Guilo Guilo in the 18th - our only recent "find"

[John Talbott]

6.0 Not Kyoto, but pretty good for the 18th.

Guilo Guilo, 8 rue Garreau, in the 18th, 01 42 54 23 92 opened a few months ago to admirable reviews. Because of my rigid rule about only eating French food in France, broken only when I'm leaving for a period of exotic cuisine, in this case Romanian such, I didn't get around to eating here until today despite the recommendations of the big boys as well of at least two members and one co-host at the Society. Colette and I tried reserving by delegation, telephone and finally had to walk over to this place in the midst of Amélie Poulainland to secure a table, only available at 7 PM, "in the back room," apologetically said the star chef. (As if it were Siberia - Folks, ask for the backroom if you wish to talk to your loved one, ask for the front bar if you wish to watch Eiichi Edakuni at work.) There are 8 courses in the degustation menu, which from Clotilde's blog's pix, are clearly different each night/week/or whatever. Our amuse bouches consisted of figs in a sauce and jambon cru with a mango puree. 2nd was a panoply of veggies and fruits: a Japanese (cherry) tomato, eggplant, taro and sashimi strips and 3rd - shrimp sushi with marinated vegetables. 4th - a soup with a folded over egg block with andouille in a sauce; 5th salmon pieces with a zippy sauce and cucumber. 6th for us were corn fritters/tempura with two sauces - one soy, the other dots of foie gras in another sauce. 7th was a spread of red tuna which one dipped in egg yolk and then a light soy sauce with pickled cabbage and rice with seaweed strips and sesame seeds. And we thought finally, was a pumpkin puree/ jelly with morsels of coffee jelly and an almond jelly block. I was humming "This is the end, Beautiful friend, This is the end, My only friend, the end" but the Doors did not appear. Instead, the chef proposed a topper - ennobled with his name (and presumably reputation) of dessert saki, fruit juice(s) and sparkling water - a nice end, but it was not part of them menu so an extra 17E was added to our bill! The bill with 4 draft Asahi beers was 127E.

Go again? Despite the "show," I think in the 18th I'd choose Enishi

[Laidback]

Let me begin by confessing that my knowledge of Japanese cuisine lies somewhere between my expertise in Boolean algebra and ancient Sanscrit. This being said, when two different chefs that I respect suggested that I try Guilo Guilo, I decided to give it a try. It is in small quarters on Rue Garreau in the 18th and is booked up way in advance with the despicable practice of 2 services a night.

The chef is on display behind a semi-circular counter and is perpetually sporting a big smile. Some sources suggest that the name is a mispronunciation of the Italian Giro Giro, perhaps meaning turn turn, but linguistics is just below Sanscrit on my list of accomplishments. We were three and were seated in a small private room away from the action but more conducive to conversation.

The deal is you get about nine delicious, strange little servings for €45 that are far removed from the noodle, sushi, or Benihana joints from my part of the world. We started with a saki as an aperitif, but after one sip I decided that a good Sancerre would better suit my occidental palate. We started with a mango purée with cured ham and a fig miso with puréed daikon radish with ginger...wow, what a start.

Another dish, little understood by me but still delicious, was a pepper stuffed with a puréed beef, a little salad with a piece of foie gras and what I think was a jelly of dried tuna. Hopefully someone knowledgeable will more accurately describe this dish because the flavor/texture combination was better than good.

Next up was an omelette and eel soup combo whose flavor was superior to my foggy photo

My impression of the next, exceptional little serving was sort of a gambas carpaccio served over sticky rice with a side of pickled cabbage; someone please help me out here.

There were a few more unusual, but delicious little dishes... a salmon trout; something I can only guess was fried corn; an excellent tuna with an egg yolk, wasabi and rice and then a dessert ... a spoon of mango soup with a coffee jelly served with cream of almond and pumpkin:

Chances are my descriptions are no more than 50% accurate, but if you are an adventurous eater I think you will be enthused; if you are a meat and potatoes person go elsewhere.