pim

Found a vegetarian/vegan Chinese place in th 13th. Green Garden at 20 rue Nationale. They use soy protein in place of meat, to some very lovely ends. No, this is really not chicken. I blogged about it if you want to hear more.

Not the black sesame at Aoki? I adore it.

I wandered in for lunch at L'Ambroisie yesterday. A perfect specimen of a torchon of foie gras -if there ever was one- to begin. A perfect bowl of soft eggs a la florentine with an ample supply of shaved white truffle on top to *really* begin. A gorgeously done piece of sole with black truffle and green almond drizzled with a bit of coriandar oil, accompanied by a 'terrine' of leek layered with black truffle slices for the main part of the meal. Drank a delicious Chablis, '99 Domaine de l’Eglantière with everything -good acidity and minerallity but even more amazing nose and taste of acacia honey, just wonderful. Gave up cheese for dessert, and was amply rewarded by it... A new dessert not yet on the menu but was on offer was a biscuit de pain d'épice à la clémentine...sounded so tempting I had to try it, but not after agonizing a few minutes over foregoing my Favorite Chocolate Tart in the World. So the biscuit de pain d'épice it was. A fabulously delicate, and simply fabulous little round cake, crispy and crackling on the outside, with a molten center of pain d'épice cream and bits of clementine confite, served with fresh segments of -what else- clementine on the side. This was one of the two best desserts I had this year. After clearing my dessert place, and basically reaching the limit of my ability to eat, I was looking forward to a long stroll to lighten myself up after such a huge meal, but yet another set of silverware was placed in front of me, with Pascale grinning ear to ear, brimming with mischief. Oh no I wasn't done. Evidently not. Another plate arrived from the kitchen, my tarte fine au chocolat! They insisted they could not possibly let me out of there without my favorite dessert. So I had to eat it, all of it, the regular-size slice no less. How could I not in the face of such generosity. So I did. And I am still paying for it now.... Had coffee to wake myself up enough for the walk home....didn't even touch a piece of the generous mignardise...couldn't possibly have.... I also took photos. These will likely never be as good as jeffj's, I'm afraid, but I've got them so here they are... Foie gras de canard confit au poivre gris, composé de coings au Vouvray Oeufs de poule mollets à la florentine, râpéde truffe blache Sole with black truffle, green almond, coriandar oil, and 'terrine' of leek layered with black truffle Biscuit de Pain d'épice à la Clémentine Biscuit de Pain d'épice à la Clémentine Tarte Fine au Chocolat Tarte Fine au Chocolat Mignardise

A chef's written recipe is hardly ever a reliable source. Everyone 'tweaks' their recipes ostensibly to 'adapt' to home cooking.

Had a small dinner at Auguste the other day. It was lovely. I had a wood pigeon that was appropriately gamy, well seasoned, and cooked perfectly rare, served with a good puree of topinambour. The wine list is really, really small for a restaurant with that kind of ambition. It's the first meal so I don't really have a strong opinion yet. I'm going back there soon I'm sure.

Bingo

Oh dear. Sorry you had such a horrid time. Next time you are looking for something in that hood, walk down rue de Flerus to blvd. Raspail, turn left, and a couple more blocks to rue Ste.Beuve on the left. On that little street is the postage stamp-sized Le Timbre. A cute little gem of a bistro. You'll get far better food there, and much better service too.

L'Ambassade d'Auvergne is a good old standby. They've been there forever and have good dishes from that region, their cheese cart has always been good. The Fourme d'Ambert there is a standout, especially for lovers of blue cheese. website

I did a little piece once for my blog about the state of coffees in Paris.l There are some good address, you might want to check it out http://chezpim.typepad.com/blogs/2005/06/h...ot_to_drin.html

Verlet, Cafe Amazone, and Le Comptoir Richard all have excellent coffee. I am partial to cafe amazone, which is a tiny shop run by an old guy who did all the raosting himself in a old roaster.

How did Le Meurice fall off the list again? I'm not following this close enough to know. I had lunch at L'Astrance last week. It was superb, but we did the big menu, and spent about 200 euro per person. I think that's out of your desired range for this trip. L'Astrance does have two stars, got the second one this year. And, the chef's name is Pascal Barbot. One thing to be mindful of, the set lunch menu is usually not available on weekends. I'd call to check first. (edited for spelling) ...and now I am off to dinner...

Hmm...I'm still not sure I'm following the logic here. Even if they gave A.L. a star because of Ducasse, whose star-y touch is evident from Monaco to NY, why would they be compelled to give one to Antoine Westermann's Mon Vieil Ami as well. Plenty of three star chefs have a side bistro business to make money. I don't see too many of them with *.

I agree with you about Aux Lyonnais, it probably doesn't merit a star. But I know we disagree on Roellinger. Is he an espoir too? I didn't notice. And, based on what you and Vedat have said on l'Oasis, I'd be really surprised too if they get the third star.

? But Mon Viel Ami isn't a Ducasse place.

Why the uproar? Oh, right lambs grow on trees... how silly of me.

Oh, and a big yes to L'Astrance. Just had a gorgeous lunch there a few days ago. That makes three great meals in a period of just a few months. And if you go there, let the sommelier choose the wine for you. He is fabulous, and that wine list is full of treasures. edited for privacy

Pierre Gagnaire is fabulous. He is a great example of someone who inhabits a difficult middleground, blending the classical and the hyper-modern, and making a cuisine that is intensely personal and emotional AND delicious. My best meal of the year last year was at Gagnaire. My best meal of the trip in Spring/Summer, when I spent over 2 months in europe eating my way through starred restaurants, was chez Pierre Gagnaire. I will concede that the place can be inconsistent, but I've heard only fabulous things lately.

Had a nice meal at the Greenhouse too, but that's not new is it? Or perhaps the new-ish chef would count?

The London forum has got a thread predicting Michelin results of 2006 already, and I thought why not get the fun started for us over here too. I'm going out on a limb to predict that Michelin awards the final -not to mention well deserved AND long overdue- star to Olivier Roellinger at La Maison de Bricourt. Que pensez vous?

Thanks e.u. Don't get me wrong, I think both Bristol and Le Meurice will certainly give you a three star experience. These are ambitious kitchens, and there's indeed an argument to be made that perhaps the odds are more on your side to eat at 'young' kitchens hungry to be awarded the final star. The 'espoir' designation is a new thing in the most recent Michelin guide. They awarded these espoirs to restaurants that distinguished themselves from those of the same star level. It was something of a signal that Michelin were paying particular attention to them, as their 'hope' for the new generation, etc, etc. Some people I know just think that Michelin needs a more fine-grained system than just 1, 2, or 3 stars, and that the 'espoir' thing is the first step toward that end.

I had a nice dinner at Dine recently. For 5o pounds that meal was a good value for what one usually gets in London. It's in such a weird City location though. One Friday night we tried to get a reservation and they were completely booked, while the next Friday we showed up and the place was less than half empty.

I had a particularly blase dinner a couple of weeks ago there. The food was blah. The wine pairing was not bad. The service varied. One of our servers was very nice and extremely competent, evidently an old hold-over from the Lucas Carton days. He told us later that he missed the good old days. The other server, a woman, was absolutely clueless about pretty much everything, from what's on the plate to what's in the glass. It was too expensive for what it was, and I am not one to complain about how much a meal cost normally. (edited for typo)

A little late to this party, but I thought I'd point out that -in light of the title of the thread- niether Le Meurice nor Bristol has three star. They each have two, with a special 'espoir' designation for Le Meurice.

sad but true.

Pim, if you have a point to make about how the "eGullet establishment circled the wagons" with regard to Doug Psaltis, his book, or this topic, please cite examples. If you are trying to make some larger point, the place to do it is eG Forums and Society Questions and Comments. ← My point is to address the line that most of the defenders of the book are taking, that the 'culinary establishment' are circling the wagons to protect one of their own. I didn't deny that nothing like that was going on, I merely pointed out that it was happening on both sides. I am bemused by the people over here who point their collective finger at the circle of wagons going on over there while somehow, inexplicably, fail to see the pink elephant sitting right smack in the middle of this very one.