Caché: A hidden gem worth the detour

Emily Buchanan November 22, 2022

Hidden away from everyday Paris, the restaurant Caché can only be found by a strange and surprising walk through the Villa Riberolle in the 20th. Not far from the Père Lachaise cemetery and the tombs of Edith Piaf and Gertrude Stein, this sure is a place for Paris history. The “villa” – a block-long, mysterious alley – is part ruin part lively center of ateliers and restaurants. According to our waiter, the large, welcoming, brick-walled space with looming skylights was once a newspaper printing factory but I have not been able to officially confirm this.

At any rate, this all-fish restaurant, with French chef Sylvain Roucayrol at the helm, is certainly worth the detour. Somewhat like a visit to Brooklyn in Paris, the entire experience feels like an adventure. Expect a warm welcome, a menu varied enough to please every fish lover, service as attentive as can be, with a sommelier who honestly takes a personal interest in your tastes.

Start with the fatty, full-flavored toro tuna annointed with citrusy ponzu, crunchy kombu and a touch of caviar (photo). We also loved the scallop roasted in its shell and seasoned with zesty bergamot and the Korean chili gochugaru.

When you go, reserve a table of at least four, so you can share the selection of whole-roasted fish. We chose the North Atlantic turbot, cooked to perfection and served on a giant white platter, perfectly fresh and boned, ready to devour.

The surprise of the evening was a fabulous tempura of the seldom-seen Italian puntarella, a chicory topped with a mild and refreshing anchovy sauce. Desserts are classic and delicious: a warm chocolate mousse served with a fève de tonka (tonka bean) ice cream, and a giant lemon meringue pie with a sidebar of lemon sorbet.

I could go on and on about the wines: we had sips of seven different selections, all perfectly paired with the food, ranging from a character-filled Riberach from the Catalan region, to an Australian white to a Clos Béru Chablis.

Parcelles: an ideal bistro in the 3rd

Emily Buchanan November 21, 2022

If I were ever to open a bistro in Paris, it would look a lot like Parcelles: settled on a picturesque little street near the Centre Georges Pompidou in the 3rd arrondissement, with an ambiance that warms your heart as you enter; white curtains on the windows that look onto the street; a giant copper bar; Art Deco tables; white linens; cozy banquettes; and patchwork tiled floors the same as we had in our first apartment in Paris.

This 1936 bistro is part of a selection of contemporary Paris restaurants run by young and adventurous chefs and owners, mostly dedicated to local seasonal ingredients, wisely chosen wines, and no attitude other than that to please each diner. Restaurateur-owner Sarah Michielsen signed to purchase the former Taxi Jaune bistro just 15 days before confinement in 2020. Still, along with chef Julien Chevallier and sommelier Bastien Fidelin, they managed to create something quite special.

Like many modern Paris bistros the cuisine is a comfortable blend of classic and modern French, with a select menu where all sorts of diners manage to find what they want. A quartet of super-fresh scallops arrive set on their shells, seared in a full-flavored garlic and parsley blend, garnished with a nice hit of guanciale, the Italian dried and smoked pork from the jowl and cheeks.

A serving of cabbage stuffed with ground pork from the Cochon de Clavisy in Burgundy, as well as foie gras, took me back to my early days as a child in Milwaukee, where stuffed cabbage was on the menu frequently, and one of my mother’s finely executed specials. (But, no, we did not have foie gras!). At Parcelles, the portion was excellent and the seasoning just right. I loved the monkfish in a broth made with barbe de St Jacques (the ribbon of fat that surrounds the scallop), paired with a welcome selection of carrots, cabbage, and turnips, all of which had good intense flavors of their own. In the dessert world, the classic tarte au chocolate topped with a great crunch of caramelized pecans, hit with a great deal of pleasure.

I was less enthralled by the rather timid daurade (sea bream) carpaccio, served with cubes of radish and seasoned with a sauce tosazu (a mixture of vinegar, soy sauce, sweet cooking wine and dried bonito sauce) that did little to perk things up. Likewise, the potato tart stuffed with Swiss chard, mushrooms, was a disappointment, with a crust that was just too thick to manage and an interior that lacked seasoning and character.

But the wine list! As soon as I spied Hubert Lamy’s white St. Aubin 1er Cru Derrière chez Edouard on the list I waved to the excellent and outgoing sommelier and ordered a bottle. This longtime favorite Burgundy – aromatic, rich, and full of character – comes from a family that has worked the vineyards since 1640. Here, priced at 108€ a bottle for the 2014 vintage, this is a bargain. With an exceptional and well-priced wine list, the restaurant is aptly named: A parcelle is a small plot of land with distinctive geographical and geological characteristics that impact the quality and character of the grapes cultivated on it.

Back better than ever: Maison by Sota Atsumi

Emily Buchanan October 25, 2022

Chef Joel Robuchon once said to me “Perfection does not exist. But that should not stop us from trying to achieve it every day.” Paris-based chef Sota Atsumi, who trained with Robuchon, clearly follows that advice.

I first met this extraordinarily talented Japanese chef in 2016 at Paris’s Clown Bar in the 11th. He left to open his own restaurant, Maison by Sota Atsumi, in September 2019. Not much later, Covid struck, followed by structural building problems that forced closure until June of this year. Yet despite all these hurdles, Atsumi returns better than ever and my first meal back did not disappoint.

The loft-like open-kitchen situated on the mezzanine floor of this unusual 11th arrondissement restaurant (that is an actual house), includes a wood-burning oven and wood-fired grill. The walls and floors are decorated with classic French red tomette tiles and diners have a choice of being seated at a long 8-metre table, separate tables, or a seat at the bar, facing those warming ovens. The welcome is always warm and totally unpretentious, not something you can say of so many Paris restaurants today.

And I can’t say enough good things about his menu, his cooking, his staff. Atsumi’s food is not in any way fusion. Rather it is just delicious fare made with carefully chosen seasonal ingredients, prepared without ostentation and pure respect for each product.

While I am not always 100% in favor of a no-choice menu, my experience is that Atsumi and I are pretty much on the same page and I am happy to be put in his hands. A totally satisfying October lunch included silken scallops poached in butter and nestled in a brightly flavored sorrel and nettle sauce; thick al dente homemade ravioli stuffed with 7-day marinated eel, served with an egg yolk sauce and topped with slices of cèpe mushroom; the fish course of John Dory arrived with a celery root and white truffle emulsion; and my favorite of the meal, a rich, meaty pigeon roasted in the wood oven and teamed with a totally harmonious pistachio sauce, Swiss chard, radicchio and a pickled blackberry. This was one of best cooked pigeons I have ever tasted. Bravo! Dessert included a miniature tart tatin with a crunchy cookie base, paired with an olive oil ice cream, a basil sauce and whipped cream.

When you go, take advantage of the wine pairing menu, which will open the eyes of even the most educated wine lovers. The outgoing sommelier, Takebayashi Takashi, (who speaks at least 4 languages!) knows and loves his wines and adores sharing his knowledge. Choices might range from a Burgundy Aligoté, to a Piedmont Nebbiolo, to a Sicilian Marsala. Italian wines feature heavily due to Takashi’s 6-year stint in Piedmont.

Maison by Sota Atsumi | 3 rue Saint-Hubert, Paris 11 | Métro: rue Saint-Maur | Tel : +33 1 43 38 61 95 | Open Wednesday dinner, lunch and dinner Thursday through Saturday, and Sunday lunch | Thursday through Saturday 65€ 4-course lunch menu (plus 45€ wine pairing), dinner 160€ 7-course menu, Sunday lunch 100€ | Reservations essential.

Vive la Vive!

Emily Buchanan October 21, 2022

Food and shellfish lovers will be happy to note chef Stephanie Le Quellec and her husband, David, have transformed the former Brasserie Rech into Vive, an ultra-modern, bright, sometimes funky restaurant on avenue des Ternes in the 17th arrondissement. She already has the Michelin two-star restaurant, La Scène in the 8th, and the épicerie MAM, in the 17th.

I have rarely seen a seafood menu that excited me more, both in terms of the amazing variety, detail, and originality of the dishes. Almost everything I ate had me wanting to head straight to my kitchen to try to recreate it. A favorite, for sure is their ultra-fresh raw red tuna, thickly sliced and super-tasty, topped with a bright and brilliant pesto of coriander and mint. A little salad side of tender spinach leaves topped with a vinaigrette of ponzu (a Japanese sauce of soy, citrus, and vinegar) and showered with paper-thin slices of bonite (dried and smoked tuna) was a brilliant and perfectly executed idea. A dish of freshly cooked crab topped with a cream made from the crab coral again had made me wanting to return to my kitchen.

One dish just did not deliver what I had imagined, though it had some reason for applause. A trio of langoustines cooked in a court-bouillon not only seemed skimpy but also a tad under-cooked. But the homemade mayonnaise with lime zest that accompanied it helped to redeem it.

The wine list offers a great variety of wines, including a favorite white, the Austrian Gruner Veltliner.

The two-floor totally updated, mostly white-walled restaurant is bright and airy, offset with mustard velvet chairs and banquettes and a carpeted floor in vibrant autumn colors. The décor with its gorgeous fish plates that decorate the walls and a splash of kitsch is at once amazingly beautiful and at times a bit much. The staff however were consistently attentive, warm and friendly and I will be sure to return, again and again. Vive la Vive!

Brigat' – an instant classic

Emily Buchanan April 4, 2022

There’s something energizing about discovering a new food destination that is completely unique, authentic and utterly delicious. This is just how I feel about Brigat’ – the new kid on the Place des Vosges block. Opened by Italian brothers Lucio and Thomas Colombo in December 2021, their beautifully created selection of refined pastries and rustic breads already feel like classics that you can’t do without. Lucio’s background working Kuwait, London and Barcelona is evident in his choice of ingredients – his cakes are studded with Iranian pistachios and his pastries sublimely perfumed with hibiscus and kaffir lime. At first glance his tarts might seem like classic, well-made French pastries, but cut them open and you will discover a surprising complexity in their construction. His lemon tart, made with lemons from Sorrento, is an exquisite layering of candied lemons and lemon curd, cut with a soothing cream center and encased in a darkly toasted short crust pastry.

Thomas is the baker of the family, offering a beautiful selection of natural sourdough breads, one more delicious than the other. Try the dark meule cereal, encrusted with seeds and spiked with their secret ingredient – a dark, almost licorice malt imported from Italy. His polenta sourdough loaf is lacquered with a heady mixture of butter, thyme, sage and polenta, ingredients which are also mixed into the dough before baking. Do not leave without trying their magnificently tall and moist panettone, the traditional sweet yeasted bread flecked with candied lemon, orange and mandarin.

The location has a few small tables and a window bar, so you can enjoy your pastries sur place with a coffee or hot chocolate (made with chocolate from chocolatier Nicolas Berger no less).

Brigat’ | 6 rue du Pas de la Mule, Paris 3 | Te: 01 57 40 83 85 | Open Tuesday – Friday 7.30 am–8pm, Saturday & Sunday 8am-8pm. Closed Monday.

Mercerie Mullot: An Ideal Little Paris Restaurant

Emily Buchanan February 25, 2020

There is no one single way to describe the ideal little Paris restaurant. But should I try to describe my ideal restaurant I would begin by saying it would be run by dedicated, experienced owners with a serious respect for fresh ingredients, a fine sense of wine, matched with extraordinary generosity and a shared spirit of joy. And this is exactly how I would characterize the always-cheery Pascal Barrière and his companion Céline La Corre who run the pint-sized, cozy, 22-seat Mercerie Mullot bistrot, hidden away in the charming Notre Dame de Champs neighborhood in the 6th arrondissement.

I first encountered Pascal years ago at the tiny the 14th arrondissement restaurant Jeu de Quilles. Today, at this happily miniscule, white-tablecloth bistro on rue Bréa, you feel as though you are invited to a well-orchestrated dinner party. Pascal is there in the open kitchen all alone, a culinary musician, joyfully concocting original creations all of his own, mostly super-fresh fish and shellfish, woven into tiny bites and presented on elegant pottery. Try the tasty slices of torched mackerel with a crab tartar. Or the amazing duo of lobster and langoustines bathed in a coulis of carabineros, the outrageously delicious red shrimp from Portugal. Everything here is always pure, fresh, simple. Perhaps best of all is when Céline arrives with a tiny plate of irresistible, savory gambas de Palamós, from the Costa Brava in Spain. The little red crustaceans are a treasure, full-flavored, with just the right amount of crunch, and here served with an ingenious tarama of sea urchin. There’s also perfectly cooked octopus accompanied by a favorite pasta, the tiny Sardinian fregola: as well as a Normandy oyster ceviche paired with crunchy bursts of cédrat, the giant, golden citrus.

And what could be bad about finishing off a meal with an irresistible blend of meringue, chocolate, and pistachios?

My only disappointment here was a ravioli of beef cheeks, surrounded by a very ordinary pasta. But all is forgiven!

There is no à la carte menu at Mercerie Mullot, just a chance to sample 4 to 6 of Pascal’s creations of the moment as a fixed menu. The wine list is excellent, with some fine offerings from the Loire, Burgundy, and the Rhône, including Fanny Sabre’s welcoming 2018 Meursault.

Silken satisfying dumplings at Café Lai'Tcha

Emily Buchanan November 28, 2019

The newest addition to the Yam’Tcha family is Café Lai’tcha. Number three in a trio of gastronomic destinations created by Michelin-starred chef Adeline Grattard and her tea-master husband Chi Wah Chan. Their principal address Yam’tcha has long been a favorite of mine since its early days of opening in 2009 and remains so after it’s refurbishment a few years ago. So I was curious to see what this new casual dining spot might offer, tucked away in a small side street of the Les Halles neighborhood.

The décor is simple yet elegant, a mixture of exposed brick, stone and wood, with beautifully chosen Chinese details in the vases and wall hangings. The atmosphere is relaxed as customers sit on low stools around wooden tables and the staff work industrially behind the long bar preparing the hand-made wontons.

The café has recently developed a simple lunch menu of two starter options and, as a main, homemade wontons – silken wheat dumplings with a fresh shrimp filling, either in a slighty peppery Sichuan sauce or swimming in a rich, warming broth. Beware, the dumplings are on the large size and tricky to eat elegantly in one bite. We loved the vegetable and peanut crispy spring rolls and dipping sauce, but the salade chinoise of tofu, shiitake and 5 spices dressing, although good, lacked the vibrant flavors of the other dishes.

In the evening and on weekends they have a more expanded menu of Chinese-inspired bistrot dishes, which we have yet to try but promises the opportunity to discover Grattard’s unique cooking style in a more casual, affordable setting. Watch this space.

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Good fun and good food at Coya

Emily Buchanan October 9, 2019

I confess that as I watched the construction of Coya – the huge Peruvian restaurant off Rue du Bac in the 7th arrondissement – I doubted that it would be my kind of place. The posters on the walls announced that Coya already had outposts in Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Monaco and London. I assumed it was going to be a late-night, beautiful-people scene with little of interest on the menu. Well, I was wrong, at least as far as the food and service are concerned.

Peruvian cuisine is a blending of Latin American flavors with influences from the local Japanese, Chinese, and Spanish immigrant populations, all of which play out on the Coya menu. The Indian-born chef, Sanjay Dwivedi (who reportedly has cooked for the Rolling Stones and Paul McCartney) navigates this immense territory well but not without some bumps in the road.

The 130-seat restaurant, located on two levels, is located in a former 17th century church and convent built for the Récollettes nuns, where the windows make for a warmly dramatic space. The word coya translates as princess in the Inca language.

Service here is impeccable. On just my second visit the hostess at the door recognized me from the week before and each subsequent waitperson was warm, helpful and friendly.

The menu is fairly broad in scope with vegetarian and gluten-free notations for each dish, offering something for everyone. We sampled several dishes that ranged from superbly delicious to simply banal.

The food I enjoyed the most included a fried baby squid served with Peruvian marigolds and quinoa (calamare con ocopa), prepared as I love them, golden and crispy. The 35-euro giant tiger shrimp (langostino tigre) is worth the price, moist, full-flavored and bathed in a spicy sauce. I could endlessly order the seabass (lubina clásica) paired with crunchy corn and sweet potatoes. As a corn-on-the-cob lover, I was delighted with their presentation of maiz a la brasa (sweet corn, lime, and red pepper) where the cob was divided in thirds, seasoned and grilled, and pierced with an oversized toothpick for eating with your fingers. Delicious!

Equally fun is the fluffy pina colada sundae, more like a whipped coconut cream paired with fresh, fragrant diced pineapple.

On the minus side, I don’t know how you can ruin a simple guacamole, but I was disappointed with their insipid, under-seasoned version, served with equally bland crispy crackers. The artichoke ceviche (alcahohofa) was totally uninteresting, as was a Peruvian sashimi (pez limon) – thin slices of amberjack, green peppers and daikon (white radish).

The international wine list allows diners to travel the world of wine. I loved the Chilean sauvignon blanc Viu Manenet; the Argentine Malbec classic Altos les Homigas, Vale de Ucon, and the always pleasing white Austrian Gruner Veltliner from Kamptaler Terrassen.

Coya also sports a Pisco Bar and Lounge, where ceviche is also served, open from 6 pm to 12:30 am Tuesday and Wednesday, and 6 pm to 1:30 am Thursday through Saturday. So while it is pretty much is a late-night, beautiful-people place, at times it is a pleasure to dine well among them.

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Solstice: Complex creations from Eric Trochon

Emily Buchanan September 5, 2019

Chef Eric Trochon’s track record is clear. After attaining the coveted Meilleur Ouvrier de France title in 2011, he went on to guide the now always-fully-booked Semilla and Freddy’s to their fame and success, alongside being a professor at the prestigious, professional Parisian cooking school, Ecole Ferrandi. Now, at last, he is showing the world his talents – and there are many – at his very own Solstice, a bright, refreshing 25-seat restaurant in the 5th arrondissement.

Along with his Korean wife and sommelière Mi-Jin Ryu, Trochon has created a very special, warming, sunlit space with white tablecloths, all-white china, sparkling silver and walls covered with rare, hand-made white paper from Korea. All this serves as a clean-slate backdrop for his very personal, modern cuisine. From a starting hors-d’oeuvre of the faintly smoked (over myrtle wood) Sardinian goat’s milk cheese, Pecorino Fioré to the final white peach dessert flanked by a peach and basil sorbet and a umeshu (Japanese green plum wine) granité, Trochon has the palate marching along, applauding all the way.

A late summer first course – a nage of the famed fresh white shell beans, cocos de Paimpol – is like so many of his deeply satisfying presentations. Paired with fennel, cucumber pickles, and a lemon geranium granité the dish makes you sit up, take notice, and say “How did he ever come up with such a lovely marriage.”

Throughout, his food is complex, but does not intimidate or confuse as some modern dishes can. Flavors are clear and concise, and seasonings are incredibly precise. Like many contemporary chefs, he dares you to address new, unfamiliar tastes and introduces you to unexpected combinations. I generally only like fruit in desserts (not in salads or main courses) but his lightly cured daurade (sea bream) paired with gari (vinegared sushi ginger), beets, and multi-colored pickled fresh currants, convinced me otherwise.

The wine list offers some treats. When I am old and rich I will serve Hubert Lamy’s aromatic, citrus-bright Saint-Aubin as my house white.

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Le Jules Verne: A New Beginning

Emily Buchanan August 11, 2019

A new Eiffel Tower restaurant, a new Jules Verne, a new beginning. After months of closure, and an up and down epoch with chef Alain Ducasse, chef Frédéric Anton is now at the reins, with an abundance of confidence and energy.

The restaurant's redesign has dispensed with the dark, heavy, overburdened décor, replacing it with a refreshing and welcoming white, modern palette, embedded with careful details and reflections that allude to the landmark’s powerful metal structure and design history. Refined and yet relaxed, the bare wooden tables are adorned with soothingly simple white linen napkins and all white porcelain.

Anton has demonstrated his talent and success as the current chef at the Michelin three-star Le Pre Catelan, earning him a respected position in the very top tier of chefs in France and elsewhere. Now the challenge is to be as good as he can be at Le Jules Verne and it’s clear he’s working hard at it.

Several meals at Le Jules Verne suggest he will succeed here too. Supported by a talented staff of chefs, waiters, and sommeliers trained at Le Pré Catelan and other renowned kitchens and dining rooms, Anton offers a seasonal menu that has all of his culinary trademarks: Gorgeous food, well-considered and full-flavored, that hits with a punch. He wisely keeps the menu crisp and modern, with no true à la carte menu, only fixed menus with a few variable options at lunchtime. Service is beyond exceptional, and the wine staff keeps your whims and glass filled whenever you desire. The dinner menu could not be more varied, including crab and cabbage, my dear langoustines, cod, farm-raised chicken, raspberries and chocolate. Servings are respectably and thankfully restrained. I most loved Anton’s langoustine ravioli, lush and intense, rewarding, bathed in a Parmesan cream and, yes, truffle jelly.

Lunch is just as festive, and daylight offers an even better opportunity to appreciate Anton’s eye-appealing creations, boosted by the all-white collection of porcelain tableware that creates a crisp canvas for his bright, seasonal dishes. I have decided to dedicate the next year to doing the best I can to recreate his alabastar offering of barely salted codfish set in a bed of fennel-infused shellfish broth, topped with a halo of crispy shredded fennel bulb, generously seasoned with herbs. With every mouthful he convinces me that when food is both breathtakingly beautiful and satisfying delicious, 50 plus 50 equals much more than 100!

Take for example his vibrant seabass carpaccio, sliced paper thin and brightly flavored with Madagascar vanilla, pink grapefruit, and Espelette pepper, offering a trio of flavor-packed ingredients to accompany the elegant fish. Roast duck is cooked oh so rare, sliced paper thin, and married with girolles mushrooms and capers, with an added necessary crunch of tiny, crispy pommes soufflées.

Getting to Le Jules Verne and the modern-day Eiffel Tower -- overloaded with an abundance of safety barriers and tourists -- is now a feat of its own. The restaurant has done its best to help diners arrive with ease. Jules Verne valets lead you from the taxi or parking area through the checkpoint and up to the tower’s southern pillar. After the meal, guides help you to a taxi stand and hail a car for you.

Le Jules Verne | Second floor of the Tour Eiffel | Avenue Gustave Eiffel | Paris 7 (enter near the south pillar Avenue Gréard and Avenue Charles Floquet | +33 1 45 55 61 44 | Métro: Bir-Hakeim | Open daily | Lunch menus: €105 3-course à la carte menu (choice between 2 dishes for entrée, main and dessert), Monday to Friday only, €190 5-course tasting menu, €230 7-course tasting menu | Dinner menu: €230 7-course tasting menu | Reservations essential | Dresscode: T-shirts, shorts, or other sports clothing not accepted | NB Vegetarian and vegan diners welcome.

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Bright authentic flavors at Les Cuistots Migrateurs

Emily Buchanan June 21, 2019

Expect a world tour full of bright authentic flavors when you arrive at Les Cuistots Migrateurs, the socially-conscious restaurant of the Hasard Ludique cultural centre in the 18th arrondissement. Based on the concept that food is the great connector, Les Cuistots Migrateurs (slang for the migrants chefs) aims to change the way people view Paris’s migrant population through introducing them to their homeland cuisines. The restaurant offers a buffet selection of dishes at lunchtime and mezze-style small plates in the evening, all prepared by chefs whose origins span the globe from Syria and Iran to Ethiopia, Nepal, Bangladesh, Afghanistan, Senegal, and Chechnya.

The menus change daily, offering fresh, redolent salads and accompaniments, bursting with color and aromatic spices, such as Aloo Dum a warming potato dish from Nepal, a classic Syrian hummus with chickpeas, tahini and yogurt, and a refreshing Afghani salad of tomatoes, cucumbers red onion, and fresh parsley. They offer a meat and a vegetarian option as the plat de jour, and the day we dined we enjoyed a warming yellow split pea curry served with swiss chard and red peppers and a side of springy, nutty wholegrain rice. Desserts were generous and very rich, so much so that we regretfully could not finish them.

The building itself has a charming history, starting out life as the Gare Saint-Ouen train station over 130 years ago servicing the trains of the petit ceinture, the small rail line that used to run around the outer edge of Paris. Since the train line was decommissioned in the mid 1930s, the space was reimagined into a cinema, and then a homeware bazaar until it was bought back by the City of Paris in 2010 and made available to tender as a cultural project. The façade has been renovated to return it to its former glory as a train station, and in the rear, benefits from a vast terrace of over 100 seats that gives onto the old train tracks, making this an enviable outdoor space in the summer months that is open for drinks non-stop midday to 10pm Tuesday to Sunday.

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Le Mermoz: a game-changer near the Champs-Elysées

Emily Buchanan March 18, 2019

Watercress soup

chickpeas, yogurt, raz-el-hanout

Grilled mackerel

leeks, fava beans, meyer lemon

Cod

baby spinach, toasted sesame, langoustine foam

Grilled mushrooms

confit egg yolk, wild garlic pesto

Café cremeux

confit kumquats, hazelnuts

From the street, Le Mermoz looks like just another neighborhood café. But once you see what’s on the menu and on the plate, you’ll feel differently. Chef Manon Fleury – straight from the kitchens of Astrance and Semilla – offers diners a bright, contemporary, vegetable-loving menu that truly hits the spot. At lunch, three starters, three main courses, cheese and two desserts are offered. At night, beginning at 6:30 pm, the 1930s-era café – with a large bar, bare wooden tables, and patchwork tile floors – offers a series of small plates.

I totally loved her watercress soup, dotted with chickpeas, and served with a touch of yogurt and the popular North African spice raz-el-hanout, then topped with a generous bouquet of fresh, pungent watercress and cilantro. The grilled line-caught mackerel was equally appealing and well-thought-out, served with crunchy fresh fava beans, leeks, and a flourish of fresh herbs.

Alabaster-white codfish from Loctudy in Brittany arrived on a bed of perfectly wilted fresh spinach, a frothy langoustine sauce, and a delicate dusting of toasted sesame seeds, a unifying dish with just the right touch of acid and crunch. The only disappointment here was a promising dish of fresh cultivated champignons de Paris and feathery pleurote mushrooms, paired with a golden, runny egg yolk and a pesto of the ramp-like ail des ours (wild garlic). Brilliant in concept, but sadly the mushrooms were just too vinegary even for my acid-loving palette, as if someone had in fact made a mistake in the kitchen.

The only dessert that was still available by the end of our meal was an excellent creation of a confit of kumquats paired with crunchy hazelnuts and a café-scented pudding bathed in a sweet syrup.

The wine list holds some very well-priced treasures, including sulphite-free wines from young winemaker Laura David, whose dry chenin blanc from her Montlouis-sur-Loire vineyards, will make you sit up and take notice, and enjoy.

Le Mermoz is a good value all around with starters at about 10€, mains at around 23€, and wines at 7€ a glass. The restaurant is just steps from the Rond-Point des Champs-Elysées, a neighborhood bereft of good casual spots for eating.

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Etsi: like a big Greek family event

Emily Buchanan March 15, 2019

Dining at the lively, casual Etsi – meaning “this way” or “comme ça” in Greek – makes you feel as though you are attending a big Greek family event. The owner enthusiastically announces the menu to assembled diners, explaining each item on the dining room’s blackboard. Diners respond loudly, drinks and wine are poured happily, and the small plates turned out of the tiny kitchen by chef Mikaela Liaroutsos just keep coming and coming. The 35€ evening menu is a veritable bargain, and, depending on the day, may include their homemade tarama; tiny, crispy spinach-filled spanakopitakia puff pastry pies; giant kolokithokeftedes, or fried zucchini balls served with tzatziki: and grilled octopus on a bed of fava beans and capers. The chef could have been bolder with her seasoning, but we had a wonderful time nonetheless. I was not expecting to fall in love with their desserts, but we literally devoured their giant, bright-flavored lemon tart, as well as the fudgy chocolate creation, adorned with a mix of berries. The wine list offers some Greek treasures, including the fresh, smooth and tannic red, Xinomavro Nature from Domaine Thymiopolous. And for those who prefer something a bit stronger, do try the Athens 42, a peppy, delicious marriage of the pine-like liqueur masticha, gin, and green Chartreuse, topped with vibrant, freshly zested lime.

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5 Pailles: "Life is too short for bad coffee"

Emily Buchanan March 7, 2019

Perhaps it’s the journalist in me, but I always love a good origin story. And 5 Pailles has just that. Pailles, meaning straws (as in the drinking variety) is a nod to a scene in the cult French film Le Péril Jeune, where 5 friends who are lingering in a café and are pressed to order something else in order to keep their table, so they ask for one coffee with 5 straws. The link to this Parisian café: the owners are 5 friends who quit their corporate jobs to start a café with the motto “life is too short for bad coffee”.

The coffee here is indeed very good. About half their beans are sourced from Lomi specialty roasters in the 18th arrondissement, who deliver them, on request, a light and fruity roast. The other half are beans selected from favorite roasters globally, adding variety.

The relaxed and welcoming café feels like a refuge from the bustling and heady commotion of the Faubourg Saint-Denis neighborhood. Make your way past the coffee bar and the café opens out into a spacious oasis of mid-century-style furniture and jungle-inspired wallpaper.

We were tempted by several items on their simple but varied menu but eventually settled on a smoked salmon, ricotta and pickled cucumber tartine, which was fresh, flavorful and generous enough to share between two.

The 5 Pailles team is also doing their bit for the environment, using recyclable and biodegradable packaging, minimizing food waste and working in partnership with charity Eau Vive Internationale, donating a portion of their coffee profits towards improving access to clean drinking water in Africa. We love what these guys are doing from beginning to end.

5 Pailles | 79 rue du Faubourg Saint-Denis | Paris 10 | Open daily, Monday – Friday 8am-6pm, Saturday and Sunday 10am-6pm.

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Restaurant Eels: Acidity, Crunch and Explosive flavors

Emily Buchanan February 27, 2019

Carrots and Grapefruit

orange blossom infused fromage blanc, tumeric bouillon

Smoked Eel

licorice root, apple, hazelnuts

Fresh Taglionini with clams

razor clams, camomile, cédrat and celery

Chou farci

slow cooked lamb wrapped in cabbage leaves

Winter citrus with blood oranges

crème fraiche, buckwheat, clementine sauce

It’s not often that I find myself dissecting a dish in a restaurant in hopes of discovering the secrets to its balance, charm and explosive flavors. But that is just what I spent a recent lunch at Restaurant Eels doing. Chef-owner Adrien Ferrand spent 2 years as head chef at William Ledeuil’s Kitchen Galerie Bis, so it is no surprise that he has honed his skills as a master of layering flavor, acidity and crunch, all punctuated with fragrant fresh herbs.

We began our meal with the restaurant’s signature dish of smoked eel, apple, licorice root and hazelnuts. Soothing soft pieces of smoked eel nestled into a sabayon-like foam, layered with bites and crunch from the tart apples and hazelnuts, showered in pretty pink oxalis petals, a well-deserving namesake dish that was both delicate yet bold all at the same time.

The starter of carrots, fromage blanc flavored with orange blossom, and grapefruit showed how Ferrand can take a few humble ingredients and infuse them with punch and character. The pungent turmeric bouillon was a clever device that elevated the dish above the ordinary. As with many of the dishes we sampled, what didn’t always seem obvious on paper turned out to be a harmonious combination of flavor and texture on the plate.

I can’t stop thinking about my fresh pasta main, the likes of which I have never had before. Springy, al dente fresh tagliolini was married up with a fireworks combination of sweet, tenderly cooked clams and razor clams, chamomile, delicately bitter confit of cedrat, (a large perfumed citrus fruit), and some kind of braised celery concoction. Here the sum was certainly greater than its parts, an astounding alliance of flavors that made for a surprising and altogether delightful and original take on a seafood pasta dish.

It would be hard to improve upon his “chou farci”, moist green cabbage leaves wrapped around tender shredded lamb seasoned with a magician’s touch. (It’s a dish my mother made regularly while growing up in the US Middle West in the 1950s. But sorry, mom, yours was never quite like this!) Like all of Ferrand’s dishes, a welcome bouquet of seasonal vegetables accompanied the stuffed cabbage, bright orange and yellow carrots, turnips and white radish, showered with a welcome garnish of refreshing, fresh cilantro.

The winter citrus dessert felt like a déjà vu, our carrot entrée reimagined into a sweet course, which gave the sense that the menu had not been considered in its entirety but rather as individual elements. The chocolate cream caramel to my mind was unsuccessful, with a rubbery marzipan-like chocolate topping swamped in what was described as banana marmalade but was more like an overly pungent, liquidy banana puree. A heavy and misguided end to an otherwise inspired meal.

The restaurant’s simple, refreshing, no-nonsense décor – bare wooden tables, comfortable woven chairs, attractive lighting, and golden exposed stone walls – reflect the place’s attitude: un-selfconscious, striving but not aggressive, pleasant service, and a clientele that clearly likes having a good time.

The wine list is brief, with a very golden, faintly sweet but appealing acidic white Cour Cheverny from the Loire Valley.

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Baieta: Sun-kissed cuisine from Julia Sedefdjian

Emily Buchanan February 22, 2019

Bouillabaieta

a modern take on a bouillabaisse fish soup

Pissaladière

a bread-based version of the Provençal onion, olive and anchovy tart

Confit of octopus

with sweet potato gnocchi

Daurade tartare

with lemongrass-infused cream

Chocolat / Praliné

chocolate ganache, praline cream, hazelnut ice cream

Clementines

yogurt sorbet, choux pastry

Julia Sedefdjian’s Mediterranean, sun-drenched cuisine is a welcome injection of warmth at any season of the year. Sedefdjian came to fame at the 7th arrondissement restaurant Les Fables de la Fontaine when she, at the age of 21, was the youngest woman chef in France with a Michelin star. This gutsy young woman continues to impress: She is now running her own restaurant, Baieta, and still in possession of a Michelin star - this one acquired in the latest round of awards in January 2019.

There is much to love about Sedefdjian’s style and creativity as both a chef and a restaurateur. As much attention has been paid to the small details of design and decor as to what’s on the plate, although the food is really what stands out here. Julia’s unique cooking style is both a calling card to her hometown of Nice (the restaurant's name means little kiss in the Nice dialect), celebrating all the flavors of her southern French origins. Guests are welcomed with a small sample of pissaladière, a well- known tart of onion confit, olives, and anchovies, here served on a square of pillowy-soft bread, in all its glory atop a mini wooden stool, a cute and original touch. The warm confit of octopus was bursting with sunshine flavor, marinating in the rich comforting flavors of Provence: olives, tomatoes and olive oil. The sweet potato gnocchi that accompanied it felt slightly like an imposter and lacked the finesse and natural sense of place of the other ingredients.

The daurade tartare was a bright refreshing entree, exquisitely fresh and tasting of the sea, bathed in a subtle lime dressing and accompanied by a lemongrass infused cream – a little too subtle to be the highlight of the dish though.

Her bouillabaieta, a personal interpretation of the classic southern bouillabaisse fish soup is a triumph. It’s a modern revisit yet clearly recognizable as a classic, original without being wacky or losing sight of the heart of the dish that made it famous. Big chunks of monkfish, cubes of potato, garlic-rich aioli are set in a golden pool of rich fish sauce and served with a vibrant red rouille – a chile pepper mayonnaise -- making you feel as though you could be nearer the Mediterranean than the Seine.

A thoughtful and original offering of moist, delicately smoked chicken breast arrived with a flavorful package of ground chicken wrapped in cabbage, a showering of delicate greens, and a welcome, bright-tasting “tartine” of toast was topped with a silken spread made of the chicken’s organ meats, a clever way to use all parts of the bird.

Throughout, careful thought is given to the dishware, with each plate and bowl set to match the dish at hand. Sometime all white and modern, sometimes hand-crafted pottery in earth tones, always seeming to flatter the offering.

Sedefdjian’s solid qualifications in the pastry arts shine through in her desserts, the chocolate praline option came in the form of a row of mini soft chocolate biscuits filled with a rich dark chocolate ganache, interspersed with praline cream and small quenelles of hazelnut ice cream. A generous dessert of clementines teamed up with a delicate yogurt sorbet flavored with my favorite mouth-tingling Timut pepper, was served along with little cream-filled choux pastries and thin crisps of chocolate.

Service is warm and friendly albeit at times slow and distracted but if you are not in a rush, it doesn’t detract too much from an overall excellent dining experience. We were inspired by the passing dishes being delivered to neighboring tables and I suspect it won’t be long before I return for more of Julia’s sun-kissed cuisine.

Those who remember the Paris restaurant scene in the 1980s may recall that at this same address Colette Dejean officiated at Chez Toutoune, offering up an excellent red pepper mousse, fresh pasta with shellfish, and grilled leg of lamb with French fries. Vive les femmes!

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Sauvage: an updated review of a favorite neighborhood restaurant

Emily Buchanan January 15, 2019

Mackerel+%2B+asparagus+%2B+nasturtium.jpg

Unexpected. This is the word that immediately sprung to mind when I first encountered this small unassuming restaurant-cum-wine bar that quickly shot to the top of my list of favorite neighborhood dining spots some time back. Unexpected because of its unlikely location, its curious chef and the spectacular dishes served up for such a humble establishment. Such a restaurant might be more at home in the 9th or 10th arrondissements of Paris, yet has found itself nestled among the upmarket fashion boutiques and classic bistros of the well-heeled Sevres-Babylone neighborhood – luckily for me just steps from my 7th arrondissement apartment.

As the crowds grew, so did chef Sebastien Leroy’s ambitions, and what started as a few café-style tables scattered around boxes of wine for sale at a modest wine shop/restaurant at 60, rue du Cherche-Midi soon moved across the street, expanding not only the restaurant but adding a wine bar and converting the original wine shop into a casual place offering cold plates. Soon after the move, I had some good and some indifferent meals at the new spot – a rather cold place, with bare wooden tables, bad lighting, and walls plastered with bare boards. Now, at least and at last, the restaurants seems up to its old speed, offering super-inventive and healthy combos, with fish, meats, and poultry surrounded by an avalanche of seasonal fruits (yes!) and vegetables. Vibrant blood orange slices team up with all manner of root vegetables, and the delicate celery-root-like cerfeuil-tubereaux sits alongside a delicious serving of quail and a generous offering of wild mushrooms.

Like many of the most interesting new wave of chefs in Paris, Leroy does not have classic French culinary training. He spent his early career as a graphic designer and then as a set designer in films, before turning his long time passion for food into a fulltime occupation. However, his earthy roots as the son of farmers goes a long way in explaining his deep affinity for all things seasonal and wild (the translation for the restaurant’s name).

And true to its name, Leroy’s wild personal cooking style is punctuated with fresh herbs and edible flowers, sourced carefully from the likes of herbalist and professional forager Stéphane Meyer (also known as the Druid of Paris!).

My first meal there, in the restaurant’s original address, made quite an impression – an entrée of raw mackerel, green asparagus, toasted buckwheat and white nasturtium flowers was united by a vinegar dressing whose acidity was perfectly balanced. And herein lies what I love most about Leroy’s food, his understanding of acidity and how to make it bring a dish harmoniously together.

This perfect introduction was followed by a slow cooked pork dish served with a bright refreshing salad of raw thinly sliced cauliflower, radish, coriander, mint and punctuated with a vibrant miso dressing, a dish I immediately wanted to figure out how to recreate.

Most dishes seem to follow this formula, meat or fish, simply prepared and accompanied by one or two star vegetables, a scattering of fresh herbs, leaves and/or flowers, and a sauce with near perfect acidity every time to bring the dish coherently together – a rather ingenious blueprint I would say.

All three of the spots are dedicated to natural, organic and biodynamic wines from small, lesser known producers. The right balance of acidity, for Leroy, is just as important in the wines he sources as it is in each dish that he constructs. Since his early days of solo operation, Leroy works with a front of house who can knowledgeably talk you through the extensive wine selection and will happily make food pairing recommendations.

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Ebisu: No Ordinary Fish Shop

Emily Buchanan December 7, 2018

If being close to the source of the food you are serving is a promise of quality, then what better place to have a sushi bar than in a fish shop itself? This is exactly what fishmonger Patrick Fernandez has done with his poissonnerie (fish shop) and adjoining atelier du degustation, Ebisu. This is no ordinary fish shop, since Fernandez has been trained in the 350 year old Japanese art of ikejime, a tradition of ‘harvesting’ or killing fish in the most humane way possible that not only improves the texture and flavor of the fish but also means the fish can last longer (up to 15 days for raw consumption), age better and develop an umami flavor.

Fernandez, discovered ikejime in 2015 and since has become part of a small revolution to bring the technique to France, a movement started by Japanese keiseki master Toro Okuda who opened his own restaurant Okuda in the 8th back in 2011, and who taught Fernandez all he knows. Fernandez and his wife, Thy, opened Ebisu in April of 2018, the first poissonnerie to offer ikejime in the capital.

The technique consists of 4 swiftly executed movements that paralyze the fish and allow the blood to drain out, which reduces the flow of cortisol and lactic acid into the fish’s flesh (caused by the stress of harvesting) that can negatively affect its flavor. Not all the fish sold or prepared at Ebisu are killed using this method, however those that are not come directly from small day boats in Brittany, that assure a high-quality catch.

Fernandez makes almost weekly trips to Brittany (depending on the availability of that week’s live fish catch) to fill his tanks with fish caught in the bay of Quiberon, to bring back to his shop for sale. The price is of course higher for live fish chosen from the tank and killed using the ikejime method but the freshness and quality is incomparable. Numerous Michelin-starred chefs in Paris agree, who source their fish for their restaurants from Fernandez, including Yannick Alleno and sushi master Yasunari Okazaki from L’Abysse (notably the best sushi I have eaten outside of Japan), Takuya Watanabe from Jin, and of course Master Okuda.

The menu in the atelier de degustation is simple and firmly fish focused, offering just a handful of entrees, such as a seaweed salad with tender squid and creamy mussels, tossed in a rice vinegar vinaigrette, or a plate of briny Brittany oysters. To follow, choose from an assortment of sushi, maki, sashimi, a generous combination of the three in the Assiette Ebisu, or a chirashi bowl (a bed of sushi rice generously topped with an assortment of sliced sashimi). The 25€ menu for a starter, main course and dessert is exceptionally good value, although we were less enchanted by the quality of the dessert on the day we dined.

If you are a lover of fresh flavorful raw fish and sushi, here is an address that you won’t want to miss.

EBISU | 30-34 Rue du Chemin Vert | Paris 11 | Tel: +33 9 50 76 38 66 | Métro: Richard Lenoir or Chemin Vert | Restaurant open Wednesday & Thursday 11.30am-3pm & 5-8pm, Friday & Saturday 11.30am-3pm & 5-9pm. Closed Sunday, Monday & Tuesday. Fish shop open Wednesday – Saturday 9am-1.30pm & 4-7.30pm. Closed Sunday, Monday & Tuesday | Lunch: fixed 3-course lunch menu 25€ | 3-course lunch menu 25€, Lunch and dinner 17-55€ à la carte. Reservations recommended (online possible via The Fork) | Atmosphere casual.

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Seafood Perfection at La Cagouille

Emily Buchanan November 9, 2018

As a fish and shellfish lover, few things make me happier than a meal than includes a platter of briny, chilled oysters, perfectly seared sweet scallops, paired with a stony white Sancerre wine. Well, that’s what makes me happy at La Cagouille, a longtime favorite fish restaurant in the 14th. In many ways, this casual, unpretentious spot is one of a kind. Ever since Gérard Allemandou opened his first La Cagouille on rue Daguerrre in the early 1980s, the place has been a starring example of freshness and quality in its products.

On my last visit, I devoured the rarely seen miniature oysters, boudeuses, so called since they boud, or pout, because they can’t seem to grow any bigger. To my palate, they are the perfect little oyster, a tiny mouthful of pleasure. Alongside a thickly buttered slice of bread from baker Dominique Saibron, I’m in heaven.

It was Gérard Allemandou himself who taught me how to cook scallops and his words were “Cook scallops like meat, sear them well!” And that’s just the way they arrive at the table here, burnished brown on the outside, sweet, almost sugary on the inside. A touch of butter sauce and a shower of parsley is all they need to reach perfection. The accompanying, mile-high potato gratin – paper-thin slices of potato oozing with butter – could stand in as dessert. Irresistible.

To my left and to my right diners were feasting on the restaurant’s famous couteaux, or razor clams drowning in lemon butter, as well as La Cagouille’s moules brûles doigts, mussels so called because you almost burn your fingers eating them out of hand, off of a giant platter.

The tiny seared céteaux, or whole baby sole, are a lot of work to eat – separating out all those bones – but patience pays off in their clean, ocean-fresh flavor. I was less enthralled by the monkfish cheeks, which I found to be bland and uninspiring.

With the meal, enjoy a few sips of Henri Bourgeois’s 2017 La Vigne Blanche, a wine made from his younger vines in Sancerre. The soil there is limestone-rich, and the wine’s citrusy edge makes it a perfect match for La Cagouille’s special fare.

Allemandou’s partner, the outgoing André Robert directs the dining room and personifies the restaurant’s friendly atmosphere. A diner could hardly ask for more, with La Cagouille open every day of the year, a generous three-course meal for 39€, and a large terrace for dining in warm weather.

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Ducasse Sur Seine: Make this your next meal in Paris

Emily Buchanan October 26, 2018

Lieu jaune (pollack), shellfish sauce and cocos de Paimpol white beans — *Lieu jaune* (pollack), shellfish sauce and *cocos de Paimpol* white beans

Imagine two solid hours slowly cruising the Seine on a comfortable, understated boat, all the while dining on fine seasonal fare. While I expected the ride to be spectacular, I wasn’t sure the food would provide a true gastronomic experience. I was wrong. Alain Ducasse is right. As are chef Francis Fauvel (direct from another Ducasse establishment, Le Meurice d’Alain Ducasse) and the outgoing, efficient, director Jean-Jacques Michel, direct from the now-closed Eiffel Tower restaurant, Le Jules Verne.

The 100€ lunch menu – three starters, three mains, three desserts – is an abbreviated version of the more extensive dinner menu. When asked, Monsieur Michel advises lunch, where you can fully appreciate the exquisite beauty of Paris. The electric-powered boat – which glides smoothly and seamlessly along the Seine, starting at Port Debilly just below the steps at the Pont d’Iena – cruises past the best of Paris, from the Musée d’Orsay to Notre Dame, the Louvre to Hotel de Ville. On a blue-skied day we sipped Marc Colin’s outstanding Burgundy, a perfectly balanced, finely acidic Saint-Aubin as we watched runners, bikers, and picnickers along the quais, all the while admiring the beauty of the many bridges that sheltered us along the way.

A starter of a royale de champignons de Paris was outstanding. This classic, almost gelatinous amuse bouche had the intensity of a forest of mushrooms and the heavenly texture only an angel could create. The colorful butternut squash velouté won us over with its creamy, rich texture, augmented by the crunch of autumnal chestnuts.

The lieu jaune or pollock– a fish I usually find a bit underwhelming – was smooth and almost sweet, made ever more endearing by a brightly flavored shellfish sauce, and the tiniest of seasonal white beans, the famed cocos de Paimpol from Brittany.

I loved the idea of the guinea hen and foie gras terrine but found it a bit underseasoned, and not as forward-flavored as some of the other dishes. The same went for the dorade (sea bream) gravlax with beets, which was much too acidic for my palette.

Vegetable lovers will adore the soothing bowl of autumnal root vegetables, while meat eaters will enjoy the veal, simply seared, served with the cooking juices and a compliment of potatoes and spinach.

An éclair-sized chocolate dessert filled with crispy praline made me smile, and the caramelized apple paired with tonka beans and vanilla offered a soothing ending to the meal.

The restaurant seats about 100 diners, while above deck there is a small dining room that can be privatized for about 15 guests.

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