people were actually working on a Saturday probably means that they hope to welcome diners soon.

For those of you not in the know, this is a rare restaurant designed by superstarchitect Rem Koolhaas (and his collaborator, Clement Blanchet) and will be a much more flexible , tapas style eatery serving lunch and dinner and drinks ,right next to Inaki's other no choice, market menu restaurant, Le Chateaubriand.

Le Dauphin
131 avenue Parmentier , 75011 Paris
+33 1 55 28 78 88

Aux Deux Amis

2010-11-20T11:05:00.003+01:00

I normally avoid Oberkampf like the plague (horrible themed bars, invested by bobo wannabees, ie people who get out of bed without combing their hair thinking it's cool) but, having been to the Le Fooding party la veille, I was looking for somewhere to lunch with my friend 'Tof that was simple and good and not too far from my shack. Aux Deux Amis (which was packed with hipster foodies- couldn't tell whether this was from Le Fooding's giving them the "best little luxury" prize, or if the restaurant was just plain popular) , really hit the spot. Old 50's-70's style café décor, great products, simply cooked and at 19.50€ for three courses, pretty hard to beat. For starters, I took a not very adventurous but very good lentil velouté while 'Tof tried the anchovies with ricotta cheese (excellent accords), we both had the onglet de boeuf (hangar steak) which was absolutely superb quality, accompanied by a decent risotto and Thiebault Jerusalem artichokes, and a dessert was a few slices of Manchego for moi and a fromage blanc for 'Tof, for which they served him ricotta (again!) by accident (it was good the first time, but not that good!). These boys apparently worked at Inaki's Chateaubriand for a few years, and teamed up with Mama (she never cracked a smile, even once..). Beware: slow and choppy service, and definitely book ahead of time. Apologies for the terrible quality iPhotos..

Ricotta and anchovies

Velouté de lentilles

Superb onglet de boeuf

Manchego Spanish cheese

Aux Deux Amis
45 rue Oberkampf, 75011
Paris
+33 1 58 30 38 13

Me on France24 this evening

2010-11-17T21:26:00.008+01:00

click here for the program on France24 where we talk about French gastronomy being added to the UNESCO list of world cultural "treasures"

Le Fooding invades les Buttes Chaumont

2010-11-16T19:44:00.006+01:00

I love Le Fooding, their "tribu", their events, their ideas, so, needless to say that when I received an invite from my friend Alex, their self-styled "red chief" , I was understandably excited for their combination 10th anniversary/guide launch party in my favourite park in Paris, Les Buttes Chaumont. It might possibly have been (with the exception of a famous designer's birthday party along the Canal Saint Martin some years back in a collosal loft packed with powder-nosed models) , the best party ever. So many things happened, so much was going on that I won't try to report here, that I'll give you the basics. As usual, there were lots of well known chefs doing dishes for the masses in small portions, a crowd spattered with former Fooding people, food fans, industry folk, hangers on, TV people, drunks, bobos, former wife-beating French rap stars, all consuming as much Veuve, wine, Ricard cocktails from the Experimental people, Yvon Madec oysters, and Nespresso coffee as they possibly could. Highlights included seeing all my Fooding friends, hanging with Breizh Café's Jean-Luc Corbel and Bertrand Larcher , winner of the Fooding Prix d'Honneur (and whose trophy enabled us to get many drinks without waiting in line too long ;) ). Memorable were: all the pretty girls, making fun of the Minister of Culture and Ariel Dombasle, the improv dancefloor with tunes mixed by the Baron's DJ, the Sardegna a Tavola's horse carpaccio, Fabrizio from the Caffè dei Cioppi's lemon and sage risotto with meatballs, and stumbling from one place to the other in drunken mirth.

Kaori Endo's Nanashi

2010-11-15T13:08:00.003+01:00

Kaori Endo, Parisian transplanted journalist, cookbook writer, food consultant and former chef at Rose Bakery just opened a funky little eatery on the rue des Paradis under the patronage of Lionel Bensemoun (who was running around looking worried) of Le Baron fame. The deco is mismatched, arty , concrete, open kitchen with lots of Japanese staff and an affable English bartender/barrista from Rose Bakery. Ideally located in the rapidly gentrifying dixieme, the 10€ bentos (takeaway, with marinated beef, fat Japanese rice and a salad with broccoli, rocket, daikon…) are a great deal and sure to do as well with the unadventurous office lunch population as with the bobos du coin. Also excellent banana bread, fondant au chocolat with yuzu and a daily changing pastry menu

Nanashi

31 rue de Paradis, 75010 Paris

Takeaway bento

Banana bread

Moelleux au chocolat with yuzu

Biodegradable packaging

Philou - perfect neighborhood bistro

2010-11-07T15:43:00.002+01:00

I just keep coming back to this place, and would even trek across town for their well turned out cooking. Yesterday's lunch confirmed once again my opinion that Philippe Damas' Philou is one of Paris' most perfect little bistros. Forest mushroom "clafoutis" with gizzards, tasty entrecote and roasted potatoes, turbot with a panoply of mushrooms, and just two snafus: the incredibly long service towards the end of the meal (granted, they were full and it was a new waitress, but she did spend 30 minutes cleaning glasses...) and the Montblanc , certainly not up to the level of the other dishes..but hard to complain when three courses comes to 25€...

Forest mushroom "clafoutis"

Entrecote with roast potatoes

Turbot with mushrooms

Disappointing Montblanc

Philou
12 avenue Richerand, 10th
+33 1 42 38 00 13

Hotel Raffles Royal Monceau Paris

2010-10-19T23:16:00.003+02:00

In no particular order, a few film impressions of the newly (yesterday) opened Raffles Royal Monceau. I was ready to hate yet another Philippe Starck makeover, but they really created an interesting space here. It looks like Starck really wanted to challenge people's idea of what a hotel can be, and things like breaking down the traditional barman-behind-the-bar-in-front-of-client, and exploding the bar, making it very open, then adding a glowing slab of communal table in front of it, making people sit next to each other. The lighting still needs to be fixed and there was no music, but mucho potential. The Il Carpaccio restaurant, in all its seashell glory was impressive as was the private dining room. The private 100 seater cinema with gorgeous handmade leather seats and insane sound system, and the bathrooms, all rethought, with no sink, no mirrors, all these inside the actual bathroom stalls was quite trippy, as was the herd of deer in the next door room (galery?)

The bar is run by the inimitable Greg Hazac (formerly of the Hotel Costes, French Love and Le Secret) who did his great signature cocktails and we tried a few (remember apple, hibiscus, lemongrass, vodka, gin...18€/21€). Saying hi to Lenny was cool too. Once they get the lighting and music sorted this will be one of the places to hang for the golden set. More soon.

Rouleau de Printemps/ Hipster hell

2010-10-16T23:39:00.003+02:00

Granted, Le Rouleau de Printemps is cheap, and good value I guess for the price (even though the nems in my bobun were hard as a rock), but to be that closely packed in with preening Belleville hipsters all proud of themselves for having googled "cheap restaurant Paris" , and having to listen to their inane conversations (everyone truly is an "expert" in this place) , almost made me happy when the waiter eventually moved us out to accomodate the next customer.

2010-10-16T12:29:00.001+02:00

This is hilarious (names withheld to protect the guilty):

The other night in an unnamed palace hotel, the tiny owner of a very popular Paris nightclub tried to get into a hotel bar. As the bar was closing and said person was drunk and belligerent, he was refused access. At which point he behaved like a little baby and started screaming about who he was- what he owned, who he knew , etc. Said hotel didn't really give a toss, because they are used to real stars, and real important people..

He still didn't get in and must've felt like those losers who can't get past the doorman in his own place.

So he did what any self-respecting little arty club owner would do when turned out like the trash.

He peed on the flowerpots in front of the hotel.

A real class act.

La Bulle

2010-10-09T11:59:00.002+02:00

Great winter comfort food at one of my locals, La Bulle, at the crossroads of the quickly bobo-izing Louis Blanc 'hood in the hinterlands somewhere between the Canal Saint Martin and the rue Cail Sri Lankan quarter. On the (great value15€, two dish lunch) menu: delicious tagliatelli loaded with mushrooms and pancetta, pailleron de boeuf with a delicious wine sauce and dorade cooked in olive oil with homemade purée. The new chef, formerly Flora Mikula's right hand man seems to be heating things up in this corner of the 10eme

Ploum (plouf..)

2010-10-04T19:10:00.004+02:00

I can't really get up the energy to review this place, hidden behind the Canal Saint Martin and the Hopital Saint Louis. Nice spot on a corner, full of local yipsters, hot Eurasians, etc, but I'll resume it all in a few tweets I did while eating:

"Chef drinking with (said) hot Eurasians and playing Facobook with his Mac, apparently showing off pix of his Laotian summer villa..."

"While Sri Lankan cooks "cook" without supervision (ie badly prepared food of questionable freshness).

"Nems are terrible, full of fish bones with sauce at the bottom"

"Chirashi au saumon a travesty, shameful to sell tiny portions, not really that fresh with badly cooked rice at 20€" (one of my locals, Kyccio, has an under 10€ MENU with better chirashi....."

"Bobo bo-bun b-b-b-b-boring".

"Dessert trainwreck: (browning) apples, caramel, and hard (ie fridge frozen) chocolate bar, that nearly bent my spoon". This was, by the way, a "specialty of the house".

Get my drift? Don't go.

Shame the Eurasian hotties weren't on the menu.

Address: not necessary ..

El Nopal, Mexican taqueria in Paris

2010-10-02T02:27:00.004+02:00

Finally a real Mexican doing food in a little take away place just shy of the Canal Saint Martin. Two ex- Disney employees (Alejandro worked there because noone else would hire him as a non-French speaker), doing burritos, tacos (handmade dough rolled through a hand cranked machine), quesadillas and friendliness. Too bad the tortillas are ready made .. they refry their own beans and do everything made to order.

Dishes 6,50€

El Nopal, 3 rue Eugène Varlin, 75010

Nobu at the Ritz Paris

2010-09-20T13:38:00.003+02:00

Can't wait to try the Nobu ephemeral restaurant at the Hotel Ritz opening for one month only on October 11th!

(You heard it here four years or so ago ;) )

FYI, It'll be in the Ritz Club space, which has apparently been all redecorated for the event (which may be more or less temporary, or lead to another more permanent place in Paris..)

YELP Paris party at the Bleu Noir Tattoo Artshop

2010-09-17T12:38:00.005+02:00

Strangely enough, these are the only two images I have of last night's YELP party organized by the amazing Zeva. I could have taken pictures of the Grolsch beer swilling and samosa munching bobos and arty hotties (ie Adrian fans) but was too entranced by the fun conversation with Omid, Rachel, Kim, Kate and various other unmentioned cool people. Good crowd, fun night and real live tattoo demonstrations in the heart of Montmartre.

SHAKE SHAKE SHAKE

2010-09-12T18:01:00.003+02:00

Great evening organized by the casu collective with cocktails (Monkey Shoulder whiskey, absinthe),by the boys behind the Experimental, small dishes by Michelin starred chef Eric Guérin, ambient music, croquet, lots of pretty chicks and a nice little penthouse/VIP level in an abandoned industrial property somewhere in gentrifying Belleville.

Playtime in Paris

2010-09-11T12:39:00.007+02:00

In a tiny side street off of Barbès lies this new restaurant, a stranger in a land of Doner and cheap snakeries, offering a pleasantly comforting and fusion-y menu from Viveka Sandklef, formerly of the Indigo Square in Bagnolet. One of the few Swedish chefs in Paris, she and her partner Jean Michel have created a nice little niche (very faux-50's/60's Eames) and a menu that went something like this: amuse bouche of fish quenelle and moutarde a l'ancienne, rabbit "kebab" (tasty) with honey/spice yoghurt sauce and cucumber carpaccio, tataki of salmon in nori with daikon and wasabi , filet of white tuna cooked in a nut crout en sel with a Parmesan biscuit and a creamy dashi and lard sauce, and a creme of vanilla/brebis with spiced apples (really delish). Service was predictably slow (Viveka was by herself in the dining room), but always with a smile and there seemed to be a lot of locals and walk-ins (the Figaroscope's two stars didn't seem to be in effect..). Clients: an English Russian translator from next door, a gay couple with stripey shirts and pointy shoes, a horribly dress coordinated French couple who changed their dishes at each course, and a bobo family that had a bit of trouble keeping their child in check.

P.S. If anyone out there knows where to get some aquavit in central Paris, please let me know..

playtime

5, rue des Petits Hotels, 10th

+33 1 44 79 03 98

2010-09-04T14:27:00.001+02:00

This underdog blagger and experience junkie will be back to business soon with New York stories, thrills, chills and adventure .... watch this space!

2010-08-27T23:35:00.002+02:00

Even Ralph Lauren can't get his friends into Ralph's (yeah right)

Either this is PR Bullshit or he needs to fire his staff (oh! wait that's happening as we speak, because they apparently have no idea what they're doing..)

Quick Review - Nakagawa

2010-08-18T10:10:00.003+02:00

In far-flung NorthofBelleville, a decent little sushi counter with (gasp!) a real Japanese chef. Looks like any old cookie-cutter establishment, but serves better than average quality fare for your fish and rice fix. Nice location overshadowed by the neo-Gothic Saint Jean Baptiste church. Also tempura (greasy) and yakitori (didn't try).

Nakagawa

2010-08-10T19:15:00.001+02:00

HUGE translation project for France's most cutting-edge food guide has kept me silent. You'll hear from me soon, dear readers. Thank you for your religious rockstar god devotion..

Pre Holiday Gastro Slam Day

2010-07-31T11:20:00.006+02:00

The dishes you'll see at the Passage 53 when they reopen after holidays!

And what you can eat at SPRING now!

Quick Review - Le Stube

2010-07-26T11:21:00.003+02:00

For those globetrotting clubbers who can't get enough of the ultimate after party Berliners snack, a passable rendition of curry wurst has finally come to Paris at a small snack counter called Le Stube , not far from the Palais Royal and run by the same family who owned the (now closed) Stubli temple to German gastronomy.

Quick Review - Ginger

2010-07-25T14:12:00.006+02:00

One of the least well known eateries on the Costes periphery, this Triangle d'Or demi bling bling establishment sells fusion-y food to mostly area businessmen and a few averted tourists. One dish made me stand up and take notice, a very tasty sea bass tartare with wasabi mayo, followed by an unfortunate "asian" fish and chips (there was nothing asian about it, two pieces of fish were deep fried to a charcoal and it was accompanied strangely by exactly the same potato chips and salad as my startare.) Oh, and it was accompanied by wasabi mayo (again) . Forgettable desserts, and Hong Kong/Paris servers.

Tartare of sea bass with wasabi mayo

Spring has sprung. Daniel Rose does it again, and evolves.

2010-07-18T10:54:00.009+02:00

I think it would be fair to say that Daniel rose to the occasion (I can hear the groans already....) , and I was lucky enough to be one of the first (along with a "best of" Paris' expat blogging community/fangirls) to dine at the new Spring restaurant, just down the road from the Louvre.

The restaurant, hidden on a quiet, narrow little street not far from the Spring Boutique, has been really well thought out, with a large open kitchen behind which a team of chefs (this is no longer the one man chaud of the former Spring in the 9th..), performing like clockwork, with Daniel overlooking and supervising the operations. The dinner is the same concept as before - a no-choice market-driven tasting menu, that changes almost daily according to the seasons and the chef's whims. We had: lime flavored, mint specked melon with lomito, an eggplant platter (in croquette, pickled, mashed) with eel, sashimi quality tuna with flash cooked gambas, artichoke hearts, and a delicious pigeon with ris de veau and the tiniest girolles you can ever imagine. Desserts were a very interesting serving of black cherries with fresh almonds and apricots with a lemon verbena syrup.

I loved the buzz and the open kitchen, and hope the fact that an American has created the most interesting restaurant in Paris in years might make them sit up and actually do something about it. As Daniel says, he is hoping to take Paris restaurants into the 21st century.

The restaurant , still a work-in-progress, is on three levels, with the lower level being a soon to be unveiled wine bar/tapas counter , which , hopefully will be doing good champagnes and wines all day long with luxury comfort food such as boudin blanc hot dogs and the lobster rolls that Rose tested out in the dying days of the old Spring on his Sunday get togethers. There is also a well stocked wine cellar with some surprisingly rare bottles, although it has yet to be fitted out with ventilation.

Can't wait to try the lunch menu of "tapas" , based around a bouillon concept.

Here are a few photos (in no particular order):

Spring
6 rue Bailleul, 1st
01 45 96 05 72
64€ set menu including 5 dishes, cheese and two desserts

Summer Nights in Paris

2010-07-05T10:49:00.005+02:00

Recipe for the perfect night. Start with a Florida Tarragon at the Prescription Cocktail Club, then walk up the street to L'Avant Comptoir and order a few helpings of croquettes with Iberico ham from Eric Ospital (3€) , oxtail croque monsieur (3€) ,boudin noir macaron, supplied by Yves Camdeborde's brother and a "pannacotta" of crab with a Ricard foam. Walk back to the Prescription and follow up with Very Old Cubans, Bloody Bullshots, more Tarragons, and drinks not even on the menu (the Doctor Funk from Tahiti needs a bit of work) . Pepper liberally with excellent company and sparkling conversation.

Adrian Day and Night

2010-07-04T15:13:00.000+02:00

Another ten days and I'll be experimenting with a new medium, much more rock and roll and in your face.

2010-06-07T19:22:00.001+02:00

"Then suddenly he felt a quickening in him. His heart turned and he leaned his back against the counter for support. For in a swift radiance of illumination he saw a glimpse of human struggle and of valor. Of the endless fluid passage of humanity through endless time. And of those who labor and of those who—one word—love. His soul expanded. But for a moment only. For in him he felt a warning, a shaft of terror... he was suspended between radiance and darkness. Between bitter irony and faith."

Ri.No.

2010-06-06T10:25:00.003+02:00

I'll probably catch a lot of flack for going out on a limb and actually not liking this tiny Bastille address that's had all the blaggers and critics in a collective gastronomic circle jerk since opening a few months back.

I'm talking about Rino, a hot (by that I mean no air conditioning) new bistro run by a chef , Giovanni Passerini, who seconded Peter Nilsson at another buzzing bistronomic, Le Gazzetta.

The short menu (with two courses for 18€ and three for 22€) was predictably short, with a starter of an orange tinged barley risotto and calimari, followed by a slowly cooked, and pretty tasty pork loin, served with cabbage and a side of veg. The dessert was fresh strawberries and pistachio (tasted more like peanut butter) sorbet.

The dining room was full of seniors saying things like "Ohh, I think this is nouvelle cuisine", and service (from the one man show waitstaff with vintage Ray Bans and effete Franco-Italian humeur ) was trés slow.

I was really excited to try this place, it was cheap, not so cheerful, and I'm not sure I'd come back.

Maybe for dinner, if the chef takes his culinary gloves off..

Best (only?) American style hot dog in Paris?

2010-05-30T11:31:00.002+02:00

A recent article in L'Express on "Paris' Best Sandwiches" brought me to this cubby hole snack stand in the Marais, offering apparently, New York style hot dogs. The 3€ sandwiches are offered in three different styles: the "American", ie ketchup, mustard and caramelized onions, the "Tex Mex", otherwise known as a chillidog, and the "Alsatian" (no Asian restaurant jokes here, please..) , or a sauerkraut dog. They were doing a roaring trade , and there was always a little crowd of Rayban wearing hipsters quaffing away, wiping ketchups off their chins, bobo families, and gawking passersby.

Verdict: decent, fun for the price, but as always, the unexceptional elsewhere often seems more exotic here. Especially where "American" food comes to play.

Le Mosaique
56 rue du Roi de Sicile, 4th

Dita creams for me?

2010-05-21T12:00:00.004+02:00

Highlight of the week: Being told by Ms. Teese herself , that I, *GULP*, made her BLUSH.

The End of Saigon Sandwich?

2010-05-16T17:37:00.005+02:00

Belleville's Saigon Sandwich has changed owners, after having been the pilgrimage of rabid enthusiastic Banh Mi lovers for years. The original owner, who left to "travel the world and find a new wife", according to the new proprietor , still stops in from time to time to check the tiny stand is running correctly. Things have been tidied up a bit, and the sandwiches don't seem to have changed much (the baguette with steamed chicken, cucumber, carrots, cilantro and chili with homemade mayonnaise still hit the spot on a walk through the Buttes Chaumont..) , but is the soul still intact?

Guy Savoy moving to Hotel de la Monnaie

2010-05-09T11:09:00.008+02:00

Guy Savoy is to take over part of the Left Bank's Hotel de la Monnaie one of Paris' most beautiful neoclassic buildings and install both a gastronomic restaurant (first floor) as well as a more casual café style eatery (called Metal Café) on the ground floor of the complex. His legendary establishment on the rue Troyon will close doors, and the restaurant is slated for a 2011 opening. Jean-Michel Wilmotte, his faithful architect friend will be handling the transformation.

Best Restaurants in the World

2010-04-27T11:27:00.011+02:00

All this brouhaha about the Restaurant magazine's 50 Best Restaurants in the World makes me think of this delightful little piece I did for the (once cool) Gridskipper website a couple years back. It also gives me a little pause for thought. And lets me share my pearls of wisdom with you. As well as snagging a bit of this high internet traffic in the process.

Any kind of "best of" list deserves a little ridicule , because "best" is so obviously subjective in so many ways, and top tables performing at the absolute gastronomic stratosphere can be so vastly different in form, function, inspiration and in what crowd they draw. They can be hard to understand and alien. So when every newspaper and website from Helsinki to Hoboken is raving about the snail porridge and bacon and egg ice cream that they never tasted, it's easy to see why people go for these easy to swallow lists. That being said, none of the judges involved were actually required to prove they went to any of the restaurants they judged, nor was it deemed important by Restaurant Magazine when they went (ie in the last year).

Anyway, as a friend (and contest judge) told me when I got all prissy about the list , "Adrian, it's just a fun party with chefs". So I'll leave it at that.

Me in Bon Appetit

2010-04-16T09:12:00.000+02:00

I take a terrible photo, but it's nice to be in Bon Appetit!

Plaza Colada Sushi

2010-04-06T16:17:00.004+02:00

Writing about this...uh, cocktail

Tour d'Argent changes chef (my yawn just yawned..)

2010-04-04T16:25:00.006+02:00

Stephane Riss just published this news on one of Paris' oldest and well known restaurants changing chefs. They need a lot more than a young chef change to turn this place around, and exchange the wave of American, Russian and Japanese tourists for serious gastronomes.

They're probably still worth a visit for their superb cellar though.

Thierry Marx moves to Paris

2010-03-30T13:16:00.002+02:00

Thierry Marx at the Mandarin Oriental Paris next year.

Le Piege , opening September 2010 (?)

2010-03-29T21:59:00.006+02:00

Like I said three months ago, Jean-François Piege and Thierry Costes' Thoumieux upstairs restaurant will be a six table gastro with a maximum of 20 people and be called Le Piege. Unfortunately, the opening will apparently be later on this year in September, on the date of the chef's birthday. They expect four month waiting lists...

Will I get credit for the name ;) ?

My Monocolumn

2010-03-11T18:37:00.000+01:00

Here's my little column on MONOCLE magazine's website on the new Michelin guide. Pretty general, but hints at the new Paris culinary zeitgeist.

Passage 53 - one star in the Michelin !!

2010-03-01T11:30:00.012+01:00

Actually, I'm taking time out of my no-comment-on-the-Michelin-guide-hiatus to say bravo for giving my favorite restaurant of the year, Passage 53 their first star.

I've been railing on this subject ever since Adeline Grattard told me the guide called her a few weeks ago to tell her of her first one star promotion, believing that Guillaume and Shin deserved it better- for the hard work and transformation they went through, from a "modern bistro" concept, ripping out the bar and changing the decoration to make the dining room more comfortable, giving chef Shin his chance to follow his own culinary path, and just being all around great guys with a totally unique restaurant.

Seeing Jean-Luc Naret there during lunch a few weeks ago (he returned two weeks after for another lunch), and hearing that the inspectors had already come by a number of times gave me a clue, but this was a big surprise. I'm happy to have promoted/supported/been their biggest fan-boy. Congrats!

I predicted it in the above article a few months ago, surprised noone else saw it coming ;)

The other two tables of note, are Yam T'cha with one star (controversial with many Parisian foodies who think the cuisine is flagging) and La Bigarrade, with two.

Michelin Guide Paris 2010

2010-02-27T19:36:00.003+01:00

No comment this time around. As my friend Alex Cammas says, "Who cares about the Michelin".

Much Meandering about Meat - Charbon Rouge

2010-02-27T12:13:00.003+01:00

I've spoken a lot about meat on this blog- covering the best and the worst in Paris, and another steakhouse opening isn't usually on my top list of priorities. Recent ventures such as Meating (dumb name, strange concept- ie. American meats broiled in a broiler brought at tremendous expense from the US..) have left me a bit luke warm. In fact, there is so much good meat in Paris restaurants, if you know where to look for it, that a new table (Charbon Rouge) purporting Argentinian, US and Kiwi meat cooked over hot coals on the touristy rue Marbeuf , didn't really hold much interest for me. My friend Greg, former George V bar pro and all around rock star and nice guy runs it and has been begging me to test, and I trust his opinion. So, after a few drunken textos to him (home watching a football match, on a rare day off), I got my late resa, and slouched around the corner to test. No expense has been spared in this modern, two floor carnivore temple, and it was pretty well packed with locals and fashionable jet setters, and the place is all the more strange , being situated between two of the most well meat restaurants in the city, Le Relais de l'Entrecote and Maison de l'Aubrac. There's not much to say except that they serve perfect renditions of dishes such as a luxurious , almost creamy ceviche and an Argentinian entrecote that blew my mind, with a tasty little chimichurri sauce and crispy fries, making for a perfect, filling, natural and hearty meal after a soirée plus qu'un peu arrosé!

2010-02-23T13:03:00.001+01:00

Royal Gin Fizz at Le Forvm- the cocktail world's answer to Cialis?

Taste of the week - Sliders at Px Cocktail Club

2010-02-09T11:34:00.006+01:00

For those of you who don't know (ie French people), a "slider" is a tiny hamburger popular in coolio bars in gentrifying 'hoods all over the US, and until now haven't hit Paris.

Last night at the Prescription Cocktail Club: Yves Marie Le Bourdonnec, 40 day aged meat patties, vieux compté, onions and truffled mayonnaise on Poujauran mini hamburger rolls.

No pix, you should be salivating by now.

Anahi - not for me

2010-02-07T12:46:00.004+01:00

One thing that really irks me is a so called trendy restaurant that's crawled its way up from the primeval sludge, and made its way into all the guides and magazines, the collective dining public's mind, and somehow, despite the fact that they were famous pretty much only in the 80's, because Jean Paul Gauthier went there once or twice, and because during fashion week it's filled with noisy, stupidly dressed American fashion press people , they still retain some sort of authenticity.

It went like this: It was Saturday night and I had no idea where to go, but a strange hankering for Argentinian meat or ceviche. I called Anahi: "We've only got space in the back room" (ie for the little people). Ok fine. I'm hungry. We arrive. Restaurant empty. We are relegated to the back room while the Argentine lady owning roams around the front room, preening herself for the real guests (who, by the way, take two hours to come).

The first round comes: decent, although tiny empanadas , guacamole, a little too smooth (think baby food) and lacking a bit of spice, but with great homemade bread, decent ceviche . We order our meats, told it comes with green salad. Everything comes with polenta instead.

"Can we have the green salads we were promised?" I say to Argentinian owner lady and fashion ambassador. "No it comes with polenta". Me: "We were told it comes with green salad". Her: "You'd like extra green salad". Me:"No, I'd like what we were promised, green salad". Her: "OK, sorry for the waiter , he never works in the restaurant, only on Thursdays". Okkkk......The kicker was when she took away a small bottle of Pago juice (20cl=8€!! , 85 cents in the local Monoprix!) that was only half empty, and spirited it away to the kitchen. When told , she said sorry, disappeared into the kitchen again, and was seen bending down to get the juice bottle - yes yes yes , at just about poubelle height. I could go on and on: the basil/tomato sauce on the brochettes was forgotten, no sugar offered with coffee, etc etc

I was fortunate my company was so charming.

La Tete dans les Olives

2010-01-28T21:53:00.009+01:00

Paid a visit the other day to this tiny little store/Paris' smallest restaurant after having read about them in the Figaroscope. The shop, hidden away on a rundown street sandwiched between the Hopital Saint Louis and the Canal Saint Martin, carries a great selection of fine Sicilian produce, and apparently supplies grand maisons such as the Plaza Athenée with their wares. The afternoon I visited, I did a little tasting of about five different olive oils, black and green olives, dried tomatoes, dried figs, tuna bresaola, fresh bay leaves, and fennel seeds, many of which were picked by Cédric Casanova , the raffish, young half Sicilian owner. François Simon and the Figaroscope people had been there in recent days, and it seems that this is the next gastropress bandwagon jumping hot spot that you'll all be reading about soon. Can't wait to try out their new table, with five seats and a simple "best of" menu, but John, Meg, Wendy, and Barbra got the jump on me ;)

Chateaubriand Redux

2010-01-27T12:36:00.046+01:00

I've never been a huge fan of Inaki Aizpitarte's Chateaubriand. Maybe it's all the media hype surrounding this bad-boy Basque, a rogueishly handsome, perpetually unshaven lady killer of a cuistot. Maybe I'm jealous of all the attention he gets variously from the top food and travel magazines, as well as a legion of hot young foodies. My friend and fellow chef/food blogger extraordinaire once told me, "I don't know what all the fuss is about- it's nothing special, just n'importe quoi" . Another friend Trish, who profiled him for a top French food mag thinks he's sex on a stick. Most girls do. I swear when he pops out of the kitchen you can almost hear the panties drop.

Well, all this hype has sort of muddied the water a little, making people expect something on the level of El Bulli I have the impression. All the fashionistas and gastro-tourists arriving for dinner last night had a similar look on their face, "Is this it?" One bobo type style editor girl got into a heated argument with the head waiter because they took more than 4 seconds to find her reservation. He couldn't give toss. I expect he gets it every day. Too much press buzz giving an impression of something else.

Anyway, last night I got it. A 45€ , five course menu with very decent food is a good deal:Amuse bouche of marscapone, crab and pissenlit, Bouillon with mushrooms, radishes , foie gras and various crunchy peanuty things floating around, lieu jaune with mashed purple tomatoes and raw, thinly sliced cauliflower, Lamb from Hugo (a bit too chewy), with carrots, agrumes and "carri", and a pear crumble/yoghurt dessert with caviar like little yuzu pearls. Cheese (coulommiers, "young" gorgonzola and chevre) was very decent.

So, despite previous misgivings, I've been won over for a simple, slightly creative cuisine at good prices. And it really was fun observing all those stupidly dressed fashionidiots waiting for my table in desperation at the standing room only bar, while I slowly sipped a last glass of chilled bubbly ;)

Quick Review - Breizh Café

2010-01-24T20:59:00.009+01:00

Perfect Breton comfort food for a rainy Parisian day, deep in the heart of the trendy Upper Marais. Art galleries, leggy models, hipsters. Tsarskaya oysters, crispy black flour crepe with a filling rivaling a Full English: mushrooms, bacon, fresh Normandy cream, piment d'Espelette, farm fresh scrambled eggs, all washed down with a crisp jug of organic cider.

Me vs. Le Figaro

2010-01-14T14:30:00.001+01:00

My piece a few weeks ago for Virgin Atlantic's website, vtravelled, and Le Figaro's piece yesterday.

Hmmmmmm.

Paris restaurants 2009/2010 : the year (partly) in review

2010-01-14T14:10:00.009+01:00

2009 was a surprisingly good year for food in the City of Light. In recent years , with the exception of the bistronomic movement, there wasn't really a whole lot happening in town, and other cities such as New York, London and Spain were starting to get the upper hand in innovation. This past year started to put Paris back on the map again, and what follows is my personal opinion on the most interesting culinary movers and shakers :

Passage 53: Located in a charming turn of the century passageway not too far from place de l'Opera (across from the Hard Rock Café, yikes!) is probably my favourite restaurant of the year. Run by the delightful Guillaume Guedj (whose father in law happens to be famed butcher Hugo Desnoyer), what started off as a slightly flawed bistro de luxe, turned into a small gastro of great note and promise. When early diners and reviewers complained that the dining room wasn't comfortable of spacious enough, he immediately rectified it. And then he did an about face, and went from bistro to gourmet, with a staff strengthened by a charming young Japanese sommelier who worked at Tokyo's three star Quintessence, and allowing Japanese chef Shin(ichi) Sato free reign with a lunch or dinner tasting menu only. Dishes such as the veal tartar on a bed of chopped Gillardeau oysters or artichoke tempura on a bed of chopped, yuzu flavoured oysters were not only the ultimate surf and turf, but some of the best dishes of the year.

Yam T'Cha: The year's most mediatized newcomer, this small table , not far from the Louvre museum, offered what I hesitate to call a fusion cuisine. Chef Adeline Grattard and her Chinese husband, Chi Wa, run this modern little dining room , all minimalist with exposed brick and open kitchen, offering a tasting menu including French and Asian products (Challans duck with Szechuan pepper, hot foie gras with Pok Choi and mustard leaves), that is subtle and completely unique. No surprise then, that Grattard trained with some of the best, the Meurice's Yannick Alleno and Astrance's Pascal Barbot, as well as a stint in Hong Kong at the two star Bo Innovation. Chi Wa, a former graphic designer runs the tea service with elegance and professionalism. But the press coverage was brutal and immediate, and getting a table at either lunchtime or dinner is nearly impossible, and time will tell if they can withstand this pressure. As a chef friend of mine recently said "Adeline is stressing out too much, you can feel the stress in the dining room, and I wonder if you can even taste it in her cuisine".

Frenchie. Another one you'll be hearing alot about soon is this restaurant owned by Gregory Marchand, a young French chef whose culinary training was exclusively outside of France in places like Jamie Oliver's 15 and at New York's Gramercy Tavern. His tiny little place, not far from the garment district and the ancient rue Montorgueil market street has drawn raves for his (very) short daily market menu (changes weekly) and bargain prices. A lot of local press has guaranteed very hard to get table status. Marchand recently imposed a two week before only booking policy to encourage local diners to get reservations.

Another unlikely table that has recently become one of Paris' hottest tables is the joint venture between Thierry Costes and former two star Crillon chef Jean-François Piege, Thoumieux. The old 1920's brasserie located in the chic seventh had been flagging in recent years, and Piege's redesign of both the dining room and update of the classic French menu (with additions such as the pizza soufflé and "carbonara" of calimari) have pleased diners as much as the reasonable prices. The upcoming renovation of the hotel and his future upstairs chef's table , (perhaps) called "Le Piege", will, according to rumours serve anywhere from 8 to 25 lucky diners. We'll see in a couple months.

Other interesting addresses include (in no particular order) : Tartes Kluger ,a modern pie-house/factory opened in an old, disaffected bakery in the Upper Marais neighborhood, all sleek surfaces and exposed brick, offering a limited selection of homemade sweet and savory quiches. O'trement, located on the upper floor of the classic brasserie Flottes, an arty, cozy modern dining room with a cuisine taken over by Nicolas Vernier (formerly of one star Caffè Minotti) , and a menu conceived by Frederick e. Grasser-Hermé: chic, relaxed with luxury comfort food and excellent products. Zinc Caius , spice crazed chef, Jean-Marc Notelet's annex to his main restaurant Caius, with an excellent selection of products and list of small production wines, and less than 20 seats. KGB one of the hottest entries of the year offers a Thai inspired world menu from young Israeli chef Yariv Berebi, who trained with owner (and chef of the motherhouse, Ze Kitchen Galerie, William Ledeuil). The menu is comprised of a fusion hors d'oeuvre selection, followed by pastas and crockpots, and a less than stellar dessert menu. Soundproofing is a little iffy, but worth a try with a foodie friend. Bob's Kitchen , a new lunch table from Marc Grossman of Bob's Juice Bar in the grungy/chic Upper Marais offers vegetarian salad, soups, stews and great desserts and smoothies, perfect for a detox lunch/brunch. Caffè dei Cioppi had all the Parisian food critics/writers on the bandwagon for a well conceived Italian menu from a former chef of the Relais Plaza. Price is right, and the place is charming, with an open kitchen, and located in a small passageway near the Bastille. Beware of restrictive seating times however, strictly enforced. La Patisserie des Reves the (finally!) new age pastry shop from famed chef Philippe Conticini opened to a media fanfare for his updated versions of French classics in a modern setting in the chic 7th.

** WORK IN PROGRESS ALERT **I'll be expanding on this post in the coming days, feel free to chime in...

Le Piege

2010-01-03T23:19:00.005+01:00

I've come up with a great name for Jean-François Piege's upcoming new table de chef on top of his trendy new 20 seater Thoumieux restaurant: Le Piege.

Catchy, huh?

P53 dish of the moment

2009-12-19T00:41:00.005+01:00

Artichokes cooked 'tempura' style (Shin-sana doesn't like that word) on a bed of yuzu tinted oysters(not Gillardeau, by the way). The new veal tartar. And one of the best things you can eat in Paris at the moment, the ultimate Franco-Nippon surf and turf.

Self Revelation no.1

2009-12-17T11:50:00.003+01:00

Am I just an overheated fanboy on the periphery of culinary genius and innovation?

Caffè dei Cioppi

2009-12-06T11:14:00.014+01:00

Open kitchen

Tiny dining room - 14 seats!

Buffala mozzarella with grilled vegetables and roquette

Subtle, if watery , safran risotto

Sbrisolona: Dessert of the year?

I decided to let things cool down and go after Mr. Tout le Monde Bloggeur Critique to test this hot new table which virtually anyone has heard about by now such as their gastronomic press firestorm been.

This tiny little table is located not too far away from the Bastille in a grungy but ever increasingly bobo part of the 11th arondissement, and hidden along a small passageway, which in the summer has a great little terrace. The dining room has only 14 seats, making last minute bookings pretty much impossible (we had an hour to eat..), but it's worth trying your luck because this place is great value. The ambience is very elbow to elbow, with diners getting all chummy, cool Jazz piped in, the kitchen totally open plan with casseroles boiling away, and three stools at a sort of bar with a full view of the action. The chef used to second the kitchens of the Relais Plaza at the Plaza Athenée hotel, and for the price the cooking shines pretty bright, with only a couples hicks here and there. I hoped to have the burrata cheese advertised on the menu, but , hélas, even being the first client of the day, they were out of stock and replaced it with an excellent mozza, accompanied by a salad of grilled veg and roquette. The following lasagna with sausage was delicious, although the safran risotto, for me, was pretty bland and too watery, and needed a copious dusting of pepper and salt (I'm told their red wine and sausage version is really good, but wasn't on the menu). Desserts were impeccable, especially the crunchy corn flour and almond based biscuits (known as sbrisolona) and marscapone cream, surely one of the most delicate sweets of the year. Count on spending about 30-35 Euros per person with a glass or two of wine.

Caffè dei Cioppi
159 rue du Faubourg Saint Antoine, 11th
+33 1 43 46 10 14

Don't make me go to the Kitchen Galerie bis!

2009-11-22T12:17:00.021+01:00

For once, I've been purposely avoiding a newly opened restaurant. It's painful. Especially when it's from a chef you like and admire, and that every blogging Tom, Dick and Harry is reporting back from the gastronomic battle lines telling you how great it is, pushing all those iPhotos in your face as if to say: I'm here first. I did it before you. I rule the Paris gourmet vanguard. Not . You.

Yesterday I finally ceded after having allowed the KGB or Kitchen Galerie bis to mature a little and find its footing (also to be able to garner a table reservation!). It was a last minute thing, but the amiable Jerome, who I know from William Ledeuil's mother ship restaurant was able to fit me in.

The place was pretty much as I expected, a toned down version of the one star Michelin Ze Kitchen Galerie just down the street, offering a more humble, gentler on the wallet French/asian fusion cuisine from a young Israeli chef, Yariv Berrebi, who staged with Ledeuil and also worked with Yannick Alleno at the three-star Meurice. I was surprised to hear that a great may of the new "bobo" diners hadn"t even heard of the original restaurant, such as the bulldozer of gastro-media buzz deafens everything around it, paving its way to the next hot table. The staff itself wasn't even prepared for the onslaught of attention brought by the local food press and especially those contributing to the blagosphere.

I won't say much here that hasn't already been said: the menu starts of with "ze hors d'oeuvres" , which funnily enough were my favourite part of the meal (deep fried lamb balls, duck consommé with foie gras, pork belly ravioli, etc etc ) , followed by a sort of Thai pot au feu of pasta and spices, then the marmite of scallops, litchi and wasabi. The white chocolate and wasabi soup was a bit underwhelming, as were the wines I tried ( it was a 2007 burgundy, so a bit young anyway..) , and they need to figure out the annoying glitchy soundproofing (lack of?) , but all in all lots of fun, but are they dangerously close to being a flash in the pan as an esteemed client and fellow gourmet told me ?

Zes tapas Thai

Scallops, litchi, wasabi

Guinea fowl , fondant, delicious

A little underwhelming white chocolate and wasabi soup

Christopher Hache New Chef at Les Ambassadeurs

2009-11-11T08:48:00.011+01:00

Crillon gets the "axe"

After months of speculation, cuisinerenligne scoops the new chef of the Hotel Crillon's Les Ambassadeurs, the 28 year old former second of the Bristol's Eric Frechon , Christopher Hache. Hache worked most recently at the one star Grande Cascade under the tutelage of Frédéric Robert, former chef at the Lucas Carton under Alain Senderens.

Memo to the Heinz people - Pittsburgh ends in 'h'

2009-11-07T20:00:00.011+01:00

Funny how such a simple thing such as, GASP, fact-checking can get overlooked by a multibillion dollar company such as Heinz.

Yes, people, Pittsburgh is spelled with a 'h' at the end....

...just not on the millions of 140 year commemorative bottles that just hit the shelves.

And yes, I will consult for money.... ;)

La Branda

2009-11-01T12:17:00.013+01:00

Mezze

Lamb Mixed grill

Pumpkin with homemade yoghurt

Sometimes you come across a place in the neighborhood that is pleasant, affordable and unknown, and just right for a perfectly satisfying eating experience. I've walked past this unassuming Turkish restaurant for the past three years or so not giving it a second thought, and through a series of mishaps, ended up dining there last night.

The decoration is pretty nonexistant, although they do highlight local artists, sometimes Turk, on their walls, and the service is warm and welcoming.

The cuisine is Ottoman, primarily grilled meat and fish, and the family who owns the restaurant hail from Izmir, the name Labranda coming from the name of a small town on the city's outskirts.

The food was perfectly acceptable, from the starter of nine mezze (aubergine, egglant, spinach, hummus, blettes, tzatziki, eggs, topped by two golden, flaky cheese filled rolls) , followed by the lamb mixed grill, perfectly cooked to juicy perfection, and a grilled pumpkin dessert with fresh homemade yogurt.

The bill came to be about 25€ per person, including a half bottle of okay Turkish wine. A nice change from the local kebab house.

Restaurant La Branda
18 rue Louis Blanc, 10th
+33 1 40 36 29 76

Chez Michel - Ze big disappointment

2009-10-28T00:13:00.007+01:00

Last minute dinners always get me. In my day job or as gastro consultant for my friends and colleagues, no problem, a perfect table is always found. When I'm trying to find a place for myself for a nice night out, however, always the eternal dilemma, the soul searching begins. I find the perfect idea, I change it, I worry if my friends will like it, I question my desires, my cravings. I think of the previous weeks web and food press, various recommendations, tables I'd like to try and haven't. All this happened to me again last night, when confronted with having to find a place to dine for myself. Where? Passage 53 went to last week and had a marvelous lunch. I wanted something new. Or something I'd never tried. I thought of KGB, but the massive recent press made that impossible. ZKG, the maison mère didn't answer the phone. I thought of Krung Thep, my fave Thai, but felt like French. La Grille, an eminently old school establishment, was fully booked. Villaret, Chéri Bibi, Fidelité, Sardegne a Tavola, Kiku all came to mind. And faded away. We decided on Chez Michel. After all, why not, the proto-bistronomique is every Parisian gastronomes fave for it's 32€ menu and well turned out food.

Last night was different. When entering the restaurant, the usual chaos ensued: waiters rushing around, and being shouted at. Locals mixing with Dutch and English tourists, clutching their recent (but outdated) editions of Time Out and Fodors, having trekked out to this far flung corner of the city for their gourmet graal. The same menu at 32€ for three courses and a blackboard highlighting other more complicated/elegant dishes, with their pricing supplements. Game had , as always, a prominent place on the menu, and the lievre a la royale looked to be the choice for my dining partners and I. But with a 25€ supplement! We soldiered on and ordered. The starter of pate en croute of gibiers and foie gras with it's accompanying herb salad from well executed and good (supplement 5€), followed by the royal hare, which was entirely uninspiring. A smattering of tasteless, odorless shaved black truffles covered the dish, and my friend Philippe had another , unexpected supplement: a plastic film covering his lievre. The server was shown the dish and he said, simply, "Oh that's there to shape the dish on the plate". Even when another large piece of plastic was found on the plate, no reaction, no apology. Chef Thierry Breton didn't even bother stopping by, except to suggest a pricey, though good Domaine Gramenon Pascale. Funnily enough, he wasn't even in the kitchen, which seemed to be manned by Japanese stagiaires..

So word to all you Parisian foodies and cued up gastrotourists: Chez Michel seems to have passed its sell-by date. Move on to new gourmet pastures.

Lievre a la Royale

Lievre a la Royale avec plastique

Piege's Secret Thoumieux Tasting Labo!

2009-10-26T18:55:00.012+01:00

Can't wait for Piege to open his new gastro/tasting/laboratory upstairs from Thoumieux. Should be soon. A Robuchon-y open kitchen and democratization of high gastronomy for a select few communal diners (20 covers). Opens in March 2010.

You heard it here first.