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jml3

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Posts posted by jml3

  1. We ran out of time this trip for a plate of langue de boeuf. Maybe on the next trip. (This my 100th visit to Paris over 33 years.) My wife did have a starter Saturday at Benoit that purported to have tongue as first ingredient, layered with foie gras. But the foie gras was the main ingredient and overpowered the tongue. The meal overall at Benoit was disappointing, by the way. We should have heeded John's low rating of the place.

    We did have a thoroughly enjoyable 95 euro lunch at Gagnaire yesterday. We added the cheese course (at 38 euro - but price there has nothing to do with cost) to make the meal just the right amount of food.

  2. Which did you prefer more, Lucas Carton or Gagnaire? These are quite different style restaurant in the food they serve and atmosphere. Knowing which you liked best and why will help in giving recommendations for your next visit.

    Do I prefer bordeaux or burgundy? (actually, burgundy) We went to Lucas Carton primarily for the beautiful art nouveau room; of course the food was very good, but were the same dishes that Senderens has been cooking for years. I have been to Gagnaire 4-5 times, and do like cutting-edge cooking (probably more than my wife) So for this lunch I'd like to stay just a little on the cutting-edge side of very good cooking. From what I have read here and elsewhere, Alleno at Le Meurice may be about right. But a subissue in my question is which of the top places actually has some of its best dishes on the luncheon prix fixe menu. And the beauty of the room is also an important factor. Gagnaire and Savoy are a bit too modern for my taste.

  3. My wife and I will be in Paris on March 21, and I want to take her to one of the three-stars for lunch. (Given the dollar/euro rate, we can't afford a full-blown dinner.) We have already been to Lucas Carton for lunch, and Gagnaire for dinner. Considering only what is available on the prix fixe lunch menu, what would you all recommend for the best combination of ambience and food? The 2005 Michelin will be out by March, so feel free to include places like Le Meurice that may get their third macaroon by then.

  4. I will be in Strasbourg on Moday and Tuesday, November 29-30. Anyone know whether the Pont aux Chats is open on those nights? And what is the telephone number, so I can get a friend there to reserve?

    Thanks for the tip, at any rate.

  5. To me, the classic Les Halles bistrot, dating back to when the market was still there, is La Tour de Montlhery - also known as Chez Denise. Open 24 hours from Monday am to Saturday am. Not for the dieters, although the food is a "bit" lighter at lunch. Great frites and meat.. Need to book at night

  6. My wife and I had a very good meal last night as Le Paradou finished its first week of operation in downtown Washington at 601 Pennsylvania Ave. NW. (Entrance is actually on Indiana Avenue.) Chef Yannick Cam and his associates are clearly aiming to make this a dining experience on the level of Maestro and Cintronelle. Two beautifully decorated rooms, elegant (if still rough around the edges) service, and delicious food beautifully presented.

    There is a $68 prixe fix dinner menu that includes the choice of two (out of ~15) first courses and a main plate (out of ~7 choices). Desserts are $9 extra. Only way to order ala carte is to sit at one of the few tables in the bar area. There is also a $100 chef's tasting menu, which can be matched with various wines for another $50. The wine list is heavy towards $100+ bottles, although there are a few nice choices at a lower price. We had a good Chambolle Musigny 2000 for $84.

    Higlights include: lobster pockets (lobster, marscapone cheese in a ravioli-like packet, with carrot and ginger sauce); boudin blanc with tiny Jerusalem artichokes; wild salmon tartare with coriander and olive oil, accompanied by a mini blintz topped with ostrea caviar; roasted lobster with a reduction of sauterne and grapefruit zest; roasted pigeon breast on red cabbage with cumin and dates, served with duck foie gras.

    Le Paradou will probably begin serving lunch later this week, with a $29 prixe fix menu.

    It is good to have a chef of Cam's talent back in downtown Washington. Let's hope he makes Le Paradou a lasting venture.

  7. I just returned from Paris (with the Figaroscope of the day in hand) on Wednesday. At the top of the listing for "L'Ourcine" there is an indication that the restaurant is open every day "sf. dim.", which I take to mean that it is open Monday-Saturday. There is no mention of lunch only, where in the adjoining review of another new place there is a notation regarding a lunch menu. That suggests to me that L'Ourcine (which seems to my weak French reading ability to be the name of chef Sylvain Daniere's wife) is indeed open for lunch and dinner. I will be back in Paris April 12-16 and intend to find out, especially since the restaurant is in walking distance of my hotel in Montparnasse.

  8. This is my first eGullet post, but since Chez Denise is one of my long time favorites I decided to stop lurking and join the discussion.

    Why Chez Denise as a second name? The answer is at the cash register during many of the hours the place is open, in the person of Denise herself. Denise is very much in charge. With the death of her husband Jacques a few years ago (they had run the restarant together for years), their son also is very much in evidence. She lives upstairs, by the way.

    Dessert? I have never strayed from the Baba au Rhum, which is immense and doused with rum at the table.

    I think that Louisa said the wine was "rough." It may be if you drink the Brouilly out of the barrel which is poured into bottles at the bar. But there is a secret - underneath the restaurant is a two-level wine cellar. A few bottles at a time are brought up and displayed on a shelf past the bar on the left, above the ham-cutting machines (really). There you may find Bordeaux from the 1970s and 1980s and an occasional well-aged Burgundy. Not top of the line crus, but the price is in the range of 50 euros for a 20-30 year old bottle! There is no wine list, so you have to spot a bottle you like and ask for it.

    And speaking of bistros - has there been any recent experience with Vin des Rues in the 14th?

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