Lazy mood today- a little French fast food. (from Gault et Millaut's 2008 Best Butcher, Christophe Martin).

Monkey's Groovy Bar and Funky Food

One day after shopping for my asian food product fix at the nearby Paris Store in Belleville, I passed by this strangely decorated bar/resto, thinking nothing of it, other than it looked, just, well, out of place, with an omnipresent stylized ape logo, and multicolored furniture, it didn't look quite right. Then a couple of trusted friends told me that their burgers were, in the words of one, 'legendary'. So I had to check it out. It turns out the chef did time in the kitchens of the Meurice, and ended up associating himself with Nicolas Barthelemy, an Oberkampf bar owner who wanted to change 'hoods.

I dropped by this afternoon to check it out, and ordered their no. 2, a minced lamb burger, with coriander, ginger, Thai basil all enveloped in a cereal bun, accompanied with home cut frites. Everything seemed fresh and homemade, although the fries were a little cold, and the bottom part of the burger disintegrated halfway through eating it. The music was moody and funky, service very friendly, and the beer and food (4€ for the pint of Stella, 10€ the burger) reasonably priced. Other burgers include satay sauced chicken, beef with thyme, mozza, pickles and beefheart tomato, and even a veggy version for the effete set.

The bar and kitchen are open until 2am, making this an interesting alternative to other nearby bobo Belleville bars (Aux Folies, Café Cherie, etc)

PS Apologies for the iPhone pic...


Monkey's
68 boulevard de la Villette, 19th
+33.1.40.18.08.10

L'Oscar

Oscar: Simple, good value on the edge of the Triangle d'Or. Tiny, expensive sidestreet in the 16th, just behind the avenue Marceau. 21€, three course lunch menu. Chicken salad with tomatoes, green beans, carrot, beetroot, and Parmesan. Excellent steak tartar (normally if it's not coupé au couteau, I won't touch it).Expertly mixed with ketchup, tabasco, etc etc, served with fresh potatoes. OK fondant au chocolat. . But at this price, it's hard to complain.


L'Oscar
6 rue de Chaillot, 75116 Paris
+33.1.47.20.26.92

Ari - Mme Shawn's Thai concept trainwreck

I knew I shouldn't have. I really did. But sometimes after a few too many glasses we all make stupid dining plans. Last night's was particularly disastrous, even more so coming from a restaurateur that I've been frequenting for a long time.

I've been going to Madame Shawn's discreet little Thai bistro for a few years now, and although I know it's not the most authentic , and that their staff seem to change mysteriously with each ship coming in from Bangkok, I've always been able to trust their food quality and consistency. In the last couple of years, Madame Shawn has built a sort of empire, with new establishments popping up in the upper Marais, the 11th, the 16th and two others near her original restaurant near the Canal Saint Martin.

The most recent opening is Ari, in what was formerly Le Sporting, a sort of fusion place with Asian, French and Asian/French specialties. The staff weren't really able to explain the concept, (or even speak much French to tell the truth) , but none of the dishes seemed to be done correctly with a general confusion pervading the room when dishes showed up. We probably should have left at this point, except that the lady who runs the place we knew from the original Madame Shawn was so happy to see us, the terrace was full of apparently happy, good looking people ,and those four pints....

We decided to keep it simple. I took the green papaya salad with dried beef. Why, I don't know, but Madame Shawn's original Som Tam is my favorite in Paris. Here it was a total miss. Not spiced enough, and covered in strips of blackened, tough meat. The Asian "Brie burger" proved to be pretty much inedible, dry, piled too high with ingredients to eat, and accompanied by frozen potato wedges.

Funnily enough, throughout the meal, images of Kitchen Nightmares were going through my head, with Chef Ramsey lurching off to the bathroom to retch. That feeling was reinforced when seeing a kitchen staff member leave men's room without washing hands.

So sorry Madame Shawn, with all due respect, there's no saving this place in it's current form. Advice: Reduce the menu drastically to simple "exotic" snacks, chic comfort foods, crank the ambient music, and turn this trainwreck of a concept into a Canal friendly lounge that'll pay the bills along the line and keep your rep unsallied.

Le Grand Venise

Vegetable "amuse bouche"

Charcuterie

Mussels in creamy lime sauce

Favas

Antipasti Armegeddon

Langoustines served with home made tartar

Tower of caramel ice cream


It's almost a shame to publicize my recent meal at Paris' most discreet insider Italian. Located in the residential fifteenth far from the center, and run by the amazing Marina (who, though far from young, still goes to Rungis immediately after the dinner service ends at 1 or 2 am), this place is packed with well-heeled families and foreigners, celebs, magnates, most of whom would eat nowhere else. The dining room is a bit kitch, filled with flowers and plants, the food over the top with the very best ingredients in copious amounts, service pro, the perfect place to go with a large group of friends for the table topping generosity of this hidden gem.

A typical meal starts off with a basket of garden vegetables, gorgonzola, mascapone, two types of butter, olives, superb homemade olive oils and balsamic vinegar and freshly toasted bread. This is best followed by the platter of charcuterie (Parma ham, mortadella, salami, coppa, pancetta) and/or the massive antipasti platter with fava beans, mussels in a creamy lime sauce, marinated peppers, fritto misti, aubergines, fried onions, followed by a very correct tagliatelli carbonara, and their famous towering block of homemade caramel ice cream accompanied by cherries with cinnamon and cloves. All washed down with champagne served in frosty glasses and small run Toscan wines.

Be forewarned: it's expensive but worth it, kind of like an Italian Ami Louis.

PS Sorry for the iPhotos, but I was more into eating and drinking than archiving...

Passage 53 - menu degustation

Last night took the occasion to try out the new degustation menu at one of my favourite tables. For those of you who have been living in a cave for the last few months, the Passage 53 is one of Paris' most interesting new restaurants: located in the city's oldest covered passageway, run by Guillaume (whose father-in-law is France's most famous and coveted butcher de luxe, Hugo Desnoyer), and orchestrated by Mr. Sato, former chef of Paris' only Michelin-starred Japanese, Aida. (who also did a stint at the three-star Astrance). The restaurant was boiling inside, so luckily we had a table on the terrace, where we enjoyed nine dishes from the chef's surprise menu, which at 60€ is reasonable and worth the detour.


Broccoli emulsion with crunchy broccoli bits


Veal tartar from Hugo Desnoyer on a bed of Gillardeau oysters


Grilled calamari with cabbage and cauliflower cream


Foie gras with strawberries


Cod with white radish cream


Turbot


Veal filet with noirmoutier potatoes and mushrooms


Rhubarb jelly with rhubarb cubes


Green tea sorbet with red fruit and puffed rice

Bob's Juice Bar and Kitchen

Nice surprise today at the recently opened BOB'S JUICE BAR AND KITCHEN. Veggie stew with lentils, fennel,potatoes, beetroots, followed by organic banana pancakes, a detox juice, ginger tea and lemon muffins. And being taken care of by Rachel, the most gorgeous foodinista around put a smile on my face.

Pink Flamingo

A hip, Miami-style eatery in the Marais called the Pink Flamingo should be an instant hit with just the name alone, however, this is probably one of the best pies in the city. Their first outpost was on a tiny side street next to the Canal Saint Martin, and this tiny place, next to happening neo-bistro Glou, and behind the Musée Picasso is in prime Upper Marais real estate. They offer a variety of interesting pizzas, all made with thin crust bio flour, and cooked to perfection with exotic toppings. I tried the "Ho Chi Ming", with chicken and gambas with a coconut milk sauce, coriander, lemongrass and sprinkled with crushed peanuts. I thought Alice Pizza was the best I'd ever had in Paris, but this one made me seriously reconsider. Went down well with a cold biere bio of their own fabrication.

Pink Flamingo
105 rue Vieille du Temple

Yam'Tcha

Shrimps from Mozambique with Korean mushrooms and a garlic sauce

Fresh seasonal asparagus with pan-fried foie gras and mustard leaves

Fillet of beef

Chevalier with pok choi

Olive oil cake with milk ice cream



The future next cult resto in Paris, Yam'Tcha, will no doubt figure in next week's Figaro (3 hearts I'm sure), Le Fooding, express, etc etc . Adeline Grattard, who worked with Yannick Aléno at the Hotel Scribe (pre-Meurice), Astrance and Bo Innovation in Hong Kong , does a subtle cuisine, somewhere between asia and France in a nice little space not far from the Louvre. For lunch, there is a 30€ meni, and in the evening there are 45€ discovery menus and 65€ tasting menus (5 dishes) . This evening, the menu consisted of an amuse bouche of soy with smoked tofu and coriander, shrimp with korean mushrooms and a garlic sauce, fresh , seasonal asparagus with pan-fried foie gras, filet of beef with some sort of asian eggplant, and an excellent olive oil infused cake with milk ice cream...The name means 'drink tea' and Adeline's husband proposes a number of different teas throughout the meal, prepared in three different infusions.

yam'Tcha.
4 rue Sauval, 75001
+33 1 40 26 08 07

Alain Ducasse

It's hard to say no when (arguably) the world's best chef invites you to test the cuisine of his flagship restaurant. Despite the fact that I'm very critical of all these super-chefs opening global franchises, microwave "gourmet" food and consult from everything from cruise ships to chips, Ducasse's gastro hit all the right notes. Good humored impeccable service (yes, they noticed I eat left handed), great wines (can't complain when you're plied by 2005 Riesling Grand Cru, 2004 Chablis, 2001 Chateauneuf-du-Pape and an insane Pineau des Charentes....


Patrick Jouin "exploded" chandelier


Live langoustines, soon to become...


...Formerly live langoustines ...topped with Iranian Oscietre caviar and accompanied by a ginger broth


Scallops with caramelized endives and black truffle


Line caught sea bass with "prébelle" green asparagus, peas and fevettes


Pithiviers game pie with (copious) black truffle, foie gras a Périgueux sauce


I've heard of truffled salads before, but this is ridiculous! A salad inside a package of shaved black truffle


Fresh forest picked strawberries with a coconut sablé and ice cream