Max Frank

Dined in Spring downstairs a couple of weeks back. After the almost incessant brouhaha about Spring, perhaps our expectation was overly hyped. Perhaps the downstairs venue didn't help either. What a disappointment to say to least. Over-priced, cramped, disorganised, incoherent staff. Yeah yeah it's Paris... but what about the food? Read on. A bad start I guess when we got an abrupt welcome in a non-existent welcome area insisting we speak in English when my French is rarely found offensive. Hey it's Paris so difficult to get offended at that. So downstairs we went. Let's be clear that the restaurant proper is upstairs and some sort of lesser restaurant is downstairs - tapas-style I believe - but we were were not overly hungry and we were promised the main entrée and plat du jour as upstairs would be available. Fine. And so proceedings started. A good old glass of champers to kick things off - all good. Then the food. So a menu was produced mainly of tapas-style dishes - lots looked good. We were also informed that the seafood starter and plat du jour from the main restaurant were also available. Scallops starter, and a Hare main course. Nice! Neither price was listed although we thought we heard 18eur for starter - waiter said '3 scallops'. He also said 27eur each for the Hare. Ooooh kkkay.... but we are in the basement... let's not argue with the masters.... And so, we saw our neighbours got a tiny dish of scallops - we thought we saw one or two - we enquired if they were the tapas versions and we were told yes. On asking the price (again not listed), we were told 8 to 12 euros. Fine. We ordered two of those. We ordered the hare also. The waitress said 'to share'? We hummed a bit, and then said yes! A huge and gorgeously smelly cheese board beckoned on the counter beside us! And so to the wine. The sommelier/waiter eventually made his way to our table. I had picked out a bottle of mourvedre/syrah around the 35eur mark. He instantly dismissed it as too strong (for hare!?). Really? So what's your recommendation? "Lots of different glasses left to my choosing". Ok........ but hell it's Spring so that should be ok, right? He then left for 5 minutes and returned with 2 glasses and a magnum which he started to open without comment. On enquiring what it was and the price, he left again and came back saying 15 eur per glass. Now, I don't mind paying 10 times that price for wine, but if I have picked out a bottle for 35 eur, then I don't expect them to come back with a suggestion of 2 glasses for almost the same price. I kind of felt like I was in a tourist trap at this point. When we said do you have something for around 8-9 eur a glass, he slapped down the wine menu and said 'ok, you pick!' and walked away. Wow. And, errrr...by the way.... we already had! Look, I'm used to good old nonsense like this from French waiters. I live here, But this was above and beyond. And in a place like Spring. Ouch! So eventually he picked out two glasses of something very similar to the bottle I picked - when I asked what it was... he replied "something strong for the hare". I felt like we were going around in circles, but only to appease him. And so to the food. A dainty starter of two scallops with delicate slivers of rich beetroot, and a tasty balsamic sauce. Nice. A wow? Hardly. Let's be honest, you can just serve scallops on their own to get a wow, so I don't really consider anything involving scallops as something to make special efforts to track down chefs for. So, nothing special. So to the main course. It took one hour for this to arrive. Yeah we counted - but only because it got to the stage where we had to. But hey it's Spring, it's Paris etc. But we were going through our wine. More thoughts of tourist trap entered our mind. Both minds. Bad feeling at this stage. The waitress eventually said that cheese would be on the house. Ok, good recovery and we were now looking forward to the cheese and had forgotten the hour that had passed. The main course arrived. One round plate of mashed potato put in the middle with a bit of hare on top. Two spoons. We said could we have a couple of side plates just to dish it out. "Is it not better to share like this?" the response. Errrr.... why would we have asked if it was? But, hey it's Paris, it's the amazing Spring. So we digged in. Yes the hare was lovely, all 6 slivers of it. And the mashed potato that made up most of the dish? Err... nice mashed potato. And so to dessert. I ordered cheese. And lovely it was. My other half ordered sweet. And lovely that was too. And so we munched. After we had finished, the waitress brought over a random slice of cheese, saying that this was 'on the house'. We looked at each other speechless. To say this took all pleasure away from the dessert/cheese course, if not the whole evening, is not understating matters. I actually don't even think tourist traps have the nerve to do stuff like that. We left the 'extra' cheese. I hope the house enjoyed it. We eventually got to the end. And then the fun started. Yes 18eur each for the 2 scallops (each!). And an incredible 54eur for the mashed potato... or should I say the Hare. I assume at this stage any discussion of the bunker tapas-style venue wouldn't help. We didn't have the energy to argue that we were told 8-12eur, or 3 scallops (who cares at this stage), but we could not in any conscious state pay 54eur for the shared plate of mashed potato for which we were denied even two serving plates. The now idiotic sommelier said 'enormous' preparation had been put into the mashed potato/hare etc. I couldn't even muster a response that this was the minimum expected of a place like this. We were tired and emotional at that stage. In the end they agreed between themselves in front of us that the waiter/waitress didn't even know the prices themselves and it was agreed that we would paid 27eur for the plate - still too much in our mind but at least in line with what was said. What a waste. A sorry amateur affair and I don't use those words lightly. I can't remember the last restaurant we were in that even the slightest thoughts of toursit trap entered my mind. But they did here. How awful. A dreadful evening, full of expectation etc. but ended up in a place with hopeless staff and overpriced food that was nothing more than someone trying something on with expensive produce. I hope the experience on nobody else. Spring may have its fans/adherents/fanatics, but I for one am not one of them. In fact the complete opposite - I wouldn't dream of going back. There is probably a law against saying anything against the Spring religion but count me out that's all I say. An enterprise that delivered to us what it did is trading on misguided principles and I can't see it surviving once the brouhaha/religious fervour has subsided. I had a meal in Bistro Volnay tonight that would knock the socks off this nonsense a hundred times over - for those who haven't been, think twice about somewhere that has a long line of people to get in and read my experience.

Ended up going back to Bofinger. Booked well ahead with preference for downstairs and was given that thankfully. Had a lovely brasserie meal after the superb ballet at the Bastille.

We will be attending a ballet at the Opera Bastille on a Saturday night in March. I think the performance will finish by 10pm. Is there a reasonably lively brasserie/restaurant serving good food and which is within walking distance of the Opera? We'll probably only need a light supper given the time (I suspect 2 courses and a good bottle of wine should finish off the night nicely). I have been to Bofinger before but wasn't too impressed... that was probably because we were shunted off to the 'tourist section' upstairs, and the food was unremarkable. Thank you.

I think the general conclusion is that if the geese have not been force fed, then it won't taste as good. You can do your own cost-benefit analysis from that.

I agree Pearl Brasserie is an excellent place. Having been there for the first time recently, it lived up to expectations and was one of the finest dinners I've had in Dublin. The food, wine, service and ambience all combined for a wonderful evening. The only reason I think it might suffer is the basement location combined with just something lacking with the overall decor/layout. I think that basement premises generally need to compensate for their subterranean location with a ground level entrance presence that makes you want to climb down there, and also that something special downstairs when you arrive, which makes you feel like you made the right decision! Pearl doesn't really promise much at ground level and it just feels like you are climbing down to a basement. The arrival is nothing special either. We waited in a non-descript and dimly lighted entrance until something saw us. Hmmm... The decor inside is also just a little bit too comfortable. I just didn't get that sense of anticipation I get when I descend the stairs to Chapter One or Dax, nor when we sat down that extra-special feeling. I'm thinking here of the general pampering/comfort in Chapter One, and that rustic cosy French atmosphere in Dax. I might add Chapter One and Dax also boast service of the highest order. Ok, maybe I'm digressing a bit too much from the food here, but with such excellent food it's a shame this place isn't as popular as it deserves.

I visited El Bulli in August with my partner. We were both first-timers there. We were both awestruck by the El Bulli experience. The sheer theatre and sorcery of the whole evening is inspiring. The anticipation in the lead-up, and the pleasure afterwards of thinking about what we experienced, is also part of the truly unique experience. It ranks as one of the finest dining experiences we have had (perhaps only second to our meal at noma in copenhagen). Rather than repeat the same highlights as the many fine reports in some of the preceding posts, I suppose I would like to give voice to some of the things that niggled with me from the experience: (i) The flavours: I realise the dishes are meant to be a holistic experience - giving pleasure to many senses at once... sight, taste, touch, sound, intellect etc. and they largely suceeded in this regard over the evening. However, there were very few dishes that knocked me out with flavour. In fact, some dishes simply lacked flavour. Interesting flavours, strong or otherwise, are something I innately expect from such an experience, and although my other senses were kept well occupied during the meal, I couldn't help feeling at the end that this aspect left me wanting. (ii) The lack of a real crescendo during the meal: I expected a wonderful sweep of a journey which would rise triumphantly towards some inexorable climax ... but it never really got there. Oh, perhaps almost a year of waiting does this to you! It was difficult to know exactly where we were on the journey as the dishes just kept coming. (iii) Desserts: These were a let down at El Bulli (although we missed out on some of the more stunning ones served to others, including the hummingbird trompe l'oeil). We had the 'sheep' cheese and 'wool' which was interesting and tasty, but then we had a dish with fruits in various guises, but mostly flavourless (freeze-dried etc.). In contrast, desserts at El Celler de Can Roca some days later were sublime. I would stress I mention these issues were in the context of what were probably stratospheric expectations on our part, not helped by almost a year's anticipation. However, I point them out so that other people realise that, even at El Bulli, not all expectations are met. People's expectations for a meal at El Bulli can soar so high, that satisfying them can become an impossibilty. Don't expect so much, and it will be all the more enjoyable.

Spent a recent weekend in Copenhagen, and had some wonderful dining experiences: Noma: This was a truly sublime experience, and well worth its place in the world's best. A second or third michelin star can only be a matter of time. We had the 7 course tasting menu with matching wines. It was truly exceptional cooking of the highest standard. Delicate and refined and with the freshest of ingredients. There was an overwhelming natural resonance to the ingredients which was intoxicating. All the food was sourced from scandinavia (deer, elderberries, scallops, squid, mussel, walnuts, seaweed, skate to name some of the foods we had). It truly had soul. Some standout courses: Pickled skate and elderberries and a foamed mussel sauce: Gorgeously delicate skate punctuated with the kick of each elderberry, and the delightful hint of mussels with the foam. I'm not overly keen on foams but this hit just the right note. Squid with truffles, with a hazelnut sauce and yoghurt: Absolute heaven! Delicate squid made intense with the truffles, and then transcended to another level with a rich hazelnut sauce, offset with a mix of yoghurt. Paired with this a wonderfully complex and richly perfumed slovenian wine (ribolla grape from simcic). Vension sausage and poached pear with walnuts and verbena: The vension achieved an impossible richness and delicateness all at once. Offset to perfection with the pear. It sounds odd to say, but you almost felt at one with nature eating this dish. Overwhelming. Dessert of milk in different textures with mountain cloud berries: Milk in various reductions, down to a richly textured sauce and then eventually a wafer. An inventive and intelligent course, but never forsaking the taste. A delight. A wonderful evening, and in a beautifully converted old warehouse high on natural design (exposed woodbeams, restrained danish design, 60s chairs with sheepskin throws etc.) and looking out across the water. Very special. Cofoco: This was an incredible deal. A lively place, beautiful decor and even better food. We had 3 courses for 225dk each (about €30), and a bottle of very drinkable shiraz for 100dk (about €14). You can choose to sit at an individual table, or a large communal one. These are incredible prices in Copenhagen for the level of food and surroundings we got. We had jerusalem artichoke soup with goat's cheese, main course of deer, and pungent ice-cream of chocolate and lychees for dessert. Superb cooking. Incredible value. Book ahead. Soren K: This is the restaurant in the 'Black Diamond' extension of the royal library down near the waterfront. The location can't be beaten. Looking out over the water. Excellent quality food, and good value 2-course deal available. Hotel Skt Petri: The restaurant here is in a stunning and trendy hotel conversion from its previous life as a department store. 4 storey high curtains robe off the restaurant from the main atrium. Dramatic indeed. A buzzy sort of place aswell with beautiful people. The food is probably a bit expensive for what it delivers, but the whole package is worth it. There is an asian influence with some of the dishes which worked very well. The menu allows you pick small,medium or large portions of any dish on the menu which is a great novelty. I had a small main course of fillet steak and we shared a lovely chocolate dessert. So, Copenhagen shined. I'll be back soon. I heartily recommend it.