Oct 08 Adrien, Boudoir, Cantine, Jeu de, Cul de,

[John Talbott]

7.0 What a way to re-enter fall eating.

La Table d'Adrien, 9, rue Volney in the 2nd, 01.42.61.00.44 has a 50 E menu and is only open for lunch, by reservation. It’s been open since April with a husband (Adrien) in the salle and wife (Judite) in the cuisine but to my knowledge, has only been covered by Alain Fusion in lesrestos.com. I started with the foie gras duo (micuit and sautéed) that was the best of any I’ve had. Then I chose the rognons of veal but the host generously suggested adding a perfectly cooked filet of beef with a red wine, shallot and chocolate sauce and some mashed potatoes; divine! Then three cheeses from the “east,” three desserts (two of which were old recipes), a coffee and Bas Armagnac (this in addition to an aperitif of white wine, a half-bottle of Bordeaux and a glass of port with the cheese. The bill, which was most generously absorbed by the house is unknown (I realize this poses an ethical problem for me and an evaluation problem for you, gentle reader, since I often rail against critics on the take) but…..I guess you'll just have to assume that my judgment may have been influenced.

However, in any case, it was sure a hellofa meal. NB M. Adrien says it's a "club" so one may not get a reservation.

6.5. A second winner.

Le Boudoir, 25, rue du Colisee in the 8th, 01.43.59.25.29, closed Sundays, with a daily special at 16, 3 dailies at 27 but a la carte = 50-60 E, is the second winner of the of the rentrée. It's labeled on the awning (above) as a brasserie but it's as much like those creaky old Alsatian dumps as her Point Bar resembled a dingy old bar. I entered with prejudice, as I had always eaten well at her Point Bar in the Marche St Honoré and I expected the same here and was not disappointed (except by the prices.) The terribly welcoming waitfolk offered me a choice of two floors, many rooms and at least 5 styles of furniture/furnishings - choices, choices, choices. I choose the innermost as perhaps being the quietest. The menu looks relatively simple and there are also three chalkboard specials (that this day didn't appeal). I skipped the fresh girolle starter since I realized I hankered for the (grosse) cut of veal with sauteed girolles. I was never asked how I wanted it cooked, but lucky guy that I was, it was perfectly under-cooked and smothered, I mean smothered, with girolles, which needed just a tiny bit of salt crystal to achieve the region of the heavenly. And the thick crusted bread was perfect for both munching on and sopping up the thin but tasty brown sauce. Then I had a "classic Baba" with endless St Etienne rum and a nice whipped cream sauce that was equally good. My wine was a Chateaumeillant that tasted of the Gamay of Cher but not over-poweringly so (wines were 20 and up a bottle, with glasses from 5 E). After coffee (ristretto, how about that?), no bottled water nor as I said, a starter, one could exit for less than 50, but with wine and any of the above, one could get into serious numbers. If I were a Michelin Man, I would rank their bathroom right up there with Goumard's - 5*'s.

Go back? For sure, but for the next week, maybe I should quit while I'm ahead.

8.0 (for country food) - 5.5 (for city food.) Whoa, not wow, but maybe both.

La Cantine du Troquet, 101, rue de l'Ouest in the 14th, no telephone/no reservations, closed Sunday nights and Mondays, a la carte from 30-40, is Christian Etchebest 3rd venture after Le Troquet and Grand Pan and is simply great. I went on a Sunday and arrived about 12:15 and there were already 8 persons (there are 29 places set and 2 bar stools). As mentioned elsewhere, and obviously intentional, there is a big screen TV turned to l'Equipe (with the sound off) and the walls are lined with photos of his compatriots - Camdeborde, Jego, Faucher, Bluy and Duboué with their restaurants. There is one giant chalkboard (duplicated outside) with 12 starters, 8 mains and 10 desserts; wines are on another and start at 14 E a liter. So you know for the start he's not there to soak you. As I was ordering, himself came on a motorcycle and joined his family and friends at a big table, clearly working on this or next week's menu, not cooking. He greeted everyone as if he knew them; maybe he does and he recalled my half-dozen visits but it was a nice touch anyway. I had the pigs' ears that were wonderfully crisp and toasty with nicely-dressed greens and some bread that was quite good. Then the poitrine de porc that was even more crispy and crunchy, topped with a fluffy sauce and accompanied by huge portions of thick-cut fries and a green salad. I cannot tell you how good that pork was, incredible! For dessert, on a country-roll, I had the tart of the day, with apricots and between the (you've got it) crispy crust, custardy filling and fresh apricots, it was the perfect end to an honest meal. With coffee, made correctly serré, a half-bottle of wine and tap water, the bill was 37 Euros. As for my score, if you take the product, care in preparation, cooking and classic presentation, it's an 8.0, but if you consider that because it ain't got flowers and frou-frou table settings, has a sports-TV and provides just simple, plain-old, traditional and not particularly-inventive cooking, it would only get a 5.5.

Go back? In three weeks to be exact.

8.0 (if you're a normal person) - 6.0 (if you're exigent) What are they putting in the water up here?

Le Jeu de Quilles, 45, rue Boulard in the 14th, 01.53.90.76.22, open for lunch only Tuesday-Saturday and dinner Wednesday and Friday if you're 12 or so and book in advance. This was my second meal in three days in this part of the 14th and both of them have been quite special, quite good and quite interesting places. Both the Cantine de Troquet and Jeu de Quilles are seemingly uncomplicated and simple but serve up astonishingly good chow, Jeu de Quilles in part because it's right next to Desnoyer the famed butcher. The chef came through Fines Gueules and has the same respect for fine products they do. We started with glasses of white wine which with the offered charcuterie were perfect. Then we shared supposedly small platters of cheese and charcuterie that typified the approach to good product, simply served. Both were ample, indeed more than that. The chalkboard has only 6 other items, but we both chose the veal which with sliced veggies and fries were all again (sorry) very good product. Our dessert was a shared clafoutis of mirabelles and again was quite good. Our bill with a bottle of Chiroubles and two Illy's (extra points) was 54.40 Euros per person.

Go? Fast! They only have 17 covers so call in advance; Simon called it the resto for the rentrée A Nous Paris lauded it today.

5.9 A diamond in the rough in the 9th (yet again).

Cul de Poule, 53 rue des Martyrs in the 9th, 01.53.16.13.07, closed Sundays and Mondays, 20 for 2 courses, 27 € for 3, where the maestro Yanning Samot, (of La Famille, Cheri Bibi + Refectoire) was reported by Le Fooding's Marie-Odile Briet to use fine products in preparing Basque charcuterie, meats, desserts and wines. I went with my charming cohost on the eGullet France Forum and we had a great meal. You look at the place and it's a dump; really a dump; the sign for the former Triperie is still there; it's got plastic chairs outside and school classroom chairs inside and your heart sinks. And I had the misfortune to invite this woman who is elegant and refined and provides me with magazines and newspapers when I'm out of town to this place; for shame John! "Minute Papillon," I say, "Le Fooding liked it; it's gotta have something," despite my rollercoaster experiences at their other places. While waiting I order a bottle of Chat. Delanoye and the wine list; hummm, not bad. Having read the article in today's IHT on Cotes du Rhone, their one at 19 E could test their mettle. (PS It was terrific.) She enters, with that laced blouse - I'm dazzled, I invite her to sit; she peers around - "kind of real," she says, or something equivalent. We inspect the carte, a lot of cut meats first, interesting meat and fish next - onward! She had the Basque charcuterie, courtesy of Rémi, which both of us loved and which, after several of a similar sort I'd had in the past two weeks, I judged rather the best. I had the head cheese which was just fine with a salad of not your usual greens from Annie Bertin I gather. Then she had the cote de cochon fermier (which I've also had several of this rentree) from M. Aimé of Dax, which was huge and super and I had the white seiche with the spiciest darn pesto I've ever had, perfect! Both of us ordered and were served the veggie mix which I sort of dismissed but she tucked into. It had carrots, turnips, cabbage, beets, eggplant and who knows what else, all from Passard and all cooked separately so some were al dente and others mushie, but it had a twang too, and quite frankly between you and moi dear reader - it was the best thing there. Oh yes, both of us were also served tiny slices of veggies: my cucumber and tomato were outasight. After that, what does one do, slink out? No way. She ordered 6 strawberries with creme fraiche and I some Beaufort cheese - heaven on earth! So dear readers; what was the bill (oh, yah, we had to have another glassof with the cheese)? 76 Euros? you don't believe me?

Go? Not if you need tablecloths, quiet, froufrou service, towels in the loo or shitty food at exhorbitant prices. But otherwise, please do - but expect it to be no more than it is.

5.5 An unexpected surprise in the 8th of all places.

A La Chataigne, 22, rue Miromesnil in the 8th, 01.40.07.90.86, closed Saturday lunch and Sundays, running one a la carte about 35-45 E got two hearts in Figaroscope just before its summer break but I hadn't forgotten it. I went there with a food writer whose reviews I've been admiring for a while and I think he was surprisedly pleased/pleasantly surprised as well. I entered to find him seated at the very best front table by the front window rather than in the back of this long narrow railway car type restaurant; sign on table Reserved: Talbot; cool. It turns out by my reserving only a few hours before I'd secured the best in the house (lesson to drop-inners). However right off the bat, the sound was a problem, rather should I say, the noise, from workmen spread out all down both sides of the street working madly with jackhammers, generators and the like. But once we got the door closed, things calmed down. We both wanted to order the same things, but gentleman that he was, he chose alternatives and we shared a bit. I started with the terrine of Sansonnet, a tiny Corsican bird I hope is not headed for extinction, like the ortolan, since it was so good. He meanwhile had Corsican ham and melon that was super product from Zevaco. My main was a casserole of tripettes of veal a la Corse (tomatoes, onions and potatoes) that was a pleasure and he had canneloni with broccio, tomatoes and basil leaves, equally nice. We ended with a tarte of chestnuts (another house specialty) and he a soup of Corsican berries and fruits. He had ordered a bottle of really fine Corsican wine and with three dishes each and coffee, all of which he generously treated me too, the bill he picked up could have come under 100 E a couple if we'd had a less fine wine. (There were wines by the glass and carafe (15 E).

Go? Indeed, after the demise of the Casa Corse, I'd find this a most acceptable substitute.

5.0 – A Wow in the 18th, Wow!

La Table d'Eugene, 18, rue Eugene Sue (time out for a literature lesson: Eugene Sue (1804-1857) wrote "The Mysteries of Paris" described in chestofbooks as "the greatest work ever written") in the 18th, 01.42.55.61.64, menu at 30 Euros. It has been open only a month and my sherpa pointed out that the big boys hadn't published reviews yet but would surely do so shortly. I had gone by on my limpies a few days ago and been struck by the quirkiness of the menu: like the late, un-great and un-lamented l'Angl'Opera, which described dishes backwards, this one has one word descriptors followed by the main ingredients in most cases; thus tomate = gazpacho, risotto = cheese and mushrooms, absinthe = ice cream, etc. As an amuse gueule there were sausagy things and olives that were all very tasty; the bread was incredibly good and from the same bakery I'd given up on 7 years ago when a nearer bio one opened (a big mistake). For firsts we split the risotto with cheese and mushrooms that was heavenly and shrimp with Moroccan spices and summer veggies that were divine; whoops, with heavenly and divine, I've run out of over-the-earth adjectives. Then we had a magret de canard that was superlunary and a veal chop that was toasty on the outside, not raw enough of the inside but hey, still ethereal, with young spinach shoots and charlotte potatoes with a spicy Sabrosada sauce on top. Then we had the baba (made with exotic spice(s)) with rum that was supernal and an ice made with genuine absinthe that was celestial. With two menus, two coffees, one bottle of fantastic wine but no bottled water, the bill should have been 88 Euros, but the devil led us astray with some tots of extra rum and absinthe a l'ancien.

Go back? Already planned: October 3rd to be exact. You may wonder why I gave it only a 5? That's to discourage nosy snoops from other areas of town from ruining it; this is my place, stay downtown where you belong.

5.0 And yet more.

l'Ardoise Gourmande, 12, rue de Belzunce in the 11th, 01.48.78.40.03, closed Saturday lunch and Sunday night and Sunday noon is brunch, menus with two dishes and wine or water are 22 E, a la carte runs 25-50 E. I realized the opening of l'Ardoise Gourmande means the end of my visits and recommendation of the Terminus Nord to others alighting from the Eurostar; this place is going to replace it and maybe Chez Michel (except in game season) and Chez Casimir as well. It's a really slick looking place just opposite Thierry Breton's joint and has an abundance of food on the printed and chalkboard menus. There is a "menu" (prix fixe) on the left of the carte, another on the right and a lot of a la carte daily specials on the chalkboard, but rather than try to explain it all, like Ze Kitchen Galerie, everything will fall into place when addition time comes. I liked what I saw on the 22 E "menu" but was enraptured by the sautéed scallops and pleurottes on the a la carte chalkboard and had them (25 E). And they were simply the best of both, perfectly prepared and served. The wine of the month was a 16 E Morgan which can be had a la ficelle (pay per sip), which I did and loved; but they also had glasses, 1/4'ths, carafes and bottles of wine too. My dessert was the moelleux of chocolate with vanilla ice cream that was not as runny as my daughter makes it but was pretty good; however a (strange) diseased mint leaf was on top. The bread was OK but the coffee was horrible. To be fair it's only been open for 17 days and they're still working the kinks out (as an example, my bread was not cleared after the main course – no big deal, but….). My bill was 42.50 E with 1/2 wine, no bottled water but just two items from the chalkboard.

Go? As Pudlo used to say "Follow this place."

5.0 Pretty much the same – still pricey after all these years.

La Grange Bateliere, 6, rue de la Grange Bateliere in the 9th, 01.47.70.85.15, has since June 12th been in the hands of Brice Goutret and Celine Canal who used to run the Port Alma on the Ave de New York in the 16th, which I thought was OK but pricey. I thought maybe this, being a grubbier area with all those grubby Drouot types looking for bargains, the prices would come down and one would have more choices than under its former management. No so. On entering it was all suits and ties and hardly any wine consumed; Drouot was closed and these were either the high-end antique types or pure business folk. The tapenade amuse bouche and bread to spread it on was super. Despite the fanciness of the clientele, the chalkboard was pretty simple, a few starters, mains and desserts and one special. I had the special, a magret de canard perfectly rosé with wonderful sautéed mushrooms and potatoes beneath my pay grade to assess. It was tender and very tasty and among the best ever. Before that I had superb bread rubbed with tomato and olive oil (recall how the barman at the old Gaya (RG) used to do it with garlic and gusto - well just as good) along with superb Jamon and a nice green salad. I had no dessert (few folks did until the end) but had a good Florio coffee serré; which with 2 glasses of their house Bordeaux (7 E a pop) results in a 53.50 E bill.

Go? Despite the price-quality problem, it's pretty good if you're going to be in the Drouot area and have reserved (the place was packed and they were turning tables).

2.0 Well, I guess all good things come to an end after all.

Pasco, 74, blvd de la Tour Maubourg in the 7th, 01.44.18.33.26, open 7/7, formula for 17, two dishes 21 and three for 26 Euros, was in a list of places given by Jean Claude Ribaut in Le Monde that had sidewalk seating (cleverly called the terrace) and were open in summer (and on weekends.) Somehow I got the idea it had a new chef and indeed the guy cooking didn't look like the guys named on the menu and business card, but..... The menu looks like that of a million other places but I soldiered on, starting with a half-warm/half-chilly block of eggplant and goat cheese with tangy pistou sauce - OK. The bread, while looking good and crusty was infra-dig. Then I had some daurade that had a 5* crusty skin but the fish itself and fresh vapored veggies were 1-2* at best. My dessert was the highlight of the meal; a canelé with prune and armagnac ice cream - both superb. I finished with a so-so coffee. The bill with the menu, 1/2 wine, no water and coffee was 41.50 Euros.

Go? For some crisp fish skin, a canelé and ice cream?

1.0 A deception in both the French and English senses of the word.

Chez Fred, 190bis, Blvd Pereire in the 17th, 01.45.74.20.48, closed Sundays with a 30 E menu and a la carte 35-50 E is a place I put on my rentrée list as a holdover from June when Figaroscope had listed it. Foolishly, I didn't note that it was simply reopening after a devastating fire and had made no major changes. Oh well. However, in its favor, it is touted as a typical Lyonnais bouchon (see pix above) and I was in the mood for some good Lyonnaise chow. Plus, I had as my eating partner one of my favorite critics/chefs/TV stars and knew we'd have fun, which we did. She started with a glass of white wine that she was pleasantly surprised by and I had the menu's museau of beef (accompanied by a pot of wine from Lyon) that was the best I've ever had. At this point I thought we were in for a treat. Fred made a come-back I thought. Unfortunately both mains were plain; she had the gigot (blah) special (always and only served on Mondays) with good sautéed potatoes though and a sliced ratatouille that looked somewhat like René's in the movie of the same name and I had the Lyonnais sausage that Rubin liked but I thought was inferior product with tasteless white, boiled and diced potatoes; the mustard was good though. My dessert was not a slice of bitter chocolate with creme anglaise that I anticipated but yet another over-cooked moelleux with a pallid white sauce and she had a blancmange (will some 70 yo British Monty Python fan explain that running gag to me some day?) with creme fraiche that she despised. Our coffees were adequate and the bread industrial. Our bill was 46.50 E each.

Go? Want Lyonnais food? The TGV will get you there almost as quickly as the PC 3 bus.

-0.5 No bloody bunk for us.

l'Escapade, 36, blvd des Batignolles in the 17th, 01.45.22.51.77, closed Sundays, forced menu at 19, a la carte 25-45 E turned out to be a chance to test the bottom of my scale. Unfortunately, while I chose it in good faith as a place Philippe Toinard made sound interesting in late June in A Nous Paris, and gave it 3/5 dots, I dragged my poor, wonderful neighbor and made her suffer through it too. It looks like it's been here forever, but has a fascinating clock over the kitchen pass-thru window (see above) whose pendulum behind the clock face is visible through a hole above 6 o'clock. That, the bread and the first course of a warm artichoke heart and cold artichoke leaves with lemon olive oil and fleurs de sel were about it for the meal. She had a huge but miserable andouillette (AAAAA of course, as if that mattered) with an OK spicy mustard sauce apart and I had a miserable piece of cod whose skin was nice and crisp, but..... We finished with crepes that were supposed to come with a a salted butter caramel sauce but it looked like it came from a chocolate can and tasted like it was cooked in the butter or oil they'd done meat in recently.

We did have coffee I'm embarrassed to say and our bill with one wine was 77 E.

Go? For the worst price-quality meal of the year? Are you're nutz?

PS As a reminder, my scale is as follows (subject to fickleness and change):

10 - Giradet in the old days.

9 - Ducasse, Bocuse, Loiseau in their prime

8 - Ze Kitchen Galerie now

7- Bistro Cote Mer at its flowering best and Clocher Pereire now

6 - Repaire de Cartouche

5 - Le Cafe qui Parle

4 - 2 Pièces Cuisine, a neighborhood place

3 - Le Truc, ditto

2 - Sale + Pepe, double ditto

1 - le Nord-Sud, triple ditto

0 - Auguste, The Place

Ø- Iode

[John Talbott]

An update on the Table d'Adrien.

As some members know from Pti's blog, she was refused a reservation here because it's a "macho club." Today M. Adrien refused to take my reservation because I was in the food biz (despite the fact that when I ate there I specifically received his permission to write it up.) So, I would advise those seeking a table (and it was one terrific meal and I will miss not going back) to not mention anything having to do with gastronomy.

[John Talbott]

Boy oh boy, was I ready for Colette to try some of my August and September finds.

We started at our new local "old haunt," the Table of Eugene which is simply marvellous for a place within a few blocks of home; the 17 euro ardoise special as well as the 25 E "menu" dishes were all terrific and once again our tariff with wine and coffee was very reasonable (71 E). At a friend’s (Laidback) lead, we ate there again 10 days later and found the food still held up, the service superb and things such as the grilled calamari with a spicy sauce, the veal, barely cooked with spicy sausage (Sabrosada) and spinach leafs as well as bass and rougets to be very, very good; our bill, October 3rd for 4 was 151 €.

We had dinner with nine of Paris's finest food writers of blogs, books and bouquets - at the Jeu de Quilles, sampling their charcuterie, merlan rillettes and cuttlefish with a tad of oil; starting with a soup of foie gras and truffle oil; then mackerel with zucchini, fennel and tomato chunks; moving on to Desnoyer's incredible veal with incredible potatoes; three quite fine cheese(s); terminating with a trio of desserts (a berry "soup," creme brullee and a "sandwich"). With white as an apero, a Chiroubles as the red, coffee and very friendly but professional service, the bill was 70 E each.

The next day, we were still "coming down" and walked in (per necessity) to the Cantine de Troquet and while watching a Basque travelogue and the chef's preview of this week's TV show (with him commenting), ate his best toasty/burned crevettes a la plancha, merlu with a Basque sauce, (again for me) the wonderful poitrine de porc with frites and the apricot tarte with a great crust; with coffee and a liter of vin de Pays (14 E) = 61.50 E - take that Bush-Paulson-Cox-Bernanke et al.

Well, I finally came acropper. Our meal at Le Boudoir had significant holes in it. The food: a fine millefeuille of pleurottes with an ineffable Asian sweet-sour spice mix, moules with curry and excellent frites and ½ pigeon with 3 figs poached in wine with some spice and chocolate tart was all good, as was the bread. But there were hitches: we were directed toward a table by the window only to be told it was reserved, then freed for us; the moules were ordered marinieres but came au curry which was OK since I was torn as to which to order; the bread crumbs were never scraped from the table before dessert; and they were out of the two desserts Colette wanted (in this day of printable menus); plus the 6 coffee selection menu is a bit pretentious, there are no curtains on the windows to pull when the sun the really strong and the spotlight is positioned over one’s head in the loo, preventing one from seeing the bowl – the latter three quibbles didn’t count the first time I was here but somehow did this time. Our bill with wine and two coffees = 76 €.

All this mind you - with a brilliant blue sky on a wonderful day - clear sailing behind and ahead -

[olivier]

Thanks for these follow-ups, John!

By the way, regarding Jeu de Quilles do you know if the

open for lunch only Tuesday-Saturday and dinner Wednesday and Friday if you're 12 or so and book in advance

still apply?

I'd like to try it, but it would not be convenient at lunchtime.

[John Talbott]

Thanks for these follow-ups, John!

By the way, regarding Jeu de Quilles do you know if the

open for lunch only Tuesday-Saturday and dinner Wednesday and Friday if you're 12 or so and book in advance

still apply?

I'd like to try it, but it would not be convenient at lunchtime.

←

You'd best telephone Oliver; when I first ate there Sept 2, that was the deal; lunch only except private dinners; that's when my friend and I cooked up the idea of a dinner of anti-cons; we all went back Sept 19, but to tell the truth I did not ask if their policy had changed, I was so delighted (again) by the meal.

Could you be so kind as to post your results, because if it's now open for dinner to all, I'm sure many folks would go.

[Felice]

I asked about their hours when there and was told it was lunch only except for private bookings at night. Cantine de Quentin is another great place, only open for lunch. I wonder how they survive.

[John Talbott]

This would be boring if it weren't so wonderful; another meal at the Table d'Eugene with Colette today. The poitrine of pork starter on pureed green peas, carrots and carrots from the Jura (could I have heard right?) and lentils; the beef chats with celery two ways; scallops with mint and a side of whipped sweet potatoes and chocolate with passion fruit granite. The place is all locals, many of whom were suit-type execs or tee-shirt techies. With wine, two coffees and no Chateldon, the bill was 80 E. Not a destination, and I'd raise my rating from 5.0, but definately worth a visit if nearby.