BON, Paris

[cabrales]

I had dinner at BON 2, a newly opened sibling of BON that presumably offers the same menu, a design by P Starck (albeit different designs reportedly than that at the original BON) and the benefit of consultant Jean-Marie Amat.  See the "The Power of Michelin" Thread in this forum for background on Amat's recent significant misfortunes.

Alas, the food offered at BON 2 is not at all gastronomic, and does not offer (from my examination of the menu) glimpses of Amat's former self at the St James in Bouliac.  The meal was not poor; in particular, the raw shellfish plate contained fresh items that were appropriate. However, BON 2 cannot be viewed as a serious gastronomic endeavor. It seeks to be a hip place, for those who care more about decor and the look of the dining room staff members than the cuisine. The following were taken in:

(1)  Le Provencal Champagne Cocktail (Lavender, Vodka infused with lavender, cane sugar, liquer of violet, champagne) (14 euros) -- Appealing, although I do not ordinarily drink vodka. The lavender was not dominant in this blush-colored, fragrant drink. A review of the drinks menu suggested BON might offer a nice selection of drinks, albeit at somewhat expensive prices.

(2) L'Assiette de BON (22/person) (Should have consisted of 2 Fines de Claire No 2, 1 Perle Blanche No 2, 2 "Mini-Noisette" from Cap Ferrat, 2 Pink Shrimp aka Crevettes Roses, 1 Clams in French -- different from same term in English, 2 Spanish mussels aka Moules d'Espagne, 6 Bulots in French; the restaurant gifted me 2 large langoustines, 6 additional bulots, extra numbers of almost every other item and 1 Bigorneaux which I thoroughly enjoyed -- in effect, I received the 44 euro Le Plateau BON, but without the 1/2 Torteau crab).  Served with glass of Vin Pays d'Oc, Terret Michel Laroche, a wine particularly well-matched with oysters and shellfish per the restaurant (it was alright).

The seafood was presented on a large platter, with appropriate mayonnaise and with mignonette for the oysters and certain other items. Everything on the platter was fresh, and appropriate-tasting. This is not a poor place for taking in a seafood platter, although places offering similar items at lower prices may be commonplace in Paris (?).

The Spanish mussels had a beautiful reddish interior that I had not before seen in mussels. The Bigourneaux was also good. Certain oysters were of varieties not found everywhere in Paris (e.g., the Mini-Noisettes). Belons were available on the menu, although not included in the various platters. Perhaps the flesh of the langoustines could have been a bit firmer, but that is likely a pet peeve and the langoustines were clearly fresh. Even the shrimp did not suffer from the usual problems one might have when they are included in seafood platters.

(3) Poire de Boeuf Grille (Grilled beef) (26 euros), taken with a glass of Bordeaux, Cru Monplaisir (7 euros; not appealing). This item was poor. The beef did not taste like Charolais, as the restaurant indicated when the question was posed. The meat was tough, even though I had ordered it rare, and the basic flavors somehow seemed poor. The accompanying "Grosses Frites" (large sized fries) were fair.  It is sad to see Amat-supervised food fall to such levels of mediocrity.

(4) Baba au Rhum (9). This was nicely executed; the menu suggested almost all desserts were by Laduree. There was a syrup enveloping the cake-like part of the baba au rhum that made it glide into one's mouth attractively.

Overall, a very disappointing meal. Amat is almost, but not quite, stooping as low as Marco Pierre White's supervision of Planet Hollywoods in the UK.  

Background

BON 2 is located at 2 Rue du Quatre Septembre in the 2 arrrondisement. Tel: 01 44 55 51 55.  It is an easy 5 minutes' walk from the Opera building. The Figaroscope reported that a third BON is planned, to be located in or around the Samaritane department store overlooking the Seine.

The decor at BON 2 is reportedly very different from that at BON, although provided by P Starck still. At BON 2, there is a raw bar area with 6-8 stools. A rhino head adorns the background of the bar. Then, various tables of dark wood with clay colored leather for dark wood chairs. Light pistachio (more muted and with hints of grey) velvet curtains, including around several tables that could theoretically have been closed off for privacy and that had chandeliers. The main dining room had a number of rectangular mirrors with diamond-shaped patterns. A large electronic "ticker" scrolling area runs across a part of the upper area of one side of the restaurant. Included in the ticker are various international stock indices, and certain individual companies' stock price and names. Also appearing on this electronic scrolling area were quotes in French relating to the meaning or lack thereof of life (e.g., translated, "life is the first stage of death", "life has no meaning, but nothing can be more important than a life").  Not that I have seen that many Starck designs, but this is clearly not among the stronger designs.

The service was decent. My server seemed to genuinely care about the cuisine, although I have no information on the attitude of other servers. There is a small shop offering P Starck and related designers' products (including P Starck Alessi creations).

Here are significant excerpts from the menu, roughly translated and excluding shellfish platter-related items:

Soups

-- Poultry bouillon

-- Cauliflower veloute, with hard-boiled egg and raw cabbage

-- Daily fish soup

Appetizers

-- White anchovies with piquillo pimentos

-- Confit aubergine with tuna compote

-- Tuna, peanut and coffee sauce

-- Spring vegetables

-- White asparagus with lukewarm vinaigrette

-- Green asparagus with parmesan

-- Plate of black jambon from Bigorre

-- Filet of red mullet raw, with olives

-- Salmon tartare with oysters, salad of haricot vert beans

-- Crab salad with avocado

-- Terrine of duck foie gras, vinaigrette of leeks

-- 30 gr of Oscetra caviar, grilled toast, cream with lemon, onions

Fish

-- Grilled fish of the day

-- Bass with clam-like items

-- Brochet of grilled eel, salad of raw heart of artichoke

-- Roasted sea bream with fennel and olive oil

-- Mackerel grilled and caramelised

Meat

-- Roast chicken with its jus and large-sized fries

-- Oven-prepared duck, caramelised

-- Rack of lamb (this would have offered a greater indication of how different BON's cuisine is from that at St James°

-- Pan-fried foie gras, white asaragus

Various Laduree desserts

[Bux]

The seafood platter sounded good enough and with the gifted upgrade, a bargain to boot. The menus, particularly the list of appetizers sound alright as well. "Salmon tartare with oysters, salad of haricot vert beans" reminded me of some dishes we had eaten at the Haut St. James in Bouliac. I recall a couple of "tatares" and at least one of them was a mixture of oysters and a fish with perhaps some vegetable or salad base. Although the memory is a bit fuzzy, I recall the oyster and loving it when I tasted the tartare.

[PaulaJ]

Thanks for the update. I think I'll skip it for

a while. Amat didn't lose his star, merely failed to

gain the pivotal second, so he must have his

talents intact even if currently frustrated. Perhaps

with time he will exert more influence on Bon's

menu.

[Bux]

If memory serves, Amat had two stars at Bouliac at one time. He lost one and never gained it back.

[cabrales]

As another member might have reported, Pudlowski provided a very favorable review of BON (not BON 2) in French Saveurs (June 2002). Here is a rough translation:

"The Sory of a Resurrection

This beautiful restaurant used to have mediocre cuisine in the recent past. It is gained real honor due to the talent of Jean-Marie Amat. A devine metamorphosis!

The decor by Philippe Stark is always amusing, cosy, superb, though "noisy". The service has gained in professionalism. As for the cuisine, from now on it has proven itself, like a divine surprise. The worker of the miracle is Jean-Marie Amat, its "advisor".

It is enough to understand that mediocrity does not fit well with gastronomy and the beautiful [in terms of food] was not necessarily synonymous with the good. Jean-Marie Amat has come up with a menu that is amusing, malignant [in a good sense] and light and that plays on marvellous spices, the fusion of flavors, fashion and a sense of the times Add to that impeccable food products, an unparallelled technique and South-West accents, and one undertsands the seduction of this new-styled enchanter.

The salmon tartare with a crunchy salad of haricot beans, tuna with a sauce of peanuts and coffee, aubergine ravioli with mozarella, cauliflower cream, but also sea bream and the roasted chicken with garlic and large fries, are simply superb.

The sole vestige of the old ideas [at BON] is the desserts from Ladure . . . .

This is what one sees as a resurrection. And because happiness rarely arrives solo, the same team has opened a second restaurant close to the Place de la Bourse."

Do members have input on the cuisine at BON or BON 2?