John Talbott

My good friend John Whiting et al - let's get back to food.

For those too eager to await my posting this week's "Digest" - there's news on the no smoking front. In yesterday's Le Figaroscope's “Dossier” entitled Smoking-No Smoking, Colette Monsat et al cover the waterfront of no smoking places, dividing them into several categories: Gastronomic Atelier de Joël Robuchon Table du Lancaster Spoon Jules Verne Bistros L’Epi Dupin La Cerisaie Florimond Stéphane Martin Mon Vieil Ami Le Temps au temps Le Vin dans les voiles La Table d’Hélène Vegetarian and Bio Aquarius La Bonne Heure Biotifull Place Bioboa Rose Bakery Cojean Eatme Naked Mariage Frères Intermittently Ploum Domaine de Lintillac For those interested in the law and European trends, there's a full discussion.

01.41.08.02.52 Yes reserve; they turned folks away the day I was there.

The Week of April 24th, 2006 Sunday’s New York Times featured an article by Elaine Sciolino on affordable places in expensive cities that mentioned Le Troquet’s 38 € 6-course tasting menu and 30 € 3-course menu. Monday, Le Fooding’s Elvira Masson announced that Inaki Aizpitarte, ex-La Famille & still at Transversal and Fred Peneau of the Café Burq have indeed re-opened le Chateaubriand. {Editor’s Note: a little birdie told me things are not humming yet and one should perhaps wait a bit. My experience, granted limited, is that Aizpitarte excels for a while once things settle down, then gets restless and things go to pot. We’ll see.} Tuesday’s A Nous Paris had an article labeled Little Big Places and why one should think of them: Benoit for lunch with Mom and Pop Gaya for an amorous dinner Fogon for a dinner after a show Le Relais du Parc for a business lunch. Wednesday, Figaroscope’s Emmanuel Rubin’s “C’est nouveau” gave two-hearts to three places, the Italian Tartufo in the 1st, the African Le Chari in the 3rd, and the “haunted” Au Bascau, coordinates well-known in the 3rd, lunch formula 18, a la carte 40 €, resuscitated yet again by an ex of Lucas Carton who serves a salad of bulots, axoa of veal {it’s a Basque place recall,} and tarts that were “all sugar.” He gave one heart to Les Bonnes Soeurs, another Italianate place in the 3rd and a broken plate to the Café Chic in the 8th. The “Dossier” this week discussed meat places but was deceptively entitled “Business Restaurants:” Le Titi parisien Steak & Lobster l’Ascot Boucherie Rouliere Devez Le Galacher Severo, the place that on page 2 they urge you to run to La Mascotte Le Griffonnier and also: La Tour L Le Café du Commerce As always, Francois Simon’s “Hache Menu” was in the same groove, covering Meating that he says you should go to if you’re dying of hunger and live in the area. Wednesday as well, Sebastien Demorand in Zurban reviewed Les Délices du Shandong in the 13th in his big space as well as a Japanese place in the 1st - Zen, another Italian place in the 6th – Les Amis de Messina and La Bonne Table, 94, rue des Martyrs in the 9th, 01.46.06.50.73, open only for dinner with a formula at 19.50 and a la carte about 45 €, for everything from onion soup to escargots, veal Marengo to scallops provencal, and from an impeccable pate de tete with lentils to ray with cherry vinegar: in other words, pretty old school, all of it. Wednesday-Thursday, in Le Monde, Jean Claude Ribaut had two articles: one on the “primeurs” of Bordeaux that he described as full of equilibrium, the other on the “affair” of adding oak chips. Thursday, ParuVendu published mini-reviews of restos with a view: Georges La Maison Blanche Le Benkay Kong Le Ziryab Le Chene Vert Hotel Raphael and names and coordinates for several others: La Tour d’Argent Le Jules Verne Altitude 95 Le Relais de Sevres Le Ciel de Paris Les Jardins de Camille. Thursday in l’Express Jean Luc Petitrenaud reviewed Chez Serge in St Ouen at 7, bvd Jean Jaures, 01.40.11.06.42 with a 30 € menu for superb food (he compares it with the Ritz + Plaza) such as herring, terrines, confited duck and wines every whichway. His second review was of the Bistrot Paul Bert, coordinates well-known, that he says all Paris is talking about. Last week I incorrectly repeated the reviews from the week before: they should have been of Les Crayeres in Rouen, which is a “rave review,” and the Brasserie de la Porte Dauphin, 55 ave Bugeaud in the 16th, 01.45.53.79.90, that specializes in aligot from the Aveyron plus simple fare such as oeuf mayonnaise and confit de canard. Thursday, in Le Point, Gilles Pudlowski presented his by now familiar mix of things: a bunch of places in Paris whose coordinates are either in the guidebooks or have been given before, including: a glowing review of La Ferrandaise, where he calls the 30 € menu a godsend/windfall, suggests we follow the new team at the Bistrot des Soupirs, which has a lunch menu of 15 €; says both Le Dome + Bistrot Paul Bert, are in good shape, but that La Mascotte is in trouble. He also reviewed Le Temps de vivre, with its good fish items in Roscoff; an Italian place Acquarello in Munich and suggests we buy monkfish from Ofimer, 76-78, rue de Reuilly in the 12th and barbeque it according to a recipe he gives; and finally, that we purchase our Mozart balls (chocolate, marzipan & pistachio) from Fürst (the originals inventor/maker of them), Alter Markt & Brodgasse, in Salzbourg. Friday, Jean Louis Galesnes in Les Echos suggests several places in Beziers: the Octopus, La Maison de Campagne, Barba + l’Ambassade. Saturday in the WSJ there was a box entitled “Eating out” with several epicerie-restaurants briefly written up by Jane Sigal : including Da Rosa Granterroirs Pomze La Cremerie Les Vivres. Finally Sunday, Bonjour Paris had an article by Margaret Kemp entitled “Two Hot Tips” about Cou de la Girafe + Café de la Paix and one by John Talbott entitled “Writing restaurant reviews.” Please post comments here and not in the Digest thread.

April 2006 – Escarbille, Jarrasse, Mori Venice Bar, Les Chineurs, Table de Dancourt, Bis de Severo, Symples de l'Os a Moelle, Chez Corto, Chez Cecile: La Ferme des Mathurins, Christophe, Boulogne-sur-Mer, Caviar House & Prunier: Seafood Bar, Cave Cafe, Carpediem, Aux Zingots, Julien, Hier & Aujourd'hui, Charlain, Relaxé 8. l’Escarbille, 8, rue de Velizy in Dept. 92 (Meudon @ the Bellevue train stop on the Rambouillet/Mantes line from Montparnasse – 4.10 € RT), 01.45.34.12.03, closed Saturday lunch and Sunday night and Mondays, at lunch 1sts are 21 €, mains 22 and desserts 8, but the menu = just 36. You get off the crummy aluminum train that is 50 years old, exit the Bellevue station on the north side and walk just to the end of the cars parked besides and there is a charming French inn that could just as well be 500 miles away in the country. (By the way l’Escarbille is a small partly burned piece of coal that escaped the train’s engine, as if you care.) You’re met with gravel, flowers, a warm welcome and three separate rooms. The menu had 4 starters – a sharp, intense, not overly-creamed bisque of cooked langoustines and their shells with four tender ones floating on top of a lot of reduced dead critters, a large portion of white asparagus, crab and a “croque monsieur” of foie gras; 6 mains – pigeon that was simply awesome, rivaling the gold standard at Bon Acceuil with peas in a fluffy sauce (yah, he’s into the Detourbe handheld mixer “thing”), a luscious lamb, beef, barbet, carrelet with nicely toasted skin and loup; then desserts of a tarte tatin (his only slump – while the caramelized top was the tops, it doesn’t rival the apples underneath provided by Millet, for example) with ice cream, a cheese plate (7, count them 7), pineapple and passion fruit, and extra bitter chocolate three ways (truffle, ice cream and ohmagawd I forget the third). The amuse bouche was a nice tampenade, the canelés at the end were high standard and the coffee was straight from Naples. Wines were pricey (for me) starting only at 24 altho they had ample half-bottles; the rolls were too doughy; and the local male crowd from work in the next room was too noisy – don’t I have to find something wrong? Very wisely but disappointingly, the French critics give the cost of the train (as I said 4.10 € RT) to add to the bill, but hold it, so many folks never cost in the 2 € RT metro or 20 € RT taxi, that it’s not necessary. My bill was 62 but with two sharing the wine, a couple can get out for 101 €. Go again? You bet, with or without an extension afterwards to Rambouillet or Versailles. 7. Jarrasse, 4, ave Madrid in Neuilly, 01.46.24.07.56, open 7/7, 38 € menu with three choices for each course including specials of each, a la carte 40-80 €. Hooo boy; has Caroline Rostang landed on her feet – having jumped the good ship Bistrot Cote Mer, a winner if ever there was one, for l’Absinthe, a loser if ever there was one, she’s back and “Good on ‘er.” She and Papa Michel took over this tired place in Neuilly in mid-December and have gotten tepid reviews, not bad but not really great – but I’m here to tell you the big boys got it wrong. It may not be Gaya, perhaps the best new fish resto of the academic year, but it certainly is the best new fish place of the calendar year 2006. Why? Well, their product is impeccable, the serving plates are innovative (from Jersey, printed in English, with bold paintings of squid, mussels, etc), oysters that are perfect, munchy and tasty; a toasty exterior/moist interior dorade with a marmalade/chutney/whatever they called it, that absolutely complemented it; and a sublime moelleux with tiny slivers of blood orange peel and a mint leaf. They have a dozen wines at 22 € and more up to 70 €. They have good bread and Illy coffee and Rostang’s signature caramels from Quiberon. What’s the but, there has to be one?: Yes - the flooring on the 2nd floor and stairway needs some serious carpentry. That’s all? Well, they must also turn on the ventilator when folks are smoking in the upstairs room. Anything else of note?; Right, the fish for two looked fantastic and I saw three different kinds expertly deboned by the upstairs waiter/maitre d’. The wait-staff, from existing and prior Bistrot’s d’a cote + Absinthe were professional and warm (disclosure: they spotted me from my custom years ago but that can’t affect the product.) My bill (with a full bottle of wine) was 64.50 €. P.S., the place was almost full at 12:36 PM with shirt and tie international business folk – reserve and arrive on time. Whatta place. Thought I’d died and gone to heaven! 6.5. Mori Venice Bar, 2, rue du 4 Septembre in the 2nd, 01.44.55.51.55, closed Saturday lunch and Sundays, a la carte 40-60 €. One is warned that its décor is by Philippe Starck - I, anyway, entered warily, but it wasn’t over the top, as he can be sometimes. Nice, bright, but enough room between tables and one could pretty much talk OK. The focaccia and bread were excellent, the wine hearty (they run from 29-480 €) and the carafe of water delivered without a fuss (indeed, the service people were quite nice and largely bilingual – that is French & Italian.) My companion ordered asparagus that came with an over-salted béchamel sauce and a terrific (best of the decade) blanquette (spoiled only by again over-salted potatoes) – she, being French, pointed this out both times. I had a bresaola with greens that were gold standard and cuttlefish in black ink with an over-salted polenta – But, when you put the polenta on top of the cuttlefish, the flavor was in perfect equilibrium, as my companion pointed out. We passed up the panna cotta and many ices for Illy coffees and exited happy and only 110 € lighter. As readers know, I eschew foreign places in Paris unless I’m here for over 6 months, but I went because of the fantastic ratings it got from the big boys. Would I go again?, no, not when I can be in Italy in a day’s drive and eat as well if not better at ½ the price. 6.4. Les Chineurs, 55, rue de Bretagne in the 3rd, 01.42.78.64.50, closed Sundays, lunch menu 28 € for three courses, 22 for two; a five course tasting menu = 49, a la carte 50. From the reviews it sounded like quasi-nouvelle cuisine at big prices but no, not inedible food and not a crushing bill. It’s in a weird part of town, the Marais, bien sur, unserved by Metros, with the most horrible or charming (depending on your taste) décor, furniture and place-settings imaginable (the name after all means antiques’ bargain hunter.) Despite all this, it is “serious” food, my French friend admonished me, and we plunged in. The amuse bouche was a “soupe” of vegetables, heavily influenced (for the good) by avocado; the bread included both plain and nut/raisin old-style rolls and the wine and coffee were quite nice. But to the dishes. I went with the “menu,” choosing a starter of a timbale of crushed and enhanced duck with a red (? Indian spice/pepper) sauce and white beans (just delicious) while my friend ordered the tabouli with grilled shrimp, that he thought were over-cooked but that I thought reminded me of the way they do them on the shores of the Mediterranean. Then I went on to a filet of sandre with an long egg-roll of very, very good shaved veggies while he had a huge piece of milk-fed pork stuffed with a foie gras and ham forcemeat, again quite good. We should have stopped there (we’d had enough) but being gluttons, we went on to share a marvelous baba au rhum with an incongruous chocolate sauce on the side and a terrific puits d'amour without the pastry but with a base of pureed rhubarb and strawberry halves, topped with a crème caramel. The bill = 98.40 €, that despite all the forewarnings, was not half-bad. 6.3. La Table de Dancourt, 4, rue Dancourt in the 18th, 01.42.52.03.98, double Wow, who would’a thunk it, in the heart of touristy Montmartre, that there is finally a place to eat, open for lunch and dinner. The clientele, that there was, was local; the art on the wall – awful. Two of us ate here a month after it opened, and the dishes were innovative and delicious. We started with a terrine of rabbit meat and feet (not terrific, but as we say, not bad,) and imaginative cuts of foie gras on spinach (nickel). Then we had a chunk of milk fed pork under-cooked as we asked for it, with a timbale of great eggplant and a “tartare” (really a carpaccio) of beef, without capers, (the lady warned us) on top of a sort of shoestring potato base – I thot it was superb, my partner hated it (was this because he, being French, found it untraditional?) The wines were pricey, but as my wife Colette tells me, you only go around once. The bill for normal, non-alcoholics would be under 100 €. 6.2. Le Bis de Severo, 16, rue des Plantes in the 14th, 01.40.44.73.09, open Tuesday to Saturday night. Another seemingly trite neighborhood place that was unexpectedly good (although to be honest, it has garnered pretty good reviews.) It was advertised to me once upon a time as a seafood place – ha! It was more like a meat place with at least six steak type mains. But I’m getting ahead of myself. We entered to the screams of a two year old that didn’t cease until one or the other parent escorted her out and finally, blissfully, left altogether. Our eyes scanned the menu but the only thing that jumped out at us was an outrageously priced cote de boeuf (70 €); but hey, somedays…… We started with a fantastically tasty boudin noir with a tartly dressed salad, then on to the cote de boeuf from Limousin, done charred on the outside, pink/raw in the interior and finished with a divine crème caramel. We topped this fine meal off with Illy coffee and two poires by Brana, excellent. The bill (we had the el cheapo wine @ 13 € for a not disgraceful Cahors, to rationalize our choice of the expensive meat) was 114 €. 6.1. Les Symples de l’Os A Moelle, 18, ave de la Republique in Issy-Les-Moulineaux (92), 01.41.08.02.52, is smack out of the #12 Metro line exit, is closed Saturday lunch and Sundays and advertises itself as a “table d’hote – cave á vin.” My French food critic friend, ever helpful, said when I told him I wanted to try this restaurant in Issy, the second spin-off from L’Os a Moelle – “Why, no one will go, you’re wasting your time.” Perhaps, but this is almost a “one of a kind place.” Spin yourself back to the French countryside in the 1950’s, just after the war, when food was simple, good and cheap; add a tiny place with 30 covers, essentially three big tables with separations of two inches max; put oh, 6-8 dishes/platters on every possible space, piled high with grated beets, carrots, fennel, lentils and cucumbers plus two pates (one velvety smooth foie gras/rillettes/etc; the other with a boudin mixture from the country) and cornichons and super bread,; sell wine by the glass (3 €+), carafe, from one of those fancy oxygen-cheating taps, of 70 cl (14 €+) or bottle (23 €+); serve one soup (our day, an incredible mushroom and foie gras mix whipped to a froth) and one classic main (gigot with ratatouille, also first class); continue with a huge cheese plate of goat (5) and vache (1), several desserts (rice pudding, prunes with orange flavored wine sauce, apple crumble, prune clafoutis and a Macedonia), Illy coffee and Chateldon (who was saying on eGullet recently that this water was the mark of a good place?) and what do you have for 22 €? - a damn fine way to spend a few hours. There’s little more to say: all locals, all there (but us) because of their love of the mothership(s), no smoking, no complaining, no dishes sent back, no whining, much inter-table interaction – a very happy bunch. Our bill = 67 €; quick, send your backpacking relatives, better yet, come yourself, no one else will. Just for the Turkish toilet, you deserve to go back in time to a kindler, gentler age. 6-7. NNN* Chez Corto, 47, rue Rodier in the 9th, 01.49.95.96.80, closed Saturday lunch and Sundays, with formulas as follows : special 9, two courses =15 and three cost 20 at lunch and at night two are 22 and three 28 €, a la carte at night 36-40 € (at lunch 3/3/3 starters/mains/desserts; at night 5/6/5. I went with low expectations – while written up enthusiastically shortly after it opened six months ago by Sebastien Demorand in Zurban, it has generated little buzz. But while no where near as exciting as its area-mate Carte Blanche, it is as the French say – “Not bad.” The welcome and ambiance are great – white stone walls with contemporary art that I liked (a rarity) and a very friendly front-room guy with a black fedora (in homage to Marc Veyrat?) The clientele? Locals. A woman came in and planted an American kiss (one on the left cheek – not two in the air) on M. Black Hat. Firsts included a cold carrot soup, hot chevre with nuts and a Mediterranean tart (a quiche really with black olives, tomatoes, broccoli and great melted cheese – Wow!) with salad greens that I chose; mains were cod rolled in spices, lamb orientale and a tender (how do they do it so much better than I?) magret cooked to my perfection (ie raw inside, crusty/crunchy outside) with a sauce of agrumes and potatoes and desserts of pastry with strawberries, ice creams and a pannacota with caramel (precise!) Even the bread and coffee were good. Wines run one 14-86 €, by the glass 4-6 €. This place reminds me a lot of Les Don Juans right down to the website emphasis on being gay-friendly; not a lot of choices but solidly executed. Chef David Bruminaud (?) may be young but he’s got a good thing on his hands – I don’t want to make more of it than it is, but if I lived nearby, I’d be by every couple of weeks. My bill was 36.50 € - the best price-quality ratio of April. 5-6. NNN* Chez Cecile : La Ferme des Mathurins, 17, rue Vignon in the 8th, 01.42.66.46.39, closed Saturday lunch and Sundays, 2 courses are 30 and 3 plates are 35 €. It’s a strange place with contradictory messages: it’s on a very swank street around the corner from Fauchon, but has photos of those early 20th century nude women one associates with the ads for the Cafe Luxembourg in NYC; its menu sometimes reads backwards like Gilles Choukroun’s at l’Angl’Opera but it’s straightforward food ; and while looking like an American diner in its layout, its clientele were 100% working suits. They had plenty of offerings - fish, fowl and red meat, plus two specials each for firsts and mains. I had the slice of foie gras sautéed with a “marmalade” sauce and diced beets (just the right amount) a close call over the beignets of gambas ; then a huge kidney with a Corsican wine sauce that required salt (not a good sign) and wonderful smashed potatoes (not my fave, I tried to substitute fresh veggies without luck), again a close call over a special “Burger” with truffle sauce and eperlans : sounded great ; and finally a Grand Marnier soufflé with a shot glass of an “infusion” of Grand Marnier with a stalk of lemon grass. It was, as they say, nickel = perfection. I’ll be watching chef Stephane Pitre’s progress; I hope he goes up. A friend talks of my “cruelty” to bistros but I just want the chef to get it “all” “right.” The bill, a very do-able 52 € (they have tons of wines, almost all by the glass, 46 cl carafes and bottles.) 4.5. Christophe, 8, rue Descartes in the 5th, 01.43.26.72.49, open lunch and dinner 7/7 with formulas at 12, 16 and 19 (but for limited items), a la carte about 33 € with wines from 14 € and up. Three of us ate there on a Sunday for lunch and several things were remarkable: the tuna tartare and phyllo-wrapped fried langoustines were terrific firsts; as were the mains of brains on mashed potatoes, confited lamb shoulder on top of great white beans and Basque pork three ways (a boudin noir, pig’s feet with prunes and a huge slice of perfectly cooked pork). The only disappointments were the crummy décor, a moelleux of chocolate (here described as mi-cuit, which just didn’t beat the “can one do it better than at home” test) and service that ground to a halt after the dessert was served (an old, familiar problem.) Two huge pluses, (1) It’s entirely No Smoking and (2) the three men all wore chef’s aprons and the guy taking orders and serving also picked up to help the kitchen when pressed. Our bill for three was 127.50 €; but without ordering the lunch formulas (d/t all the interesting stuff being off them) it’s not a bargain basement; but for a Sunday for this quality, it goes on the list. 3 or 4 or 5 or maybe 6. {this is where the system of numbers breaks down, although John Whiting insists I should never even have tried it in the first place.} Boulogne-sur-Mer {I know, you know, it’s a play on words, an oyster bar/seafood resto/store located in Boulogne-Billancourt}, 11 bis, ave JB Clement, 01.46.04.12.87, closed Sunday and Monday (lunch all other days, dinner only Friday and Saturday). In any case, let me cut to the chase – go if you’re staying in BB, go if you want inexpensive everything (oysters, clams, fish, wine – all 30% less than 3 Metro stops away), go if you need to fill out your dance card – otherwise the 20 min schlep and 10 min walk may not please you. In front, one spots the banc of shellfish containers with a great shucker, pass thru the fish shop, and find yourself in an enclosed, warmed terrace with a bar and some lobsters in a huge tank. Platters of shellfish are bigger than downtown and {to my pleasure} without the typical tasteless, huge crab. While I was waiting for my invitée, they gave me some quite, quite good petits gris and quite, quite good {a cut above} bread. I started with 6 Fines de Claire from Oleron and followed with a spectacularly cooked bar with a sauce that usually comes with quenelles – my neighbor ordered extra sauce, not a bad idea! The other (there are always three) choices were a Bouillabaisse-type soup and a rouget grondin. The clientele was as mixed as you can get for BB; young trencher-folk, old farts, and a guy much older than I with a bleached-blonde bimbo much younger than anyone else, who sported a strange bra/girdle that allowed her cellulite to peek/extrude thru. No smoking, except by a lady who was trying (unsuccessfully) to keep her weight down by smoking non-stop (there are no ventilators and it wasn’t warm enough to open the windows/dormers). Giving a price here, as with all oyster places, is tricky; it depends on the number and origin (Brittany, Charente-Maritimes and Ireland) of the oysters (7.40-19.50 €, the six) and wine (14-70 something € the bottle.) My bill was a very doable 45.50 €. 3. – Caviar House & Prunier: Seafood Bar, 15, place de la Madeleine in the 8th, 01.01.47.42.98.91, closed Sundays, with a formula consisting of dessert and either a tartare of their own salmon or a salad of ecrevisses with a sour dill dressing for 19 €; a la carte who knows, three of the cheapest oysters are 7.50, dishes go from 4-89 and caviar depends on amount and type. Wines run from 35-75, with 10 cl glasses starting at 5 €. The room is nice Starck-like, blue glass tables, bright sunny walls and ceiling, and there are lots of mirrors and lights. The clients appear to be “seasoned” single women in the midst of shopping or young couples tired of shopping. No Anglophones; no smoking. I started with a soupe de poissons (not as simple to make as one might think) that was very good, with fine rouille and cheese, all three pre-prepared. The problem – the uncrispy toast crisps that sat in your mouth like a lump destroying the otherwise superb soup (yes I skipped them afterwards – but to test the starch situation I tried the bread – equally yuckily stale/tough/uncrisp.) OK, so far except for the bread products, great. Then the aforementioned salad of ecrevisses; the salad, also pre-prepared and I suspect from the frigo, was seriously tired, the ecrevisses numerous, indeed plentiful, but tasteless, and the dressing overly and needlessly sour. The dessert and coffee?; are you kidding, “don’t tempt fate” my sainted mother taught me, so I got outta there fast, after paying my bill of 33 €. Am I being too hard on it because it is clearly trading on its history, reputation, and downstairs products and glitz. I don’t think so. Just compare it with two other places that similarly compete in the same fishy domain from the second floor of their respective motherships: Flora Danica/Maison du Danmark + Petrossian 144/Petrossian – there’s no comparison. Oh and did I mention that the wait-staff must have very interesting sex lives or dysfunctional families because they spent a lot more time chatting among themselves than dealing with the customers (OK they’re new, they’re actresses and it’s a deadend 6 month job, but……) The final blow – the credit card machine (in a one month old place, mind you) didn’t work. Simon asks – “Should one go?” Need I answer? 2.5. La Cave Café, 134, rue Marcadet in the 18th, 01.4606.29.17, open everyday; Mon-Sat from 8-1:30 AM; Sundays and fetes from 10-1:30 am. This typical Montmartre dive is full of “kids;” that is people younger than my friend and I, and has what we foreigners consider typical French bistro fare; terrines, ceviches, salads, coq au vin and fish. Our meal was generously supplied and quite tasty; only the coq in the coq au vin was dry and tasteless. The wines are “natural” and available in all sorts of sizes. Especially to be recommended is the crème renversé; really perfect. Our bill = 64 €; thot by me to be quite reasonable but by my companion who’s lived here for 40 years, excessive. Oh yah, on the way out we were greeted by owner, Arthur Jordan, ex of NY and Chicago, who clearly has a winner on his hands. Now, if only he can convince the smokers sitting all along the 20-feet clearly marked “no smoking” banquette to cease; it might be even more of a winner. 2.25. Carpediem, 19 bis, rue Fontaine in the 9th, 01.42.80.10.55, closed Sat lunch and Sundays. A nice place with warm white stone walls and everything on the chalkboards. There’s a formula for 11 and 3 courses for 13 € from a small forced menu; regular dishes are 5.50-10 for entrees, 12-16 for mains and 5-7 € for dessert. Wines are by the glass, carafe and bottle (16-37 €.) They have three “exotic” mains – a Tunisian tagine, a Senegalese chicken and an Aussie kangaroo – in addition to French dishes such as pot au feu, magret, etc. I chose a wonderful feuillete of scallops and shrimp with sundried tomatoes and fresh dill and fresh greens with a light vinaigrette and closed with a super financiere with red fruit sauce and ice cream. My mistake was that I ordered the Senegalese chicken with onion and green olives – and never having had it before, I don’t know what to compare it with. I didn’t find it fetching. So I’ll hedge my rating. My cost = 36 €. 2.1. Aux Zingots, 12, rue de la Fidelite in the 10th (01.47.70.19.34), open dinner only Tuesday-Saturday 7:30-« very late. » Positives – it’s near the Gare de l’Est, open late, in a great ex-brasserie (named Nicolas) setting with a 2-story front and serves largely good food. Negatives – it’s an off-shot of Ramalaud, which has had a checkered reception, advertises itself as an innards/abats place, where in fact 80% of the menu is non-organ meat oriented, they were out of ham and lentils (lentils ?, I guess no one could run to the supermarket) as well as brains (both of which I ordered and was not warned about in advance of their absence) and it was empty (a sign of client lack of enthusiam.) Was it good ; well, yes, my friend’s eggs’ meurette was OK and my second choice of haricots verts had a nice dressing although the parmesan on top was rock hard ; both of us had the veal’s liver which was cooked to our perfection, although, again the sauce (balsamic dribbled on the plate) was off-putting. This city needs a center for abats ; this, however, is not it. Our bill 86 €. 2. Julien, 16, rue de Faubourg St Denis, 01.47.70.12.06, open everyday, menu = 26, a la carte 30-35 €. Question : Why does one go to a Brasserie Flo brasserie ?; cuz it’s Sunday, cuz it’s predictable, cuz a friend is reviewing it – Answer : all of the above. So, one has to be forgiving. Not really. The last time I went, it was 1990, and I cannot say much has changed, except the chefs, every so often, not that it should. The six papillions and foie gras starters were actually pretty good as was the steak tartare, although the salad dressing was simply tasteless. However, while the magret de canard was adequately cooked and fatty it was a bit tough and the pleurottes, were they pleurottes not cardboard imitations ?, as well the bread, coffee and watered-down Valrhona sauce on the profiterolles, pretty pathetic. And butter in a packet for Lord’s sake. The decor is lovely, but one can’t eat Art Nouveau moldings or faux-Tiffany glass. Our bill = 75.60 € for two. 1.8. Hier & Aujourd’hui, 145, rue de Saussure in the 17th, 01.42.27.35.55, closed Saturday lunch and Sundays – where?, oh way out there; a friend warned me that I shouldn’t try it because “no body will ever go.” Well, it was full the day I went, largely with people known to the house, two of whom had not seen the reviews in Figaroscope + Zurban and who were reading them avidly. Everything on the 26 € menu is on the chalkboard and there are two more for the wines. It’s a nice, bright, new place that I guess will do quite well serving the local businesses but I suspect my friend is correct, it’ll never attract the downtown crowd. I had a cold salmon that had been marinated and grilled that was quite nice, then a veal rollatine with a nice forcemeat, accompanied by potatoes that were described as like risotto (well, they were sort of like them), then a chocolate mousse that was about the best I’ve had in years, with a great praline. The coffee came with gingerbread that was more than nice. Why the low grade? Well, who would I tell to go there, unless someone’s staying at the Novotel at the Porte d’Asnieres? Too bad. My bill = 40 €. 0-1. Le Charlain, 23 rue Clauzel in the 9th, 01.48.78.74.40, closed Saturday lunch and Sundays. Oh my, this hurts me more than it hurts you, as my Mother used to say. One wants so much to love this place. Recommended by two esteemed/experienced eGullet members; in a great location; with a charming host/chef and an equally charming host/spouse; with a genuine no smoking room; but occupying a cursed space, last occupied by the Auberge et Cie, Auberge Landaise, and before that, countless failed restos. I wish I could say that they escaped the curse. I had a cassolette of escargots and girolles with a buttery-mildly-cheesy sauce; flavorless and worse, the girolles were stringy like seaweed. I ordered the next dish defensively but failed; the confit de canard was overcooked and the potatoes, if they had garlic, remained taste-challenged and most incredibly, the roasted baby tomatoes tasted like cardboard. The kitchen was also challenged - a group of 8 folks from a local company, seated barely after me, had yet to be served as I finished my coffee. My bill = 51.50 € for what was the most disappointing meal of the month. Outside my grading system – Chez Relaxé, address immaterial, but in the 9th, because it’s one of those ephemeral, trendy Paris things, open when it wishes, cost to me - some flowers. The shrimp were perfect, cashews crisp, Pascal lamb, from Paulliac was splendid, not as undercooked like I like it, but hey; the many, many wines revealing; the cheese superb, high standard; and the pudding, as our colonial oppressors would say, was quite alright. Go back? Sure, but will I know when, where, etc? Ah, the French! Scale (subject to fickleness and change): 10 - Giradet in the old days. 9 - Ducasse, Bocuse, Loiseau at their prime 8 - Bon Acceuil, Ze Kitchen Galerie, Cerisaie, Constant x3 now 7- Bistro Cote Mer at its flowering best 6 - Cinq Mars 5 - Terminus Nord 4 - 2 Pieces Cuisine 3 - Le Bouclard 2 - Sale + Pepe 1 - le Nord-Sud 0 - Auguste, The Place Ø- Iode N* = a place that if one lived nearby in the neighborhood (N) would be a great place to go but gets a lower grade due to the schlep (perhaps unfairly). NN* = a place that if one lived nearby (N) in the neighborhood (N) would be a great place to go but gets a lower grade due to the horrible, immense, unpleasant schlep. NNN* = If I lived nearby it would tilt to the bigger grade.

First off, don't apologize for asking this general a question; as you've already seen, it has and will generate enormous responses because everyone has his/her own favorites. Having found the Gites site and books, you've got the best source of info on rentals that's available; look for the words "house of charm" as a key to nifty places. Of all the places you've mentioned I'd knock Dijon and the English channel off the list right away. And the problem with Brittany (either side, north or south) is the weather that can go either way as was mentioned before. It sounds like you're most inclined to go to the Basque country since you liked it before, it has sand beaches, it's not jam-packed and over-priced like the Cote d'Azur, the weather is better than North and the food good, interesting and varied. You can also do day trips if you were to bring your car, into the mountains, up to Bordeaux, Toulouse, etc. But as I said, I'll bet you'll get tons more responses. Stay tuned and let us know afterwards how it turned out.

Thanks Charles, your links prompted me to put up a compendium of other existing threads.

Montpellier Languedoc Roussillon; a compendium of existing threads Cassolet in Languedoc Wine route of Languedoc Roussillon Montpellier Languedoc Roussillon Languedoc Dining Montpellier The Roussillon Montpellier Montpellier & C-F Languedoc Roussillon Les Jardins des Sens A great dinner in Magalas, O Bontemps.

What’s in the markets in May The following are in full season in May (the underlined ones are the major items): mackerel, St Pierre, merlu, lamb, veal, cow cheese, goat cheese, camembert AOC, asparagus, broad beans, petit pois, small artichokes, radishes, purslane, salicorne, mousseron, strawberries and rhubarb, I’m relying principally on the Almanach du Gastronomie by Armelle de Scitivaux (Bottin Goumand, 1998, 133 FF) since my Regal hasn’t yet arrived.

They were probably the April 10-11 A Nous Paris and the recent issue of Omnivore.

Oh, I just reread this and must say I have the opposite problem; I'm asked after every dish and have to do some fancy footwork to avoid insulting some chefs (I'm writing an article for elsewhere on the subject). As an aside, this thread had/has legs.

Yup. Exactly a year ago; here's what I wrote:

So Vivre let me be sure. You check the food box YES and tell them you have cheese (no age/pasturization/etc specified) and it's all ok?

I guess everyone has their own definition of mid-range restaurants; I tend to define restaurants with a 3 course menu of around €30-40, excluding beverages, since the choice of aperitifs, wine and digestifs is such an individual thing and can render useless any price estimate. I agree with the Bib Gourmand selections; they come close to my criteria minus the wine. ← Indeed, I daresay, I think it varies from person to person enormously - if you're from NY or LA, work running a hedge fund (maybe that's a cheap shot, but....), and only eat out twice a week, 100€ pp is cheap - whereas if you're on a fixed penurious income eating out every day in Paris - that's called expensive. A French friend in the food biz here says that over 50€ when quoted in reviews is too much. And last night a friend, American but living and working here for 40 years found the place we went to for 64€ for the works too pricey. It was Einstein after all (world's smartest guy before Kissinger) who made relativity popular. I must say, as well, that I really count on the Bibs in the countryside; they tend to be run by young energetic couples, have rooms and want to make it. Edited by John Talbott multiple times for numerous errors.

Vegetarian, vegan, veggie friendly, etc. restaurants A compendium of existing topics This is one of a series of compendia that seeks to provide information available in prior topics on eGullet. Please feel free to add links to additional topics or posts or to add suggestions. Vegetarian haute cuisine Paris vegetarian restaurants

Late dinner and shopping A compendium of existing threads Late night shopping Late dinner

Open Easter/Christmas/holidays/fetes/etc. A compendium of existing topics This is one of a series of compendia that seeks to provide information available in prior topics on eGullet. Please feel free to add links to additional topics or posts or to add suggestions. Closings in May. Open for Easter in Paris Christmas in Paris Easter weekend in Champagne Bastille Day July 14 Armistice Day November 12 Christmas, New Years Christmas in Alsace Christmas Jerusalem artichokes New Year’s Eve, Cote d’Azur

This is one of a series of compendia that seeks to provide information available in prior threads on eGullet. Please feel free to add links to additional threads or posts or to add suggestions. Getting married Private Rooms for Group of 30 Bistrots for group of 6-10 persons For Groups of 8 For Groups of 12 For Groups of 16 For groups of 200-500 Edited by John Talbott to add the word group.

The Week of April 17th, 2006 In Le Fooding, Monday, the restaurant heralded by Yann Siliec is le Petit Hôtel du Grand Large in Quiberon. Tuesday’s A Nous Paris had a profile (no rating, no review of food) by Philippe Toinard of Fumiko Kono, Japanese-born chef at Fauchon where she serves up a 39 € menu at lunch. Tuesday’s Le Figaro had notes on three ways to have food vacations – Le Bottin Gourmand’s new website featuring food trips that looks kind of interesting altho spare right now; a book called Vacances Gourmands by Astrid Latapie about finding stages and classes throughout France (Albin Michel, 10 €), from a medieval meal in Vienne to a vegan one in the Ariege to studying with Ducasse and Bocusse; and in Marseilles, a young chef at Le Miramar will teach you the secrets of making bouillabaisse at 110 € a pop. The same day, Metro, reported on a book called Le Grandgousier Ile-de-France: guide de vente directe et des products du terroir by Pierre Jean Sugier and Nicolas Peltier (Les editions du 4, 19 €,) that purports to have 150 producers listed (I assume that will sell to you directly). N.B. Metro says it is published in French, English and German, but I cannot find it on Amazon.fr, only Amazon.com. Wednesday, Figaroscope’s Emmanuel Rubin’s “C’est nouveau” featured five one-heart restos: an African place Moussa l’Africain in the 19th, a club sandwich/cheese cake dinette called Gilda, 73 bis, ave Niel in the 17th, 01.42.27.42.20, open everyday, the “pocket bistro” Roger La Grenouille, 26-28, rue des Grands-Augustins in the 6th, 01.56.24.24.24, closed Sundays, serving a terrine of ox tail, grenouilles and French bread for 40-50 €, menus = 24 and 32 €, a Boulogne place in the 92nd Dept Cap Seguin, opposite 27, quai Le Gallo, 01.46.05.06.07, open everyday for about 40 €, for a trio of tomatoes, beef pepper style and Quatrehomme cheese, and in the exTante Jeanne spot, the brasserie-lounge Villa Pereire, 116, bd Pereire in the 17th, 01.43.80.88.68, open everyday, offering pumpkin soup, entrecote and nems of nutrela and banana for 40 €, menu at 24.50 €. The “Dossier” this week covered things milky: Oreo milk-shake Le Tourville Iles Flottantes Bistro Paul Bert Raisin pudding Why Not Crème pots l’Affriole Lassi with mango Old Jawal Hot chocolate Bar chocolat du Tokyo Eat a Jean Paul Hevin “ephemeral” thing Caramel crèmes Salon de the Fauchon Caramel variations Thierry Burlot Panna cotta Point Bar Cheese plate La Fromagerie 31 And also La Ferme. Francois Simon, to follow the theme, ate at the Rose Bakery, coordinates given before where he urges you to go for breakfast for 49.50 € for two for yogurt, green apples and muesli. Wednesday as well, Sebastien Demorand in Zurban reviewed the Italian place l’Altro, as well as a “girl food” (eg crepes) place called A l’Ouest, 33, rue Saint Sebastien in the 11th, 01.47.00.66.12, closed Sundays and Mondays, lunch formula = 11 €, a la carte 15-18 €; the retro but new Hier & Aujourd'hui, coordinates given last week, where he enjoyed the oeuf mayo, terrine maison, tuna with leeks, entrecote and rice pudding; and the place he called a failed bistro, the Casque d’Or, 17, rue Saint Blaise in the 20th, 01.43.73.33.09, closed Saturday lunch and Sunday night, lunch menu at 14 and a la carte 30-32 €. Wednesday-Thursday, in Le Monde, Jean Claude Ribaut had an article on why tomatoes have lost their taste, presaging a piece on ARTE Monday night April 24 at 7 PM; plus another on cooking with truck farmed produce; mentioning three individuals in particular: Joël Thiébault at the Alma market, Jean Zay at Levallois Perret (Weds and Sat AM’s), and Jean-Marc Defresne at the Henri-Barbusse market in Levallois, (Tues, Fri & Sun AM’s) as well as the Argenteuil market (Weds & Sat AM’s.) Thursday in l’Express Jean Luc Petitrenaud reviews in Paris Le Bis de Severo, coordinates given already, where he really liked the minced cuttlefish, boudin noir, crisp and marinated fish of the Asiatic chef - Shigeno Makoto and in St Tropez – La Bastide de St Tropez. {This is an error repeating last week's reviews; please see next week for the correction.} Thursday, in Le Point, Gilles Pudlowski presented his traditional mixture of items; a review of a new bistro near Nation, l’Eglantine, 21, rue Fabre d'Eglantine in the 12th, 01.44.67.73.40, lunch menu at. 15 €, a la carte 30 for oeuf mayo, charcuteries, foie gras and exquisite meat. He also notes that the following are in good shape: Balzar, Sormani + Le Duc but Il Settimo is in trouble. Outside Paris he mentions the Taverne Katz in Saverne (and gives Suzy Schmidt’s recipe for a timbale of chicken), the Torre del Remei in Bolvir de Cerdanya, Spain, Le Barbue d'Anvers in Lille and De Karmeliet in Bruges. Friday, Jean Louis Galesnes in Les Echos wrote of walking like a flaneur and eating along the left bank of the Seine at Le Tour d’Argent now with the #2 chef at the ovens, La Rôtisserie du Beaujolais, Fogon, La Pérouse + Le Voltaire. In the Saturday-Sunday Figaro, dated April 1-2, the food page was devoted to places that serve high class but lighter fare written by Francois Simon, who seems to have taken this niche on as a crusade. He mentions (in Paris): Cristal Room, Colette, Senderens, Le Georges, La Galerie du Plaza, Le Murano, Le Kong, Delicabar + Le Salon d’Helene and Hi Food in Nice. However, he then goes on to mention in a short column the un-light – l’Ambassade de l’Auvergne in Paris, Zucca Magica in Nice and la Maison Baron Lefevre in Nantes. Simon, who wrote well in his book about keeping one’s weight under control, gives several tips here: (1) avoid bread, (2) take your time and eat like a Buddhist, savoring say, rice, grain by grain, (3) inhale, relax, (4) have but a main course and treat it royally, (5) avoid dessert, (6) skip an aperitif and have but one glass of white wine, (7) eat veggies abundantly, (8) avoid sauces, (9) have steak au poivre but once a week, (10) don’t clean your plate, but above all have a good time; just eat a bit less. Finally, his Croque Notes concern places in or near Etretat: the restaurant Du Golf, le Picrocole + l’Auberge de la Grenouilliere. Sunday, in the JDD, Guy Guilloux of La Taupiniere in Pont Aven picked his favorite reasonably-priced Paris places: Daru + l’Azalee. In addition, Astrid de T’Serclaes reviewed Prunier, Caviar House coordinates given before in the Sunday mag - Version Femina. Finally five books were briefly reviewed, our own Ptipois (Sophie Brissaud)’s La Table Vegetale 32 €, chez Minerva, Jean Paul Hevin’s Delices de chocolat 30 €, chez Flammarion, Chez Catherine Guerraz’s Les delices de Chez Catherine 29.90 €, editions Solar, Bruno Oger’s Passion Café 40 €, chez Jean Claude Gawsewitch, and Marie Leteure and Frederiques Marcombes’ Mes petits plats pour bebe 18 €, editions Solar. Finally Sunday, Bonjour Paris had an article by Margaret Kemp entitled “Chicken or Egg Buzz” and one by John Talbott entitled “How do you stay so fit?” Edited by John Talbott to correct l'Express reviews. Please post comments here and not in the Digest thread.

I'm so happy to hear that you enjoyed your meal at Chez Michel. I have been many times and it was always one of my favorites. Your post certainly makes me want to go back soon.And I'm glad to see you were able to post your photos ← Agree; pix great but food better.

I'm tacking this news onto an existing thread as I haven't yet seen the book itelf but Figaro Thursday mentioned a new guide containing a "vast compendium of addresses" of both auberges and restaurants. It's called the Guide 2006 des 1000 tables et auberges de France, editions du Cherche-Midi, 15 Euros.

Thanks PP, I've changed title so it's searchable.

Wednesday-Thursday, in Le Monde, Jean Claude Ribaut had an article on great veggies one get get from truck farms; mentioning three individuals/suppliers in particular: Joël Thiébault at the Alma market, Jean Zay at Levallois Perret (Weds and Sat AM’s), and Jean-Marc Defresne at the Henri-Barbusse market in Levallois, (Tues, Fri & Sun AM’s) as well as the Argenteuil market (Weds & Sat AM’s.)

I realize it's only been a few hours since you posted this but the lack of response prompts me to say that the Mothership is not his anymore, but apparently there's a place next to the old shop, with, if I recall the story correctly, an Italianate name, out of which his products appear. I'm not enuf of an afficianado to trudge over there tomorrow but my curiousity is stirred. Come on Ptit Pois, Zouave, Felice, Paga and Louisa - you know the story. Cough up!

Ah well, don't blame Le Figaro, chalk it up to my nonexistent French translation skills. Also, for the record, this week's A Nous Paris had a profile by Philippe Toinard of Fumiko Kono, Japanese-born chef at Fauchon where she serves up a 39 € menu at lunch.