Notes from recent trip

[halland]

Well my wife and I just returned from 6 days in Paris and 2 in Beaune. We went armed with Patricia Wells Food Lovers Guide to Paris, copious notes from friends who lived in Paris, a few egullet posts, and a Marling Menu Master. In almost every case we just ordered the house recommended wine or else asked for help in the 30 euro range.

For now I'll just provide the basics and let further discussion flush out the details.

In Paris:

Las du Fallafel: On rue du Rosiers in the Marais. We had the lamb schwarma and the fallafel and both were delicious. I'm sure most of the menu is equally good. I wanted to go back for more, but being in Paris, there is so much else to eat. Definately worth a trip, this place was recommended by 4 different friends.

Aux Negociants: This is mentioned in Wells and was also recommended by friends. Some of the most honest delicous food we had. They have a chalkboard that lists a selection of cold charcuterie and 1 or 2 hot specials. I had the tripe maison and my wife the rillettes maison (a cold paste made with cooked meat and fat that is pounded in a mortar) along with a few glasses of good wine and a very decent chocolate mousse. We generally tended to eat earlier than most in Paris, which gave us the opportunity to sit and ponder (decrypt) the menu without interruption, but didn't allow us to look at other people's plates and point. Had we eaten later we both would have ordered the Choucroute, which included a large shank/hock of pork that looked just awesome. Definately a "locals" hangout. 27 rue Lambert (18th). Phone 46.06.15.11.

Au C'Amelot: Delicous, delicious, delicious! This place offers a 4 course prix fixe (35 euros) where you only choose the dessert. I apologize for not taking better notes on this one we were just too overwhelmed, just go.

1. Potato veloute with croutons and some kind of garlicky paste. My wife is still talking about this, probably the best soup either of us has ever eaten.

2. Round of eggplant caviar topped with a piece of fried fish and then topped with a small greens salad.

3. Lamb tenderloin with polenta

4. Me: biscuit de chocolate -- warm chocolate cake filled with molten nutella and side of vanilla ice cream

Wife: Warm pear clafoutis with raspberry sorbet.

50 rue Amelot (11th), 43.55.54.04

Restaurant Vagenend: We can't figure out why we went here except that we were approaching the meltdown stage of hunger. The food was edible but otherwise unremarkable and we were seated in a corner against the wall (over by where the staff ate) while the rest of the place was empty. The only thing I can say is that the Art Nouveau interior is spectacular. Stick your head in to look around and then leave.

Le Clos des Gourmets: This has been discussed in depth here and it was as good as everyone states.

La Tartine (in the Marais). We were lured in by the way it looked from the street. Wound up being bad. There doesn't appear to be a kitchen just two toaster oven broilers and a microwave. Upon closer inspection their "old bistro" look was exactly that -- contrived.

Other places to mention in Paris are as follows:

Calixte -- small bakery on Isle St. Louis, mentioned in Wells. Really the best croissant and pain au chocolate we ever had.

La Duree -- Macarons are phenomenal.

Jewish bakeries in the Marais -- if you like poppyseed fillings than you should live here. Just awesome pastries. After a pastry I also ate a phenomenal challah (yes, the whole loaf) just for good measure.

I ate at a small hole in the wall near my hotel that appears to be run by a Breton. Had delicious Curry Moules (6 euros) and a demi pichet of cider (4 euros). This was on Rue St Antoine (at Rue de Turenne?). Good honest food, nothing fancy but sometimes that's what you want. I was the only non-Parisian, which was nice.

Le Grand Epicerie de Paris (part of the Bon) -- this is the best gourmet grocery store I've ever been to. I could have dropped a grand easily. Got lots of gifts and a bottle of a very nice prune brandy that is a little more flavorful than Slivovitz. If I lived in Paris, I would just have my paycheck direct deposited there.

Restaurants in Beaune:

I should start by mentioning that Jardin du Ramparts was closed or we would have eaten there.

Ma Cuisine -- This was mentioned in a very thorough post by David Russell here among other places. Less than overwhelming. We went with the prix fixe menu (as we always did).

Starters: Lobster bisque and something I can't remember

Entree: Chicken and a pasta side, salmon in a cream sauce with ravioli

Dessert: a custardy orange tart and epoisses.

I should mention that the amount of epoisses I received was obscene, I bet it was 5 or 6 ounces, and I ate every bit. Not having ever eaten epoisses before, that in itself made an otherwise unremarkable meal worthwhile.

Les TonTons: This was one of the best meals we ate in France, period. Why we were the only ones in the restaurant all night I just don't understand because other places did have some diners.

Starters: Veloute de Carottes au Cumin et Huile d'Olives (carrot veloute with cumin and olive oil)

Terrine de Roquefort a la Figue Sechee with Salade de Maraicher -- this was so so good, fresh figs and roquefort is a great combination.

Plat: Saucisson Chaud w/ Pommes a la Creme

Filet de Rascasse Grille w/ Endives Gratinees a la Tomate (again this was outstanding with the bitter endives being balanced by the sweet tomato sauce)

Dessert: Assiette de Fromages and a pear tart with pistachio ice cream

We also had a very good lunch at a small salon de tea that serves one hot plat du jour, in this case homemade noodles with chicken in a cream sauce.

Thats all for now.

Hal

[bushey]

Hal,

I love the bakeries on rue des Rosiers. The rugelach are sensational.

Sounds like you had a fabulous meal at Au C'Amelot. If you have a chance, please write a little about the atmosphere and service. We'll be in Paris in about 10 days and this is one of the places on our short list.

thanks,

bushey

[halland]

Au C'Amelot was very nice. We at there and at Le Clos des Gourmets on back to back nights, and they are very different indeed. Au C'Amelot has the feel of a rustic farmhouse. There are about 10 tables all told arranged in a long narrow room with windows at the front out onto the street and a bar along one side. The center section of the room has small 2-tops along one wall next to a large mirror. Along the other wall are more tables and shelves with assorted country crockery, etc. In the back were two additional tables separated from each other and from the rest of the room. Both of these appear to be geared to larger parties (6+).

Service is very casual, but in the French style, still very proper with the appropriate silverware and plate changes between each course.

The only menu they have is a chalkboard which is brought to your table for you to peruse. As I mentioned before the only choice is dessert. There might also be a wine list but since we ordered the house special, I didn't ask to see the wine list.

Dress is pretty much whatever you want to wear. I had on jeans and a sweater and didn't feel out of place at all. That was the case for everywhere we ate while there, but we didn't go to any starred restaurants and Le Clos was by far the fanciest place we dined at.

Hal

[jgould]

thx for the wonderful update!!!!!!

1 question: thought la tartine, in the marais 4e, was simply a wine bar?

Edited February 9, 2004 by jgould (log)

[Bux]

Au C'Amelot has a wine list. As I recall it was a short one page list when we were there. Prices were low. I seem to recall we had some glasses of the house white and then a bottle of a red from Beaujolais, but without the appellation. I'm not sure why it wasn't AOC, but it had more body than an Beaujolais. Hal's description sounds accurate. All I remember is a long narrow room that was very rustic. The night we were there there was actually a choice of main courses, but I understand that's very rare. Dessert is usually the only course with a choice.

[halland]

I'm embarassed by the fact that I don't know more about wine, I used to know a bit and actually led some tastings at a wine store I once worked at.

I just let the knowledge slip and now just go by what the little editorial cards at the local grocery say.

As a result I probably missed a few opportunities in the wine-list department, but at the same time I probably saved myself a few euros from lack of temptation.

I wouldn't call Tartine a wine bar (unless we're thinking of different places) as much as I would call it a semi-automat. Yes someone came to the table and took an order, and someone put the food on a plate, but it doesn't take much to run a microwave.

Hal

[picaman]

Thanks for this very comprehensive update--it's very useful information to me, and I'm sure others as well.

Jamie

[Bux]

  halland said:

I'm embarassed by the fact that I don't know more about wine, I used to know a bit and ...

I'm glad I'm not the only one who knows less than he used to.

[jgould]

  halland said:

I wouldn't call Tartine a wine bar (unless we're thinking of different places) as much as I would call it a semi-automat. Yes someone came to the table and took an order, and someone put the food on a plate, but it doesn't take much to run a microwave.

Hal

the " la tartine" i'm thinking of is @ 24, r rivoli 4e. supposedly one of the better wine bars in paris(?) as per many.

[sumac]

Regarding Beaune, we have eaten at Ma Cuisine 3 times. The first time we ordered the prix fixe and were also disappointed. Some wine makers told us they do that for the tourists and we should order the Burgundy specialties (such as Jambon Persille) off the menu. The next two times we ate there we ordered off the menu and it was wonderful. Les TonTon was also a favorite of ours and also as empty as when you went. We have eaten there twice and are always pleasantly surprised. Consider yourself lucky that Le Jardin des Remparts was closed. You dodged a bullet. We also enjoyed La Ciboulette for traditional Burgundian fare.