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Archive for Eating France

Eating Paris – L’Ambroisie

Jan20

Restaurant: L’Ambroisie

Location: 9 Pl. des Vosges, 75004 Paris, France. +33 1 42 78 51 45

Date: June 29, 2022

Cuisine: 1980s Haute Cuisine French

Rating: Amazing

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This was supposed to be my fourth starred restaurant in Paris, but some complexities of the “2022 moment” led to us missing two of them. I also ended up going here by myself instead of with a big group, but c’est la vie.

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L’Ambroisie is a traditional French restaurant in Paris, France founded by Bernard Pacaud and now run by his son Mathieu that has maintained three Michelin stars for more than thirty years. The name “L’Ambroisie” (“Ambrosia” in English) comes from Greek mythology and means both “food for gods” and “source of immortality.”

The restaurant’s founder and head chef is Bernard Pacaud. He was abandoned by his parents at age 13 and raised in an orphanage in the mountains of Lyonnais. Pacaud started cooking at age 15, in 1962, as an apprentice at the famed Eugenie (Mére) Brazier’s restaurant Col de la Luère located 20 km from Lyon. Pacaud spent the next three years as commis at the Tante Alice restaurant in Lyon before becoming chef de partie at La Méditerranée in Paris. Pushed by Eugénie Brazier’s encouragements, he applied to work in 1976 with Claude Peyrot, the chef and owner of the Vivarois (a Michelin three star restaurant) on avenue Victor Hugo in Paris. In 1981, he opened his own restaurant quai de la Tournelle (at the crossing with rue de Bièvres) in Paris. In 1986, he opened L’Ambroisie at place des Vosges and obtained three Michelins stars in 1988 which he has kept since then. His refined and classical cooking style makes it one on the most esteemed French restaurants.

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The restaurant is in a period house on the southwestern corner of the Place des Vosges in Paris. In the 17th and 18th centuries, Place des Vosges was an upper-class and noble neighborhood.

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The interior was very 1980s “le Grande Restaurant.” I didn’t photo much of it because the Madame en Charge was giving me the evil eye and I didn’t want to get boxed out of using my camera. As it was I didn’t dare even put the flash on, I could just tell that wouldn’t fly.

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2015 Rapet Père et Fils Corton-Charlemagne. BH 92. This easily possesses the most complex nose in the range with its ripe yet cool array of green apple, citrus, petrol, soft wood and spice hints. There is impressive size, weight and concentration to the muscular big-bodied flavors that coat the mouth on the citrus and mineral-inflected finish. I would make the same observation here that while this could easily be enjoyed young, I would be inclined to give it at least a few years of bottle age first to develop more depth. (Drink starting 2022)
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The menu. This is pretty close to the style of menu I generally encountered at nice restaurants in the 1980s. Dishes are vaguely clustered into courses and the intent is that you order one from each. Lighter eaters could skip one.
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Special cornbread-like bread.
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Amuses. Fennel tart (front). Delicious. Red pepper mousse (back left) on a crisp. Leek with Caviar (back right). I always enjoy the rich and varied tastes of amuses — I could do an entire meal of amuses trivially.
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Sour dough bread and Normandy Butter. Sour dough seems a recent thing at high end French places.
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The bread itself.
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And le beurre.
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I started (with the amuses) trying to shoot these dishes with my F1.8 lens and a tiny tripod. About one picture in the eagle eye’d manager honed in on me and made me ditch the tripod. Why me sitting alone at my large table with a 6″ tripod was “distracting to the other guests” is anyone’s guess, but as I had to make due hand holding in dim light with no flash I was basically shooting with a couple mm of depth of field — hence I present several photos (pretty hard to focus stack without a tripod).

Feuillantine de langoustines aux graines de sésame, sauce au curry. Langoustine feuillantine with sesame seeds, curry sauce. Lanougstines (course 1). Very precise. Perfectly cooked and the buttery mildly curry sauce was delicious. This was an excellent dish.

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Interlude de homard aux pusses de legumes, nage a l’anis etoile. Lobster interlude with vegetable pusses, star anise broth. Lobster (course 2). Incredibly tender and another great beurre blanc. Basically you could think of it as perfectly cooked lobster in perfect beurre blanc — nothing wrong with that. The broth was so good that it made the vegetables awesome.
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2013 Domaine Poisot Pere & Fils Romanée St. Vivant. BH 92. There is a fine sense of freshness to the cool and overtly spicy aromas of various floral, plum and sandalwood hints. I very much like the purity of the energetic, sleek and attractively detailed medium-bodied flavors that possess a highly refined mouth feel thanks to the fine grain of the supporting tannins, all wrapped in a balanced, persistent and beautifully complex finish. This is quite good and should age effortlessly over the next 10 to 15 years. (Drink starting 2025)

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They noticed me squinting at the wine list and offered me reading glasses! Very helpful.

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Supremes de pigeon laques a la Montmorency, meli-melo de betteraves confites. Supremes of pigeon lacquered with Montmorency. Pigeon (course 3). Good, and perfectly cooked, but touch heavy.
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Candied beetroot medley. Beat side dish as part of duck. Kind of lovely.

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Centerpiece on the table.
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Pre-dessert. Very light.
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Blanc-manger meringue aux agrumes, sorbet cerises a la Kriek. Blancmange meringue with citrus fruits, cherry sorbet with Kriek. Super fresh and great cherries and cream thing.
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Petite fours.
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Mini strawberry tart.
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Perfect cannel.
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Pastry with Chantilly cream and a caramelized top. It’s sort of related to a Saint-Honoré pastry and includes a slate of elements I love.
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An immense amount of cocoa almonds.
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Overall, this is a great kitchen and in summary a great way to experience the 1980s/early 90s style of high end French Cusiine, but I’ll break down the elements:

Food. Dated, without the heavy Asian or modernist influence that’s common these days, but extremely precise and and well cooked. This makes the cuisine more “French” than most other 3 stars. It also floats everything along with butter and creme instead of using some of the lighter newer “solvents.” The format also features a more or less 3 savory style which I found less exciting than a newer style with many more, smaller, savory courses. Being by myself, I didn’t get to sample that many things.

Wine. The by-the-glass wine list was surprisingly poor compared to my meal the previous night at Le Grand Restaurant – Jean-François Piège. I had to pick from the kind of “off vintage, off producer, a bit too young” Burgundies I won’t even buy anymore.

Atmosphere. The room is pretty, but formal in the classic way. I’m certainly fine with that. Tables were very spaced out and things were quiet. For me, being along, and in combination with the relatively small number of courses and the slow pacing and my inability to use a tripod or flash (which would occupy me a bit longer with my photography) the whole experience was kind of slightly uncomfortable and a bit dull. I was a little too far from the other diners to easily listen to their conversations. haha. The staff, particularly the manager, seemed more stern and disapproving, if always flawlessly polite, than the friendliness I experienced the previous night.

For more French dining reviews click here.

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Related posts:

  1. Eating Paris – Bistro V
  2. Eating Paris – Les Antiquaires
  3. Eating Paris – Jean-François Piège
  4. Eating Chantilly – O Bistrot Chic
  5. Eating England – The Square
By: agavin
Comments (0)
Posted in: Food
Tagged as: Eating France, Eating Paris, France, French Cuisine, Haute cuisine, L'Ambroisie, Michelin, Michelin 3 Star, Paris, Wine

Eating Paris – Jean-François Piège

Jan16

Restaurant: Le Grand Restaurant Jean-François Piège

Location: 7 Rue d’Aguesseau, 75008 Paris, France. +33 1 53 05 00 00

Date: June 28, 2022

Cuisine: Haute Cuisine French

Rating: Amazing

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This was supposed to be my third starred restaurant in Paris, but some complexities of the “2022 moment” led to us missing two of them. Fortunately I didn’t miss Le Grand Restaurant Jean-François Piège as it was very high on my list.

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I did however, due to another Paris in Summer of 2022 fact — a complete lack of taxis and Ubers — have to walk 45 minutes across the city to earn my dinner.
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It’s tucked away on a classic street near a lot of the high fashion stores not too far from the Champs-Élysées.

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JFP isn’t a huge place, but it does have a very stylish modern setting.1A4A9229
An opening glass of Champagne.
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Fancy salt and pepper.
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Elegant plates.
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I went for the classic menu. All of the food here is regionalized to France.
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Bretagne, Île-de-France. Le meilleur de la grenouille. The best of frog. This is playing on the old French/Frogs thing. It’s basically a buttery bread with some parsley garlic butter (and a tiny bitty bit of frog). Delicious though.
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Île-de-France, Normandie. Radis beurre Hauts-De-France, Loire-Atlantique Rôtie de “Plumes”, macération de garum, feuilles et racines de réglisse. Hauts-De-France butter radish, Loire-Atlantique Roast “Feathers”, garum maceration, licorice leaves and roots. This plays on the classic “radish and butter” dish — albeit in a much fancier form.
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Bretagne. Foie de lotte comme je l’aime. Monkfish liver as I like it. Taking a hint from the Japanese.
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The girl with the box of knives!
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This is just the “by the glass” wine list! The main list was something like 50,000 bottles!
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2010 Coche-Dury Meursault. VM 92. The 2010 Meursault Village from Coche-Dury has a fresh, tight bouquet at first, gradually unfurling to reveal shucked oyster shell and sea spray notes that gain intensity over the course of 15-20 minutes. The palate strikes a sublime balance with a domaine-typical judicious line of acidity that keeps this Meursault on its tiptoes. Toward the finish, white chocolate and hints of marzipan emerge, completing (predictably) a sublime 10-year-old Meursault that is probably <em>à point</em>. Tasted at Hatched restaurant in London. (Drink between 2020-2032)
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Vendee, Provence. Crevettes bouquet de Bretagne, nage de poutargue, ail des ours. Shrimps from Brittany, bottarga broth, wild garlic. This was a stunning bit of raw shrimp and buttery, almost curry-like, sauce. All the dishes with sauce come with a bit of “bread” to manage the sauce — which was a good thing considering how good the sauce was.

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Bretagne, Pays de la Loire. Cuite sur un pave parisien, langonstine de belle taille, laitne de mer, sabayon de sarrasin. Cooked on a Parisian pavement, nice size langoustine, sea milk, buckwheat sabayon. The shrimp was cooked table-side on a hot rock and then the elements were layered on. There were buckwheat and seaweed type flavors giving it a bit of a Japanese vibe.

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Provence, Île-de-France. Tourte de pois chiche en farine de Bertrand Allais et Fontainebleau. Chickpea pie in flour from Bertrand Allais and Fontainebleau. A very light, almost sponge-cake-like, bread with a sort of whipped cream.

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2012 Etienne Sauzet Bienvenues-Bâtard-Montrachet. JG 96+. The 2012 Bienvenues-Bâtard-Montrachet from Domaine Sauzet is a dynamite wine, offering up a deep, pure and stunning bouquet of apple, white peach, clementines, beeswax, citrus oil, chalky soil tones, apple blossoms and vanillin oak. On the palate the wine is pure, full-bodied and quite concentrated, with a supremely elegant profile, a great core, crisp acids and simply stunning length and grip on the long and racy finish. This is a broad-shouldered vintage of BBM, but at the same time, the inherent elegance and grace of this terroir are still very much in evidence. A great wine in the making. (Drink between 2020-2060)
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Sologne, Normandie. Bar de ligne, cuit tout doucement, beurre noir Bretagne. Line-caught bass, gently cooked, Brittany black butter. This was a spectacular dish. Basically very very tender moist white fish with a black squid butter sauce and what seemed like corn flakes. You wouldn’t think it’d be so good, but it was.

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Brioche to go with it — used for mopping up.

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They took me to the kitchen.
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Île-de-France, Provence. Concentre de celeri rave des jardins, huile d’olive maturee. Garden celeriac concentrate, mature olive oil. The chef himself serves this shot — interesting as it tasted like celery and olive oil.

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Some gorgeous foods and/or decorations.
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2011 Domaine de la Romanée-Conti Vosne-Romanée 1er Cru Cuvée Duvault-Blochet. BH 91. A perfumed and very spicy nose features ripe and well-layered aromas of plum, violet, red and black pinot fruit plus hints of sandalwood. This is impressively rich with a highly seductive texture on the mid-palate as there is plenty of mouth coating dry extract, all wrapped in a complex, balanced and beautifully long finish. There is enough structure to suggest that this will need most of a decade in the cellar. (Drink starting 2020)

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2017 Domaine de la Romanée-Conti Romanée St. Vivant. VM 98. A total stunner, the 2017 Romanée St. Vivant Grand Cru is the most expressive wine in the lineup today. Rich, creamy and so wonderfully textured, the RSV simply has it all. The tannins are present, but they are also matched by tremendous fruit density and pure power. Floral and savory overtones grace the lifted, saline finish. Leaving price aside, if I could only have one wine in this range, it would unquestionably be the RSV. The 2017 is a total knock-out. That’s all there is to it. This fruit was picked on September 10 and 11. (Drink between 2027-2057)
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Pyrenes. Mijotes sur des coques de noix, ris de veau sucs au gout de sotolon, girolles, briffeton a la graisse. Simmered on walnut shells, veal sweetbreads with sotolon flavor, chanterelles, briffeton with fat. This was rich and delicious, very meaty with amazing mushrooms. However, it was a hell of a lot of sweatbreads. It was almost like a test of will to get through the whole lobe or whatever it is. I observed that no lady I could see in the dining room made it past the half way mark. I finished it of course.

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A different Bread to mop up the sauce.
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Île-de-France, Bourgogne. Brie de Meaux vielli deaux ans, moutarde. Brie de Meaux aged two years, mustard. Very very aged cheese. Delicious.
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Aquitaine, Val-de-Loire. Croute de fraises fleuree de feuilles de laurier. Strawberry crust with bay leaves. A lovely little tart with unusual flavors.

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Tabiti, Normandie. Mon Blanc a Manger. My Blanc a Manger. This marshmallow-like texture broke open to spill out the most delicious Crème anglaise.
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Somme, Val-de-Loire, Sud Ouest, Île-de-France, Bourgogne Rhubarbe. Dans un coin du jardin. In a corner of the garden. The amuses were particularly fun.
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Persil. Parsley. A bit of parsley “pudding.”
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Coriandre. Coriander. Bourgeon de cassis. Blackcurrant bud.
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Fraises. Strawberries. Fleurs de sureau. Elderflower. A candied or soaked strawberry with a bit of elderflower liquor.

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Pavais. Paved. A kind of chocolate mouse treat.
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Chartreuse. Hands down the best Chartreuse I have ever had.
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Overall, this was a pretty spectacular meal. Yes it wasn’t cheap, but it was playful and delicious. Service was amazing, fully at the 2-3 star level. Table-side presentations abounded. And the wine list! It was vast and cheaper than retail and the number of by-the-glass options were impressive.

For more French dining reviews click here.

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Related posts:

  1. Eating Paris – Les Antiquaires
  2. Eating Paris – Bistro V
  3. Eating England – The Square
  4. Big Guns at Providence
  5. Eating Reims – Brasserie le Jardin
By: agavin
Comments (0)
Posted in: Food
Tagged as: Coche Dury, DRC, Eating France, Eating Paris, Jean-François Piège, Michelin 2 Star, Wine

Eating Paris – Les Antiquaires

Jan14

Restaurant: Les Antiquaires

Location: 13 Rue du Bac, 75007 Paris, France. +33 1 42 61 08 36

Date: June 27, 2022

Cuisine: Parisian Bistro

Rating: Touristy, but delicious

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Wanting something casual, but ignoring Tripadvisor, we found this well rated street cafe/bistro.
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Yeah, it appears a bit touristy, and the menu is “classic” but execution is quite good.
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The classic Paris street-side seating.
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A glass of Chablis.
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Condiments.

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Classic Escargot. Straight up but perfect.

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Tools for the snails.
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Onion Soup. Also classic, but a very good cheesy/bready soup.
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More bread — useful for dipping up the garlic butter from the snails.
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Beef Tartare and fries.
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There was actually a choice of Tartare style, the old pure French barely adorned style and this slightly newer “Italian” style with arugula and Parmesan.
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French Fries. Really good thin crispy fries.

I was surprised how good the food was. I actually just wanted to order these obvious French favorites as a benchmark and they didn’t disappoint. Each of them was pretty much a perfect example of what it was.

Service was brusk but extremely efficient.

For more French dining reviews click here.

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Related posts:

  1. Eating Paris – Bistro V
  2. Eating Chantilly – O Bistrot Chic
  3. Eating Florence – Caffe Pitti
  4. Eating San Francisco – Absinthe
  5. Eating Reims – Brasserie le Jardin
By: agavin
Comments (0)
Posted in: Food
Tagged as: Antiquaires, Beef Tartare, Eating France, Eating Paris, escargot, Onion Soup, Wine

Eating Chantilly – O Bistrot Chic

Jan12

Restaurant: O Bistrot Chic

Location: 62 Rue du Connétable, 60500 Chantilly, France. +33 3 44 63 93 46

Date: June 26, 2022

Cuisine: French Bistro

Rating: Casual, but very tasty

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After a visit to the Chateau de Chantilly we found this casual bistro for a quick bite.
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Looks the part.
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A cute interior with locals and tourists.
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The classic French menu board.
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Eyes Mayonaise. Aka deviled eyes. Very soft and nice. On the side is a beef pate with a very pureed texture.
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Liu Noir (fish) with rice and a Thai-like light curry. I could have used about 2-3X the sauce, but otherwise good.
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Another fish.
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Caesar Salad with chicken and anchovies.
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Without the chicken.
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Beef Filet with pepper sauce.

This was a pleasant little casual place. Food wasn’t crazy innovative or anything but it was tasty and the service was very friendly.
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Afterward we got some pastries with Crème Chantilly (whipped cream).

For more French dining reviews click here.

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Related posts:

  1. Eating Paris – Bistro V
  2. Eating San Francisco – Absinthe
  3. Eating Hanoi – Green Tangerine
  4. Eating Reims – Brasserie le Jardin
  5. Eating Philly – Tiffin
By: agavin
Comments (0)
Posted in: Food
Tagged as: Bistrot Chic, Eating Chantilly, Eating France, French Cuisine

Eating Reims – Brasserie le Jardin

Jan09

Restaurant: Brasserie le Jardin

Location: 7 Av. du Général Giraud, 51100 Reims, France. +33 3 26 24 90 90

Date: June 25, 2022

Cuisine: French

Rating: Lovely lunch

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After my Tripadvisor fail the night before, I retreated for the next day’s lunch — and a day trip to Reims — to the comforting territory of Michelin Guide rated French restaurants.

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I really wanted to go to Le Parc (2 Michelin stars) but our 13 person party and the formal dress requirements send me instead to Brasserie le Jardin their “more casual” garden restaurant.

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The approach is lovely.
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We had this giant table which was great.
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I don’t like to drink on the first night in Europe (after 36+ hours awake) but today we jumped in feet first.

2006 Billecart-Salmon Champagne Cuvée Nicolas François. VM 97. The 2006 Cuvée Nicolas François Billecart is shaping up to be a jewel of a wine, but it needs time to be at its best. I am surprised by how tightly wound it is. But that only makes me think what it might develop into with time in the cellar. Lemon confit, white flowers, mint, crushed rocks and sage meld together in a bright, crystalline Champagne endowed with terrific purity. The 2006 is 60% Pinot Noir from the Montagne de Reims and the Vallée de la Marne and 40% Chardonnay from the Côte des Blancs, mostly done in steel, with just a touch of oak, around 5%. Dosage is 6 grams per liter. (Drink between 2020-2032)
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Parmesan crisps.
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Bread.
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I hate this new trend of digital only menus.1A4A8579
Simple pasta.
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NV Eric Rodez Champagne Grand Cru Cuvée des Crayères. VM 91. Light yellow-gold. Aromas of Poire William, white flowers and honey are lifted by a zesty mineral topnote. Fleshy and dry on the palate, offering very good lift and clarity to its bitter quince and peach pit flavors. Closes on an emphatic, sharply focused mineral note, with firm grip and spicy persistence.
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Cucumber gazpacho with beet sorbet.
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Tomato Tart with reims vinegar.
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Tin of crab with Champagne emulsion.
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Salmon in Bellevue with garden herbs.
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NV A. Margaine Champagne Brut Rosé. VM 92. The NV Brut Rosé is mostly Chardonnay and is done in a style that emphasizes vibrancy and tension. Crushed red berries, chalk, white pepper and mint lend pretty top notes to this beautifully sculpted Rosé. The Rosé is 75% Chardonnay and 25% Pinot Noir, of which 8% is still red Pinot. Dosage is 9 grams per liter. Disgorged: June, 2021. (Drink between 2021-2026)
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Lean on the planca with paprika sauce.

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Hake with passionfruit sauce.
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Veal filet with olives and lemon with garden herb jus.
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Beef filet with roasted foie gras. For when you feel your steak doesn’t have enough calories.
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Braised beef chunk with cooking juices.
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Pork loin confit with baby onions.
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French fries with thyme flower.
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Salad with seeded granola.
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Macchiato.
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Madelines with the coffee.
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Gianduia chocolate ganache with Mille-feuille.
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Soft biscuit with lemon zest.
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Fresh fruits with basil syrup.
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Rhubarb sorbet with raspberry coulis. There was mint in here and different textures. Very refreshing.
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We had a large party.
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This meal was far more my style. It was hovering just under 1 (European) Michelin Star. Service was great, particularly given our gigantic party. Food was rich, French, and quite delicious. Champagnes were very good. Setting was fabulous too. It was raining, so we sat inside in the lovely dining room. They have a lot of nice garden too (given the name) but that rarest of June sight to my California eyes: rain.
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After lunch we staggered over to Taittinger for even more Champagne.

For more French dining reviews click here.

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Related posts:

  1. Mountain Eats – Brasserie
  2. CR8 – el Jardin de Frida Kahlo
  3. Eating Paris – Bistro V
  4. Eating San Sebastian – Zuberoa
  5. Eating Rome – Metamorfosi
By: agavin
Comments (0)
Posted in: Food
Tagged as: Brasserie le Jardin, Eating France, Eating Reims, Reims

Eating Paris – Bistro V

Jan07

Restaurant: Bistro V

Location: 56 Bd de Port-Royal, 75005 Paris, France. +33 1 45 35 35 31

Date: June 24, 2022

Cuisine: French Bistro

Rating: Meh French

_

On our first night in Paris I knew we were tired and was looking for a very casual “good food, authentically French” place for our large party with kids. Given that, I didn’t want to use the Michelin Guide or anything, so I thought I’d try one last time to use Trip Advisor. This place was EXTREMELY highly rated (on TA), like #20 out of almost 16,000 restaurants in Paris and above almost every 2 and 3 star etc.

1A4A8436
Looks like a typical Bistro.
1A4A8437
Inside had some atmosphere, but not as much as I would have liked. It was deserted — we were the only people — yet they basically ignored us.
1A4A8438
Crisps from a bag. Not an auspicious beginning.
1A4A8439
Bread with a butter packet. Oh boy.
1A4A8445
Watermelon, honey, mint and feta salad.
1A4A8441
Chicken spring rolls from Chef Alain Kassi, Thai herbs and hazelnut chips. These weren’t bad per se, but spring rolls?
1A4A8449
Périgord duck foie gras, citrus chutney. This was solid, but you could buy a can in Paris and slice it.
1A4A8455
Creamy risotto with coconut milk and ginger, grilled prawns, fresh herbs and parmesan.
1A4A8466
Supreme of cod, roasted broccoli and basil pesto.
1A4A8463
Beef tenderloin (High Quality Meat Breed) black pepper sauce, sautéed potatoes.
1A4A8453
Duo Camembert with Tartufata and Comté cheese.
1A4A8467
Semi-cooked chocolate with a runny heart, passion fruit juice and vanilla ice cream.
1A4A8471
Cheesecake, Matcha tea cream and salted butter caramel.
1A4A8474
Plain strawberries.
1A4A8477
Strawberry salad, balsamic caramel and mascarpone ice cream.

Food was okay. Nothing inspired at all. Just fine. Not super authentically French. I’ve had better meals in totally random cafes. I just don’t get the rating.

Service was VERY slow with a single employee in the front and one in the kitchen. The waitress was a bit exasperated with our frustration at the pace and showed it. We were the only people for an hour but they really didn’t get going, probably because of the kitchen guy. Dessert took 45-60 minutes because the kitchen guy wanted to finished everyone elses savories. Basically miserable service and very irritating when we had been up for 40 hours (with kids).

This concludes any trust I have in Tripadvisors ratings as this is rated VERY high on their list, as I said #20 out of 16,000! I will NEVER trust a TA score or reviews ever again. I might have to use them when there is nothing else in English, but only as a last resort. Given how many great places are in Paris some tourist trap would have been better. I don’t even know who this restaurant is aimed at.

For more French dining reviews click here.

Related posts:

  1. Eating Rosh Pina – Shiri Bistro
  2. La Cachette Bistro part deux et trois
  3. Quick Eats: La Cachette Bistro
  4. Food as Art: Bistro LQ
  5. Bistro LQ – Truffles 2017
By: agavin
Comments (0)
Posted in: Food
Tagged as: Bistro, Eating France, Eating Paris, French Cuisine
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