John Talbott

Not perhaps as high end as you want, but the following are also open: Drouant, Jarrasse, Senderens, Pinxo. You also might want to check out our compendium on Dining on Sundays that gives all the existing threads on the France Forum that have done the work for you.

That would be here. I split it off because it seemed to me that "eating alone" could be at bars or tables but 'bar meals" deserved its own thread.

I can only tell you what we did that time.We came from Girona over the mountains at Puigcerda, up the green road (besides the Aude - a trip I'd done on moto at 20) to Quillan, then by Carcassonne, then green roads thru Mazamet, then wandering up to Millau, the Tarn Gorges (the most under-rated, under-touted phenomenon I know of), up to le Puy, then St Etienne and Geneva. Reversing direction, we had less time so used more red than green roads Geneva-Sisteron-Apt-the Luberon-Montpellier-Narbonne-Perpignan-Barcelona. We had done most of this on prior trips in different directions, so we had no destinations except for Geneva and really just sought green roads, Michelin Must See Scenic spots and places to plotz from the Gites or Relais of Silence guides. I wish I could give you exact Gites/etc but Colette's archives are currently inaccessible. We ate in rather ordinary places (except in the shadows of El Bulli), drank rather ordinary wine, and had a spectacular time. That's what it's all about - Non?

The Week of July 10th, 2006 Monday, on the Le Fooding website, Sylvie Augereau touted La Tour Cassée in Valvignières. Le M.i.a.m.’s June issue reviewed several new and existing places in French and English including: La Bonne Heure, Sensi, Stella Maris, Ripaille, l’Ecale, Le Fin Gourmet, Prunier + Jarrasse. Tuesday, Philippe Toinard wrote up two places for A Nous Paris and gave: 4/5 blocks to L’Acajou, coordinates given before, but notes three menus (vs two mentioned in Figaroscope) at 28, 35 and 40 € - he had cherry tomatoes stuffed with sorel mousse, daurade royal and strawberries and kiwi fruit; 3/5 blocks to Le Minzingue, ditto – where it sounds like the wines are more important than the food (steak tartare, duck tournedos, andouillettes and Auvergne cheese.) His colleague, Jerome Berger, awarded 3/5 to the abat-centered, second resto to Ramulaud, Aux Zingots, coordinates given before, where he had chorizo salad, beef cheeks and brioche made like French toast. The paper also mentioned a new book dedicated to take-out food restaurants and their menus, called: “Guide des Restos d’Or 2006,” 4.75 € at FNAC. Wednesday’s freebie Metro announced that Stephane Haissant, ex-Senderens and ex-Guerard would be taking over at La Tour d’Argent seconded by Frederic Calmels and M’Baye Sakho. Wednesday as well, Pariscope continues to struggle between retaining its infomercial type reviews to changing towards really reviewing new restos, chefs, etc. For instance, it announces a 60 € menu (long anticipated) at La Table du Lancaster, a change of chefs (with Frederic Lesourd replacing Franck Charpentier) at Le W, one of the few reviews of the two-year old Harold but less noteworthy pages were devoted to existing places like Capitaine Francasse, Mandala Ray, Senso + Le Chalet du Lac. Thursday, ParuVendu listed great places in which to have a picnic and listed the: Esplanade du Champs de Mars in the 7th, Port de l’Arsenal in the 4th, Parc de Bercy and Bois de Vincennes in the 12th, Cite Universite and Parc Monsouris in the 14th, Iles aux Cygnes, Parc Andre Citroen and Parc Georges Brassens in the 15th, Bois de Boulogne in the 16th, Square de la Butte du Chapeau Rouge, Parc des Buttes Chaumont and Parc de la Villette in the 19th. Thursday-Friday, Jean Clause Ribaut had an article in Le Monde about making ice cream that, although mentioning Berthillon, gives coordinates for three artisinal places: La Marquisette. 31, av de Saint-Ouen in the 17th, 01.45.22.91.65, Raimo, 59-61, bvd de Reuilly in the 12th, 01.43.43.70.17 and Maison Dagniaux in Lille. Time Out’s website touts Sens’s Chiva-Som (exotic flavor) spa menu served until July 31st, featuring things like a green tea cocktail, spicy crab and lime appetizer, green papayas salad with gambas, beef satay with lemongrass, and a jasmine cake with coconut sorbet. The freebie Voyages d’Affaires wrote up three places in its July-Aug-Sept issue, all relatively recently changed under new chefs: Les Arts, Jarrasse + 144 Petrossian. Finally, Sunday, in Bonjour Paris, Margaret Kemp published an article on the Grand Vefour and John Talbott wrote a piece entitled “It’s best in the burbs.” Please post comments here and not in the Digest thread.

From graphicguru Yes - wonderful pictures.

June-July 2006 New: Entre Les Vignes, Le Parc, L'Acajou As is my habit, I eat at very few new places in the summer, which explains my lack of reporting, although as usual there were a few exceptions, that this year included: 6.0 N* Entre les Vignes, 27ter Bvd Diderot in the12th, 01.43.43.62.84, closed weekends, has a formula (2 dishes for 19) and menu (3 for 23) - both available lunch and dinner plus there are inexpensive wines (a pot for 12); there’s a no-smoking section; it’s practically across the street from the Gare de Lyon; and the bread, food and coffee are astonishingly good. Colette’s gazpacho (and she’s an expert in the consumption and production of them) was deemed “among the best ever in the world,” and my sausage with pistachios and potatoes was terrific; her dorade and my confit de canard were right up there with the best; and the soup of fraises and chocolate desserts were quite respectable. We had never been before and were tipped by Pudlo’s four symbol rating – new, classic, good & reasonable. Will we go again; you bet if we’re again leaving on the TGV; otherwise probably not. 3.0 Le Parc, 33, rue Vaugirard in the 6th, 01.40.48.40.48, open every day, took over the old and beloved (by me) Sumai’s Café space in March and received decidedly lukewarm reviews. Inevitably I knew I’d return since close friends live nearby. While not blown away, we four were pleasantly surprised, although be warned – there are not a ton of choices. I would not have ordered the eggs Benedict or salad with buffola mozzarella and indeed they were banal but the green asparagus was fine. I had the steak tartare and frites which were great as was the croustillant of scallops but the beef and green beans were again something I wouldn’t have chosen. The desserts were standard: a moelleux of chocolate and a financiere with yogurt ice cream. Our bill for four was 218 Euros. 2.0 L’Acajou, 35bis, rue La Fontaine in the 16th, 01.42.88.04.47, closed Sundays has three menus at 28, 35 and 40 €. The prices given are a bit deceptive and the reviews by Rubin (2 hearts) and Toinard (4/5 blocks) very deceptive. This is an OK place with pretentions of being a high class place in the 16th (natch) that has not bad food but the price-quality ratio does not stand up. It’s in the old La Fontaine d’Auteil space, spruced up, etc., and one can choose from a forced-choice menu of two starters (the day we went a cold salad of veggies vs melon with chorizo mousse), two entrees (magret vs gravelox) and two desserts (ice cream and a financiere) for two dishes at 28 or three at 35. However, we were not enticed by the "menu," so three of us had a single main each of the gambas (dried and unappealing), red tuna (over-cooked despite the request that it be sushi cookedness) and ris de veau and foie gras (OK but not worth 32 E). Our fourth diner had the menu of the melon (good) and mousse (intense) wrapped in a sweet tuile deftly inserted in the melon “doughnut,” and gravelox (so so). The amuse bouche of a fluffed up homard with fluffed up langoustines was probably the highlight. Wines began at 27 for a white Loire and 28 for a rose Loire and 35 for a red (there were at least twenty lesser priced wines unavailable.) Our cost (with coffee) ran 178 for 4. And, as Colette reminds me after writing this – the bread was pitiful and the music, annoying. Scale Nov 2005Scale (subject to fickleness and change): 10 - Giradet in the old days. 9 - Bocuse, Loiseau at their prime 8 - Ze Kitchen Galerie, 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

I know this is heresy for those who carefully plan their itineraries to coincide with great restos, vineyards and such, but I think the Languedoc lends itself marvelously to wandering about. I agree with Felice that Montpellier is a great town as is Carcassonne (without mentioning those up north in what most of us think of as Provence), but two years ago we had two meetings in Barcelona 20 days apart and one in Geneva in the middle and we rented a car and drove lazily from Spain to Switzerland going the southern route and vice versa the northern route. It was simply great. Their overproduction of wine is ours to enjoy.

I don't remember either les Bouquinistes or la Regalade having a bar area where you can eat and haven't been to either L'Affriole or L'Epi Dupin. Unfortunately I can't think of all that many places in Paris that do. I think I remember John Talbott saying that Drouant has a bar area where you can eat. Fish, on rue de Seine, certainly does and I often eat there alone. Atelier de Robuchon, does, of course. ← This may merit a thread of its own. Let's see, Felice is correct, as usual, Drouant has a bar one may eat at, so does Senderens, l'Atelier, Dominique Bouchet, Chez les Anges, Pinxo and a lot of hotels. While I suppose one could eat at the bar at Le Regalade it's really more suitable for leaning on and sipping at, as is that at Les Enfants Rouge.

We encountered a new one tonight - a "beef tartare just seared" at l'Histoire de....... in the 18th. PS It wasn't. ← this sounds scary. please, do tell. ← I think it's the same idea; mix up the steak tartare, then quickly pan sear it and serve.

We encountered a new one tonight - a "beef tartare just seared" at l'Histoire de....... in the 18th. PS It wasn't.

Thursday, ParuVendu listed great places in which to have a picnic and listed the: Esplanade du Champs de Mars in the 7th, Port de l’Arsenal in the 4th, Parc de Bercy and Bois de Vincennes in the 12th, Cite Universite and Parc Monsouris in the 14th, Iles aux Cygnes, Parc Andre Citroen and Parc Georges Brassens in the 15th, Bois de Boulogne in the 16th, Square de la Butte du Chapeau Rouge, Parc des Buttes Chaumont and Parc de la Villette in the 19th.

Wednesday’s freebie Metro announced that Stephane Haissant, ex-Senderens and ex-Guerard would be taking over at La Tour d’Argent seconded by Frederic Calmels and M’Baye Sakho.

Sounds like sour grapes to me. And what would he find interesting? Having the chef come out and head-butt you in the chest? A. ← In all fairness, this appeared July 5 and was probably written a week or more before, so I suspect it had to do with the widely-regarded and commented on Italian style rather than any anticipatory or posthoculatory comment.

As everyone knows, CC has turned over the operation to one of his trusted lieutenants; I have not re-eaten there but from a scope of the menu and place today, it looks pretty much the same. One hopes and one will see.

We had a wonderful meal again there this week, but if truth be told, both Ze Kitchen Galerie + Thierry Burlot surpassed it. Welcome to the Land of Delight!

Great pictures - great account. Thanks. Having cruised the street today, I believe it's called Le Sancerrois at 12 rue du Champs de Mars; does this look familiar? There are a bunch of both chairs and stools in shades of purple-pink and a "traditional" menu.

Wonderful, thanks so much. John

I thought it was; have you tried telephoning? (410) 675-2080 Well, it's a fair distance from downtown hotels/Inner Harbor - about 6 miles on Falls Road in Hamden. And truthfully it's more of a neighborhood dive than a tony fish/crab place. But if you're driving from NJ and will have your car it's OK.

I have the same question again this year if anyone has any insights.Thanks. John

First question: no, in fact it's the other way round: it's a steak tartare (a seasoned steak haché) that is quick-seared on both sides. Second question: not very common, but more so in recent years. ← Apologies bethala, ptipois is correct; I misread your post and answered your first query incorrectly, it is a tartare mixed before cooking, that is quickly browned and thus looks like a giant very very very rare hamburger.

They sound like what we colonials would call Velveeta.

just tried to google-educate myself on what aller-retour is, in food terms. am i correct in thinking that it means quick-seared, and that therefore, steak tartare aller-retour is a quick-seared steak that is then hâchéd? and is it a common way to order steak tartare? ← You're correct but I've rarely seen it (except at CC's Cafe.)

A member posed the following (edited) query to me and my thoughts were Meating, despite it's being in the 17th, and/or any brasserie, despite being brasseries not bistros. But I knew others would have good suggestions. "My wife loves steak tartare.... I've been doing research on Parisian steak tartare but the overwhelming choice, Bar du Theatre, is closed for August. Any suggestions for a Paris bistro late afternoon Friday, August 3, Arrondissements 1-7?"

The Week of July 3rd, 2006 Monday Alexandre Cammas, in the Le Fooding website wrote up the multi-purpose place plus light restaurant called NOU4 in Laguiole. Tuesday in A Nous Paris, Philippe Toinard provided his list of restaurants with terraces, as follows: Issy Guinguette Tokyo Eat Le Roland Garros Quinzieme Cuisine Attitude Il Cortile Les Jardins du Plain Ciel Les Arts Beauvilliers Hotel Regina Au Pere Lapin La Terrace Montaigne Cap Seguin La Cuisine Le Square In Wednesday’s Figaroscope, Emmanuel Rubin gave the lead, photo but only one-heart in his “C’est nouveau” to Il Carpaccio, Hotel Royal Monceau, 35-37, ave Hoche in the 8th, 01.42.99.88.00, open everyday and attributes his low mark to the chef’s cooking that is like the Italians’ soccer play – catenacio = defensive rather than interesting (langoustine salad, calamari and risotto, fraises des bois, running one about 100 €.) However, he gave two hearts each to Corneil, 18, rue Condorcet in the 9th, 01.49.95.92.25, open for dinner except for Sunday, serving a terrine, cote de boeuf and fromage blanc for 30-50 € and the neo-classical Chez Cedric, 13, rue Denis Poisson in the 17th, 01.44.09.03.30, open everyday but Sunday, with menus at 23 and 29 and a la carte about 40 €, serving pate en croute, beef filet and profiteroles. Only one heart went to the Café du Musee d’Art Moderne, 11, ave Pres Wilson in the 16th, 01.53.67.40.47, closed Tuesdays, serving sandwiches, salads, tarts, etc for 20-30 €. Finally he gave a broken plate to Le Marsa in the 5th where he didn’t dare sample the dessert after the tuna/salmon duo and rouget. Francois Simon’s “Hache Menu” was really a full review of the new resto in the Quai Branly Museum, Les Ombres, coordinates above, where despite its being run by the Elior group that runs the restos at the Maison de l’Amerique Latine + Musee d’Orsay and le 70 + le Ciel de Paris does a not dishonorable job. For 94 €, he and his guest had carrot soup and veal carpaccio, pig’s feet and cod and fromage blanc ice cream and strawberry “gaspacho” plus 3 ½ liter bottles of Chateldon @ 6 € each (which is enough to turn one into an alcoholic, says he.) But he noted you could shave some off the cost by taking the 32 € menu. The Figaroscope team’s “Dossier” this week covered “Ice cream, terraces, tapas, etc.:” Watery stuff Ozu La Plage Ephemeral terraces Cristal Room Baccarat Jardins Plein Ciel Airy places Vincent Cozzoli Deli-cieux Summer drinks Drouant La Blanchisserie La Gare La Place Ice creameries Raimo Damman’s Pariscope’s “What’s New” section featured three places: Mood, Asia by Nina Sushi + Laurier respectively a super-bar/café, sushi/sashimi resto and Mavrommatis off-shoot. Maxime Landermaine writes of the re-opening {for the second time in a year} of Le Cou de la Girafe coordinates given before, by the Richard Group and the established Italian place Le Conti; his colleague Jean Claire Mariani touts two established palaces – the Lebanese La Taverne du Nil + Le Jardin. Thursday, Gilles Pudlowski wrote a shorter than usual bunch of things in l’Express; two restos to keep your eyes on in Paris – the Atelier Renault, 53, Champs Elysees in the 8th, 01.49.53.70.70, with menus at 23 and 29 E for sardines, 21st century hamburgers and frites and the Italian Urbietorbi in the 2nd; plus l’Evasion + Silk & Spice that are holding up; an ideal villa in the St Tropez gulf, the Villa Marie and a book notice by Alain Ducasse on “Le goût de l'origine” Hachette/Inao, 19,90 E. Last Thursday, the group at l’Express listed their twenty “Best Of” places in the past year, that included: La Pizzetta, Le Cesar, Kai, Chaumette, Ozu, La Ferrandaise, Le Transversal, La Gazzetta, Le Ribouldingue, Il Cortile, l’Altro, Aux Zingots, Corneil, Bistro Volnay, Café M, Les Symples de l’Os a Moelle, Mori Venice Bar, Le Chateaubriand, Jour + Fogon. Thursday, Philippe Charles in ParuVendu recommends several places outside the city (as have others recently): Issy Guignette in Issy les Moilineaux, Le Cape Rouge in Bougival, Au Pere Lapin in Suresnes and Le Relais de Pont Loup in Moret sur Loing. Thursday-Friday, Jean Clause Ribaut had an article in Le Monde about choosing fruit not being so easy, using as his ideal, Joel Thibault’s stand at the Avenue President Wilson market Wednesday and Saturday mornings. In the July Where Paris, Alexander Lobrano reviews three new places – Steak & Lobster, Hotel Amour + Mood coordinates given before, all three of which have interesting décor and food; features three others in the “Dining” section – Black Calvados, La Terrasse Fleurie + Senso, ditto; and added the following terrace restos to last month’s list: Café LeNotre, Café Marly, Cour Jardin, Fontaine de Mars, Georges, Hotel Ritz, Il Cortile, Maison de ‘Amerique Latine, Petite Cour, Terrasse Fleurie, River Café + Ziryab. Issue #4 of Omnivore contained its now familiar mix of news (OFF in Le Havre and Toulouse and Omnivore’s Film Night during Fraich’Attitude week), inquiries (re: the 50 best restos article in Restaurant), gossip (why Gregory Coutanceau left le Cou de la Girafe), reports (of the Robert Doisneau show in Monoco), review/appreciations (of Inaki Azpitarte’s new venture at Le Chateaubriand, Jean Francois Rouquette’s move to the Park Hyatt Paris – Vendome and Jean Luc Rabanel’s l’Atelier in Arles), recipes (Olivier Bellin from Plomodiern’s “tart” of encornets and tripes), practical culinary techniques (Thierry Marx from Cordeillan Bages making a lemon tart with Paco), young chef of the month (William Elliott at the Westminster in Tourquet Paris Plage), nudges (the future of the “jeune cuisine” and “Generation C”) and wine info (eg five Anjou’s). Time Out Paris this week featured Un Jour à Peyrassol coordinates already given. Sunday, in Bonjour Paris, Margaret Kemp published two articles entitled “4th July at the Meurice and Salon Prive” and John Talbott wrote a piece entitled “Hi my name is Bruce and I’ll be your waiter tonight.” Please post comments here and not in the Digest thread.

French Food Guides 2006: Part 7: Zurban 2006 (the last hurrah) This food guide from the Zurban folks will, sadly, be their last. As most France Forum devotees know, Hachette, their parent company, decided that Zurban’s business plan went unrealized in 2006 and with their primary interest devoted to Pariscope, they pulled the plug. For some strange reason, though, they released the Guide, even after the weekly ceased publication. A shame! Let me get the negatives out of the way – First, full disclosure, I know and immensely respect the Guide’s and Zurban’s editor/author/food critic Sebastien Demorand. Second, I found the organization of the Guide bizarre: – Why all these personal testimonials to the places quirkily preferred by staff members, places like Chroniqeur, Les 4 freres, Koba, Coupe Chou, Mestauret, Ice to Ice, l’Atmisphere [sic], Vitelloni, l’Enchotte, Zak, El Paladar, Le Sultan + Dong Huong? Do you know one? – Why divide the places into “Good values,” “World food,” “Drink up,” “Outside,” “Other stuff” and “Outside Paris?” Last year’s version was much better plotted out by arrondissement? – Why no numbers, ratings, comparisons? – And finally, why is it so hard to find or to purchase it and/or why is it not distributed to subscribers of Zurban, or ex-subscribers, e.g. me? But, what about its good points? - First, it is a witty, insightful and interesting to read guide. - Second, Demorand writes restos up like a journalist/intellectual/artist (vide F. Simon) rather than an amateur (in the American sense, vide Gault & Millau.) - Third, the pictures are terrific and the plan of each arrondissement is very helpful. - And finally, it presents the food (after descriptions of the genre, décor and clientele; obligatory in France) with succulent depictions. Example; the summary of my current favorite place in Paris, Ze Kitchen Galerie, spells out all the spices, herbs, foreign products, etc., one will encounter so that one knows what to expect. In sum, this is a useful book, buy it if you can, grieve its disappearance and just hope some angel decides to finance the return of Paris’s best weekly guide for the “young set,” among whom I count myself.