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Would some of you Paris residents please check this out? I know that Gerard Mulot shuts down on certain days and closes for random vacations, but please say this is not permanent. The universe of tarte au citron will be diminished if this is indeed true.

Felice you are such a fountainhead of practical, up to date information, living right there in Paris and having such good contacts in the food and wine business...please keep on keeping on. I am not an anatomist but am pretty sure that "echine" is what we in the deep South know as backbone, commonly prepared with rice.

As does Auguste; Genin seems to be favored by several knowledgeable people for his caramels.

Michel Bras has been on my hit list for quite a while and yesterday I emailed for reservations for a one night stay with dinner for our trip this Fall to The Collioure area and received a prompt reply for the 27th of Sept. Interestingly, I had used the reservation request form from their website several days earlier and received no response, but when I used the e-mail address listed in Michelin, I received a same day reply. My mouth waters.

Carlsbad, What a great list, you must do quite a bit of research. In the last 2 years I have been to 27 of the places on your list and they are all good to excellent, however it is hard to compare places like Taillevent, which to me has remained remarkably consistent through the years of chef changes, to a tiny husband/wife spot like the charming little La Cerisaie. Astrance remains exceptional even though the prices have nearly doubled since their opening. My biggest complaint was with the universally(other than Patricia Wells) loved Dominique Bouchet. He was constantly schmoozing the ladies instead of seeing that my wife's filet which she ordered saignant was not served well done, and his wine reduction sauce completely overpowered the tender gigot d'agneau. Don't let me steer you away from DB, it was probably a bad day, and the quality of the ingredients was 1st class, but I felt that the execution was lacking. The pommes purée was almost as good as at Au Bon Accueil, which is consistently good for the price. We followed Les Ormes from the bowels of the 16th to the ex-Bellecour location; the 1st time was right after the move and the service was disastrous, but the culinary magic was still evident enough to warrant a return a couple of weeks ago; the service was much improved but still had a wrinkle or two to iron out but there is little question that there is talent in the kitchen. I just got around to trying Aux Lyonnais and was prepared to turn up my nose at yet another Ducasse commercial enterprise but the three of us were all very pleased with the quality/rapport. Congratulations on doing your home work; please let us know your opinions afterward.

I have to agree on Thierry Burlot, coincidentally we had lunch there today...very attractive with upholstered barrel chairs, good spacing between the tables, and a pleasant and knowledgeable wait staff. We had the "menu decouverte" for €32. There was a €6 supplement for the langoustines roti, but they were worth it. My only criticism was the wine list could have been gentler price-wise, e.g., Coteaux de Languedoc Pic St. Loup way in excess of €100. Monday night we went to Le Gastroquet and had the menu degustation for €49 which we felt was very reasonable for the 7 or 8 small plates served. Dany Bulot is still at the top of his form; he was the chef at Benoit during its glory days, but he and his gracious wife have been in this attractive little out of the way spot for about 12 years.

We went by the Comptoir du Relais again on Monday and there is still no indication of a change; the same limited carte, not at all Regalade like.

There are many; perhaps it would be good to state which arrondissements would be convenient for you.

Last Saturday the plat du jour was hachis parmentier de joue de boeuf, the entrée du jour was paté en croute, and the dessert was tarte au pomme. There is a wide range of choices that are fairly consistently on the blackboard but as John states there is different plat du jour every day.

Raisab, The tiny Café Constant does not take reservations, but if you are only 2, it is not a bad problem other than Fr./Sat. Ask for a table upstairs where there is a little more elbow room. This place was slammed when it first opened and all the positive reviews came out, but now the novelty has somewhat worn off and it is not so crazy. We go there at least once/week as it is so close to our apt. and it is such a great bargain...coffee=€1; most wines €4 at the most, and you will more likely than not run into Christian a/o Catherine Constant. His tiny seafood restaurant on the other end of the block does take reservations...Les Fables de la Fontaine.

I am not qualified to comment on the relative merits of Limoges porcelain, but I can't over-speak our experience staying one night in the pastoral setting of Moulin de la Gorce. Our private little cottage had a stream gurgling right under it which was a part of the little lake that operated the ancient mill. The restaurant was outstanding. We wondered how it could attract anyone in such a remote location but at dinner it was completely full. This place had been recommended to us by the people in Cancale who run the great restaurant and hotel of Roellinger.

Raisab, We went to L'Abadache today and were astounded at the quality cooking going on at those prices in this funky little, out of the way place. As you know Pudlo awarded it his choice for all of Paris this year for rapport qualité/prix. I posted on it under trip reports today in the forums of www.bonjourparis.com if anyone cares.

We were very pleased with Louis Vins, but the posted info is wrong about Sunday closure, as we were there on Sunday afternoon , April the 3rd. We had lunch today at DB, Bouchet's new restaurant in the 17th. My comments are: the decor is pleasant, one wall exposed stone, one wall painted; fresh flowers, comfortable seating. We felt that all of the produce, meats, breads, etc. were of top quality. Our appetizers were outstanding; some of the 1st white asparagus of the season, costly(€20), but good; the fondant de Beaufort was exceptional...melting cheese and artichoke hearts contained in a dam of Savoy ham. The filet de boeuf was tender and flavorful, unfortunately we ordered it saignant and it was served with a barely pink center, any drier and I would have sent it back which I am loathe to do. The Gigot D'Agneau de 7 heures was fork tender but unfortunately the wine reduction was, to our taste, overpowering; however a little of the same sauce served over the coffee cup of mashed potatoes did little to distract from their buttery excellence. I thought that the wine list was excellent, with a variety of good selections at affordable prices...we had a good St. Estephe, Chat. Les Hauts de Pez for €34. Our 2 person total inclding 2 champagne aperitifs, 1/2 bottle of Chateldon mineral water, 2 entrées, 2 mains 1 cheese, 1 dessert, 2 coffees and the St. Estephe was €171.50

This morning Pat & I spent a most enjoyable morning in Christian Constant's kitchen in Le Violon D'Ingres. Things start with welcoming croissants and beverages at 9:30, then everyone is aproned up and led into the kitchen for a demonstration/participation. Today we peeled asparagus and shelled petits pois and feves. He made a soup of the petits pois shells which are sautéed in olive oil, then boiled down in salted water, sieved, and enriched with a little cream and served with freshly fried tiny croutons made from pain de mie from Poujauran. Then we were given an up close and personal introduction to an agneau du lait, he demonstrated removing the loin from the saddle, dosing it with rosemary, thyme, parsley, etc., before wrapping it in crepinette, then foil and placing it in the oven. While the lamb roasted, he prepared the garniture from baby veggies...peas, carrots, onions, asparagus. The feves were served as a simple salad dressed with shallots, chopped Serrano ham and a vinaigrette. We moved into the patisserie and prepared strawberries with marscopone cheese, enhanced with vanilla, and a reduction of honey, ginger and lime. After we dispatched with great enjoyment the morning's efforts, we then de-aproned and walked just down the street for lunch at his tiny seafood restaurant, Les Fables de la Fontaine...oysters, smoked haddock, shellfish soup, Merlan Colbert or roasted cod, then a fine light chocolate terrine. M. Constant is a delight, gracious and full of humor and his charming Scottish wife did the necessary translating.

Chez Pim of egullet reknown posted the lastest info on this years Michelin meanderings and it confirms as reported in many forums that the Pourcel twins have lost thier 3 star status. This has been speculated on since they have allowed their focus to broaden with the other restaurants in which they have become involved. http://chezpim.typepad.com/blogs/files/GuideMichelin2005.pdf

€73.50 with one lunch menu and you getting two courses + dessert and wine sounds like a real bargain! Now the veloute de fourme d'ambert really interests me. Can you tell me what you felt it was based on, potatoes? ← You probably surmised from my guess about the purée that deconstruction is not my strong suit, but I have no reason to believe that the velouté Fourme d'Ambert contained much but heavy cream and the name sake cheese...it was rich in flavor of the cheese and velvety smooth, but I got no hint of potatoe, sorry.

Starred chefs's daughters seem attracted to the Place du Marché St. Honoré. 1st there was Michel Rostang's daughter at L'Absinthe, then Jean Bardet's daughter at Point Bar. I don't intend to slam Absinthe...it was not awful, in fact I liked the way the wine list is arranged and there is a no-smoking area, but I think that the gene pool may be a little deeper Chez Bardet. We tried going to the Point Bar last year right after it opened but a plumbing problem flooded it requiring some re-renovation and we just got back for lunch today, and it was packed with people waiting at the tiny bar. The decor is modern, but not over the top. You can get a plat & dessert du jour which comes with either a glass of wine or a demi-pression for €20. Pat went with the special and today it was sautéed gambas with tagliatelle, and a fresh pineapple tart with VANILLE ice cream. She proclaimed the shrimp good, but would have preferred a tad more sauce for the pasta. The dessert was the type of simple thing that when carefully done can be a delight...it was. I had an entrée of velouté of Fourme d'Ambert laced with finely chopped chives and bacon bits. This went well with the basket of toasted Poujauron bread. My main was poitrine de cochon simmered until it was fork tender and served over outstanding pomme purée. No lean cuisine here...my guess is about 1/3 potatoes, 1/3 butter, and 1/3 cream. To cleanse my coronaries I used a demi-bouteille of Pouilly Fumé. Coffee is "offerte" and you get to choose from about 4. Our total, including a demi of San Pellegrino was €73.50. This is not a place to cross multiple arrondissements for, but if you are in the area you can do much worse. It appeared from today's lunch that reservations are necessary.

In the 2nd, I discovered Le Mesturet last Fall. It is very casual, friendly, has a bar section as well as table service offering reasonably priced daily specials. It calls itself a bistrot à vins and is on Richelieu close to the Bourse.

Willis wine bar behind the Palais Royale on rue des Petits-Champs is highly regarded. It has better food than most of the ones I have tried.

I have heard excellent reports about the Sunday brunch at Les Ambassadeurs and intend on trying it while we are in Paris this Spring. A quality Sunday brunch in a beautiful setting has always held a certain sybaritic charm for me. I love lazily strolling by the carving stations, selecting from a large selection of delectable pastries, and being served champagne in Baccarat flutes. I think the opulence of the Crillon dining room would be an ideal setting for this type of experience. But then again I am an unrepentant bourgeois glutton.

Les Allobrogeshas been around for a few years. It has been on our hit list for some time as it gets good reviews in the Hamburger's "Bistros of Paris" and Pudlo. The only reason we haven't been yet is that it is in the wilds of the 20th. Please report back if you try it.

Let me express my appreciation for "Whiting's Writings", especially the Paris Bistros section. The historical context interspersed with his drole commentary makes refreshing reading and adds to my exercise program...I have to put down my wine glass and pick up a heavy dictionary at regular intervals to discover the meaning of words such as vademecum. Please keep up the updates.

Steve Wynn's new hotel in Las Vegas(under construction) supposedly will have a restaurant by Daniel Boulud. With the kind of international super wealthy clientele these top hotels cater to, few chefs can resist the lucre being offered. I love it.

There is an announcement on the Bonjour Paris homepage that Christian Constant is going to be giving classes on some Mondays at Violon D'Ingres...http://www.bonjourparis.com/

John, the Bar à Soupes has one on their website:http://www.lebarasoupes.com