John Talbott

Thursday/Friday in Le Monde Jean Claude Ribaut wrote about restaurants that have fumoirs: Goumard-Prunier, Tante Marguerite, L'Atelier Berger, Boudoir + Le Bistrot de Breteuil.

The Carlyle Club - another reincarnation. Kir Singh, owner of both the Ambassador + Carlyle Club and for two years The Spice Company has seized the moment after a flood at the Carlyle, renovated it and rebranded it from Lebanese to Southern Indian cuisine. He moved the murals over from The Spice Company, put in cool new lamps, re-configured the entry and completely revamped the menu (only one item is a holdover). For the moment it's a prix fixe ($25 for 3 courses). A waiter we know told us there are plans to add small (and large) plates to the menu, a la carte, in a few weeks. Colette started with a soft-taco-like utapan made from rice and white lentils, topped with diced tomatoes, onions and cilantro and served with three sauces. I enjoyed two small but good product crab cakes with spicy sauce apart - delicious! Then I had a huge lamb shank with spicy sauce and seasonal veggies that I ordered spicier than usual and it was perfect; Colette had a wrapped halibut filet with a spinach/lentil puree on the side that was also very good. She thinks that the wrapping on the halibut (also sort of like a soft taco) did not add anything. They had only one Indian dessert, a cream on a creamy cake and Colette had 1 scoop of very frozen mango ice cream. With a bottle of cabernet and tip, we still exited for under $100. A definate keeper. PS Colette adds that one can talk and hear easily here, there being no intrusive loud music.

I would second this whole report except Mitch made no mention of the decibel level which is maybe indigenous to West Side Young People's dives. This is a great place and I'll go back in a flash.

Not unprofessional, just Roman. Most places will leave you alone with a digestif (or the whole bottle, if they liked you) until you ask for the check. ← I've found that a big difference between France and Italy is that in France, only in truckstops do you go and ask for the check and pay at the counter but in Italy it's common.

There's been inactivity on this topic for quite some time and so I thought I'd revive it. Four of us had to be nearby yesterday and so ate lunch at Payard's at a member's suggestion and found it pretty good. While our New York friends unadventuresomely had Cobbs' salads (which they deemed good), Colette had the appetizer portion of scallops and I the skate with a boullion with shitakes and gnocchi. I thought it was all very nice albeit not earthshaking (as our meal at the Fatty Crab #2 was) but as members above noted, it is also a patisserie and folks found the desserts quite good. With much wine and coffee our bill was $172.81 before tip. Not a destination, but if I have to be there again, I'll certainly think about it.

The Week of March 30th, 2009 Tuesday in Le Fooding, Sebastien Demorand reviewed the Asiatic-influenced Yam'tcha, 4, rue Sauval in the 1st, 01 40 26 08 07, closed Mondays and Tuesdays, where he comments on the wok-cooked or vapored Korean mushrooms, omble, bok choy, oolong tea and wines; and soon dim sum. No a la carte; lunch menu is 30 €, dinner 45-65 €. Tuesday as well, in ANP gave two “world food” places 3/5 - Philippe Toinard reviewed the Italianate Samesa in the 17th and Jerome Berger the “special Chinese” Shan Gout in the 12th . Wednesday, Emmanuel Rubin in Figaroscope gave another of his rare ratings of 3/4 hearts to the afore-mentioned Yam’tcha, coordinates above, where he mentions the shrimp raviolis, duck and eggplant and biscuit with olive oil; and two hearts to three places: the Italian R-ital, in the 17th; the wine bistro Le Cru Rollin, 156 ave Ledru-Rollin in the 11th, 01.43.73.72.20, closed Sundays, with a light lunch menu at 14, a la carte 20-40 € for foie gras, tete de veau and fondant with chestnuts; and the 1980ish Soho Manhattanesque Balthazar et Cie, 35, rue Faidherbe in the 11th, 01.43.71.65.30, closed Sunday dinner and Mondays, which is in the old Purple space and with a formula at 14 and carte 25-35 € serves shrimp and banana chips, tartare and a Malabar cappuccino. The last place reviewed got a busted heart: the annex of the Maison de la Truffe called Truffes Folies, 37, rue Malar in the 7th, 01.44.18.05.41, closed Sundays where there’s the “pretext” of a 18 € menu at lunch but costs closer to 50 € for eggs with truffles and overcooked penne Perigord with four small strips of foie gras. In Figaroscope’s Dossier this week by Colette Monsat et al listed the Poissons d’avril it being April 1st as: Dover Sole L’Ecailler du Bistrot Pollack La Mercerie Mullot L’Ecaille de la Fontaine 35º Ouest Small sole Le 21 Turbot Les Fables de la Fontaine Daurade Uitr Bass La Maree Denfert Changes at Antoine Goumard La Maree. In his “Hache Menu,” Francois Simon reviewed the new place at the top: Enpente, 69, rue de la Montagne-Sainte-Geneviève in the 5th, 01.57.08. 55.19, closed weekends, run by twins, where he paid 115 € for two for a Adria-like soup of foie gras powder that enlarged, rascasse and a dessert much like the liquid disinfectants that rub dry in a few seconds leaving just the scent. He says Go! Wednesday, Francois-Regis Gaudry in l’Express made Le Comptoir des Tontons in Beaune his restaurant of the week and the 27th had a review of the Rose Bakery-like La Cantine de Merci, 111, bd Beaumarchais, in the 3rd, 01-42-77-01-90, costing less than 15 €. Thursday/Friday in Le Monde Jean Claude Ribaut wrote about Jacques Genin and chocolate as well as asparagus and seasonal products. Saturday/Sunday, in Bonjour Paris, Margaret Kemp wrote about the Relais Plaza and Zebra Square and John Talbott wrote an essay entitled “Food Criticism and your favorite chef.” Please post comments here and not in the Digest thread.

March 20th in the on line version, March 22nd print one, Jean Tang in the NYT touted l'Experimental Cocktail Club, in the 2nd, open since 2007.

In that case, one popular myth has it that Italian cuisine is the "mother" of Western cuisines, having been brought to France by Catherine.

Ah Minchelli, up to his old tricks again.It's been on my list since it opened and somehow I never get to it. And I may never. As for l'Ecailler - Love those Utah beaches.

Last night four of us ate at Bicycle, in large part because I'd read in the Sun (Elizabeth Large) that they had a new menu and some recession-response prices. While they did have 18 wines for $18 (and the Argentenian one we had was quite nice) it's not a budget-minded place ($173.26 before tip). I thought both my dishes were fine; although the avocado bits in the avocado and tuna tartare were not ripe (as they always mysteriously are at the Cafe Atlantico in DC), the zip in the sauce made up for it. The short ribs were also good as were the veggies, appropriate for this time of year. Of note: their new Italian place Ullswater nearby on Fort St, will be opening "soon."

I don't consider 39 E to be "cheap." I think it's a good value like Clocher's 30 E. Well since I eat 99% of my meals at lunch for reasons I've expressed before, my raves at lunch cannot be compared with PM meals or prices. There are places though, where say Phyllis assures me that the evening meal is much superior - she'd gave as examples Chateaubriand & MBC I believe. I'd agree ZKG is a totally polarizing experience and I cannot explain it, although my first meal there I didn't go wild over. The reason Pierre and I went together (with spice) was so that we could settle once and for all our running argument.

The Week of March 23rd, 2009 Tuesday in Le Fooding, Sebastien Demorand reviewed a pizzeria Pizza 104 access from 104, rue d'Aubervilliers, in the 19th, open every day. Tuesday as well, in ANP, Philippe Toinard gave 2/5 dots to the Cartouche Café, coordinates given before, and commented on the oeuf mayo, rillettes, lamb terrine, grilled sausage, faux-filet and chocolate sable; meanwhile, Jerome Berger gave 4/5 to the 14 year old l’Epi Dupin, coordinates well known, still serving 100% bistronomique food for formulas 19 and 25 at lunch and 34 €. Wednesday, Emmanuel Rubin in Figaroscope gave another of his rare ratings of 3/4 hearts to the Chinese Shan Gout, in the 12th and two two-hearts to the son of the Repaire de Cartouche the Café Cartouche, in the St Emilion Cour, running one 20 € for lunch (30-35 for dinner) for food such as a lamb terrine with figs, sausage with beans, and nougat ice and l’Antichambre, 4, rue de Port Mahon in the 2nd, 01.42.66.59.52, closed Saturday lunch and Sundays, with a “diplomatic” lunch menu at 22 (but carte of 40 €), serving celery rabe soup, eggplant stuffed with culatello (Parma ham) and crepes with three chocolates. In addition, he rated two places as 1/4 hearts: Le P’tit Railleur, 3, rue Beaurepaire in the 10th, 01.42.45.11.70, open 7/7, with 20 and 24 € formulas of oeuf cocotte (too cooked), duck filet and tiramisu as well as Le Petit Curieux, coordinates given last week, with lunch menus of 15 and 19 (dinner 20 and 25 €) for Royan raviolis, andouillette parmentier and jarreton with honey. In Figaroscope’s Dossier this week by Colette Monsat listed the best places to buy flan as: l’Autre Boulange Poilane Gosselin Carette Dalloyau being the top five. In his “Hache Menu,” Francois Simon reviewed Bread & Roses, where it cost 77.90 € for banal food except for the scones and cheesecake. Wednesday, as well, Richard Hesse in Paris Update reviewed Miroir, coordinates given before, where he had “a very satisfying dining experience in the Camdeborde, Régalade tradition.” Thursday, Pierrick Jégu wrote up as his restaurant in Paris for under 30 euros, the Cartouche Cafe, coordinates already given, Yves Nespoulous wrote up the Le Bistrot du Pollet in Dieppe and François-Régis Gaudry wrote up Isse in the 1st as his Resto of the week Thursday in Le Point, Gilles Pudlowski said Aida + Garnier were in good shape and he’s following Café mode 24, rue François-Ier in the 8th, 01.47.20.98.18 which costs about 35 E a la carte and the Chinese Le Lys d'or in the 12th. Saturday/Sunday, in Bonjour Paris, Margaret Kemp wrote about Oth Sombath and the new Costes, La Societe and John Talbott wrote an essay entitled “The burden of Food Criticism.” Sunday, Astrid T’Serclaes in JDD wrote a review of Derriere and Aurelie Chaigneau reviewed MBC + Alice Pizza, all of whose coordinates are given above. Please post comments here and not in the Digest thread.

Thursday, in L'Express, Anne-Laure Pham had an article about the four chefs at Ze Kitchen Galerie, Glou, Petite Venise + Le Château Cordeillan-Bages responding about whether they will lower their menu prices when the TVA goes down and for different reasons, essentially saying - don't hold your breath.

There's one on the area but perhaps you've already seen it.

To find the most recent news on Ze I would refer you to Pierre45's recent post. I recuse myself.

We took a very important food-obsessed New York couple to lunch here Saturday because Garance doesn't answer their phone - and all we're most pleased. Why it hasn't gotten the acclaim it deserves, I am baffled by (I think that's unSafire-ish but...) We had great winter veggies (hot), incredible pintades and veal and desserts (which Colette was not enthusiastic about) and fab cheese. With 2 bottles of wine and coffee and no bottled water the bill = 190 E/4.

A word of warning about Mon Oncle. For the second time in two months I've made a reservation and shown up and they've been closed. The first time it was with my pal A. and freezing cold and we bailed out to a most unsuccessful 2nd choice. Today with Colette, it was slightly more clement, and I had three backups and we did very well, but I'd advise you to have a back up plan in any case. I stick by my rating of my one successful meal - but you cannot trust their days/hours of openings/closings.

I tried to find a topic on the Repaire de Cartouche and was rather surprised that there wasn't one but 3 pages of references in other topics. In any case, we went again today and while Rodolfe wasn't there (he's just opened the offshoot in Bercy, see the Digest), the food was impecable: Rilettes with dense bread - heaven! A cream of aspargus with foie gras that looked like mushroom soup, equally good. Scallops with roe and vegetables that were very good. A tete de cochon crusty and crispy with lentils and ham, nickel. A crumble of pear that Colette thought was very good. A chocolate with rhum sauce, quite as well fine. With a bottle of "You are so Nice" (from Nice, France, pun, pun), 2 coffees and no bottled water = 80 Euros. Patricia Wells (I believe) said one must go back here once a year and I'd agree.

Eating with kids (at least 10 year olds) The past week Colette and I hosted our two 10 year old grandkids and while they’ve both been to France a couple of times before, it’s always been with their parents. So we learned something about: (1) their tastes and (2) finding places near destinations. The Breizh Café was our choice the first day because I thought it would break them into the French resto scene easily. Unfortunately, they were really jet-lagged and sleepy, having watched movies all night on the plane, so one had just a green salad (which portion was most generous but whose dressing had no character) and the other a crepe with Valhrona cocolate, which was quite good. Colette didn’t rave about her galette with Forme d’Ambert, pine nuts, grapes, honey and salad but I loved mine with raclette and pork poitrine and an egg. We finished with a crepe with caramel sauce and ice cream that was yummy. The bill with wine and coffee = 70 €. Day 2 we went to Bofinger at the recommendation of an American in Paris who was dazzled by it when she first came. We hadn’t been in 20 years but it looked unchanged. It had a children’s menu, priced at 12.50, and a formula at 18.50 €. They shared a salmon plate which was cooked en papillote while Colette had OK mackerel in a pallid mustard sauce and I an OK onion soup followed by a gigantic pig’s foot (little protein, however) with fries. The girls ended up with two balls of vanilla ice cream while Colette had the café gourmand and I plain coffee; both of which were perhaps the worst of the century. Our bill was 71.20 €. The third day (a third brilliantly sunny, warm one) we trekked out to Versailles and while I’ve eaten at the Trois Marches under Gerard Vie, the Veranda with Gordon Ramsay, l’Angelique and several of the fungible places sprawling along the Avenue de St Cloud, Colette didn’t want to take the time required to leave the grounds once we’d seen the Petit Trianon, which had recently reopened in time for the Sarkozy/Bruni marriage. Looking at the options within the grounds, I chose La Flotille by the Grand Canal. It has a lot, a lot, of covers and a huge menu and the kids quickly settled on and devoured all their chicken nuggets and some of their fries and salad. Colette meanwhile had a tolerable salade Nicoise with rice and I a not-terribly-interesting saucisse d’Auvergne, ditto fries and salad. The bill with wine and coffee was 77.20 €. A footnote. While Colette and the girls toured the palace I went for a coffee: just opposite the toilets, near the group entrance to the Chateau, is a café/tea salon/resto called the Café d’Orleans, where I plotzed for an hour. It’s not at all bad, uncrowded, good service and very bright. Not far from the museum strip along the Avenue President Wilson is Noura, where we often get take-out desserts but haven’t eaten a real meal at in a few decades. Lately it’s been written up quite negatively and now I see why. While the welcome was welcoming, the olives and pepper amuse-bouches good and menu appealing, the dishes were uneven. The ladies started with what were called pizzas in both French and English, but consisted of a piece of pita cut in 4, with finely chopped meat and spices on top. One ate a 1/4th, the other 3/4ths but I finished them all and thought that they were the hit of the meal. Colette had three brochettes; one of lamb was perfectly undercooked, good product and terrific, the chicken one was OK and scarfed up by the girls but the beef brochette was terribly tough and unappealing to all. Likewise my beef schwarma was similar – just awful product, badly prepared with not enough spice to make it at all edible. We had no dessert there but still took some home for dinner (and they were terrific). With wine, 2 starters, 2 mains and 2 coffees our bill was 94.25 €, easily the worst price-quality ratio yet. Sunday was our day for Lao Lane Xang 2 (which we’ve been frequenting lately). Like Ze Kitchen Galerie and Spring, I’m sure I’m getting a bit boring bragging about it. We reserved for 12h15 but were unexpectedly delayed and showed up at 13h50. There was a line inside and outside and I had a list of ten other “fall-backs” in the area and the Leon of Brussels nearby if I failed to plead my case successfully before the court. We entered; I pulled on my sparse forelock; “I’m a bit late, due to unforeseen circumstances” (in French; “Ahhh, je suis desolé…..ahhhh”), he “A bit late, I’d say very late” with a big smile, but here’s your table – past the legions of locals spilling out the door. Who says the French are rude, don’t stand up for old folk on the Metro, push in front in lines, and shove in front of you in watching videos?; not me. We ordered two brochettes of chicken for the kids (which we would never have ordered save for Christopher Haatuft, the Norwegian Chef, in January, who raved about them – he was right!) Also wonderful were: the pork caramel (not a true descriptor) with lemon grass; mussels with hot (not really by our standards) sauce, and lacquered duck with bok choy (also supposedly “hot”.) Colette liked her tapioca called coco and banana, the kids were fine with ices, but I thought my assortment of four Thai desserts was splendid. Bill (with wine and 2 coffees) 103.20 €. Monday, now a cruel day for lunch restos in Paris, Le Soufflé was on our route in the 1st and a suggestion by two real Parisian critics for an ideal kids’ place. We entered to a bursting-full place and were treated like royalty. The kids and Colette had the Express Menu (25 €) that included wine or water and a starter and dessert soufflé as well as a very big, good salad. I ordered the Tout Soufflé menu for 31 €. All in all, we tried the salmon, Henri IV, forest, boar, apples with calva, chocolate, pistachio and raspberry ones. With two awful coffees, wine and a full bottle of Evian, our bill was 124 €. An extra point goes for the Beethoven Piano Concerto playing in the bathroom. The last time we had the brood here, just before Colette and I arrived in Paris, they went to a Leon de Bruxelles and all loved it, so the Les Halles location was smack in the middle of our itinerary today and I took the two girls while Colette dealt with plumbing problems (as in tuyaux not urologie). We all three had the lunch menu with a nice mixed salad to begin. Then they had the mussels and penne and I had the fish (nice crisp cod I believe) and frites; we thus sampled pretty much the core of their offerings. The kids then had ice cream and sorbets and I the crème caramel, all of which were finished with pleasure. The bill with wine, soft-drinks and one coffee was 61.60 €.

Let me apologize if I've implied that plafield had a hidden agenda; I was referring to those members whose definitions of "destination" I've guessed involved other than price-quality, etc. I could well be wrong. My 10 year old visitors this week certainly kept my feet on the ground. In any case, I've started a new topic on "What are your current 7-10 places to go in Paris" here.

On another topic on "destination" places, plafield has asked "If you had one week to dine out in Paris; 7-10 meals, where would you go and why? Totally personal, subjective, no right or wrong answers, just opinions and reasons to back them up." I thought it best to start a new topic and let that on "destination" places continue there.

Since I'm the bloke who suggested we start this discussion on the other topic on Jadis + Goumard, I've had second thoughts that are mirrored in Margaret and Julot's posts.It so depends. For instance, another restaurant Pierre 45 and I (and Laidback and Felice and others) are hep to is the Table d'Eugene. For me, it's 500 meters from home; for Pierre it's 54 minutes but he thinks it's worth the schlep and I think for a neighborhood haunt it can't be topped. As Colette was saying today on the subject though, we go to places way across town (in the deepest 13th and 15th, for instance) and don't regard them as destinations, they're just there. I happen to think (right now and like Margaret it changes weekly) that places that meet #1-3 of Plafield's criteria include: Clocher Pereire Ze Kitchen Galerie Spring or Son of Spring Le Gaigne Afaria Cantine de Troquet but none of them would qualify as what I think is the hidden agenda to this subject of a "destination" place; which is I suspect stars, reputation and lavish settings and food a la Gagnaire, Alleno, Frechon, etc, etc, etc. Let me float a balloon here - is l'Ami Louis a destination place? I bet a lot of Americans (including the late great Johnnie Apple) would say so. I'd remind everyone that we also have a topic running on "creative" restaurants. Is there a cross-over between "destination" and "creative" places?

This would be boring if it weren't so wonderful; another meal at the Table d'Eugene with Colette today. The poitrine of pork starter on pureed green peas, carrots and carrots from the Jura (could I have heard right?) and lentils; the beef chats with celery two ways; scallops with mint and a side of whipped sweet potatoes and chocolate with passion fruit granite. The place is all locals, many of whom were suit-type execs or tee-shirt techies. With wine, two coffees and no Chateldon, the bill was 80 E. Not a destination, and I'd raise my rating from 5.0, but definately worth a visit if nearby.

Mathilde Visseyrias in Figaro wrote today that coffee sitting down now costs on average 1,73 € (with a min-max of 1-6 €), the plat du jour averages 9,67 € (2-39,90 €) and menus 12,95 € on average (5-48 €.)

I've heard on the grapevine that a few people are upset that folks like Pierre45 and I have liked Jadis and touted it. They have found, like you, that it's not "inventive" or "creative" and I'd agree.As we'll all recall, the guy premised the place on cooking ancient recipes with contemporary products and eqpt., he never promised "inventive" or "creative" cuisine. Criticizing it for not being "inventive" or "creative" is like criticizing a bistrot for not serving oysters, choucroute and beer or a noodle place for not serving sushi. It is what it is, just as Les Symples..... or Le Soufflé are. As for "destination" places, perhaps we need to start a topic on the subject, because I'd agree they're rare.