Paris Restaurant

Paris Restaurant List

----

L'Oulette

Unknown

Gare de Lyon

Closed Sat. lunch, Sun

12th Arrondissement

Chef-owner Marcel Baudis once ran his restaurant from a smaller location in the 4th arrondissement, but success encouraged him to open this larger, fancier spot, with lean, modern decor. Although something indefinable was lost in the move, the cuisine of Baudis's native southwest France is as good as ever. Recommended dishes include oxtail with foie gras, fresh cod with celeriac and walnuts, a pain d'�pices (spice cake). The restaurant, in the rebuilt Bercy district, is a bit hard to find, so bring your map with you.

01.40.02.02.12

15, pl. Lachambeaudie -- Paris

20021006 152826

LE SOLEIL

Unknown

Open daily at lunch, and Thursday through Saturday for dinner

St Ouen

Finally, a truly decent place to eat at the main Paris flea market in Clignacourt!
Outgoing owner Louis-Jacques Vannucci LOVES food and wine. After spending years tracking down great ingredients for French chefs, he finally decided to have a go at his own place. Hope that Vannuci has just come back from the market, with plump mussels, gorgeous fish and shellfish, and fresh poultry. A rather strange wine list.

01.40.10.08.08

109, avenue Michelet -- Saint Ouen

20021124 160215

Les Zygomates

Unknown

Daumesnil

Unknown

12th

Paris, as I've remarked before, is an ideal city for walking. For those who enjoy both parks and busy streets, the city fathers have thoughtfully converted a disused railway line, paralleling the avenue Daumesnil from the Bastille to the peripherique, into a landscaped Promenade Plant�e, whose two-mile path lies between informal rows of bushes and small trees which open up at the bridges into architectural vistas of the streets below. There are frequent benches for the convenience of strollers, hobos, refugees from neighboring offices who bring their lunches, and small gangs of loitering boys who prefer a sylvan setting to a busy street corner. Underneath the arches is a progression of small shops and studios to which there is periodic access by stairways to street level.
Having taken this walk with Frank and Barbara, I had no difficulty in persuading Mary to give it top priority for a return visit. As the ground rises the level railway line gradually descends from overhead to street level to a wide submerged cutting in which the vegetation has been allowed to grow higher and more densely, so that the path winds among the trees and sometimes divides into roughly parallel routes, giving it an ambience more rural than urban. It is a shock to come out of this mini-woods and find oneself close to the eastern edge of Paris's noisy peripherique.
Without making any precise plans we had aimed to finish the outward perambulation in time for lunch. Consulting my pocket Paris atlas, I discovered that I had once anticipated such a need by marking the location of a nearby bistro recommended by Patricia Wells. (If I had spent my life governing my spending as attentively as my dining, my estate would be as generously endowed as my anatomy.) Accordingly we set out in search of the quixotically named Les Zygomates. Arriving scarcely five minutes before last orders, we were soon to discover how fortunate we were.
In pursuit of the lazy reader, there is a fashion among Paris restaurants to give themselves names beginning with "a". (This is a modern trend - the index of the Time Out guide has only two columns of "a"s against three of "b"s and five of "c"s.) Diners of a contrary disposition will come first upon La Zyotissoire and then its parent bistro, Les Zygomates. The zygomatic muscles of the lower cheek are those which are essential for two of mankind's most pleasurable activities - smiling and chewing. This proved to be a bistro in which the two were inextricably related.
With a full meal ahead of us that evening we opted for a single main course. The blackboard's special offerings of the day included an irresistible cr�pinette de faison farci au chou et foie gras at 100ff, which proved to be a roasted sausage-shaped bundle of sliced pheasant, with crispy skin on the outside, stuffed with cabbage and duck liver and surrounded with an intensely rich black sauce. Unusually for a French restaurant, it was accompanied not only by a cylinder of utterly delicious potatoes Anna, but also two scoops of buttery pur�ed celeriac. (I have eaten haute cuisine feasts in which the only trace of a vegetable was a decorative wisp of lettuce or parsley.)
Mary was equally attracted to a filet de dorade au basilic at 95ff, sea bream crisply fried and surrounded with a rich green basil sauce. Her vegetable quotient was even more generous than mine - a "bubble and squeak" of chopped broccoli and pur�ed potato; finely diced carrot and potato in a cylinder held together with cream; and a scoop of stewed aubergine, tomato, onion and herbs. (Ours were among the most expensive main courses on an otherwise modestly- priced menu.) When we commented to our waitress on the generous and healthy variety of vegetables, she remarked that French children wouldn't eat all those greens. The international food industry seems to be doing its self-appointed task on a world scale.
As usual, our luncheon vow to stick to one course evaporated when confronted with the alternatives. We compromised on one desert between us - a sampling plate at 50ff which proved to be more than enough for two. An ample plate held a circle consisting of an exemplary thick rice pudding, an almond cake, a layered chocolate and cream cake, a chocolate tart in p�te bris�e, a plum tart, and two slabs of chocolate goo (there's no better way to describe it). In the middle was a scoop of potently acidic orange sorbet which servedadmirably as a "mouth cleanser" between the rich little samples, and slotted into the sorbet were two angled sheets of chocolate, like the sails of the Good Ship Lollypop. We happily roamed the Seven Seas.
It was the end of the shift for our jolly waitress with well-exercised zygomatic muscles, and so she had time to tell us a bit about the bistro and its Paris offspring. The parent was seven years old and occupied what she told us had been a thirties-vintage buttery. Both Patricia Wells and Time Out say it was a butchers'. At any rate, the legacy is an unblemished interior of marble counters, painted etched glass, and polished walnut moldings surrounding mirrors, windows and doors. It all looks much older and more delicately ornate than the thirties. When we return (and we certainly shall), we'll try to find out more.
The chef, our waitress told us, is very fussy about detail. I can well believe it - this was a meal we would gladly have eaten at a Michelin-starred establishment. The locals, sadly, do not provide much custom. It's in the 12th, a not particularly well-off arrondissement, and so most of their regulars drive from other parts of Paris. (Fortunately, parking is easy.) Otherwise the bistro is dependent on those tourists who are prepared to make the considerable effort to come to an area which has little else of particular interest. There are usually a number of Americans who fall into that category, but after the September trauma they are thin on the ground. More than one waiter has recently told me that Paris restaurants of a certain class are having a very lean time. I hope that habitual American travellers will soon realize that they may well be safer in Paris than at home.

01.40.19.3.40

7 rue de Capri -- Paris

20021111 001722

Le Domaine de Lintillac

Unknown

Bourse

Unknown

2nd

My favourite restaurant in Paris just now is one of these boutique restaurants, called Le Domaine de Lintillac in the Rue Saint-Augustin. It also has branches in Lille, Brussels and Li�ge. Everything that you can eat or drink here is from the same little terroir - the gutsy Cahors wine, the tender magret de canard with pommes sarladaises, even our old friends the boudins aux chagaines. The lights are dim, the tables full, and the talk of the P�rigourdine waiters concerns either food or rugby - those twin traditions of south western France.
Each table is equipped with a toaster so you can make your own toast on which you can spread five types of foie gras and five types of p�t�s all prepared by a commune in the southwest of France. Perhaps it's not Alain Passard's kind of restaurant then, and not one that is especially adventurous, but it's a place where French cuisine is trying to hold on to its soul before it loses it completely.
According to Jean Guillot, a self-styled artisan-farmer, who runs the operation from the south-west of France: 'We have a passion for our P�rigourdine cuisine. Le Domaine de Lintillac consists of some farmers and gaveurs [which probably translates best as force-feeders] of geese and ducks, an abattoir, an artisanal conserverie where the foie gras is prepared, where confits de canard and the cassoulets are made. It's a simple cuisine whose secret is the quality of raw materials we work with.' Le Domaine de Lintillac's slogan is 'De la basse-coeur � votre assiette. Aucun intermediare.' (Roughly: 'From the farmyard to your plate - no intermediaries.')
This is the Bov� myth incarnate: a non-polluting small-scale agriculture with a deep commitment to the mystique of la France profonde, supplying the good things of the earth to the table. France has always indulged in this national self-mythologising - the terroir, for winemakers as for culinary artisans such as Jean Guillot, is the heart and soul of France. But myths influence reality: these terroir-based restaurants pack in a young clientele hungry for food that nourishes their Gallic self-image.
Jon Henley: France finds its palate after a good whine The Guardian Saturday May 19, 2001
On the rue Saint-Augustin, a few minutes' walk from the old stock exchange, the newly regilded Op�ra and (not to put too fine a point upon it) the Guardian office, lies a small restaurant called the Domaine de Lintillac.
I mention this not because small Paris restaurants are an obsession of mine but because this unassuming little lunchtime eatery sums up what today's Frenchman demands of dining out: firstly, it has to be good value, what the French call un bon rapport qualit�-prix. Here the Domaine scores highly. It is possible to emerge, rubbing your tum after three courses and a couple of glasses of Bergerac, having forked out �8 for the pleasure.
Second, the surroundings should be convivial. Again, the Domaine performs well. The dim interior clearly hasn't been touched since the 50s, it is always packed, the conversation animated, and on every table sits a toaster to toast bread for the five types of foie gras on the menu.
Third, the menu should be short and unpretentious. The Domaine, with its P�rigourdine cuisine, from the south-west, has foie gras and p�t�s for starters, six main courses ranging from the cassoulet gastronomique to the boudins noirs, and just three puds.
Finally, and here's the point, the food itself. France, which has always cared for its nosh, has suffered the full gamut of late 20th-century food scares.
All of which explains why the Domaine de Lintillac has proved such a success. Its motto is De la basse-cour � votre assiette (from the farmyard to your plate). The owner, Jean Guillot, runs a farm called the Domaine de Lintillac, five miles outside Brive in the south-west. Everything you eat comes from there, or from his neighbours' farms, conserveries and vineyards up the road.
The Domaine de Lintillac represents, in short, French cuisine saving its soul, la France profonde fighting back, a kind of heartfelt national antidote to the Big Mac. It is somehow reassuring that, all too often, there is a not a table to be had.
[ . . .]
With such extravagant praise it was necessary that I fit in a visit on Saturday evening, my last act of homage to French cuisine before returning to London. Accordingly I was there promptly at seven, trailing my luggage behind me.
Before entering, two things caught my eye. One was the posted menu; the other was a window full of canned goods bearing the name of the proprietor: Conserverie Artisianale La Tradition Perigourdine Lintillac 19270 USSAC. I was immediately struck by the fact that the pat�s and terrines listed on the carte and on the labels were the same. Hmmm. Time being a problem, I could save quite a bit of it by skipping a first course exactly like what I could pick up in a can at any good grocery store.
Settling down at my table with the menu, I quickly determined that my main course must be the Cassoulet Gastronomique at 55ff - this in spite of the fact that the largest can in the window was labeled "Cassoulet", but without the qualifying adjective. It arrived within fifteen minutes in a small straight-sided oval casserole dish, containing a duck leg and a short length of nondescript sausage resting on a bed of huge broad beans - not a haricot in sight. Nor any trace of crust; but what could one expect in a quarter of an hour?
One could certainly expect that the dish would be heated through. But there were stone-cold beans immediately adjacent to hot ones, and patches of duck meat near the bone which were similarly icy - just the effect one would expect if the dish had been reheated in a non-rotating microwave. The confit was dry and stringy, the sausage bland and anonymous, and every mouthful, whether of duck, sausage or beans, tasted the same as every other.
I had ordered a glass of Cahors to accompany it; I was thankful that I had not ordered a bottle. It was of a sourness which put my jaw into spasm as though I had drunk straight vinegar.
Of the three possible desserts, I opted for the coupe, which was identified by a feminine proper name - I didn't bother to write it down. It arrived in a tall much-abused glass with about a quarter of the foot broken off. (I was reminded of the New York hashhouse joke: "Which one a youse guys wanted the clean cup?") Inside were a few scrapings of some sort of butter crunch ice cream and some thick butterscotch syrup, topped with a tower of imitation whipped cream from a pressurized dispenser and decorated with half a wizened walnut. The coffee which followed succeeded in being both weak and bitter.
The one fully justified claim was that the place was cheap: the bill came to 110ff. But a three-course lunch of real food at L'Ecurie, with a demi-pichet of pleasantly drinkable wine, would come to about the same. Do Guardian journalists leave their palates at the door? Are they so easily swayed by conformity to an abstract principle which dictates that the food ought to taste good?
This bistro, we are told, is part of a small chain of similar establishments in several European cities. In other words, food is prepared at a central factory and shipped to local outlets. Does this sound familiar? One would like to know more of the financial structure. Are these bistros franchises? Apart from the menu, what is the essential difference from any other fast food chain - aside from the fact that the latter have advanced from canning to freezing? If this shabby operation is to be the model by which French artisanal food is to be preserved, then make mine a Whopper with cheese. At least it doesn't come out of a can. And it's got fresh lettuce.

01.40.20.27.xx

10 rue St Augustin -- Paris

20021111 001722

Procope

Unknown

Od�on

Mon-Sun 11.30am-1am

The Procope Restaurant was founded in 1686, this institution witnessed 3 centuries of history: Danton, Robespierre, Rousseau, Voltaire - all were here, it offers 5 different sorts of oysters in up to 3 categories as well as other traditional French dishes

01.40.46.79.00 01.40.46.79.09

13, rue de l'Ancienne Comedie -- Paris

20021026 032936

L'Astrance

Unknown

Passy

Closed M and Tu lunch; holiday month of August

16e

When Patricia Wells devotes a lengthy and enthusiastic column in the Herald Tribune and NY Times to a new, unknown restaurant and proclaims that it is "headed for nothing but success", one tends to pay attention. And when B�n�dict Beaug�, a well-respected food writer in his native city, begins a column, "The most important gastronomic event of the last few months in Paris has been, to my mind, the opening of L'Astrance," attention becomes obligatory. A week before their August holiday, an evening reservation was out of the question, but we were granted a table for Saturday lunch. It proved to be the apotheosis of a week's memorable dining.
We don't make a habit of frequenting newly fashionable restaurants, but the sentence in Beaug�'s column that made this one imperative was, "I hope that L'Astrance will be a model for a new type of gastronomique establishment - both less expensive and much less formal than we've had in France before at this level." And so on the Saturday we had a modest breakfast and then walked the three miles from our hotel to the restaurant. After a week spent eating for Britain, genuine hunger would have to be fought for.
The restaurant proved to be small and modern, a shrine to classic Bauhaus architecture. But the detail saves it from austerity. There is a small wavy-edged mezzanine across one corner, accessed by a spiral staircase, which extends the capacity by a couple of tables. The walls are pushed back by the common but effective device of several large mirrors, strategically placed. The room is further softened by the mirror frames, which are made of traditional massive gilded molding. Generous spacing of tables results in a seating capacity of not more than about forty.
The waiters wear their finely honed expertise gracefully, with an ease and good humor which is usually the end-product of long service and secure employment. The menu cards brought to us followed the discrete custom of much more expensive establishments, omitting prices from all save the host's. This made the unpriced menu slightly difficult to interpret - Mary asked a couple of questions that didn't make sense to me until I realized that her copy made it tricky to determine where a particular menu began and ended. An unnecessary delicacy - unlike certain Michelin stalwarts, a glimpse of the prices would not have driven the considerate guest into prayer and fasting.
My point will be more apparent if I quote the entire menu verbatim. It is in fact very interesting, and provides an opportunity to comment in brackets as we go along. (Like so many modern menus, the listing is ingredient-centered.)
Le Menu de Juillet (servi pour l'ensemble de la table) 370[ff]
L'amuse-bouche [nothing so vulgarly bestial as an amuse-gueule] [These immediately announced what sort of witty but unpretentious food we could expect. First there was a shot glass of layered sorbet and coconut cream, accompanied by the classic Italian tomato/mozzarella salad converted into a cold soup - tomatoes were skinned, seeded and roughly pur�ed, then mixed with small irregular chunks of buffalo mozzarella and garnished with dabs of crushed frozen basil. It worked a treat.
And there was a later divertissement which Patricia Wells describes perfectly: "The plumpest, most moist mussels are embellished with butter and dotted with a mixture of chervil and breadcrumbs, and set on a tangy mixture of carrots and cumin."]
Le crabe
en fines ravioles d'avocat, huile d'amande douce [This consisted of a couple of small portions of hot spicy crab sandwiched between two paper-thin slices of avocado. It sent Patricia Wells into paroxysms of ecstasy. See below.]
La langoustine
dor�e, figues et cr�me de g�ranium [A small helping of cold salad made up of chopped crayfish tails, John
Dory, figs and - geranium cream?!]
Le rouget
mousseline de citron jaune, oignons doux et verveine [Thin lightly fried fillets of red mullet served atop a hot mousse of onion, lemon and verbena. Mary was so taken with this that she asked how it was made, and learned that the whole lemon was used, to stunningly sharp effect. They also brought us a leaf of fresh verbena to sample. This exquisite union was flanked by a salad of finely shredded carrot and tiny specks of hard-boiled egg lightly flavored with vinegar.]
At this point we were served an unannounced but welcome mouth-cleanser in the form of a light-coffee-coloured soup - consomm� de pain grill� - which we learned, on further enquiry, was made of chicken stock, bacon and toasted breadcrumbs which had been blended, strained and whipped to a froth. More frantic scribbling in our notebooks.
Le pigeon
cuit au sautoir, huile de quiquina et fruits rouge [A half-pigeon was boned except for the leg and saut�ed to perfection in the traditional enclosed pan. It was served with strawberries cooked in oil flavored with quinine. For me this dish was truly the keystone of the menu's arch.]
Le piment
en sorbet � la citronelle [Sweet pepper sorbet flavored with lemon liqueur. By this time I was so won over I would have tried raw oysters with chocolate sauce.]
Les fleurs
en sorbets aux fruits [A final arrangement of mixed summer fruits: blueberries, raspberries, strawberries, and blackcurrants, together with a sharp sorbet]
Les mignardises [These were madeleines of an exquisite insubstantiality that would have sent Proust back to his inkwell. They arrived just before the coffee, which was accompanied by two half-eggshells full of eggnog. The latter were served to us, of course, in a papier-m�ch� egg carton! (How long before an inspector declares them unsanitary?)
Finally, we should add that the portions of these fourteen [!] separate items were so modest that we went away feeling that we had had exactly enough to eat.]
Amidst such culinary glories, the lunchtime atmosphere was hushed and reverential. Conversation was subdued; there was no music and, surprisingly, no ashtrays. We felt as though we were in the company of attentive devot�es of the food itself, which was both serious and light- hearted. The air of conspiracy was further heightened by the waiters' occasional invitation to our neighbors at the next table, whom they apparently knew from a previous visit, to guess the contents of the unnamed dishes and also the recommended wine, which was served with the label concealed. No put-down for error - just a light-hearted game without shame. There is in fact a surprise menu at 430ff in which *everything* is unidentified. That's for our next visit in October. (Our neighbors, incidentally, proved to have come for the purpose of writing it up for a web site. We all fantasized about whether the other tables were also occupied by restaurant critics.)
How has such an unusual new Paris restaurant become such an instant success? Aside from its obvious excellence and reasonable charges, a vital component seems to have been the generosity of its founders' former employer, Alain Passard of the pre-eminent Arp�ge. According to Wells, he not only urged Christophe Rohat and Pascal Barbot to lash out on their own, but gave them his mailing list of 500 loyal diners. Inherent excellence plus free precisely-targeted publicity - they could hardly lose!
It's also bang up-to-date. The "ravioli" is a witty illustration of the modern culinary tendency to imitate the form rather than the function of traditional recipes. Two thin slices of avocado, not actually meeting at their edges, do not give the protection to the ingredients that is provided by a pasta case - you couldn't drop this pseudo-ravioli into boiling water and cook it, the seal protecting the filling from dilution. In fact, the filling is not sealed in the manner of a ravioli but merely sandwiched. A few days before at La Folletterie there had been the breast of chicken sandwiched between outer slices of aubergine, domed like a burger bun. Both reminded me of the New York Union Square Caf�'s celebrated tunaburger - a pop-art nod to the archetypal American meal.
Another vital factor is what Beaug� refers to above - the filling of a gap between bistro and haute cuisine. Michelin-starred chefs who have attempted this in the past have gone all the way down-market, in image as well as cost, to declare their new-found proletarian identity; but L'Astrance preserves an ambience of scaled-down elegance.
The end result was for us a stunning new gastronomic event, as remarkable in its own way as one's first exposure to an exotic and sophisticated foreign cuisine - or to the legendary Dali-esque I Bulli in the Catalan hills. As for the price of the menu, it is already climbing. The 265-franc menu has reached 370 francs in a few months and, in the new season, may escalate like last year's dot.com stocks. Make your reservation for September while it's still a bargain as well as a unique culinary experience.
Patricia Wells' review in the NY Times/Paris Herald Tribune is available at http://www.iht.com/articles/8714.html
(PW) Best newcomer in recent years: modern, inventive, full of lively flavors Great bread and some young new wines to discover. My find: The glorious the white Minervois Domaine de la Tour Bois�e, a floral blend that includes both chardonnay and viognier grape. Hope that the ravioli of avocado and crab is on the menu that day! Small and popular, so book ahead.

01.40.50.84.40

4, rue Beethoven -- Paris

20021111 001722

Tire-Bouchon (Le)

21 12 19 �41

Charles-Michels

Unknown

15�me arrondissement

The "energetic but small husband-and-wife team offers a big performance" at this "charming" Classic French in the 15th; "excellent" food, including an "innovative" tasting menu and "great desserts", as well as "thoughtful" service is the reason that regulars "frequently return"; their only suggestion: the "bland decor" could use "some spunk."

01.40.59.09.27

62, rue des Entrepreneurs -- Paris

20021004 053354

Amphycl�s

Unknown

Monceau/Clichy

Unknown

17th Arrondissement

Young chef-owner Philippe Groult had already made a name for himself before opening this much-anticipated restaurant five years ago. Since then Groult, trained under Jo�l Robuchon, has not disappointed, and his exciting menu includes cauliflower soup with caviar, herb salad, and duck with coriander and orange. Service is excellent, and Amphycl�s is one of the few grand Parisian restaurants that still proffers desserts from a pastry trolley. AE, DC, MC, V. Reservations 1 wk in advance advised. Closed Sat. lunch, Sun.

01.40.68.01.01

78, av. des Ternes -- Paris

20021006 152826

L'Avenue

Unknown

Franklin-Roosevelt / Alma Marceau

Mon-Sun 8am-2am

L'Avenue Restaurant is the trendy restaurant in the avenue Montaigne with a velvet and gold interior and cool bar on the second floor, also enjoy Paris' beautiful jeunesse d'oree or the posh valet parking

01.40.70.14.91 01.40.70.91.97

41, ave. Montaigne -- Paris

20021026 032936

Spoon, Food & Wine

Unknown

Closed weekends

8th

Star chef Alain Ducasse forsakes classic French food for an Asian-inspired international cuisine where anything goes but it all blends beautifully together. Expect copious portions and a trendy crowd. Guests can take a quick bite to eat from Japanese-style bento boxes which are filled with food at the bar or indulge in a leisurely meal in the main area. Dishes in this minimalist-style restaurant include tofu and noodles or spiced chicken in coconut milk. The wine list is extensive, with a particularly wide choice of Californian wines. Prior booking is vital.

01.40.70.34.44

14, rue de Marignan -- Paris

20021027 062536

Bon

Unknown

La Muette

Unknown

16e

Sashay over to the sushi bar or past the boutique to the dining room at this new eatery owned by Laurent Taieb (owner of Lo Sushi) and designer Philippe Starck. After over ten years of directing his talents elsewhere, Starck has again turned his eye to Paris and created a seductively homey space filled with theatrical touches. The cuisine is anachronistic for Paris: continental fusion with Eastern accents and a Zen devotion to well-being. However, if you crave steak-frites, you can find it listed on the menu under "I Am Bad."

01.40.72.70.00

25, rue de la Pompe -- Paris

20021026 032936

L�ANGLE DU FAUBOURG

Unknown

Closed Saturday lunch and Sunday

This is Jean-Claude Vrinat�s second restaurant after the famed Taillevent, just a few blocks away. L�Angle specializes in well-priced and well-chosen wines from the Taillevent cave almost next door. The food is authoritative and delicious: try the daily risottos, lamb shoulder with black olives, and braised veal. Drink from the Languedoc or Rh�ne.

01.40.74.20.20

195, rue du Faubourg Saint-Honor� -- Paris

20021124 160215

Laduree

Unknown

George V

M-Su 0730-24

Laduree was founded in 1862 in rue Royal and is famous for its pastries and chocolates, we think the Champs-Elysees site has more cachet thanks to its clientele and its elegant upstairs rooms with high ceilings, Karl Lagerfeld is a client

01.40.75.08.75 01.40.75.06.75

75, ave. des Champs-Elysees -- Paris

20021026 032936

LadureeRR

Unknown

Concorde

M-Su 0730-24

01.40.75.08.75 01.40.75.06.75

16, rue Royal -- Paris

20021026 032936

Androuet sur le Pouce

Unknown

closed Sunday

8th

Although the Androuet restaurant, which was formerly on the rue Arsene Houssaye, has closed, there are two Androuet sur le Pouce bars in Paris. Both serve a wide variety of cheeses (there is a choice of about 20 cheeses) on toasted brown bread, accompanied by salad, in a modern decor and convivial atmosphere. The Androuet sur le Pouce at rue Saint-Roch is close to the Opera, while the other venue, at rue des Accacia, is near the Champs-Elys�es.

01.40.76.34.44

49, rue Saint-Roch -- Paris

20021027 062536

Androuet sur le Pouce

Unknown

M-Sa

18th

01.40.76.34.44

23, rue des Accacia -- Paris

20021027 062536

Spoon, Food & Wine

Unknown

Franklin-Roosevelt

Mon-Fri noon-2.30pm, 7-11.30pm

Not far from the Champs-Elysees, Spoon Food & Wine is Alain Ducasse�s trendy restaurant - the cuisine fuses ingredients from all over the world which applies to the wine as well

01.40.76.34.44 01.40.76.34.37

4, rue de Marignan -- Paris

20021026 032936

La Gare

Unknown

La Muette

Unknown

16th

This light and airy brasserie, set in a former railway station, cooks poultry to perfection. It serves a varied menu of traditional French cuisine, including chicken, lamb, duck and fish dishes, as well as large mixed salads. A fashionable hangout, it is well worth booking in advance, particularly at weekends.

01.42.15.15.31

19, chauss�e de la Muette -- Paris

20021027 062536

Fish and Fun

Unknown

Closed Sunday

1st

Fresh fish � from salmon to swordfish � with mashed potato or crushed carrot, and a wide variety of sauces are sold at budget prices at this fun new addition to the French food scene.

01.42.21.10.10

55, blvd de Sebastopol -- Paris

20021027 062536

Chez Gramond

Unknown

St Placide, Rennes

Unknown

6th

Thirty years ago I reverently photographed the "cottage" at 27 rue de Fleurus to which Gertrude Stein and her brother Leo had moved in 1910, seven years after Gertrude had come to Paris for a sojourn which would last the rest of her life, almost half a century. (It was easy to gain access to the courtyard in those more open days; the huge gates were not shut during daylight hours.)
I didn't know it at the time, but the compact two-story house was already occupied by Jean-Claude and Jeannine Gramond, who in 1967 had taken over a modest bistro up the street at number 5, close to the western entrance of the Luxembourg Gardens. (Patricia Wells confusingly conflates the two addresses into one.) Today the Gramonds still occupy both premises. The Stein address is identifiable by a plaque on the outer wall, but nothing can be seen beyond the solid metal sheets which make the elaborate iron gates proof against visual as well as corporeal invasion. The bistro, however, has a welcoming glass conservatory projecting onto the sidewalk.
Once inside you feel as though you had entered Dr. Who's tardis and were hurtling back half a century towards post-war Paris. The Friday evening I showed up for dinner I had the place to myself - no "modern" conversation at adjacent tables to clash with the ancient lace tablecloths, the satin-striped wallpaper and the fish tank in the front window - for company, not for cuisine. When I announced to Madame Gramond that I brought greetings from Marlena Spieler of California, she went back into the kitchen and brought out her husband to share in the conversation.
Some time later - it didn't matter when, for I was no longer in a clock-dominated universe - I settled down to a perusal of the menu. Quite audibly from the kitchen came the sounds of an old-fashioned French radio station, something rather like the BBC's Golden Oldies Radio 2. Ancient French pop music, with informal conversation in between - were they discussing the state of Paris since the liberation?
The carte was in itself a remarkable object, for it had been reproduced at some time in the distant past on a flat-bed jelly duplicator - the sort which produced a hazy purple image that looked as though it were fading before your eyes. Is it still possible to purchase the fluid for these ancient contraptions? Perhaps not, for the menu sheets had been pasted and repasted with hand-written strips which seasonally adjusted the dishes on offer. We were back in the post-war era of acute paper shortage.
The offerings consisted entirely of classical French dishes which might have been on the carte when the Gramonds opened in 1967. No tapenade sushi here! I settled on what seemed the inevitable choices: foie gras de canard des landes maison (fresh duck liver from Gascony lightly coated with coarse salt and flash-fried in butter) and, now that we were in the game season, civet de li�vre � la Fran�aise (a rich and complicated stew of wild hare cooked in several stages with wine, bacon and vegetables and thickened at the last minute with the hare's blood). For desert I ordered in advance the soufl� [sic] au Grand Marnier.
The wine list was as historic as the rest of the establishment. There was a long list of Bordeaux and Burgundies from the proprietors Ch. Chapelle et Fils, an old firm with whom Mssr. Gramond had done business for many years. Tucked in among them was a 1974 Petrus at 8900ff. I had reached one of those rare moments when I wished I were truly rich. These were wines not intended to reach their prime for at least a generation - "time is money" was then a vulgarism. From this venerable list Madame Gramond guided me to a half-bottle of Chassagne Montrachet 1978, unusually a red rather than a white. With it came a great wide glass which would have sufficed as a baptismal font. The wine leapt out of the bottle with the freshness and agility of a long imprisoned genie. I have the bottle before me, its label reducing rapidly to powder. I take out the cork and catch a slight remaining whiff of its aristocratic liveliness.
The foie gras was like several other perfect examples I've had - a duck liver, like a steak, is hard to spoil if the raw ingredient is of the highest quality and you don't overcook it. But the civet de li�vre was a revelation.I had eaten a similar recipe two nights before at Le Petit Marguery, a grand institution with an army of chefs. It was truly excellent; but this version, prepared by a single unassisted chef in a tiny kitchen, made bells ring and whistles blow. Towards the end of the evening another solitary diner arrived for a late meal and I was so well lubricated as to tell him that the hare was magnifique. He thanked me with evident sincerity on his way out.
I was still ensconced, working my way slowly through a souffl� so light that it threatened to lead me a merry chase around the dining room. (Earlier I had heard the ominous sound of an electric whisk, but the finished product showed no ill effects.) Meanwhile the music from the kitchen had changed to the love duet from Tristan und Isolde. I was well and truly infatuated.
Mssr. Gramond came out of the kitchen for a last goodbye. He told me proudly that he was a royalist. A royalist, in France, in 2001? It was no more incongruous than the ambience and the cuisine he was so staunchly defending. This is not a cheap establishment - my bill came to 767ff, about half of which was the memorable half-bottle. In Paris today, who is willing to pay that kind of money to eat in an ancient bistro which appears in none of the fashionable guides? Fran�ois Mitterand and the various bishops, professors and academicians who used to lunch here are long departed. So what keeps it going? Perhaps a handful of devotees who are determined to preserve this precious remnant of a disappearing tradition.

01.42.22.28.89

5 rue de Fleurus -- Paris

20021111 001722

Le Rughetta

Unknown

18th

Le Rughetta is an unpretentious and untouristy Montmartre restaurant, serving delicious, garlicy pizzas, salads and pasta every day of the week. The restaurant, with a traditional, Italian-style interior, is an excellent choice for dining with friends in an informal and relaxing environment. Service is friendly and prices are very reasonable.

01.42.23.41.70

41, rue Lepic -- Paris

20021027 062536

Le Laurent

2 Michelin stars

Champs-Elysees-Clemenceau

M-F 12-14 M-Sa 0730-22 Su June-Oct

Le Laurent restaurant is a Napoleon III style villa with a semi-circular dining room in salmon pink and two terraces at the end of Champs-Elysees

01.42.25.00.39 01.45.62.45.21

41, ave. Gabriel -- Paris

20021026 032936

Les Bouchons de Fran�ois Clerc

Unknown

17th

Fran�ois Clerc�s bouchons (the name of a traditional Lyonnais restaurant-bar) have captivated the French capital. Some have beautiful terrasses for dining alfresco, while the rue de l�Hotel branch has no terrace but a wooden beamed interior, typical of traditional Lyonnais restaurants. On the menu are traditional specialities from Lyon such as cannelles (a kind of eggy pastry that soaks up the flavour of fish or pork sauces), as well as standard bistro fare. An added boost is the wine � sold at cost price.

01.42.27.31.51

23 rue de la Terrasse -- Paris

20021027 062536

Pharamond

Unknown

Louvre

Closed Su mid-July--mid-Aug. No lunch M

1er

A Les Halles landmark since its founding in 1870. No one would dare touch the polychrome tiles and mosaics, mirrors, and handsome woodwork, or the classic bistro menu, with such Norman specialties as scallops in cider, grilled meats, tripes � la mode de Caen (tripe stew), and souffl�ed potatoes

01.42.33.06.72

24, rue de la Grande Truanderie, -- Paris

20021006 152826

CHEZ GEORGES

Unknown

Closed Sunday

This classic Parisian bistro never disappoints : a classic endive salad full of crispy bacon ; great duck with wild cepe mushrooms; perfect fries and meaty steaks; and delicious Brouilly to wash it all down.

01.42.60.07.11

1, rue de Mail -- Paris

20021124 160215

Cafe Angelina

Unknown

Tuilleries

M-F 9-19 SaSu 9-1930

1er

Cafe Angelina is the grand old madame of the cafe houses in Paris also thanks to its neo-rococo interior design, the hot chocolate is famous as well as the pastries

01.42.60.82.00

226, rue de Rivoli -- Paris

20021026 032936

Le Petit St-Beno�t

Unknown

Luxembourg

Unknown

6th Arrondissement

This bare-bones bistro has been nurturing poor students and travelers for more than 125 years. Classics of the cuisine bourgeoise are served by frequently sassy waitresses in a communal atmosphere. Try veal roast, blanquette, or hachis Parmentier (ground-beef-and-mashed-potato pie)

01.42.61.20.60

11, rue St-Beno�t -- Paris

20021006 152826

Le Safran

Unknown

Tuilleries

Unknown

1st

Caroll Sinclair's bistro has the feel of a well-oiled machine in which both the virtues and the slight defects seem practiced. It's been twenty years since, in another location, she offered her first "surprise" menu based on the day's market offerings; this is still available as an alternative to the conventional a la carte selections. Everything on offer is "biologique", and this too was a feature well before it became fashionable.
The d�cor, as the name suggests, is a deep yellow, with corresponding table linen and primitive paintings on the wall which feature the same vibrant color.
Her front-of-house salesman Tom, the m�itre d', set and maintained a tone of high jollity, chatting volubly with the diners and later leading a Happy Birthday chorus for a celebrating couple. As the evening progressed the conversational buzz was more that of a successful party than of a public dining room.
Tom is also an ardent salesman for the bistro's organic produce, prominently mentioned in the window. (There are organic wines in the modestly priced list.) I would like to think that it was the high proportion of health-minded diners who were responsible for the remarkably low smoke density, but this is probably wishful thinking - Tom said that the usual proportion of smokers to non-smokers is about half-and-half. At any rate, the young lady at the adjoining table didn't light up until the end of their meal, and only after asking permission.
I ordered a la carte and Mary opted for the "surprise", which turned out to be that we were served almost exactly the same courses. To start, there was a pur�ed seafood soup with safron (of course) and a trace of cumin. It was delicious and, since it contained a large proportion of shellfish, quite unlike the usual soupe de poissons.
Our main courses were also surprisingly similar, though with no complaint from either of us. My choice was that great classic, gigot de sept heurs. It was probably lamb rather than mutton, but it had cooked to a consistency that could be cut with a fork and still maintain its shape, not separating into fibres.
In Britain, mutton is now difficult to obtain except from Hallal butchers. Mary was once informed that most of the mutton supply went to "hospitals, schools, prisons and the military". Lucky institutions! At Simpson's in the Strand, saddle of mutton was once the glory of the carving trolly, but it has long since been replaced by the more conventional leg of lamb.
Seven-hour leg of mutton is one of the great meat dishes of France and was intended, like coq au vin, boeuf a la bourguignonne - and Lancashire hot pot - to take advantage of the intense flavor of tough old animals (with whom I feel a strong affinity). It was encountered at the Auberge de l'Atre Fleuri in the Massif de Chartreuse by Roy Andries de Groot, who included it in his romantic memoir, Recipes from the Auberge of the Flowering Hearth. Alice Waters loved the book and made a pilgrimage to its locale, though she realized that her experience would not replicate the author's. More recently, The New Yorker's Paris correspondent Adam Gopnik made a disasterous attempt to cook it for Alice and used his failure to wryly comic effect. There is much culinary and cultural history behind these dishes, greatly enriching their flavor.
Mary's "surprise" proved to be a piece of beef, slow-cooked for a mere four hours. The flavor of the two meats was so similar as to remind us that the identity of a dish can often be influenced more strongly by the method than by the material. In this case, the slow carbonizing and caramelizing were the dominant factors.
With both our meat dishes came a round potato cake so voluptuous as to make us ask Caroll her secret. She told us at the end of the meal that the potatoes were baked in their skins on a bed of salt, then crushed and combined with cream before being quickly saut�ed.
Finally, for each of us there was a cr�me brul�e which emitted a resounding thwack when struck with a spoon. (One served to us recently in London had never seen a flame.)
At the end of the evening Caroll came out of the kitchen, took off her fedora, shook out her blonde hair to its full glorious length, and sat down for a chat. I was reminded of the ditty by Dorothy Parker, another practising bohemian:
As I was letting down my hair I met a man who didn't care. He didn't care again today - I love 'em when they get that way!
As if to make amends for the previous evening, our successive courses arrived on a slow boat from China. We sat down at eight; by the time we left it was nearing midnight. Tom explained apologetically that new staff were being trained, but he later hinted that the evening's leisurely schedule hadn't been unique. However, the dinner was worth lingering over. It was also a good opportunity for leisurely conversation; in our corner table for two by the window we were well away from the other diners and even at the height of the festivities we could talk without raising our voices.
My only other niggling criticism is that, if one can go by the enthusiastic entries in the guest book, the surprise menu seems to consist regularly of a few repeated dishes. Merely change the label to "specialty" and the objection disappears - many a bistro has survived for years by serving the same well- prepared dishes day after day. For that wonderful slow-cooked lamb and the potato cake I'd return again and again.

01.42.61.25.30

29 rue d'Argenteuil -- Paris

20021111 001722

Lucas Carton

3 Michelin stars

Madeleine

Tu-F 12-1430 M-Sa 20-2230

Alain Senderen�s three-Michelin-starred restaurant is at the pinnacle of Parisian gastronomy, situated in a grand fin de si�cle-setting in the chic place de la Madeleine, amid a wealth of posh shops. The first of the Michelin-starred restaurants to serve wine by the glass, Senderen believes that each dish deserves a wine to perfect its flavours. The wine list is outstanding with vintage Bordeaux from the 1940s. A wide variety of cigars is also on offer, another way of prolonging the pleasure of the meal. Dishes include pan-fried chicken with cep risotto, roasted duck with honey and spices, roasted lamb with aubergines or pan-fried lobster served with fried eggs.
*****
The Lucas Carton Restaurant has a superb Art Nouveau interior at the South end of the Place de la Madeleine, the combination of food and wine is high priority, so that the latter is served by the glass to accompany each course individually

01.42.65.22.90

9, place de la Madeleine -- Paris

20021026 032936

Maxim's

Unknown

Concorde / Madeline

Mon-Sat 12.30-2.15pm, 7.30-10pm (Tue-Sat in July & August)

Original belle-epoque decor, drinking champagne is de rigeur in the Maxim's Restaurant, owned and revived by Pierre Cardin, Edward VII, Callas and Onassis were guests, dark suit advisable, Bateau Maxim's excellent for trips on the Seine.
*****
A soup�on of nostalgia, written in 1997, which will enable you to visit Maxim's vicariously - the cheapest way and the best.
Lean times for Maxim's as gourmets say adieu - The [London] Daily Telegraph
Ah, Maxim's! In 1955 it was my first experience of a Paris restaurant. Though not rich, I was an American serviceman in England and therefore had more money in my pocket than was decent. When I read in an English paper that British Rail were offering soccer enthusiasts a cheap one-day excursion to Paris, arriving at 9 a.m. and leaving at midnight, I leapt at the opportunity. Not caring in the least who was playing whom, I donned my newly-tailored Kilgour French and Stanbury suit, together with appropriate accessories, and set off by train and ferry for the Center of Western Culture. (Football fans in those days were civilized human beings, and so they did not tear these glad rags from my presumptuous limbs. They merely expressed polite curiosity as to where I was going and wished me well.)
I knew that there were four things I had to do: lunch at Maxim's, race pell-mell around the Louvre, dine early at the Cafe de la Paix, and then saunter up the street to the Paris Opera. The rest would take care of itself. The opera that evening was a much-touted production of Rameau's Les Indes Gallantes (complete with shipwreck) which had sold out well into the future, but I had an unquestioning faith in the persuasive talents of the USO. It was not misplaced. Unaccustomed to being refused, they responded to my unique request with an immediately procured choice seat.
But first, there was Maxim's. I had taken the precaution of booking in advance - or rather, having a Francophile English friend do it for me. The maitre de must have been unimpressed by the callow American youth who appeared at the door, but my finery suggested that I was worth being reasonably polite to. The waiter who took my order was less deferential when I carefully selected the cheapest lunch that would stop me being forcibly ejected. When I refused the wine list, his nose went even further into the air. From then on, I was treated with the minimum respect that decorum demanded.
But I was impervious to insult. Not having been consigned to a far corner, I was able to bask vicariously in the glamour with which I was surrounded. An aspiring bourgeois gentilhomme, I had been outfitted so as not to attract attention to my gaucherie - so long as I did not open my mouth.
Today, whether arriving in a limousine or a tourist bus, I would be received with equal indifference so long as my credit card was honored. Even the Club des Cent - the last institution to keep Maxim's reputation barely alive - has finally deserted it. The following news item tells of its ultimate disgrace:
Lean times for Maxim's as gourmets say adieu
Susannah Herbert in Paris reports on the declining fortunes of a famous restaurant
The [London] Daily Telegraph November 11 1997
MAXIM'S, the faded Belle Epoque restaurant once considered the last word in Parisian sophistication, has lost its most faithful customers: the gourmets of the Club des Cent, a dining society that has met there to eat and ruminate three times a month for the past 30 years.
The club, whose distinguished members include the chef Paul Bocuse and the philosopher Jean-Francois Revel, has decided to defect to Ledoyen, a near-by Michelin rosetted restaurant on the Champs Elysees where both food and ambience are considered a cut above the tourist-filled Maxim's.
The defection, prompted by the temporary closure of Maxim's first-floor dining room for renovation, has unleashed a press onslaught on the restaurant, which was described yesterday as overpriced and dingy, with artificial flowers on the tables.
The charges have stung Pierre Cardin, the designer and Maxim's owner, into a counter-attack. "If anyone knows about flowers, it's me," he told Le Figaro yesterday. "I know what natural flowers are. However, people who make artificial flowers have a right to exist. They're true artists."
He angrily rejected all the accusations of falling standards printed in the standard restaurant guides. M Cardin, 75, himself a member of the Club des Cent, said that his fellow members were out of touch and suggested that they were not necessarily the kind of people he wanted in his restaurant.
"We are trying to attract the young. The Club des Cent ... can't see that Maxim's isn't just a place for the old. They forget that they've been replaced these days. Maxim's is about tomorrow, not yesterday. I don't just want fat cats. People come here for one of the most beautiful settings in the world, not simply to stuff themselves," he said.
The highly commercial M Cardin, who bought Maxim's in 1981 and licensed the name world-wide, setting up 13 branches and selling everything from menswear to tinned food under the Maxim's label, claims he is the victim of "sour" backbiters, envious of his success.
"Whatever I do, I'm always criticised. No one ever thanks me. As soon as I touch a banquette, I'm criticised. It's incredible..... Maxim's doesn't have rats any more, it used to have them. That's the difference I've made," he said, reciting a list of his achievements, which include branding cigars, spectacles, watches, champagne truffles and even a boat with the Maxim's name.
"The former owners, so-called professionals, never made anything of the brand," he added, implying that their lack of commercial nous was somehow unpatriotic. "Me, I work for France. These attacks make me laugh. My critics see me as some little cook, some little restaurateur. They muddle me up with other people.
"I'm a couturier, an academician, a chancellor - and pathetic creeps attack me," he said. "It's unbelievable."
What petit bourgeois arrogance!. Cardin has elevated commerce to the ultimate raison d'etre. By his logic, the Club des Cent should immediately repair to the nearest MacDonald's (of which Paris has so many) to toast their discrimination in Giant Pepsis.
Back in 1969, Waverley Root captured for all time what Maxim's was really about. As in the case of Delmonico's in the New World, food was merely an excuse. I append his brilliant summary.
From Waverley Root
Paris Dining Guide, New York, Atheneum, 1969
*** MAXIM'S 3, rue Royale, Se 265.27.94
Maxim's is not primarily a restaurant. It is a social phenomenon, preserving in the space age the atmosphere of the world of Edward VII. If European culture were studied in the same fashion as Touareg or Tonga Island culture, Maxim's would be crowded with anthropologists. It isn't. In any case, they couldn't afford it - without a foundation grant.
Maxim's is therefore inhabited by cafe society, holders of titles, celebrities of the entertainment world, big businessmen impressing customers on the expense account, and the richer varieties of snobs. These people eat expensively, but seldom very well. I suspect that they don't know much about food and don't care. Anyway, people don't go to Maxim's to eat. They go to see or be seen. They have an insatiable appetite for looking at each other.
You might enjoy going there to see once yourself (it is not necessarily habit-forming) - high-level slumming, one might say. The spectacle has its points. Maxim's still maintains the height of fin de siecle luxury (it celebrated its 75th anniversary in 1968), even to an orchestra which plays airs from The Merry Widow and provides, in the evening, music for dancing on a pocket-handkerchief-sized floor. Sem's caricatures of the notables of the vanished period may be seen here (you can view them more cheaply at Harry's New York Bar), since Sem (Georges Goursat) was a fixture here and did most of his sketching from his table.
The tone and character of Maxim's are preserved vigilantly by M. and Mme. Louis Vaudable, the second-generation proprietors (M. Vaudable's father bought Maxim's in 1931); by chef Alex Humbert, who can, and frequently does, produce top-level food; by the head waiter, Roger, here only since 1968, who shares with his opposite number at New York's 21 the ability to separate the U's from the non-U's with a single piercing glance; and by Mme. Paulette, perched halfway to heaven in the most inconveniently placed vestiaire known to architecture, who, like her opposite number at Sardi's, returns unerringly the wraps confided to her without benefit of identifying checks. (If you continue up the stairs which the cloakroom overhangs, you come to a bar and upperfloor dining room known as the Imperiale, not because it has any particular associations with emperors, but because this was the name for the upper deck of the duplex horse-drawn buses which flourished in Paris when Maxim's was young. Maxim's seems obsessed by public transport; the long corridor-like extension of the main dining room, considered a relatively undesirable location, is known as the Omnibus. I don't know what Maxim's will call the new dining room it has just opened one more floor up - the Jet?)
Maxim's has been a glittering name ever since the restaurant's original 19th-century proprietor, an Italian named Imoda, got into difficulties and sidestepped them by putting the place in the name of one of his waiters, Maxim. The present personnel seems unaware of this tidbit of history, and I also ran into blank incomprehension there when I tried to delve into the origin of a specialty in which the house takes particular pride. This is a cream-and-mussel soup, called Billy-by by Maxim's, but in Normandy, where I first encountered it, billi-bi. Its ingredients are consistent with a Norman origin, but actually it was invented at Maxim's and named for an American bon vivant, William B. Beebe, whose friends called him Billy B., pronounced, in French, Billy-by.
Let us not forget that there is food at Maxim's, even if it is not the primary attraction. Actually it is at the moment very good food, of the elaborate haute cuisine variety (as it should be at Maxim's prices), but if your prime interest is gastronomic, you might do better to walk a couple of blocks up the street to Lucas-Carton, where in my opinion the food (not exactly given away either) is superior and the setting is of the same period, though less lush. In this estimate I am pretty much alone. Michelin gives Maxim's three stars, its top rating. Kleber-Colombes marks it "a very great table," its top rating. Julliard awards it 17 points, its second-highest rating (Lucas- Carton gets 18). I suspect some of this is accounted for by glamour, rather than by gastronomy. After all, a few years ago Michelin dropped Maxim's from three stars to nothing at all, not even listing it, and later restored it, three stars and all, with no explanation either time. Then again Maxim's had a period when it invited guest chefs to take over for brief periods in turn, as bad a way to develop a great kitchen as employing a series of guest conductors is to develop a great symphony orchestra. These antics are not consistent with the maintenance of a great cuisine, and I have the impression that, in addition to these long-scale variations of quality, Maxim's can also be uneven even from meal to meal or, perhaps more exactly, from dish to dish. Perhaps the help loses interest if you refrain from ordering sole Albert, lobster Newburg, chartreuse de perdreau or the like, along with caviar by the ladle-full if you can afford it. The food editor of Le Monde, operating on the theory that a really great restaurant should do everything perfectly, even the humblest dish, once put the three-star restaurants to the test of starting a meal in each with salade de tomates (which in France is simply sliced tomatoes, no lettuce). He gave the worst mark to Maxim's, for the poorest dish at the highest price.
Of course, Maxim's is not the place to go if your mouth is watering for sliced tomatoes. You should eat and drink consistently with the general atmosphere, and you can do so very well. If I do not rate it as high as some others, at least I place it among the top score of restaurants in Paris. Maxim's does not let it go at snob value, as some luxurious restaurants do. It comes very close to the heights, and it has a notable cellar, which is especially meritorious since it has the sort of clientele which seems not to know that there are other wines than Champagne. If you are one of those who prefer Bordeaux or Burgundy, Maxim's can provide precious bottles for you.
Evening dress is obligatory at Maxim's on Fridays. This concentrates the dog-paddlers of the social swim there on that day, which they imagine, because of this rule, must be the right time to be seen at Maxim's. Thus room is left for the upper crust (Maxim's style) to frequent their favorite restaurant on its really chic day, which is Tuesday (many people do dress on that day, though there's no rule about it). The prices are no higher Tuesdays and Fridays than any other day, but how could they be? In this respect, at least, Maxim's is tops. After all, somebody has to pay for an orchestra able to play the latest hits from Frou-Frou.
LAST-MINUTE: Because so many Parisians nowadays spend their weekends in the country, Maxim's may shortly shift its obligatory formal- dress evening to Tuesday, serving on Fridays an early "country dinner," where tweedy customers can eat before taking off. So check before you dress.
Very expensive. Closed Sundays. Service until well after midnight. You must reserve. English spoken.
Goodbye Maxime's. Goodbye Belle Epoque. I almost wish I missed you.

01.42.65.27.94

3 rue Royale -- Paris

20021026 032936

Minims

Unknown

Madeline, Concorde

Unknown

8eme

Minim's is Maxim's `little brother'. A comfortable brasserie / bistro, which totally to my surprise had an almost exclusively French clientele the day I visited. I had expected `tourists only' given the location and scene, and was pleasently surprised to find `locals', people who worked in the fancy shops of Rue Faubourg St. Honore, for example, there for a lunch break. They served an incredible number of orders of the steak tartare while I was there, and everything we tried on the menu ranged from just fine to very good. Service was also pleasant and prompt. The form is a "brasserie-salon de th�"

01.42.65.91.77

7, rue Royale -- Paris

20021117 070412

Bistrot de l�Etoile

Unknown

17th

Parisian brasseries have become a little old fashioned. Bistros are now all the rage, filling up late at night, as meals, such as duck foie gras with rocket salad, are served until 2330/2400, well after traditional restaurants have closed. Among the most popular are the bistros of haute cuisine chef, Guy Savoy, where the atmosphere is best described as chic decontract� � smart but relaxed � and prices are lower than in the parent, Michelin-starred restaurant.

01.42.67.25.95 or 01.42.27.88.44

13, rue Troyon or 75, ave. Niel -- Paris

20021027 062536

Baracane

Unknown

Bastille

Closed Sat. lunch, Sun

4th

The owner oversees the menu, full of the robust specialties of his native southwest France, including rabbit confit, veal tongue, and pear poached in wine and cassis. This small, simple place is one of the best values in the Marais district; a reasonable dinner menu and cheaper menu at lunch keep the Baracane solidly affordable. Service is friendly. MC, V. Reservations advised.
*****
Surrealism envelopes every aspect of Paris life. Who would have thought that a futuristic hi-tech toilet, a drunken derelict and an elegant bit of graffiti . . . but I�m getting ahead of myself. It was the first of this unlikely trio that led me to Baracane, the bistro which is an offshoot of the excellent if over decorated modern restaurant, l�Oulette. The bistro is less pretentiously and therefore more comfortably outfitted with bentwood chairs, framed pictures scattered about the beige grasscloth-covered walls, bright yellow tablecloths and a red carpet which has seen better days.
Unlike the menu. The hure de cochon [pig�s head cheese] was robust without being overlyaggressive and was served with pain levain of a standard equal to Kayser�s. The magret de canard roti which followed was absolutely exemplary. The waitress informed me pleasantly but unequivocally that it could be served either rare or medium � there was no other alternative. Shades of Nico Ladenis! Mine was in fact very rare, but with a tenderness one associates with long slow cooking. It was finely complemented by the potatoes, which had been thinly sliced and then well roasted with lots of duck fat and garlic � sublime!
The 230ff menu included any half bottle one wanted from the extensive wine list. I chose a 1997 Madiran from Chateau de Diusse and was not disappointed � the southwest origins of the chef show up in his cellar as well as his kitchen. The tourti�re aux pommes was a delicious textural contrast of soft baked apple with a crisp topping of crumpled filo pastry which shattered under the spoon
In cabinets around the cash register near the door was a large assortment of preserves, confits, wines, spirits other proprietary comestibles which could be purchased at the end of the meal. It was such a homely little establishment that this didn�t feel at all out of place. In fact, I had been eyeing an old armagnac all evening and treated myself to a snifter of it with my coffee.
All that liquid had to go somewhere, so I retired to the single-sex toilet in the courtyard. I had forgotten that it was anything out of the ordinary and so I was amazed to be greeted by a gleaming monolithic structure as commanding as the black plinth to which the cavemen make obeisance in the opening of Kubrick�s 2001. Fortunately I didn�t need to sit down. I did the necessaries and then reached my hand out towards what appeared to be the operating switch. The whole structure immediately sprang into life with an ominous hum, a section of the rear coming out over the seat, grabbing it and proceeding to rotate it under a sterilizing ultraviolet glow. The seat, constructed of flexible hollow plastic, appeared to be writhing in agony. After a long minute it was released and the clamp receded back into the structure of the upright tank. Had I been a primitive tribesman I would have fallen to my knees in an act of worship. And if I had inadvertently begun the ritual while occupying the seat . . .
The journey back to my apartment was partly by way of the Metro�s Route 1, whose new trains are constructed as a long continuous passage from car to car. Just inside the door through which I was about to enter an old drunk in filthy rags was sprawled on the floor. I moved along the platform to the next door and found a seat. After a few minutes two attractive, elegantly- dressed girls came along the aisle, stopped just in front of me and took out portfolios in which they had been sketching the miserable wretch in graphic detail. They compared their drawings, commenting on each other�s technique. When they saw me looking at them they smiled conspiratorially.
At the next station I got out and walked to the platform where I would catch my next train.Thinking about how deeply art was imbedded in the structure of everyday Paris life, I glanced across the tracks at the far wall. A large expanse of white in an advertising poster had presented an open invitation to graffiti, but not in this instance the sort of crude scrawl or bold colorful lettering one usually sees in an urban setting. Rather, it was a delicate line drawing of a tortured face, a Rimbaud or Baudelaire of the imagination, his mouth open in a scream of rage or pain. Ah, Paris! No wonder that between the World Wars we Americans came streaming to you from home towns where beauty was for sissies and culture an obscenity. For so many of us who came later, it was a generation of European refugees who opened our eyes, our ears and our palates.

01.42.71.43.33

38 rue des Tournelles -- Paris

20021006 152826

La Galerie 88

Unknown

Meals are served until 2400 daily.

4th

This smoky, little Moroccan restaurant, frequented by an arty young crowd, is just a step away from Notre-Dame, overlooking the quayside. The thick, split-pea soup is delicious � equally good is bread with cumin and the wide range of wholesome salads.

01.42.72.17.58

88, quai de l�Hotel de Ville -- Paris

20021027 062536

BENO�T

22 19 20 �73

Ch�telet-Les Halles

Unknown

4�me

"What tradition should always be" declare devotees of this "charming, classic bistro" (down to the "lace curtains on the windows") in the 4th, everyone's "favorite" for "excellent cassoulet", "true tarte Tatin" and other staples using ingredients "just caught or grown"; admittedly the "comfort food [comes] at Haute Cuisine prices", but when you factor in "friendly service" and a "sociable", "casual atmosphere" it's clear why fans (especially our American cousins) insist the "splurge" is "worth it."

01.42.72.25.76

20, rue St-Martin -- Paris

20021004 053354

Chez Omar

Unknown

Closed Sunday lunch.

Expect to wait at the bar before you're able to catch Omar's eye for a table. Once seated, order a mechoui or other Arab dishes and enjoy the friendly atmosphere. Open until midnight.

01.42.72.36.26

47, rue de Bretagne -- Paris

20021026 032936

Le Pamphlet

Unknown

Filles du Calvaire

Unknown

3rd

Le Pamphlet is housed in an old-fashioned space with dark quarter- sawed oak wainscoting and chairs. Also known as fumed oak because of its swirly patterns, this wood was once very popular with the frugal bourgeoisie on both sides of the Atlantic. Its comb grain, going across the rings, made it ideal for functional furniture, which gradually turned very dark and lasted forever. (Noel Coward thought it so metaphorically redolent that he made it the title of a play.)
When we ate there on Thursday evening, the sombre d�cor seemed to have affected the staff as well. Smiles were in short supply. We were only the second party to appear, but we were shown to our place with perfunctory haste, a pattern that would repeat itself throughout the evening. The arrival of a Le Parfait jar full of pat� held promise of amplitude but the meat itself was of a disappointing blandness.
Not so the rest of the meal. My starter was a small round courgette stuffed with shredded lamb, a tough flavorful cut that had been cooked thoroughly into submission. Neither courgette, meat, nor the accompanying lightly dressed salad leaves were in themselves particularly exciting, but they went together into a whole which came alive and was mutually complementary. Score one for the chef.
No sooner had we finished than the plates were whipped away and the waitress brought the silver for the next course. "Fish?" she snapped with perfunctory abruptness. We decided that this was not simply the French mode d'addresse for a Whiting and indicated where to leave the fish knife. She plopped it down and moved quickly out of the way of the next course, already winging its way towards us.
No fault to find with my skate, cooked in butter with capers in the classic method and served on a bed of fresh young broad beans which were nothing short of perfection. Mary's guinea fowl, however, betrayed the unseemly haste with which it had been prepared. Cooked at the edges, it was utterly raw and translucent near the bone - the makings, had we felt adventurous, of a perfect pintade tartare. Our experience thus far did not encourage us to risk a complaint.
We had been asked to select our dessert at the same time as our other courses. Apparently this was because the staff - both kitchen and front-of- house - were racing against the clock. Mary's excellent roasted peach and my fruit salad arrived almost in time to serve as condiments to our previous course. No longer eager to linger, we got into the proper spirit, polished off our dessert in record time and were able to return the spoons to the dishes just in advance of their hasty removal.
Coffee at night keeps Mary awake so she asked for her preferred alternative, which restaurants can often supply.
"Do you have drinking chocolate?" "No!" the waiter snapped, as though it were the silliest question he'd ever heard. "Do you have decaf?" "Yes!" "Do you have hot milk?" "NO!" in thunder. "Cream?" "Yes."
After this rapid game of Twenty Questions, my caf� noir arrived immediately together with Mary's decaf, to which a tiny blob of cream had been added. While we were debating whether to risk a thunderbolt by asking for a pitcher, l'addition was slapped on the table - unrequested. It made us so angry that we asked for a jug of milk and gloated that it was too late to charge us for it.
What would a psychiatrist make of the fact that the pictures on Le Pamphlet's walls are devoted exclusively to bull fighting? From the time we entered the ring to the moment the coup de gr�ce was administered was just under an hour. In that brief interval, actively prodded [sic] by the management, we had undergone an entire corrida from the paeillo to the suerte suprema, including along the way an appetizer and three courses plus coffee. The m�itre d' was awarded two tongues and a palate.
Do you think we'll rate a mention in Mundo Taurino?

01.42.72.39.24

38 rue Debelleyme -- Paris

20021111 001722

Web Bar

Unknown

3rd

Tucked away in the Marais, the Web Bar is connected to a trendy but casual clientele, keen for a bite to eat � the salads are extremely good � or to see an exhibition, experimental performance or poetry reading. The cafe-restaurant area is downstairs and computers line the walls on the second level � Internet access is available for FFr45/EUR7 (one hour) or FFr300/EUR46 (ten hours). A trendy address, there always seems to be a film crew catching the vibe or cultural happening.

01.42.72.66.55

32, rue de Picardie -- Paris

20021027 062536

AU BASCOU

Unknown

Closed Saturday lunch and Sunday

Owner Jean-Guy Lousteau cooks with the best ingredients of his native Basque country: incredibly moist and delicious baby lamb, fresh blood sausages (boudin de pays), wonderful tiny squid in ink (chipirons � l�encre), and marvelous ground veal with onions and Basque peppers (axoa de veau). A crazy-looking neighborhood bistro, with some good wines of the region.

01.42.72.69.25

38, rue R�amur -- Paris

20021124 160215

Bofinger

Unknown

Bastille

D 12-15 1830-25

4me

Quite a scene on a Saturday night, but not the kind of place to go to if you mind the fact that they accomodate their regulars to the detriment of the others who happen to be waiting for tables. The scene is amusing, but the food is quite ordinary and on a crowded evening the waiters seem to get lost for long periods of time. Recommendation: look in, but eat elsewhere.
***
This convivial Art Nouveau brasserie exudes the unique atmosphere of Paris, as the business community forgets about the office for an hour or two, while tucking into classics such as steak tartare, salade mixte or shellfish.
*****
Bofinger is the oldest Brasserie in Paris with a beautiful Art Nouveau interior which makes a superb experience at a reasonable price

01.42.72.87.82

5-7, rue de la Bastille -- Paris

20021026 032936

Chez Jenny

Unknown

(Le Marais/Beaubourg)

Unknown

3rd Arrondissement

Order the filling choucroute Jenny and a carafe of Alsatian wine, then sit back and watch the bustle at this large Alsatian brasserie decorated with museum-quality marquetry and woodwork. Waitresses in regional costume wend their way through many salons on two levels, serving up hearty fare. Though the clientele is not the chic crowd of some other brasseries, everyone's having just as much fun. AE, DC, MC, V. Reservations advised.

01.42.74.75.75

39 blvd. du Temple -- Paris

20021006 152826

Anahi

Unknown

An Argentine restaurant set in an old butcher shop, is sure to have atmosphere, but here they also have good food, Spanish wines and friendly service. Very popular with journalist and fashion people. About 40 euros.

01.42.77.41.65

49, rue Volta -- Paris

20021026 032936

L'Ambroisie

3 Michelin stars

St.-Paul / Bastille

Tue-Sat noon-1.30pm, 8-9.30pm Closed Sun., Mon., Aug., and mid-Feb.

4e(Le Marais/Ile St-Louis)

This tiny, romantic restaurant on the patrician place des Vosges is one of the best in Paris. Chef-owner Bernard Pacaud's refined, oft-imitated cuisine, including such dishes as mousse of red bell peppers and braised oxtail, is served in a jewel-like Italianate setting of flowers, tapestries, and subdued lighting.
The atmosphere at the place des Vosges, one of the most beautiful and intimate squares in Paris, exudes into the ultra chic L�Ambroisie, situated in a pukha h�tel particulier. Classic French cuisine is served to pure perfection in these refined interiors, decorated with rich tapestries. The menu changes according to the best fresh produce available and prices are, as to be expected in a three-Michelin starred establishment, steep. Wines are likewise expensive, but the range is exceptional
L'Ambroisie Restaurant is in the intimate town house Hotel des Lynes on the 17th century place des Vosges: it has a terrace and a stylishly elegant interior.

01.42.78.51.45

9 place des Vosges -- Paris

20021006 152826

La Fontaine Gourmande

Unknown

Filles du Calvaire

Unknown

3rd

We dined at the first Paris bistro of our holiday with the ideal companions - a romantic young Antipodean couple, professionals early in their respective careers, who had found not only proper employment, but also that impossible object of desire, a Paris flat. It was a small but atmospheric loft of the sort that makes artists turn green with envy and mothers throw up their hands in horror. By a happy coincidence of which we were unaware when we booked, La Fontaine Gourmande was only a couple of blocks away.
The rough stone walls, dark timbers, simple old furniture and somewhat bohemian decoration, including a scattering of unframed posters, might have led me to expect rough peasant cooking, but any incipient misapprehensions were corrected as soon as I sank my teeth into the escalope de foie gras de canard au sirop betterave. The concentrated beetroot juice was a perfect accent to as succulent a slice of foie gras as I've ever been served. It had that supernal lightness of texture which makes you hesitate to open your mouth for fear it will take flight. The terrine de foie gras de canard au Calvados was equally distinguished, with a creamy oleaginous smoothness that would have soothed the vocal chords of a weary Wagnarian tenor.
Next, magret de canard caram�lis� avec pommes confites au thym, another exercise in densely concentrated flavor. (I would cheerfully have eaten my way through the rest of the duck.) Accompanying all this, a decent Madiran. Writes Jancis Robinson, "Madiran can taste like a classed growth claret given the sort of Gascon twist needed to cope with magret de canard." This one coped very nicely.
We all went for the same desert, soup d'oranges de mon "Colonel". It consisted of pieces of orange floating in orange juice with a scoop of a sharp sorbet. and, I think, a touch of liqueur. After the two previous rich courses, the mouth felt thoroughly cleansed. My compliments to the Officers' Mess.
Service throughout the meal was informal and good-humored, everything arriving at the right interval and the right temperature, even after the other tables started filling up. We usually try to eat early - about seven-thirty - so as to get both chef and waitstaff at their best before the pressure starts piling on. If the waiter is inclined to be informative, this is the time it can be managed without neglecting the other diners. And any later enquiries about ingredients or methods are more likely to be answered accurately if we've already shown a serious interest.

01.42.78.72.40

11 rue Charlot -- Paris

20021111 001722

Terminus Nord

Unknown

Gare du Nord

Unknown

10th

Located just opposite the Gare du Nord, this bustling brasserie, which has seafood piled high outside, serves good bouillabaisse (fish soup), choucroute and French brasserie fare. Its clientele include locals and international travellers looking for a hearty meal after their Eurostar journey into the capital.

01.42.85.05.15

23 rue de Dunkerque -- Paris

20021027 062536

Casa Olympe

Unknown

Op�ra

Closed weekends and Aug

9th Arrondissement

Beginning in the 1970s, a few female pioneers began to break into the exclusive world of haute cuisine. Among them, Dominique Nahmias, alias Olympe, displays a rare creativity. The modern, no-frills dining room of her new restaurant below Montmartre is the setting for her limited but strong menu spotlighting masterful renditions of French dishes like steak tartare. This place is equally popular with both professionals and Montmartre hipsters. Service can be flighty and the atmosphere a bit clubby.

01.42.85.26.01

48 rue St-Georges -- Paris

20021006 152826

Le Carr� des Feuillants

2 Michelin stars

Tuilleries / Opera

M-F dinner Sa

1er

One of the least understood chefs in Paris, perhaps because he avoids snobbery at any cost, Alain Dutournier brought his love of meat and fine fresh ingredients from the Basque countries. Le Carr� des Feuillants is the place to enjoy a steak to remember. The wooden interior is cosy but stylish with Murano chandaliers and contemporary artwork. Specialities include roasted guinea fowl in a wild mushroom sauce or roasted lobster with garlic and pepper nougatine.
*****
The interior of the Carre des Feuillants Restaurant is a light mixture of trendy and traditional style and so is the cuisine, if you like the wine you can buy some bottles to take with you
(PW) Chef Alain Dutournier rarely disappoints in this warm and cozy setting: Try anything with oysters, scallops, foie gras, game or exquisite roast chicken. This is food from the heart, made with care and attention. Extraordinary wine list.

01.42.86.82.82

14, rue de Castiglione -- Paris

20021026 032936

Chez Pauline

Unknown

Louvre

Closed Sat. dinner, Sun., and 2 wks in Aug

1er

This restaurant near the Palais Royal has become a neighborhood institution. The setting, with wood-paneled walls, is warm and welcoming. Chef Andr� Gelin has been here for decades and his touch is sure and swift. Dishes are bourgeois, old-fashioned, and delicious; try the oysters in cream sauce. The wine list is filled with classic Burgundies. The lunch menu provides good value.

01.42.96.20.70

5 rue Villedo -- Paris

20021006 152826

L'Ardoise

Unknown

Concorde

Unknown

1st

When choosing a restaurant, one of the questions you might ask is, what is the social ambience � is this a place where I could enjoy a long conversation? A favorable answer may be in inverse proportion to its culinary pretensions. For instance, a quiet little bistro whose food is unfashionable is more likely to offer an underpopulated venue free of both auditory and atmospheric contamination. If you�re content with a decent coq au vin or boeuf bourguignon you may talk away the evening without once having to raise your voice or fan the smoke.
Paris is full of discriminating diners looking for a bargain, and so the best of the new bistros opened by aspiring young chefs are soon bursting at the seams. Now that so many of us Americans are staying at home � deluding themselves that they are safer on their own gun-strafed streets than in the air � the proprietor of a successful bistro may feel obliged to maximize his turnover while he is still fashionable.
L�Ardoise has won plaudits from Michelin, Gault-Millau, Time Out, Patricia Wells, Zagat, Great Eats, Emmanuel Rubin, the Hamburger�s Bistros of Paris, and even Jeffrey Steingarten, and so ex-Tour d�Argent chef Pierre Jay has been free to set the tone of his restaurant well into the future. Foresaking the upmarket predilections of his apprenticeship, he has opted to keep his prices low and maximize turnover in the Spartan surroundings in which he started.
On a Sunday night in late October I found the bistro overflowing with parties of intrepid Americans whose questions and comments suggested the coach tour rather than the Grand Tour. They were being bravely served by an army of pretty girls whose breathless demeanor and vague knowledge of the menu indicated that they had not been long on the job � successful graduates, perhaps, from a fast food chain.
True to its name, the bistro�s offerings were chalked onto large closely- written slates. My first choice, bisque de crustaces, was dark brown and intense with the flavor of shellfish, though lacking cro�tons. As soon as I got through it the bowl was whipped away and my next course set down, Saint-Pierre roti entier et fenouil confit. The fish was fresh and the sauce well reduced and compatible, but the dish was barely warm, indicating that it had been completed well in advance of my finishing the soup. If I had lingered rather than tucking in with the determination of a lone hungry diner, the fish would have congealed before it reached me
For dessert, soup de raisins et framboises had sounded appealing. What actually arrived was cr�me brul�e. I didn�t bother to point out the error � it was in fact a perfectly good cr�me brul�e and I didn�t want to make trouble for the waitress, who was agreeable though harrassed. Coffee? I decided to find a cheap joint where I could sip it at the bar, confident that I wasn�t delaying a hungry couple standing outside.
As I left there were indeed several parties waiting, among whom I heard the first fluent French of the evening not spoken by a waitress. �Danger!� I exclaimed, pointing through the open door. �Tous am�ricains!� They smiled indulgently.

01.42.96.28.18

28 rue du Mont-Thabor -- Paris

20021111 001722

Grand Vefour

3 Michelin stars

Palais-Royal

Mon-Fri 12.30-2pm, Mon-Thu 8-10pm

1er

The Grand Vefour Restaurant has a great authentic interior located in the arcades of the Palais-Royal, do not miss the golden frog legs, past guests have been Victor Hugo or Jean Cocteau

01.42.96.56.27 01.42.86.80.71

17 rue de Beaujolais -- Paris

20021026 032936

Caf� Runtz

Unknown

(Stock Exchange)

Unknown

2nd Arrondissement

Next to the Salle Favart in a neighborhood once full of theaters, this friendly bistro with rich boiseri (woodwork) and photos of customers from the entertainment industry serves up an Alsatian feel and cuisine. Tasty, hearty dishes include Gruy�re salad, onion tart, choucroute, and fresh fruit tarts. Order a pichet (pitcher) of Riesling or other Alsatian wine. AE, MC, V. Reservations advised. Closed weekends and Aug.

01.42.96.69.86

16 rue Favart -- Paris

20021006 152826

Juvenile's

Unknown

(Louvre)

Unknown

1st Arrondissement

The little brother of the fashionable Willi's Wine Bar, just around the corner, is a friendly, unpretentious place. It serves various hot dishes and some copious salads, including the house chicken salad, which makes an excellent light meal when accompanied by lentils or an assortment of tapas. The wine list is impressive and the waitstaff young and friendly. MC, V. Reservations advised. Closed Sun.

01.42.97.46.49

47 rue de Richelieu, -- Paris

20021006 152826

Relais de l'Adour

Unknown

Nation

Unknown

12e

A simple typical Paris neighborhood restaurant. Distinguished principally by the fact that is has a genuine common Parisian feel. No tourists would bother to go here, so I enjoy it as it really makes me feel like Paris. Food is good and prices are reasonable.

01.43.07.28.73

270, rue du Faubourg Saint Antoine -- Paris

20021004 064025

La Coupole

Unknown

Vavin

Mon-Sun 7.30am-2am

14e

La Coupole Brasserie was established in 1927, this is one of the grand old brasseries, including restaurant, bar and dance hall, with Hemingway and Cocteau as famous guests

01.43.20.14.20 01.43.35.46.14

102 boulevard du Montparnasse -- Paris

20021026 032936

Cr�perie de Josselin

Unknown

4th

This Breton cr�perie, serves delicious savoury and sweet pancakes, including ham and cream, spinach and egg with black pepper or banana and chocolate. Always packed and full of atmosphere, the restaurant, decorated in a traditional-Breton style, is a good budget option.

01.43.20.93.50

67 rue Montparnasse -- Paris

20021027 062536

La Cagouille

Unknown

Open daily, La Cagouille�s last dinner service is at 2130

14th

Chef Gerard Allemandous� speciality is fresh fish and seafood, simply but beautifully served. The extensive wine list enhances the flavours. Guests can choose dishes such as tuna steak wrapped in smoky bacon or mussels cooked on a hot griddle. In summer, there is a lovely terrace.

01.43.22.09.01

10 place Constantin-Brancusi -- Paris

20021027 062536

La Timonerie

Unknown

Cardinal Lemoine

Closed SuM

5th Arrondissement (Latin Quarter)

Only a few steps along the quai from La Tour d'Argent, this small, elegant restaurant avoids all theatrics and sticks to fine cooking. Philippe de Givenchy works with a small staff and his creations are consistently interesting and well-executed. In his hands, a simple dish such as rosemary and lemon mackerel is turned into a high-class eating experience.

01.43.25.44.42

35 quai de la Tournelle -- Paris

20021006 152826

Les Bookinistes

Unknown

Luxembourg

Closed for lunch Saturday and Sunday

6th Arrondissement

Talented chef Guy Savoy's fifth bistro annex---his first on the Left Bank---is a big success with the locals. The cheery postmodern room is painted peach, with red, blue, and yellow wall sconces, and it looks out on the Seine. The menu of French country cooking changes seasonally, and might include a mussel and pumpkin soup, ravioli stuffed with chicken and celery, or baby chicken roasted in a casserole with root vegetables. The reasonable prices are challenged by a somewhat pricey wine list. The service is friendly and efficient.
A few years ago Guy Savoy, a chef who has a two-star restaurant named after himself, decided to extend his domain by creating gastronomic bistrots that would serve simply cooked, excellent food, at affordable prices in a friendly atmosphere. This is one of these bistrots. Les Bookinistes is facing a row of bouquins, or book stalls, on the Left Bank. Inside, there is a sense of fun and ease that is reinforced when you receive one of the warmest welcomes in Paris. The set lunch menu of three courses is 25 euros, a seriously good price for the quality of the food on offer in a restaurant that prizes simplicity, flavor and fun over pomp and ceremony.

01.43.25.45.94

53, quai des Grands Augustins -- Paris

20021006 152826

La Bastide Od�on

Unknown

Luxembourg

Closed weekends

6th Arrondissement

This little corner of Provence in Paris is just a few steps from the Luxembourg Gardens. The cooking of southern France continues to increase its popularity in the capital, and this sunny yellow room with old oak tables and chairs is one of the best places to sample the soothing Mediterranean food. Chef Gilles Ajuelos, formerly of Michel Rostang's kitchen at Le Bistrot d'� C�t�, is a fine fish cook who also prepares wonderful pastas, such as tagliatelle piston (basil and pine nuts) with wild mushrooms, and main courses like peppered tuna steak with ratatouille or roast cod with capers. The best bet on the slightly pricey wine list is the red C�teaux du Tricastin.

01.43.26.03.65

7 rue Corneille -- Paris

20021006 152826

Polidor

Unknown

Od�on

Unknown

6th arr

"Polidor" comes from a Greek word meaning "having rich gifts" or "well- endowed". It is an appropriate name for an open-hearted, open-handed bistro whose history spans more than a century and a half. Cutting no corners on time or ingredients, it still serves up traditional fare at prices so reasonable that it appears in the Time Out Paris Dining Guide, not under Bistros but under Budget. If they thought like modern restaurateurs, they would lower their standards and double their charges, confident that they would increase their custom.
Still identified on its fa�ade as the CREMERIE RESTAURANT POLIDOR, it began by serving butter, eggs and cheese to women. As the years went by it was discovered by succeeding generations of artists and writers, always on the lookout for good cheap food and a welcoming host. Verlaine, Joyce, Hemmingway and Val�ry occupied its tables and in the late 40s the inheritors of Alfred Jarry's College of Pataphysics held their "scientific dinners" there. (If they were anything like the banquets in his play, Ubu Roi, it must have taken a long time to clean up afterwards.)
If you don't like cigarette smoke, go on a hot summer day and arrive at opening time (noon). This will get you seats at the near end of the long central table, just inside the open door. Frank, Barbara and I were so fortunate as to discover this by accident, which gave us the opportunity for a long, leisurely, coughless luncheon.
A very satisfying thick slice of solid foie gras was followed by a braised stew whose manner of construction leapt out of the pot - slow-braised guinea fowl with lardons of well-cured bacon, cabbage, carrot, onion, garlic and mushrooms, whose-red-wine-based sauce had reduced to a dense black essence, but without any of the added thickening agents that American restaurants are so fond of. A couple of days later, in the Woodrow Wilson market ("The world must be made safe for gastronomy!") I would buy a formidable hunk of similarly venerable bacon to reproduce the recipe at home.
Finally, a generous pot of the richest chocolate mousse imaginable. I had to stake out a claim to my fair share.
A return visit the following day yielded a dozen snails in garlic butter, (ample, juicy specimens, not the usual hard little pellets) and exemplary confit of duck with gratin�ed potatoes, brown and crisp on top and squishy underneath. Frank and Barbara were both delighted with their courses, which I did not make note of, being unwilling to put down my knife and fork.
Why is this preeminent exemplar of artistic and gastronomic history denied a mention in most of the guides? Not a word in Gault-Millau or Michelin of course, though the latter gives three crossed forks/spoons to the 18th century literary caf� Le Procope, now swallowed up by the Flo Group and regurgitated as a trappe de touriste.

01.43.26.95.34

41 rue Monseur-le-Prince -- Paris

20021111 001722

Chez Jim

Unknown

Various

Unknown

14th

Would you like to join a Paris dining club, sans membership fee, that meets every Sunday? It�s an institution that has flourished for three decades where, for just over a hundred francs, you can mix ad lib with a distinguished company of regulars and visiting celebrities while tucking into unlimited quantities of decent grub and drinkable wine. In summer it�s an outdoor party held in a picturesque private street that has been home to Henry Miller, Salvador Dali, Juliette Greco and Francoise Sagan, and it�s only a phone call away. Dial Paris 01.43.27.17.67, ask for Jim and make your reservation. Groucho was wrong � this is one club worth joining that *would* have you as a member!
As usual there�s a catch. Such a ludicrously uncommercial institution is unlikely to outlive its founder. It was dreamt up and perpetuated by a living anachronism, an artist-promoter with the mindset of an archetypal hippie but minus the sartorial paraphernalia. Jim Haynes� eccentricity has flourished, not in his public image, but inside his head, where it has produced a series of unique institutions which in turn have spawned a succession of fruitful traditions. Starting with the Paperback bookstore and the Traverse Theatre in Edinburgh, he has been a cultural Johnny Appleseed, an American expatriate scattering his brainchildren across Europe�s fertile ground. His next project is a Paris Arts Club with its own performance and dining facilities. Want to be a founder member? Give Jim a call.
Jim could have been a great politician. Instead, much more importantly, on Sunday nights he�s a great m�itre d�. Ensconced on a stool (enstooled on a sconce?) in the kitchen, he greets everyone by name as they arrive and introduces them unhesitatingly to everyone in the immediate circle. Expect to meet at least one stranger you�ll want to stay in touch with � when I first went for dinner several years ago I met a TV producer from San Francisco who put me in touch with people who were helpful to a project of mine when I went over a couple of months later.
The food is better than one has any right to expect from such a laid-back operation. There seems to be a flexible core of cooks who regularly produce decent peasant stews in huge pots. One evening last summer a couple of big bowls of p�t� and a terrine had been bought in; they weren�t cheap rubbish, but were well up to good deli standard. As usual, OK wine, beer and soft drinks. And there were two homemade desserts and decent coffee. All this for a price competitive with the cheapest of Paris bistros. With volunteer labor, there�s a modest profit, which goes to charity.
When I�m in Paris, Sunday nights are reserved for dinner Chez Jim. See you there.

01.43.27.17.67

Various -- Paris

20021111 001722

La Grande Mosqu�e de Paris

Unknown

5th

This beautiful mosque, close to the Jardin des Plantes and Natural History Museum, is an exotic setting for a spicy North African couscous or grillades with frites, followed by a tiny glass cup of refeshing mint tea, accompanied by sweet pastries, packed full with honey and pistachios. No alcohol is served.

01.43.31.38.20

39 rue Geoffroy St Hilaire -- Paris

20021027 062536

Au Bon Coin

Unknown

Les Gobelins

Unknown

5th

There is a confraternity of restaurants which brings together those which share certain characteristics. Their waiters, if they are settled into their jobs, will know the places where they will feel comfortable dropping in for a meal on their day off. True to form, one of the waiters at my old favorite, L'Ecurie, had recommended a near-by bistro a short block off one of the busiest streets in Montparnasse. "It is good value," he assured me, "good food and very reasonable."
True to its name, Au Bon Coin was located at the T-junction of rue de la Collegiale and rue du Petit-Moine, just off the avenue des Gobelins. A Henry James reader would call it The Jolly Corner, particularly on an unseasonably warm day in late October. At lunchtime the sun was shining brightly on the north side where a few small tables had been set along the sidewalk. One was already occupied by two women with a baby carriage; at another, bare of cloth or cutlery, a couple of local lads were having a beer and a cig. Not a tourist in sight - you won't find it in a single Paris restaurant guide. (If I had a column in an influential periodical, I'd think twice about blowing its cover.)
There was one free table set for lunch and I promptly took it. I chose from among the day's specials: first, a salad of lettuce, potato, chicken and endive; and then - quite outstanding - generous hunks of tender venison saut�ed with mushrooms, carrots, leeks and herbs and served with a rich pur�e of potato, carrot and cream. A glass of Gewurtztraminer brought the bill to just over 100ff.
Indoors, the restaurant was filling up with regular customers who were being greeted by name at the door and warmly embraced. Before I left I stepped inside to have a look. There was the atmosphere of a private party rather than a public dining room. Like L'Ecurie, every available space was taken up with some relic or momento or curiosity - the bistro's busy life set out in curious fragments which could keep an archaeologist working for a lifetime. Long may it prosper.

01.43.31.55.57

21 rue de la Collegiale -- Paris

20021111 001722

Petit Marguery (Le)

20 14 18 �50

Les Gobelins

Closed Sunday and Monday

13e

A successful restaurant with a long history often has an air of fantasy � a touch of the Disneylands � resulting from the contrast between its time-honored identity and the punters who come to wallow in its atmosphere. The authentic patrons, if any, become part of the scenery. When I lunched in the huge Stiftskeller deep in the vaults of St. Peter�s in Salzburg, purportedly founded by Benedictine monks in the 9th century, a nearby table was occupied by half a dozen wheezing burghers who might have waddled straight out of a Breugel painting. I was discreetly informed by the waiter that they had eaten there every day from time immemorial.
But les fr�res Cousin�s Le petit Marguery was another story. The corps of waiters was a well-oiled machine, greeting newcomers with easy but not excessive familiarity. I was one of the first to arrive and so could watch the restaurant fill up with solid middle-aged Frenchmen and their elaborately decorated wives. Guide books? Superfluous. They had been coming here for years.
And no wonder. Although this is the last of a once flourishing chain, there are no signs of terminal decadence. Thirty years ago Waverley Root was commending them for offering Parisians such exotic Proven�al specialties as soupe au pistou and tapenada. Today the surviving branch comes into its own during the game season. With every Frenchman who isn�t actually bedridden out firing his blunderbuss at anything that moves, there�s no shortage of raw material and the trophies are more likely to end up in the pot than on the wall.
Thus, showing up for dinner on a warm mid-October evening, I had no choice but to order the menu d�gustation, special gibier at 450ff. It began luxuriously with four of their p�t� and terrine specials: pur�e de grouse au geni�vre, a creamy blend of grouse meat and juniper berries
terrine au faison [pheasant] et foie gras � how could it go wrong?
terrine au li�vre et foie gras, a divine foretaste of the royal hare to come later
hure au sanglier, head cheese of wild boar
Le petit Marguery is famous for its roasted scallops and also for its saut�e of wild mushrooms. The next course included them both: po�l�e de coquilles Saint-Jacques aux c�pes. Would I last through five more rounds? I retired to the corner for a going over by my trainer: sorbet citron vert au marc de Gewurtztraminer, a bracingly alcoholic lime sorbet that was like a slap across the face with a wet towel. Then back into the ring.
Next, demi perdreau roti sur canap�s, half a small [thank heaven!] roast pheasant. What were the canap�s? I can�t remember. They certainly weren�t vegetables � the nearest I came all evening to anything green was an occasional decorative wisp of curly lettuce, which I devoured like a starving vegan.
Finally, the pi�ce de r�sistance, to which I offered no resistance whatsoever: li�vre � la royale �Fa�on Poitevine�. It was a knockout. This is a variation on the classic bourgeoisie dish in which a wild hare is boned, stuffed with foie gras and truffles, and braised in red wine and brandy thickened with the hare�s blood and liver. And all washed down with a half bottle of Saint-Joseph Grand Pomp�e. If there were anything to the ancient doctrine of likenesses, I would by now be an incredibly virile foodie.
I couldn�t do justice to le plateau de fromage, contenting myself with a small wedge of fresh goat cheese. As for the dessert, I ate something unremembered in a trance and came to over a demitasse of strong coffee. In the end, it was no contest � like the social climbing heiress, I�d gone down for the count.
*****
Stewarded by the "great" Cousin brothers, who "are always there", this "exceptional" spot near Les Gobelins is admired as an "authentic Parisian bistro" where you can count on "super Lyonnais" cooking and also "have a very good time"; the "traditional atmosphere" makes a "warm" backdrop against which to sample "remarkable game" and mushrooms (in season) while being babied by "avuncular service"; in fact, there's "nothing `petit' about this place -- except the prices."
(PW) For more than 20 years the Cousin brothers -- Jacques, Michel and Alain � have provided us some great moments at table: platters of perfectly seared and seasoned mushrooms, dreamy raie � skate � in mustard sauce, and game in the fall and winter months. The 1930�s brasserie-like restaurant is always bustling and fun.

01.43.31.58.59

9, bd de Port-Royal -- Paris

20021004 053354

LE DOME

Unknown

Open daily

14e

I could dine at Le Dome once a week, feasting on platters of briny oysters and their incomparable sole meuni�re. Try the Quincy, a white that is made for fish and shellfish.

01.43.35.34.82

108, boulevard du Montparnasse -- Paris

20021124 160215

La M�re Agit�e

Unknown

Raspail

Unknown

14th

La M�re Agit�e is a back-street Paris bistro noted for its bonhomie and its punning cognomen. With a low-cost no-choice menu, it figures prominently in lists of recommended eateries. There's singing on Wednesday night and all week long there's a camaraderie among the out-of-towners who assume that they share a social impetus and a love of the honest peasant cuisine which is fast disappearing.
The burly, shiny-headed host is an unashamed self-booster. "We French don't appreciate real food any more," he proclaims to the whole room. "No butter, no fat - and we want tiny portions. We're ruining our own country. It's the tourists that keep me in business."
But there's an added dimension to this attractively quirky eccentricity. Many of the regulars are Royalist ultra-Catholics and the Wednesday night singing consists of stirring right-wing marching songs. An artist who works as a desk clerk at a hotel a few doors away tells me that the host and his wife, who does the cooking, are ardent fascists of the ultra-Le Pen variety. The glint in his eyes when he speaks of France's degeneracy has more to do with miscegenation than with menus.
This is a phenomenon that one encounters frequently in rural France. Conservatism in matters of cuisine often goes hand-in-hand with reactionary politics. It's easy to see why. The forces of culinary corruption apparently come from abroad - Brussels bureaucrats, multinational corporations, foreign countries and their invading immigrants. And it's the small producers, not the giants of agribusiness, who are seen to suffer.
But there are countervailing forces from the left as well as from the right. The Socialist activist Jos� Bov�'s attack on a McDonald outlet has drawn support from a wide political spectrum which has extended even into the upper reaches of government. In the past, when a high official was seen shaking hands with a convicted criminal, it was usually an embezzler, not a protestor.

01.43.35.56.64

21 rue Campagne-Premi�re -- Paris

20021111 001722

Ebauchoir (L')

15 10 12 �30

Faidherbe-Chaligny

Unknown

12�me arrondissement

"Pleasantly authentic" "Classic French" cooking "contrasts with the [trendy] clientele" at this bistro near the Bastille; "young professional servers" and "good value for the money" ensure it's "worth going out of your way to find" this "slightly hidden" "neighborhood place."

01.43.42.49.31

43-45, rue de Citeaux -- Paris

20021004 064025

Grandes Marches (Les)

15 16 16 �48

Bastille

Unknown

12�me

This recently redone brasserie with a "chic and slightly cold" decor by star architect Christian de Portzamparc and his wife Elizabeth is "the perfect place for pre-and post-Op�ra" Bastille dining confirm culture-vultures who applaud its "wonderful seafood platters" and "professional" service; but critics call the cooking "boring", suggesting that its "unusual location" is its main plus.

01.43.42.90.32

6, pl de la Bastille -- Paris

20021004 064025

Le Train Bleu

Unknown

Gare de Lyon

Mon-Sun 1130-15 19-23

12e

Le Train Bleu is the restaurant where the wealthy Parisians in the past met before boarding their trains to the Cote d'Azur or Italy - the Belle Epoque frescos on the wall get you in the holiday mood, go here for a full meal or just a Kir Royal at the Big Ben Bar

01.43.43.09.06

Place Louis Armand / Gare du Lyon -- Paris

20021026 032936

Biche au Bois (A la)

19 11 17 �36

Gare de Lyon

Unknown

12�me

"Hefty eaters" "thoroughly enjoy themselves" in the "convivial" (if "loud and smoky") dining room of this "typically Parisian" "institution" (established 1925) by the Gare de Lyon; it's "a must for game" and other Classic French "food that's terrific and a bargain" to boot; "the ownership has changed", but happily the "amicable service" remains intact.

01.43.43.34.38

45, av Ledru-Rollin -- Paris

20021004 064025

Fr�gate (La)

- - - M

Gare de Lyon

Unknown

12�me

A "nautical setting for generous seafood-oriented cuisine" characterizes this small fish house tucked away in the 12th; "much improved since its renovation" recently, it remains "a very good value", given the "friendly staff" and "nice view" of the Seine.

01.43.43.90.32

30, av Ledru Rollin -- Paris

20021004 064025

Bombis (Les)

16 10 17 �28

Reuilly-Diderot

Unknown

12�me

"A real joy" says the pocketful of surveyors who've sampled the "tasty", "almost haute-gourmet" bistro fare at this small Traditional French "charmer" in the 12th; "amiable" owners, "friendly service" and reasonable prix fixes explain its appeal, and the "pleasant terrace" helps offset the low decor score.
*****
This noteworthy neighborhood bistro is so fortunate as to face onto a wide pavement, flanked by businesses that close by six. On a hot night the tables gradually come out until the whole area is occupied by several dozen diners. Barbara and I, being among the first to arrive, had a table just outside the entrance from which we could watch the whole burgeoning process. .It reminded me, in a modest way, of George Orick's vivid description of the magical evening appearance of Jakarta's sidewalk restaurants.
When the food arrived we could tell why the pavement was so crowded on a midweek evening. Every dish was out of the ordinary but none were quirky, eccentric or exhibitionist. Their listings on the menu were accurately descriptive rather than rhapsodic and so it's worth quoting them, together with a translation and a few comments. I won't waste superlatives; they would have to be sprinkled like stardust on every course.
Aumoni�re de ch�vre frais et salade de roquette sauvage Pastry purse filled with fresh goat cheese on wild rocket leaves Salade de l�gumes croquants e gambas a l'Indon�sienne Shoestrings of crisp raw vegetables with hot spicy prawns
Croustillant de fl�tan � l'andouille de Gu�men�e et girolles Crusty fillet of halibut with tiny bits of Gu�men� sausage and whole chantarelle mushrooms Dorade royale, ravigote aux noisettes et citronelle Whole pan-fried gilt-head bream with a spicy sauce of hazelnuts and lemon liqueur
Plateau de fromages An assortment of half a dozen cheeses, all of them unfamiliar to us but excellent and of perfect ripeness
Fondant au chocalate Melting indeed. Sinfully rich, smooth as heavy whipped cream Timbale de brugnons au caramel et son sorbet A low cylindrical mound of stewed nectarines with a caramel sauce and nectarine sorbet. Barbara was in seventh heaven.
A civilized meal in civilized, unpretentious surroundings. The intervals between courses were correct, the service on this busy evening friendly, efficient and unobtrusive. An ideal occasion to spend with an old friend I don't often see.
In midwinter Le Bombis Bistrot could be equally salubrious. Aassan Nithsain is a chef who is not afraid to work in full view of the tables. His shiny stainless steel kitchen opens directly onto the dining room - a practice followed only in the best and the worst of eating establishments! Those who have ordered too freely from the excellent but modestly priced wine list - before he was a chef, Nithsain was a sommalier - may stare apprehensively at the ceiling, which portrays a blue sky with flying lambs and pigs. The next time a friend promises to perform an unpleasant task when pigs can fly, take him there.

01.43.45.36.32

22, rue de Chaligny -- Paris

20021004 064025

Campagne et Provence

Unknown

Latin Quarter

Unknown

5th Arrondissement

The talented young owners of the Miravile (4th Arr.) also run this small establishment on the quai across from Notre Dame. The fresh, colorful, Proven�al-inspired cuisine includes ratatouille and vegetables stuffed with cod brandade. The wine list includes reasonably priced regional wines. MC, V. Reservations advised. Closed Mon. lunch, Sat. lunch, Sun.

01.43.54.05.17

25 quai de la Tournelle -- Paris

20021006 152826

Le Brasserie Balzar

Unknown

St. Michel

Unknown

5th Arr

Over the past couple of years Le Balzar has been the scene of a tempest in a beer mug. For a century it was a comfortable academic hangout, slow to change either for the better or for the worse - up to World War II it refused to serve unescorted women. (In Provincetown in the 1940s a local fishermen's bar compromised by means of a sign in the window reading BOOTHS FOR LADIES.) In 1969 Waverley Root commented, "On a day when all you want is to eat adequately without making any fuss about it, this is a reasonably pleasant place to do it in."
And then Adam Gopnik of the New Yorker arrived in Paris and was captivated by everything in sight. Le Balzar, he proclaimed, was the greatest restaurant in the world. When the Flo group took it over (earlier in its history it had been part of the Lipp empire), Gopnik made high drama out of the local habitu�'s organized efforts to keep everything exactly as it was. The outcome was a qualified success for tradition, which Jeffrey Steingarten dismisses with the sniffy comment, "I have read that habitu�s of the Balzar in Paris are relieved that . . . nothing has changed. I am surprised that this would make anyone glad."
Dropping in for lunch without the bias born of long association, I found it a thoroughly bourgeois institution - solid, respectable, unpretentious, ticking over comfortably in an unostentatious manner. I came deliberately scruffy, electing to sit in the respectable linen-laid dining area rather than in the caf� tables facing the sidewalk, but caught no hint of supercilious hauteur from the waiter who showed me to a table. I came early, just after opening, and the tables were soon full of well-suited gentlemen and expensively dressed women. There were a few probable tourists with American accents, but none of the coach contingent. Waiters were helpful with those whose French wasn't up to the menu, without seizing the psychological advantage.
I opted for two simple courses, skate wing and tarte tatin. The former was as it should be, with generous black butter and a plethora of capers, not too vinegary; the latter was perfectly caramelized on a good substantial crust. This being a brasserie, I drank a glass of beer. (If only French beer outside Alsasse had a fraction of the character of German, Belgian or English!) The bill came to 118ff.
So what's all the noise about, either for or against? This is a smoothly run establishment which still, three decades later, precisely meets Root's criteria - yet another ordinary Paris eating place which, if transported to London or New York, would be The Talk of the Town.

01.43.54.13.67

49 rue des Ecoles -- Paris

20021111 001722

Les Bouchons de Fran�ois Clerc

Unknown

5th

01.43.54.15.34

12 rue de L�Hotel Colbert -- Paris

20021027 062536

La Tour d�Argent

2 Michelin stars

Cardinal-Lemoine / Pont-Marie

Tue-Sun 12-14 1930-22

This temple of fine food has superb service, expensive but delectable dishes and, best of all, superb views onto Notre-Dame and the River Seine. The restaurant has a classic French interior and serves duck specialities, such as canard au sang (duck in blood)
*****
Dining at this temple to haute cuisine is a theatrical and unique event---from ap�ritifs in the ground-floor bar to dinner in the top-floor dining room, with its breath-taking view of Notre Dame. Come for the setting; the food does not reach the same heights. In recent years owner Claude Terrail has hired a series of young chefs, and today's menu is a mix of Tour classics and contemporary creations. Venerable favorites such caneton Tour d'Argent (pressed duck), quenelles Andr� Terrail, a filets de sole Cardinal have been lightened, and other dishes added, including scallop salad with truffles and double-thick lamb chops with carrots. The wine list is one of the greatest in the world. Visit the cellars before or after a meal. The lunch menu is surprisingly affordable.
The Tour d'Argent Restaurant was originally founded in 1582 and there were duels for seats in the past, Grace Kelly and her family were only some on the impressive guest list, who enjoyed the view of Notre Dame and the famous Canard Presse

01.43.54.23.31

15-17 quai de la Tournelle -- Paris

20021006 152826

FISH LA BOISSONNERIE

Unknown

Closed Monday

Juan Sanchez not only manages to run the best little wine shop in Paris (La Derni�re Goutte, 6, rue Bourbon le Chateau, Paris 6 ) but also keeps his wine bar, Fish, packed day after day. The food is endearing and unpretentious: mussels steamed with fresh coriander; a sturdy bruchetta laden with mozzarella and tiny tomatoes; a fine penne with eggplant and pine nuts. Wines? Try the rough and red St Chinian from the Mas Champart.

01.43.54.34.69

69, rue de Seine -- Paris

20021124 160215

le Navigator

Unknown

Open From 12 am till 3 pm and from 7 pm till 9:30 pm

75005

Cuisine: Traditional French food
Pluses: Free ap�ritif
Minuses: The restaurant is small, so you are a bit squeezed in
Don't Miss: Dorade (Mediterranean fish)
The Latin quarter area is not the best place for good value restaurants. Generally, quality goes down and prices up in places where you can find many tourists.
However, there are a few hidden restaurants like this one which provide a very honest balance between the quality and the prices. It is located in a tiny quiet street behind the busy Boulevard St. Germain, and close to Boulevard St. Michel as well. The place is small and cozy, almost provincial, with small tables decorated with fresh flowers.
The clientele is mixed, with businessmen at lunch time, a few tourists, and some regulars. The reception is friendly, the atmosphere noiseless, and the owner will offer you a kir (French sparkling wine with fruit liquor) and chips while you make your choice. For a restaurant of this category, needless to say, this welcome is a bit exceptional.
Three fixed menus are offered: at 90 Frs, 130 Frs and 190 Frs without drinks. You may choose � la carte as well. If you choose the first menu, you will spend about 130 Frs with the wine and eat very well.
The food is fresh, nothing is reheated or frozen. Products are well chosen and dishes are quite traditional but carefully prepared whether you get the dorade � la proven�ale (Mediterranean fish) or the �chine de porc fa�on cassoulet (pork scallop with beans). Portions are large and there is a good selection of wines and deserts.
This is a real little treasure in this fast food zone. Another good point is that nobody will rush you to leave. You can take your time and enjoy. One bad point though: tables are really small and close to each other, so you may hear your neighbour's conversation, but if you don't speak French...

01.43.54.35.86

63 Rue Galande -- Paris

20021007 225425

Chez Ma�tre Paul

Unknown

Od�on

Unknown

6th

Restaurants with the accoutrements of genteel dining which attempt to cram in two dinner sittings arouse my suspicions. Dropping in at Chez Ma�tre Paul's modestly elegant premises to make a reservation, I was offered 7:30 or 9:30. Not wanting to be strong-armed out the door onto the street before I had properly finished my meal, I chose the latter.
But I needn't have worried. Arriving promptly, I was shown immediately to a table. The young couple next to me, who proved to be Canadian, had not yet been served their desert. In fact, the restaurant was still almost full, but none of the waiters were "hovering". Over the next half hour, as I settled in, I was not aware either of haste or of delay; new arrivals were quickly and smoothly accommodated. Good vibes. I felt confident that I would enjoy the evening.
Eating so late, I was ravenous for simple hearty fare, which the cuisine of the Jura and Franche-Compt� supplies in abundance. The menu at 198ff, including half a bottle of wine, offered just the ticket, including among its alternatives a shellfish entr�e and a chicken main course. (Why do we Americans insist on calling the main course an entr�e? According to Ford Naylor, writing in 1941, the usage was then confined to "the less expensive restaurants and lunchrooms." With an uncomprehending French waiter a hungry Yank could fill the evening with an infinity of gastronomic anticipation: "Cassoulet? Sure! Could I have that as an entr�e?")
My first course was aumoni�re d'�crevisses au coulis de crustaces. This proved to be a "purse" containing carrot, celery, onion and crayfish, surrounded by a rich cream of shellfish sauce. My self-respect was preserved by an accompanying flat spoon, which saved me from the otherwise inevitable disgrace of licking the plate. (A Spoon with Every Course was the first title of Mirabel Osler's memorable journal of her gastronomic tour through France. When I invade French politics with my Parti Alimentaire this will be our rallying cry.)
Next came poulette fermiere a la cr�me gratin�e, a splendid young free- range chicken in a cheese & mushroom cream sauce - not too rich and with a touch of lemon. A mixture of rice and wild rice soaked up the remaining sauce very nicely. According to Time Out, the wine which comes with the set menu is "indifferent at best", but I found the half-bottle of Bougueil pleasantly drinkable.
Finally, for desert, an excellent apricot tart which had not been overly sweetened to accommodate American taste. Sugar was brought separately; but the caramelized apricots on a crisp crust of p�te sucr�e did not require it.
It was an altogether pleasant evening, with robust and excellent food served by a skilled and friendly troupe of waiters. I would happily return - alone, or with Mary for a romantic t�te-�-t�te, or with a good friend for amicable conversation.

01.43.54.74.59

12 rue Monsieur-le-Prince -- Paris

20021111 001722

Chez Philippe/Auberge Pyr�n�es-C�vennes

Unknown

Bastille

Closed Saturday lunch and Sunday, Aug

11e

Old-timers still refer to this comfortable bistro by its original name-Pyr�n�es-C�vennes-while others know it as Chez Philippe. The eclectic menu combines the cooking of Burgundy, central France-even Spain-in such dishes as snails in garlic butter, cassoulet, and paella. An attentive staff bustles amid the cozy surroundings with beamed ceilings and polished copper.
(PW) With cheery and chatty Francoise in the dining room and Daniel in the kitchen, we are assured of great Lyonnais curly endive salads topped with chunks of bacon, a fine cassoulet (beans and preserved duck), and platters of weeping Saint-Marcellin cow�s milk cheese. Most of all, there is FUN and Beaujolais!

01.43.57.33.78

106, rue de la Folie Mericourt -- Paris

20021006 152826

Villaret (Le)

21 12 18 �46

Parmentier/Oberkampf

Unknown

11�me arrondissement

"Simple" and "savory" sums up this "sincere bisto" that "stays the course when it comes to reasonable prices"; it's "a great local find" for both "fresh", "remarkably well-executed" Traditional French food in a culinary desert of the 11th and late hours that offer "night owl" appeal; decor may be "nonexistent", but "you never regret coming here."

01.43.57.89.76

13, rue Ternaux -- Paris

20021004 053354

Lasserre

2 Michelin stars

Franklin-Roosevelt

Mon-Sat, dinner Tue-

The Lasserre Restaurant is the grande dame of the traditional restaurants with one of the best guest lists in town (from Salvatore Dali to King Farouk of Egypt), the roof can be opened for good weather to see the stars

01.43.59.53.43 01.45.63.72.23

17 avenue Franklin Roosevelt -- Paris

20021026 032936

Jacques M�lac

Unknown

Bastille

Closed Mon. dinner, weekends Aug

11th Arrondissement

There's robust cuisine to match the noisy camaraderie at this popular wine bar-restaurant, owned by mustachioed Jacques M�lac. Charcuterie, a salad of preserved duck gizzards, braised beef, and cheeses from central France are good choices here. Monsieur M�lac has his own miniature vineyard out the front door and hosts a jolly party at harvest time.

01.43.70.59.27

42 rue L�on Frot -- Paris

20021006 152826

Chardenoux

Unknown

Bastille

Closed weekends and Aug.

11th Arrondissement

A bit off the beaten track but well worth the effort, this cozy neighborhood bistro with amber walls, etched-glass windows, dark bentwood furniture, tile floors, and a long zinc bar attracts a cross section of savvy Parisians with its first-rate traditional cooking. Start with one of the delicious salads, such as the green beans and foie gras, and then try the veal chop with morels, or a game dish. Savory desserts and a nicely chosen wine list with several excellent C�tes-du-Rh�nes complete the experience.

01.43.71.49.52

1 rue Jules-Valles -- Paris

20021006 152826

GUY SAVOY

Unknown

Closed Saturday lunch, Sunday and Monday

17e

I have loved Guy Savoy and his authentic, inviting and exciting fare for more than 20 years. He deserves his new top three-star Michelin rating, long overdue! Savoy loves life, loves food, loves feeding people: Don�t miss his artichoke soup with Parmesan and truffles; quick-cured foie gras; sea bass � bar � grilled with spices, and all the marvellous desserts. Follow sommelier Eric Mancio�s advice: You won�t be disappointed.

01.43.80.40.61

18, rue Troyon -- Paris

20021124 160215

Guy Savoy

2 Michelin stars

Charles-de-Gaulle-Etoile

Tue-Fri noon-2pm, Tue-Sat 7.30-10.30pm

17e

Trendy modern interior and chef Guy Savoy sees himself as an contemporary artist as well - just try it and enjoy

01.43.80.40.61 01.46.22.40.61

18 rue Troyon -- Paris

20021026 032936

Le Relais du Parc

Unknown

Trocad�ro/Bois de Boulogne

Unknown

16th Arrondissement

Facing an interior garden in a luxury hotel is the tiny bistro incarnation of celebrated chef Jo�l Robuchon's Jamin restaurant. The menu is a mix of original, sparkling creations such as croustillant of salmon and lacy fried potatoes, and substantial, traditional fare such as skate with cabbage and succulent beef tail with carrots. The warm tarte fine of apples is fabulous. Prices are lower and service less formal than at Jamin, but this is still an elegant restaurant. Though larger and easier to book than the original, standards sometimes slip due to an overworked staff.

01.44.05.66.10

55 av. Raymond Poincar� -- Paris

20021006 152826

LE PRE CATELAN

Unknown

Closed Sunday dinner, and Monday

16e

Frederic Anton is a master: I adore his sumptuous crab and caviar creations; risottos, dreamy sea urchins, inventive desserts. This is one of the most romantic restaurants in Paris, particularly in the summer months when one can dine outdoors.

01.44.14.41.14

Route de Suresnes, Bois de Boulogne -- Paris

20021124 160215

Pre Catelan

2 Michelin stars

Porte Dauphine

Tue-Sun noon-2.30pm, Tue-Sat 8-10.30pm

16e

The Pre Catelan Restaurant boasts of a Belle-Epoque interior in the Bois de Boulogne with a beautiful garden, which makes an unforgettable impression in the summer together with the cuisine

01.44.14.41.14 01.45.24.43.25

Routes de Suresnes, Bois de Boulogne -- Paris 16e

20021026 032936

L'Affriole

Unknown

Invalides

Unknown

7th

affrioler, v.t. To allure, to entice, to attract as with a bait.
An enthusiastic recommendation from Patricia Wells and inclusion in Jeffrey Steingarten�s short list were bait enough for me.
Compared with a typical bistro, the architectural ambience is rather more ambitious but also somewhat ambiguous. The molding surrounding the arches and windows is of a simplified and scaled-down baroque splendor, while the table tops are a rather folksy mosaic, hand-crafted by a friend of the original owner. This sounds like a recipe for aesthetic disjuncture, but the predominant brown/beige color scheme, including solid curved-back wooden chairs, brings potential conflicts into harmony.
In fact, both the ambiance and the menu make this a bistro to which you could bring a wide range of guests and be reasonably confident that they would feel comfortable. The dishes Mary and I had between us were imaginative � �crossover� even � but not weird, and were well executed:
Samoussa de tourteaux et poivrons rouges [Samosa [!] of crab and sweet red peppers
Chausson de lapin aux oignons et romarin [Puff pastry turnover filled with rabbit and onions flavored with rosemary]
Vapeur de raie, compot�e de choux et girolles [Steamed skate with compot of cabbage and mushrooms]
Rascasse po�l�e, gallette de pommes de terreaux oignons [Pot- roasted scorpian fish, potato and onion cake]
Onglet po�l�, rago�t de haricots tarbais et chorizo [Pot-roasted flank of beef with stew of Tarbes beans and chorizo sausages]
As the room filled, the service remained as friendly and as competant as when, upon our early arrival, it was empty. This was yet another verification of our sources. But that shouldn�t be surprising. Throughout our Paris dining we have had a luxury usually denied to professional restaurant critics � the priviledge of ignoring the newest and most fashionable and patronizing simply the best.

01.44.18.31.33

17 rue Malar -- Paris

20021111 001722

ZE KITCHEN GALERIE

Unknown

Closed Sunday

Chef William Ledeuil has done it again. He has his finger (and palate) on the pulse of the modern diner. Despite the kitschy name, Ze Kitchen Galerie is a delight: pastas (roborative macaroni with pesto, pine nuts and grilled chorizo), a selection of raw fish and shellfish (yummy oysters and scallops in a spicy horseradish cream) and a small but always inviting wine list. The d�cor is modern and a touch cold, but that�s the style today.

01.44.32.00.32

4, rue des Grands Augustins -- Paris

20021124 160215

PIERRE GAGNAIRE

Unknown

Closed Saturday, and Sunday at lunch

No chef is as wildly creative as Pierre Gagnaire. I adore his daring nature, his honesty and his way with ingredients. But this is a fasten-your-seatbelt place, for you never know what Gagnaire is going to dream up that day. The menu changes, literally day to day. The cool modern dining room is a dream, and service adorable. Don�t skip the cheese tray.

01.44.35.18.25

6, rue Balzac -- Paris

20021124 160215

Pierre Gagnaire

3 Michelin stars

George V

Mon-Fri noon-2pm, 8-10pm Closed Saturday

8th

The trendy designer interior of the restaurant Pierre Gagnaire gives a hint that the cuisine leaves conventions behind and impresses with avant-garde ingredients
This sumptuous restaurant has the reputation of being among the mostexciting gastronomic addresses in Paris and it is certainly one of the most fashionable. Pierre Gagnaire is on the corner of rue Balzac and rue de Chataubriand, and a stone�s throw from the Champs-Elys�es. Formerly based in St-Etienne, near the gastronomic capital Lyon, Gagnaire brought flavours of the region to Paris, creating his Parisian restaurant five years ago and holding dear both traditions and innovation. A simple but refined decor, with spotless white tablecloths, makes the perfect setting for his challenging but impeccable cuisine. Specialities include supreme de poularde mac�r�e au lait d�amende (chicken supreme cooked in almond milk) and pesto de roquette sauvage (wild rocket pesto). The five-course Grand Dessert is worth getting fat for.

01.44.35.18.25 01.44.35.18.37 01.58.36.12.50

Hotel Balzac, 6 rue Balzac -- Paris

20021027 062536

Chez Michel

22 13 18 �41

Gare du Nord/Poissoni�re

Unknown

10�me arrondissement

"Offbeat" and "original" is how a "stylish crowd" sums up this New French that boasts "sophisticated yet traditional cuisine" from Brittany; chef Thierry Breton "succeeds in marveling diners" with "exceptional" fare proffered by "caring servers"; near the Gare du Nord, it may "not be easy to find" (so take your map) but "it's definitely worth it."

01.44.53.06.20

10, rue de Belzunce -- Paris

20021004 053354

Guilvinec (Le)

16 15 15 �43

Cour St-Emilion

Unknown

12�me arrondissement

With a handsome and "calm setting" in one of the old stone wine warehouses of the pedestrian-only Cour Saint-Emilion, this "quality place" serves "sublime fish"; some find it "a little expensive", but most are content with this catch, "especially on nice days."

01.44.68.01.35

34, Cour St-Emilion -- Paris

20021004 064025

Les Ambassadeurs

2 Michelin stars

Concorde

Mon-Sun

Les Ambassadeurs Restaurant has definitely one of the most lavish marble interiors in the world, also place for the annual debutante ball, the cuisine is not less unique and your sommelier helps you to choose an unforgettable wine,

01.44.71.16.16 01.44.71.15.02

10 place de la Concorde -- Paris

20021026 032936

Le Georges

Unknown

Les Halles

Closed Tuesday

1st

Le Georges, decorated in a style that matches the modern Centre Georges Pompidou, is the latest creation from the trendsetting Costes brothers. The restaurant�s location on the sixth floor of the Pompidou Centre draws huge crowds, who come to see the superb views across the city. A chic but trendy clientele dine here, while students often come to take a coffee break before diving back into their studies at the Pompidou library. The menu, which includes both French and international cuisine, changes frequently, although the duck, lobster risotto and chocolate tart are firm house favourites.

01.44.78.4799

Centre Georges Pompidou, 19 rue Beauburg -- Paris

20021027 062536

Taillevent

3 Michelin stars

Charles-de-Gaulle-Etoile

Closed weekends, Aug.

8e (Champs-Elys�es)

Many say it's the best restaurant in Paris. Within the paneled main dining rooms of this mid-19th-century mansion you will find exceptional service that is never overbearing, a stellar wine list, and the tempered classic cuisine of young chef Philippe Legendre. Among his signature dishes are lobster boudin and lamb with cabbage. Pastry chef Gilles Bajolle is one of the finest in Paris. Try his nougatine glac�e aux poires (thin layers of nougat, pastry, and pear sherbet) or tarte Tatin with quince.
The Taillevent Restaurant is derived from the author of the first French cookbook from 1379, the town palace interior is as unique as the cuisine

01.44.95.15.01 01.42.25.95.18

15 rue Lamennais -- Paris

20021006 152826

L'Etoile

Unknown

Charles-de-Gaulle-Etoile

Unknown

16e

With a superb view of the Arc de Triumphe, a fresh menu by young chef, Didier Doucet, an elegant high-ceilinged interior and all new management this restaurant is on the upswing. Tony Gomez presides over both restaurant and downstairs nightclub with the style and taste that has made him the man to follow on the Paris night scene. Here he has created an atmosphere where you eat well (and maybe see some beautiful people) without entering the stuffy world of four-star mannerisms. He is as happy that you enjoy the scallops topped with thin truffle slices, as the art work � large format photos of jazz musicians from Gomez's own collection.

01.45.00.78.70

12, rue de Presbourg -- Paris

20021026 032936

Le Vivarois

Unknown

(Trocad�ro/Bois de Boulogne)

Closed weekends, Aug

16th Arrondissement

Chef-owner Claude Peyrot is one of the most inspired and creative of contemporary French chefs, though his cooking can be uneven. He is a master with fish and puff pastry, his bavaro of red bell pepper (a creamy, molded concoction) is oft-imitated, and his original dishes shine: scallops with sesame and ginger, rissole (small meat patty) of lamb's feet with artichokes and basil, and chocolate souffl� with chicory ice cream. Service is not always up to par.

01.45.04.04.31

192 av. Victor Hugo -- Paris

20021006 152826

L�ALSACO

Unknown

Closed Saturday lunch and Sunday

This out-of-the-way Alsatian wine bar is THE place to go for overwhelming platters of choucroute � sauerkraut teamed up with a variety of sausages, fat slabs of bacon, and braised pig�s knuckles. A fine selection of Alsatian wines and some pretty outstanding beers as well. The outgoing Claude Steger is part of the show.

01.45.26.44.31

10, rue Condorcet -- Paris

20021124 160215

CHEZ CATHERINE

Unknown

Closed Saturday, Sunday, and Monday evening

Lovers of those old-fashioned Parisian family bistros should beat a path to the door of Chez Catherine, a most classic 1930�s bistro, where the welcome is warm, the food oh so satisfying and the wine list sure to cheer on the grayest of Parisian days. Chef Catherine Guerraz spoils us, along with husband Fr�d�ric, with tiny �perlans, or smelt; a soothing rabbit terrine, and double-thick pan-fried steak served with its mind-boggling mountain of fries. Good wines, too.

01.45.26.72.88

65, rue de Provence -- Paris

20021124 160215

Le Bistrot des Vignes

Unknown

Passy

Unknown

16th

That evening I went alone to Le Bistrot des Vignes, a very different sort of establishment. After a hot sweaty walk uphill from the metro, the cool breath of air conditioning was like a soft ocean breeze. A pair of willowy waitresses greeted me and escorted me to my table, lissome as sea nymphs. The soft lapping of New Age music lulled me into semi-somnolence. (It proved to be a CD compilation called Dreams.) I might have been on Circe's island, about to be transformed into the pi�ce de r�sistance for the next unwary visitors. (1)
The d�cor was restful and unobtrusive - brown tiled floor, buff tiled walls, wooden-topped tables and wooden chairs in soft variegated colors. After the unrelieved heat it was a welcome sanctuary, whose refreshing effect was accentuated by a dish of hot crisp radishes.
The first and last courses sent me to my diary, making notes for future recapitulation. To begin, poivre rouge grill� a la fleur de thym, et fillets de sardines marin�s aux �pices. The cold pepper strips were thoroughly cooked and peeled, the raw sardines a tasty echo of sushi. They alternated on the plate, arranged like the spokes of a wheel and drizzled with a strong vinaigrette. A few wild salad leaves nestled at the center.
Dessert was similarly simple and eminently repeatable, po�lon de fromage blanc aux fruits rouges et au miel d'acacia. Just a pot of fresh cheese with a layer of very ripe strawberries and raspberries and a drizzle of honey. In summer I could eat it every day.
The main course showed a single symptom of corruption. There was nothing wrong with the poulet fermier grill� au romarin, grosses frites au couteau � la fleur de sel. But this exemplary chicken and chips was served with a dark thickened gravy whose source had nothing to do with the cooking of the bird. It was the sort of flavorless goo you'd expect to encounter in Howard Johnson's, or in the pages of a flour-mad American cookbook.
Who are the anticipated clientele in this relatively new bistro? It already rates a critics'-choice red star in the Time Out Guide. Chef and staff speak fluent English, the beautiful waitresses waft by every few minutes asking if everything is all right - and l'addition arrived with "Have a nice evening!" handwritten on its blank folded side.
It would be easy to dismiss all this as a blatant attempt to woo American diners. But the menu is in French only - no English translation. Judging by what I overheard, the other diners were mostly French. I suspect that what all this reveals is a growing clientele of young internationalized denizens of the increasingly chic 16th arrondisement, to whom such touches are simply a normal part of everyday life. For them, an old-fashioned bistro serving escargots and coq au vin would be an anachronism.
I pondered all this as I walked back to the Passy metro station. Rounding a corner onto a street of shops, I was confronted with the windowless end of a traditional Mansard-roofed apartment building, which had been colorfully decorated with an enormous United Airlines mural featuring the Golden Gate Bridge. The text was, of course, in French. Just like the menu.
NOTE: The second day we went to Polidor for lunch I thought the bill was rather large but, in a warmly alcoholic haze, didn't bother to check it. Only later did I discover that we had been charged for four set luncheons at 145ff, rather than three. When Frank and Barbara returned for a third visit they checked the bill and found that they were again overcharged, this time by 30ff, which was promptly deducted when they pointed it out. So eat at Polidor by all means - but take your calculator.

01.45.27.76.64

1 rue Jean-Bologne -- Paris

20021111 001722

Le Vieux Pressoir

Unknown

Porte de Versailles

Closed SuM

15e

Another pleasant neighborhood restaurant in Paris. A good place with nice people and lots of locals. This is strictly traditional French cuisine, including some country-style dishes.

01.45.32.78.20/26

364, bis rue de Vaugirard -- Paris

20021004 064025

CHEZ MARCEL

Unknown

Closed Saturday and Sunday

Diners who fall at the knees when confronted with an authentic 1930�s style bistro should reserve at table at Chez Marcel, a pocket handkerchief-sized bistro actually founded in 1919. Everything from the wooden cabinet for holding napkins and napkin rings for regular customers and on to the little service window open to the kitchen, hugs at our heartstrings. The food is just as appealing: Excellent poached pistachio-studded sausages paired up with creamy warm potatoes; a sturdy coq au vin; a nicely flavored baby chicken � coquelet � seasoned with tarragon; and plenty of Beaujolais flowing through the dining room. Try the Brouilly, Cret de Garanches.

01.45.45.29.94

7, rue Stanislas -- Paris

20021124 160215

La R�galade

Unknown

Al�sia

Closed Sat. lunch, Sun., Mon., Aug.

14th

Eating in Paris these days is an increasingly schizophrenic experience. On the one hand, there are more and more food factories, large and small, which could be anywhere in the world, and more and more people from everywhere in the world to keep them solvent. I haven't seen any figures � how could they be arrived at? � but I would guess that this now includes a majority of the places where you can order something to eat. Even the old-fashioned caf�s where you can save a few centimes by standing at the zinc will happily serve you a frizzled burger or a microwaved pizza. Upmarket, there are dozens of international hotels where you can spend a fortune on Lemon Grass with Everything, parachuted down from the Great Thai in the Sky.
But there are still scores of Paris restaurants which, against the rising tide of commerciality and anonymity, attempt in their various ways to take food seriously. At the top of the heap is Taillevent, which, after more than half a century in the same location, still ignores the dictates of both fashion and finances and aims simply at a sort of Platonic perfection. Foreigners are tolerated, but Mssr. Vrinat reserves at least half his tables for his fellow-countrymen.
In a time of tightening belts, lesser divinities such as Claude Terrail of the Tour d'Argent have felt the need to cultivate an alter ego: modest establishments, metaphorically "below stairs", where the lesser cuts of meat can be served up in tasty stews [cf. Marilyn Monroe on matzo balls: "What do they do with the rest of the matzo?"]. But the move down-market has not produced an automatic profit; some overly-optimistic chefs have found that they are merely losing less money.
What of the ambitious young chefs at the beginning of their careers, with no fortune and a name to come? In London, many such high flyers are doing very well. They have the distinct advantages of working in a city where (1) a lot of newly-acquired money is being tossed around; (2) press agents and spin doctors are so vital to the economy that they are sometimes taken seriously; (3) celebrity chefs and celebrity comics are at the top of the TV hit parade and are often interchangeable; and (4) there are so many untrained palates that garishly colored, precariously architected dishes may safely be erected for photography rather than consumption. (Like Abe's legendary sardines, they're for trading, not eating.)
Paris, however, not only has a large population of serious eaters, but is also a Mecca for foodie pilgrims from all over the world. They're enthusiastic, they're well-informed, and they're not prepared to throw money away. And so a number of young chefs, trained in the great hotels and restaurants, have jumped off the precarious haute cuisine ladder, presented their training as security for the necessary loan to get themselves started, and opened their own modest bistros out near the peripherique. If they're good, word gets around that there's another gastronomic bargain to be had.
Jeffrey Steingarten�the self-declared Man who Ate Everything�has been spending a lot of time at these modest showcases and he has liked what he's eaten. He is paid so generously by Vogue for his exclusive services that he can afford to research an article as if he were an Oxford life fellow, so when Steingarten approves of something, I take notice.
One of his favorite spots, and the first of its kind, is La R�galade. That's the name for the leather bottle from which, if you're dextrous, you can squirt the wine straight into your mouth with the bottle held at arms length. (You can tell a drunken Gascon by the big red patch on the front of his shirt.) The restaurant was started in 1992 by 26-year-old Yves Candeborde after several years' apprenticeship in a succession of fine Paris restaurants. (Steingarten tells his story in some detail.)
Consultation with AutoRoute Express, my Microsoft Vergil, confirmed that this restaurant, at the lower edge of the 14th Arrondissement very near the Porte de Ch�tillon, was perfectly located for a break in the last leg of my journey back to London. (Break a leg!-an old theatrical toast.) In fact, if I were to leave Lancie, just south of Macon, by mid-morning and follow a scenic route, I would reach the peripherique at about six, just as the parking restrictions went off. And so I phoned the restaurant, three weeks in advance as advised, and was able to secure a booking for opening time at seven-thirty.
On the day, everything went like greased chippolatas. Trusty Vergil, asked for a scenic route, guided me through Cluny, hitherto only a name in history but suddenly alive as the city that a thousand years ago had housed the most powerful abbey in all of Christendom. Then through the Morvan Nature Park, forty miles west of the A6 motorway (the main north-south route through central France) but light years away from its noise and traffic. In the early afternoon, concerned about my arrival time, I reprogrammed my journey over to the N6, which brought me through still beautiful country to Fontainebleau, where it seamlessly joined the A6 motorway for the last (free) section leading into the south of Paris. I easily found a parking place a couple of blocks from La R�galade, fifteen minutes before my ETA.
With an hour and a half to spare before the restaurant opened, I strolled over to have a close look at the posted menu with the aid of my Youell & Kimball (I'm not proud.) On the way back to the van I spotted an interesting hotel down a side street and took a detour which may well affect my next stay in Paris. At the end of a residential cul-de-sac, surrounded by respectable apartment houses, was the Ch�tillon Hotel, a quiet, retiring two-star establishment with a pleasant lad behind the counter who gave me its card, bearing the remarkable but accurate claim, "Calme absolut". No time to look at a room, but the lobby was simple, clean and tasteful. Just off the peripherique, it's very convenient to drive to; there's a parking garage close by and the nearest metro station gets you into the center in a few minutes. It's also handy for those who may also want to use Paris as a hub for driving into the countryside-which, if you're staying in the middle, is out of the question. The price of a room for two, 330 francs, will produce disbelief in anyone who has recently stayed in a modestly comfortable Paris hotel.
After a stroll around the neighborhood I returned just after opening time and, though the restaurant was empty, was taken to a table immediately adjacent to a Berkeley-ish American couple in a far corner. The tables-for- two along the wall were jammed so close together that I had difficulty squeezing through and tucking my shoulder bag onto the bench. We sat huddled like passengers in a crowded stagecoach. Was this the American ghetto? My neighbors were in the middle of a conversation, which they continued in that mezzopiano which says, "We may not be whispering, but this is a private conversation."
Would I care for an aperitif? Explaining to the waitress that I must drive to London after dinner, I handed back the wine list and asked for a Badoit. Ignoring my specific request, she brought me a local brand from the Southwest, which was fine. Unusually-and those who have been in the restaurant business will appreciate my point-I was brought a small bottle, while my neighbors had been served with a large one. It's common to stick the single diner with a whole litre of water. Multiply him by a few thousand, and that's a lot of extra francs on the collective bills. Full marks.
Among the starters was a cochonnaille, a collection of cold meats and pat�s "whose disappearance from the menu," says Steingarten, "might cause a riot among the regulars". It came in a succession of pots and packets which threatened to spill over onto the floor�it was Christmas! (No gasps of amusement or astonishment from the next table; they continued to play the Quiet Americans.) The flavor was as good as the drama, including a rough terrine de campagne every bit as tasty as Francine's the previous week. And there was an idea I shall immediately steal: paper-thin slices of strong salami in a spicy-hot marinade. The bread, tough and tasty, was a worthy vehicle.
The menu was fixed price (165 francs), with a few dishes carrying a supplemental charge. Among these, wood pigeon on a bed of wild rice with a red wine sauce had caught my eye. First a finger bowl arrived, which was encouraging-they expected me to engage it properly rather than tickle it with a steak knife. Alas, a hammer and chisel would have been useful: the breast meat was chewable, but the legs were impregnable. The poor little creature must have been unearthed in a Neolithic burial site. I remembered, wistfully, an old Knightsbridge restaurant called The Fiddlers Three where thirty years ago I used to order wood pigeon in wine sauce for seven shillings sixpence (less than a dollar). The Good Food Guide, 1965, asked, "How do they get them so tender?" Maybe pigeons weren't so tough in those days.
At about the same time my neighbors' main courses arrived. One of them was, unmistakably, a cassoulet. Steingarten had described it as "epitomic". Would I summon the chutzpah to ask for a forkful? No point. Under the thin crust, it was pale and watery, a rather anaemic bean soup. My neighbor was noticeably chewing on the beans. "Nadiral" would have been my adjective.
Am I spoiled by impractical domestic standards of long slow cooking? A few days later I ate in the simple public lunchroom of the French Institute in Edinburgh. Cassoulet was on the menu at less than a fiver and had sold out early, but there was a tiny portion left in the dish which the waitress generously brought us as a taster. The juices were thick but not solid, the beans had held their shape but instantly dissolved in the mouth: in other words, in spite of simple, inexpensive ingredients, it was, in texture and overall flavor, a perfect cassoulet. It can be done-and, by a trained chef from the Southwest, by golly it should be done!
Hot Grand Marnier souffl� for desert. There's something you can't fake: a souffl� rises or it doesn't. This one rose, but in a most unusual fashion- straight up out of the ramekin with perfectly smooth cylindrical sides and an absolutely flat top, and dead white like a professional meringue. And it was delicious. How is it done? Answers on a postcard.
By this time my neighbors and I had thrown reserve to the winds and entered into pleasant conversation. It was nearly ten o'clock. A waitress approached and none too politely asked us to leave; others were waiting for our tables. Apparently they count on two sittings a night. Fair enough; but it would have been nice to know in advance. I was reminded of a luncheon I once had with George Mully in Soho's Food For Thought. After a scant half-hour they asked for the table. George said, "I see. Lots of food, but not much thought."
But I'm shouting into the wind. "The best young chef in Paris," says the Zagat Survey of Paris Restaurants (the book the pros love to hate). "For the price, it is perhaps one of the best meals you will have in Paris," says the usually reliable Sandra Gustafson, somewhat more cautiously, in Cheap Eats in Paris. "I have visited La R�galade," says the ineffably fussy Jeffrey Steingarten, "on nearly every trip to Paris since it opened". He must have liked it. Why am I unhappy? Perhaps a clue lies in Zagat's concluding remarks: "The main complaint was 'It's too successful', which may explain gripes about 'mediocre' service and 'too closely spaced' tables."
But I'll be back. No restaurant with such a huge following should be judged on a single visit. I want it to be good. It would be nice to have a favorite Paris hotel and a favorite Paris restaurant within spitting distance of each other. After all, thousands of eager diners can't be wrong. Can they?
*****
This is one of the most talked about new restaurants in Paris. The location, in a remote, colorless residential neighborhood is a nuisance, but Yves Camdeborde's cooking is stunning. Although a veteran of the Crillon, he has kept his prices remarkably low---$35 for a three-course feast. Tables are booked far in advance, but service does continue until midnight, and you can often sneak in late in the evening.

01.45.45.68.58

49 av. Jean-Moulin -- Paris

20021006 152826

Au Sauvignon

Unknown

Invalides

Closed Sat. eve., Sun., Aug., Christmas wk, Easter.

7th Arrondissement

A young, modish, intellectual crowd fills this tiny wine bar, where you'll find the usual limited menu of tartines, or open-face sandwiches, on the famous Poil�ne loaf, topped with good-quality charcuterie, cheese, or both. The colorful murals will amuse you, but it's even more fun to people-watch from one of the tables set on the narrow sidewalk

01.45.48.04.69

80 rue des Saints-P�res, -- Paris

20021006 152826

Cafe de Flore

Unknown

St. Germain-Des-Pres

Mon-Sun 7am-1.30am

The classic Art Deco interior of the Cafe de Flore is attracting the trendy jeunesse d'oree, a good place to relax from the trendy shops off place St. Germain des Pres with a drink or a full meal, Karl-Lagerfeld is a regular, Brasserie Lipp is on the opposite site

01.45.48.55.26

172 boulevard Saint-Germain -- Paris

20021026 032936

LE BAMBOCHE

Unknown

Closed Saturday and Sunday

Claude and Chantal Colliot make a perfect pair of restaurateurs. As he animates the kitchen with a deftness and sense of authority, Chantal make their tiny eight- table restaurant come alive. Bamboche is a model of its genre. Try the oyster ice cream (!) starter, any of the lamb or veal dishes, and follow Chantal�s advice on wine.

01.45.49.14.40

15, rue Babylone -- Paris

20021124 160215

L'Arp�ge

Unknown

Invalides

Closed Sat., Sun. lunch, Aug

7th Arrondissement

This small, striking restaurant one block from the Rodin Museum is currently one of the most talked-about of Paris's restaurants. Young chef-owner Alain Passard's cuisine is both original (lobster/turnip starter in a sweet-sour vinaigrette, stuffed sweet tomato) and classic (beef Burgundy, pressed duck). The problem here is inconsistency: one sublime meal followed by a mediocre experience. With its curving, hand-crafted wood panels and wrought-iron window frames, the decor is unusually minimalist. The staff, although young and energetic, sometimes falls behind. The fixed-price lunch is a steal.

01.45.51.47.33

84 rue de Varenne -- Paris

20021006 152826

Clos des Gourmets (Le)

20 11 15 �49

Alma-Marceau/Ecole-Militaire

Unknown

7�me arrondissement

If chef Arnaud Pitrois' Contemporary French cooking has myriad admirers -- "truly sensuous", "amazing flavors" -- many also find "the service has a hard time keeping up" (and in fact has fallen in the ratings) in the "cramped" and "tempestuous" dining room; still, it's "the best buy in the 7th", and "the terrace is pleasant" during the summer.
The owners are Arnaud Pitrois and his wife Christel. He creates his magic in a five square meter kitchen, and she runs the dining room. Arnaud is only 28 years old and has a very impressive background that shows up in every dish. He has worked with Guy Savoy and Christian Constant, who have probably done more to add new ideas to classical French cuisine than anyone else in this city. They have trained an increasingly important group of young chefs who are dedicated to their craft and who have opened their own restaurants where one can eat superbly at very reasonable prices. Le Clos Des Gourmets is one of these. The menu changes slightly every week, and daily additions are marked on a blackboard.

01.45.51.75.61

16, av Rapp -- Paris

20021004 064025

Le Sancerre

Unknown

Invalides

Closed Sat. eve., Sun

7th Arrondissement

Family-run for several generations, this low-key spot near Les Invalides is a showcase for the wines of Sancerre-white, red, and ros�--available by the glass or bottle. The menu is quite limited: salads, quiches, omelets, and the tasty Chavignol goat cheese from the Sancerre. The wood-paneled dining room is inviting.

01.45.51.75.91

25 av. Rapp, -- Paris

20021006 152826

Petit Ni�ois (Le)

15 11 15 �44

La Tour-Maubourg

Unknown

7�me arrondissement

"Stepping inside took me from a winter's night in Paris to a summer afternoon in Antibes" enthuses one eloquent surveyor of this 40-year-old Proven�al table in the 7th; other supporters say the signature "bouillabaisse is still great", as are the "delicious desserts"; but a slipping food score sides with critics who carp "the cooking is less good and more expensive since the change in owners"; even so, many maintain it remains "a good buy."

01.45.51.83.65

10, rue Am�lie -- Paris

20021004 053354

Le Divellec

2 Michelin stars

Invalides

Mon-Sat

In the trendy interior of the Le Divellec Restaurant, you can enjoy many nice seafood creations such as the unique homard presse (lobster)

01.45.51.91.96 01.45.51.31.75

107 rue de l'Universite -- Paris

20021026 032936

Eschelles et Plumes

Unknown

Ecole Militaire

Unknown

A unique place. By in large a place for locals. We had the good luck to be visiting with a friend, and as a result enjoyed not only the memorable food, but also were treated kindly. Had we not been `introduced' though, I have the feeling that the reception might have been `Americans won't like it here'. As it was it was a wonderful treat.

01.45.55.06.72

75, rue Devivier -- Paris

20021112 050531

Le Jules Verne

1 Michelin star

Trocadero / Ecole Militaire

Mon-Sun 12.15-2pm, 7.30-9.30pm, Tour Eiffel: Mon-Sun 9.30-11am (Jun-Aug 9am-midnight)

Le Jules Verne Restaurant is located 400 feet up on the second level of the Eiffel Tower and has a 70s design with an excellent view on tout Paris

01.45.55.61.44 01.47.05.29.41

Tour Eiffel, Champ de Mars -- Paris

20021026 032936

L'Os � Mo�lle

Unknown

Lourmel

Open 12.15-2pm, 7.30-11.30pm Tue-Sat. Closed Aug.

15th

A week later I was back with Mary, Hugh and Meg, this time at L'Os � Mo�lle, the parent restaurant across the street. Knowing the possibilities, I aimed to arrive early and start with a glass of wine in the Cave which we could take with us after we'd looked around. It being opening time, we practically had the place to ourselves - it felt like our private club.
In summer the restaurant's corner location must make for an open sunny atmosphere; in winter the pale yellow walls predominate.The room is simple, with bare tables and bentwood chairs; it was not until we began to examine the blackboard menu that we realized we were in a culinary cornucopia. Between the various dishes, "et" was a more frequent conjunction than "ou" - at the price of an ordinary meal, this was a veritable menu gastronomique of no less than six separate courses. It's worth listing them in detail:
Cr�me de choux fleur au romarin et girolles Cream of cauliflower soup with rosemary and chantarelle mushrooms -et- Foie gras pan� au pain d �pices, salade de pomme et jus de betterave Foie gras saut�ed in gingerbread crumbs, with potato salad and beetroot juice -et- Solette po�l�e, epinards et trompette � l'echalot�, beurre de nage Small sole pot roasted on a bed of spinach and mushrooms, with shallots, swimming in butter -ou- Coquilles St Jacques roties au beurre d'herbes, tagliatelle de celeri [+20f] Scallops roasted in herbal butter, celery tagliatelle -et- Supr�me de pintade roti, choucroute de navet et salade d'herbes Roasted breast of guinea fowl, turnip sauerkraut and salad with herbs -ou- Perdreau roti, fricasse� de c�pe et grenailles li�s au jus [+20f] Roasted young partridge, fricassee of mushrooms and small new potatoes thickened in its own juice -et- Fromage fermier et sa salade Farmhouse cheese and salad -et- Figue rotie � la cr�me d'amande at son sorbet au fromage blanc Roasted figs with almond liqueur and white cheese sorbet -ou- Quenelle de chocolat guanoja � la sauce safran�e Guanoja chocolate mousse with saffron sauce -ou- Truffe au thym, sauce chocolat Thyme truffles, chocolate sauce -ou- Feuillet� aux pommes caramelis�es et son caramel au calvados Puff pastry with caramelized apples and their juices, with calvados Prix net sans vin 210f
My personal choices included the scallops, the partridge and the figs. I promised myself that I would make notes of anything which failed to work properly, but in the event there was nothing to write - we could simply enjoy the food and each other's company. The ambitious descriptions on the blackboard had been fulfilled. It's perhaps the most sophisticated meal I've had in Paris the past few months, with the notable exception of L'Astrance, at double the price.
*****
The lacy-curtained aspect of this place and the sleepy location does attract lunching Madames d'un certain �ge, and why not? You'll see plenty of fine specimens preserved in blue hair rinse. By evening, there's a six-course menu d�gustation which is glorious gluttony. Start with a flavoursome pheasant broth sprinkled liberally with fresh coriander. If you're still functioning four or five courses down the line, round off with a slice of ewe's milk tomme, and a good selection of desserts. Wheelchair access.

01.45.57.27.27

3 rue Vasco-de-Gama -- Paris

20021026 032936

La Cave de l'Os � Mo�lle

Unknown

Lourmel

Unknown

15th

The Cave across the street from L'Os � Mo�lle is one of Jeffrey Steingarten's favorite Paris bistros, and no wonder. It's the closest you may get to being entertained by a grandm�re without having to listen to her id�es fixes. The food is simple, delicious, competantly prepared and of unlimited quantity. In summer there are tables in front on the sidewalk; inside are racks containing a hundred-odd varieties of mostly French wines, modestly priced, and a small bar where you may order them by the glass or the bottle. In the long vault behind are three large communal tables, two of them round, a third long and rectangular. In this relatively small space somewhere between twenty-five and thirty diners can be accommodated.
The evening I ate there - early as usual - I shared a round table with only two other diners, a girl and her cousin. Conscious of the cave's social conventions, she apologized that her cousin didn't speak English and asked my permission to continue her conversation with him in French. How extraordinarily considerate! I explained that I was happy to devote myself to eating and taking notes.
The table was so full of goodies that some of the dishes had to be stacked. There were two excellent terrines, made on the premises; good bread of the pain levain variety; a big bowl of a�oli, as strong and generous as at l'Ecurie; a bowl of cornichons (gherkins); and a big bowl of excellent black olives. On the kitchen range at the end of the room there was a tureen of rich cream of celery soup; shortly thereafter it was joined by the main course, a platter of crispy-skinned roast chicken on a bed of spinach and chopped kidneys, well imbued with the juices of the chicken, with roasted sliced potato.
For those who could manage a cheese course there were light fresh cheeses, including goat. And finally, covering a sizeable shelf, were the deserts: a big bowl of �le flottante with great mounds of soft meringue; creamy rice pudding; gently poached dried fruits; pears lightly stewed with sticks of cinnamon; stewed figs; cr�me caramel; tarte tatin; and prunes cooked with lemon wedges. Coffee was included with the meal; it came in an old granite pot whose lid fell off when I poured it into the little glass that was brought to drink it from.
All this for 130ff. The wines in the racks were so reasonable that I decided to really put the sommalier to the test and try the cheapest red they had, a vin de pays d'Orange at a ridiculous 35ff. It proved to be pleasantly drinkable - as good as many a bottle I've drunk at three to four times the price. What a bargain this place is, for both food and wine! Even though this was a midweek night, the second sitting at nine-thirty was sold out. Next time I'm in Paris I may eat a lot of lunches there.
A week later I was back with Mary, Hugh and Meg, this time at L'Os � Mo�lle, the parent restaurant across the street. Knowing the possibilities, I aimed to arrive early and start with a glass of wine in the Cave which we could take with us after we'd looked around. It being opening time, we practically had the place to ourselves - it felt like our private club.
In summer the restaurant's corner location must make for an open sunny atmosphere; in winter the pale yellow walls predominate.The room is simple, with bare tables and bentwood chairs; it was not until we began to examine the blackboard menu that we realized we were in a culinary cornucopia. Between the various dishes, "et" was a more frequent conjunction than "ou" - at the price of an ordinary meal, this was a veritable menu gastronomique of no less than six separate courses. It's worth listing them in detail:
Cr�me de choux fleur au romarin et girolles Cream of cauliflower soup with rosemary and chantarelle mushrooms -et- Foie gras pan� au pain d �pices, salade de pomme et jus de betterave Foie gras saut�ed in gingerbread crumbs, with potato salad and beetroot juice -et- Solette po�l�e, epinards et trompette � l'echalot�, beurre de nage Small sole pot roasted on a bed of spinach and mushrooms, with shallots, swimming in butter -ou- Coquilles St Jacques roties au beurre d'herbes, tagliatelle de celeri [+20f] Scallops roasted in herbal butter, celery tagliatelle -et- Supr�me de pintade roti, choucroute de navet et salade d'herbes Roasted breast of guinea fowl, turnip sauerkraut and salad with herbs -ou- Perdreau roti, fricasse� de c�pe et grenailles li�s au jus [+20f] Roasted young partridge, fricassee of mushrooms and small new potatoes thickened in its own juice -et- Fromage fermier et sa salade Farmhouse cheese and salad -et- Figue rotie � la cr�me d'amande at son sorbet au fromage blanc Roasted figs with almond liqueur and white cheese sorbet -ou- Quenelle de chocolat guanoja � la sauce safran�e Guanoja chocolate mousse with saffron sauce -ou- Truffe au thym, sauce chocolat Thyme truffles, chocolate sauce -ou- Feuillet� aux pommes caramelis�es et son caramel au calvados Puff pastry with caramelized apples and their juices, with calvados
Prix net sans vin 210f
My personal choices included the scallops, the partridge and the figs. I promised myself that I would make notes of anything which failed to work properly, but in the event there was nothing to write - we could simply enjoy the food and each other's company. The ambitious descriptions on the blackboard had been fulfilled. It's perhaps the most sophisticated meal I've had in Paris the past few months, with the notable exception of L'Astrance, at double the price.

01.45.57.28.28

18, rue de Lourmel -- Paris

20021111 001722

Morot-Gaudry

Unknown

Front de Seine

Closed weekends.

15th Arrondissement

On top of a building near the Ecole Militaire, this popular restaurant offers the luxury of well-spaced tables and an unusual outlook over Paris. Chef-owner Jean-Pierre Morot-Gaudry prepares a personalized cuisine combining the classic and the modern. Seasonal dishes might include scallops with Jerusalem artichokes, veal blanquette, and chocolate mille-feuille with wild raspberries. The menu marries a different wine with each dish. There's a prix-fixe lunch for 220F, and a prix-fixe dinner for 390F.

01.45.67.06.85

6 rue de la Cavalerie -- Paris

20021006 152826

Unknown

La Motte-Picquet-Grenelle

Open Mon-Sat noon-2.30pm, 8-11.30pm.

15th

The softly lit 'R' glowing over the door here seems a bit poncy, and riding the lift to the seventh floor dining room one wonders what awaits. However, this hip new spot is frost-free, and has a stunning view of the Eiffel Tower, rising like a golden giraffe over the attractive dining room. Chef Eric Danel does an appealing seasonal menu, with dishes like saut�ed girolle mushrooms to start, followed by generously served mains such as lamb stew with preserved lemons. Desserts are imaginative - the 'cappuccino' of red fruits is first-rate. Best wine pick is the Drostdy Hof Cabernet Sauvignon, from South Africa. Book.

01.45.67.06.85)

8 rue de la Cavalerie -- Paris

20021026 032936

La Folletterie

Unknown

La Motte-Picquet-Grenelle

Unknown

15th

Now, this is my idea of a modern bistro, and my enthusiasm is shared by authorities more eminent than I. Generously spaced tables are enclosed by pale walls and ceiling, with slender beams of dark wood arranged in simple perpendicular patterns which are reminiscent of Japanese architecture without actually imitating it. The only spectacular element of d�cor is the food itself, which is served on a variety of round, square and triangular dishes - some pottery, some glass - which would not be out of place in a museum. For such a modest establishment with such a reasonably priced menu, the proprietor must have spent a fortune on them. I hope that the dishwasher is as meticulous as the chef.
What goes on these beautiful plates is visually worthy of them - no vulgar towers, no busy dribbles, but pleasing arrangements of shapes and colors which are functionally determined by the texture and consistency of the food itself. My starter, for instance - petit pat� de moussons - was a low molded cylinder of chopped mushrooms, served hot and topped with two short crisp strips of chunky bacon, bedded on a few lightly dressed salad leaves, and all displayed on a spectacular triangle of pale roughly surfaced glass. Edible art! It was vandalism to eat it.
Back to the food. My main course was a hearty plateful of fricasie de rognon de veau, a generous circle of little kidneys surrounding a small mound of couscous. On the brown pottery plate they looked like sculptural protrusions from the glaze. The juices were ample and intense.
I'm awfully fond of offal. One of my happiest memories is of a financiera made for us by a friend in Turin, a grand lady who for years had presided over the Casa Della Trippa, which she had inherited from her father. In her version of this concentrated classic, sweetbreads, brains, cocks' combs and chicken livers were slowly cooked down along with artichokes, mushrooms and cucumber in cognac, marsala and white wine, until the mere exhalation would have sustained an arena-full of gladiators. . . . My palate's in the pot with Ariana and I must pause till it come back to me.
Meanwhile, Barbara and Frank were both tucking into breast of young chicken, fried in a thin batter and wittily sandwiched between two shallow domes of roasted aubergine. The Big Squawk?!
Finally, the dessert. We had been asked to choose in advance because one of the options would require early preparation. We all opted for it. This marvel proved to be a miraculously suspended rectangle of mille-fuille pastry within a complex structure of wild strawberries and whipped cream- an engineering feat worthy of I Bulli, that gastronomic Mecca that serves up edible Dali-esque structures high in the Catalonian hills. For once, I was happy to be served a clich�d edible tower, taken almost to self-parody but still attractive to the eye.
Behind this modestly unique establishment there seems to be, not just a fine chef, but an active intelligence. Fr�d�ric Breton does his own shopping in the Rungis market - did he do his own interior decorating as well? He certainly must design what he serves up on the plate, which exhibits inventiveness and wit.
In the world of food, such attributes often degenerate into Kalifornia Krazy - good for a yuk, but who'd want to live with it? As the name indicates, La Folletterie is indeed playful, but with such restraint that I would happily dine there day after day. The humor is of the sort that makes for a good life - the ability, when appropriate, to take everything seriously except one's self.

01.45.75.55.95

34 rue Letellier -- Paris

20021111 001722

Le Pavillon Montsouris

Unknown

Montparnasse

Unknown

14th Arrondissement

This bucolic building on the edge of Parc Montsouris has a pretty pastel interior, and its large terrace facing the park makes for a charming spot on a sunny day. A multichoice, prix-fixe menu is a real bargain, and dishes prepared by the bright, young chef are fresh and interesting, and rarely repeated; try the lamb sweetbreads with cucumber. Service can slow down during peak hours; go when you have time for a leisurely meal.

01.45.88.38.52

20 rue Gazan -- Paris

20021006 152826

Vieux M�tiers de France (Les)

18 15 14 �49

Corvisart/Place d'Italie

Unknown

13�me arrondissement

Off the Place d'Italie in the 13th, this Classic French distinguishes itself from the anonymous cafes and brasserie affairs nearby with "original Middle Ages-style decor" and Southwest specialties; a few antagonists argue "all is average", but the majority maintains that with "excellent cuisine" and "wonderful wines", "it should be better known."

01.45.88.90.03

13, bd Auguste Blanqui -- Paris

20021004 064025

Chez Paul

16 14 15 �32

Corvisart/Place d'Italie

Unknown

13�me arrondissement

"The only good restaurant in Butte-aux-Cailles" declare devotees of this small Traditional French bistro in the 13th, which attracts a "young crowd", often after-theater, with hearty helpings of such classics as pot-au-feu and chocolate marquise with an orange coulis; reservations are highly recommended, as the vaguely art deco space fills up fast; N.B. no relation to the same-named place in the 11th.

01.45.89.22.11

22, rue Butte-aux-Cailles -- Paris

20021004 064025

Perraudin

14 11 15 �25

Luxembourg

Unknown

5�me arrondissement

This "canteen-style restaurant for students" in the Latin Quarter is "always up to its own standards" of providing "good Classic French food" at a "great value"; despite the vintage 1903 facade, it's a lively scene -- if you can get a seat, which isn't easy, given that it's also "always full."

01.46.33.15.75

157, rue St-Jacques -- Paris

20021004 064025

L'Ecurie [Envoi]

Unknown

Cardinal Lemoine

Unknown

5th

In between our explorations of unfamiliar bistros we returned for lunch a couple of times to our old friend L'Ecurie, to which I devoted three pages in Through Darkest Gaul. Off and on, this site has housed a restaurant for perhaps a couple of centuries and, in its present form, has been know to Charles Shere at least since 1977, when he entered details of a meal in his day book, and to me for the past five years. During this latter half-decade not a single item on the set menu has altered, nor have the unlisted accompaniments.
On being seated you are presented with a glass of iced sangria; then comes a basket of good pain levain and a generous ramekin of as garlicky an a�oli as you could wish for. My chosen first course is always a dressed green salad liberally sprinkled with bleu de auverne, and then a generous lamb chop from the saddle - good French lamb, and woe betide the diner who suggests otherwise. This comes with a generous helping of frites or, alternatively in the evening, a baked potato. To wash it down, a demi-pichet of perfectly drinkable red wine. My desert is invariably sorbet cassis de maison, with small bits of black currant. Finally, along with the coffee, a complimentary glass of a good calvados.
At lunch all this will set you back around 120ff, at dinnertime around 150. If you want to lash out on the � la carte, 110ff will get you a plate of what another Paris restaurateur swears are the best giant prawns in town. I have no evidence to the contrary.
If the weather permits we usually dine at a table in front on the sidewalk Just inside the door a curve of ancient narrow stairs winds down into a stone-walled basement and, below that, a roman-arched vault with a long refectory table that could easily seat twenty or more. What intimations of immortality surround you here!
If I lived in Paris I would form a society whose sole purpose would be to dine weekly in this redolent echoing chamber.
L'Ecurie and its disappearing siblings are for me the ultimate foundation upon which public communal dining is based. If it were the restaurant at the end of the world, I would count myself lucky and order my last meal in perfect contentment.

01.46.33.68.49

2 rue Laplace -- Paris

20021111 001722

Au Petit Tonneau

Unknown

La-Tour-Maubourg, Invalides

Unknown

7th

Although she had missed Le Petit Marguery, my companion had been taken for dinner to a small nearby restaurant of considerable interest. I decided to go there for lunch. According to the sign in the window, Au Petit Tonneau's distinctive feature was its cuisine de femme. Bored by the preponderance of macho chefs on British TV, I always welcome the cooking of women, who laid the foundations upon which the sensational extravaganzas are ultimately based.
I arrived at opening time, and so I had the dining room to myself, with one eager exception. The owner's dog, Wattie, was waiting patiently, sitting on his haunches at his own table, his manners rather better than those of certain tourists. A friendly paw, but a bit short on conversation.
The talon d'Achille of French restaurants is the general absence of greenery except as decoration, and so I was glad to see salade au Roquefort on the luncheon menu. Blue cheese liberally sprinkled on lightly dressed lettuce was one of California's first symptoms of culinary enlightenment and I've never grown tired of it. The pav� de morou frais which followed had a curious nomenclature. A slab of fresh cod, obviously, but why this strange spelling, and of a word which applies to salt cod? Never mind; it was as fresh as it could be and fried - sorry, saut�ed - to perfection: firm flavorful flakes which came apart easily and were springy between the teeth. And excellent pomme frites. Isn't it sad that we're only beginning to appreciate cod now that it's on the edge of extinction?
Towards the end of the meal the chef came out of the kitchen. It wasn't Ginette Boyer, the proprietor, but a new second-in-command who had recently joined the staff after cooking for thirty-seven years in Birmingham pubs. No wonder the fish n'chips were spot-on.
As I was tucking into my pub grub, an habitu� arrived and sat down at what was evidently his usual place next to the zinc. We exchanged a few words and by the time we were both into coffee I had joined him at his table. He had a touching story. For seven years he had been head of the picture section in the Paris office of an international news agency but had just got the sack because his new boss didn't like him. His wife of many years, with whom he was obviously in love, had had a nervous breakdown and drifted into alcoholism; he had put her into an expensive American hospital to dry her out. She had been recently released as cured but wanted a trial separation. In the meantime he had been tentatively offered a job in Brighton and was about to go look into it. Maybe she would join him there. It was a sad tale of broken threads.
We had a cognac with our coffee, and then the waitress plopped an almost full bottle of wine on our table, left behind by a departing couple. An hour later my new-found drinking companion urged me to come back to his apartment to have a coffee and meet his wife. To my relief, he drove the short distance skilfully and cautiously and parked just outside one of my favorite Paris hotels, the Fr�miet, in the elegant little avenue of the same name, a row of art nouveau masterpieces built in 1913 to the design of a single architect. My friend - for I must now so call him - had a large apartment on the first floor next door to the hotel. A splendid place. What would he find in Brighton to match it?
While we were drinking our coffee his wife came in. I wasn't prepared for her extraordinary beauty - slender, insubstantial, translucent as though softly lit from behind, with a gracious smile which nevertheless conveyed an ineffable sadness. It was a face which seemed to look hopelessly but with stoic acceptance into a gradually deteriorating future. I left as quickly as politeness would allow.

01.47.05.09.01

20, rue Surcouf -- Paris

20021111 001722

L�Arp�ge

3 Michelin Stars

Varenne

Closed SuM? Tu-Sa 12-14 1930-2230

Alain Passard has drawn on his family history to produce a restaurant renowned for superb, seasonal cuisine. His grandma�s portrait hangs on the otherwise minimalist walls and it is her cooking and joie de vivre that is the source of Alain Passard�s inspiration. The restaurant is named in honour of his musical parents and to set the tone for the harmony of flavours. Passard�s new menu places emphasis on fresh vegetables, fish and white meat. Dishes include lobster carpaccio with olive oil and caviar, fragrant stuffed tomatoes or strawberries scented with hibiscus petals.
*****
L'Arpege Restaurant has a trendy Scandinavian interior with many French government officials as regular guests, not only high respect for regional ingredients but also excellent combinations, wine choice is great

01.47.05.09.06

84, rue de Varenne -- Paris

20021026 032936

Au Pied du Fouet

Unknown

S�vres-Babylon

Unknown

7th

Paris is so full of obscure but noteworthy eating places that one of its joys is following a chain of recommendations wherever it may lead. Charles Shere, who first sent me to l'Ecurie, had more recently sung the praises of Au Pied du Fouet, a place to go for a good simple lunch and good conversation. This would determine, in succession, my next five meals. One was an ordinary hotel breakfast and another will be reviewed separately, so this chapter will concern itself with the other three. As soon as I entered Au Pied du Fouet, I spotted an original zinc bar, the sort the Germans had mostly melted down during World War II. I also saw evidence that this was an establishment which quietly made its own rules. On the wall was a meuble � serviettes, i.e., a wooden cabinet with numbered compartments which held the neatly rolled napkins of regular patrons, forty-seven in all. This was not a stage prop; shortly after I arrived a diner at an adjacent table was taken his napkin when he sat down. Polidor, which we've already visited, has a similar cabinet, but it is empty. This practice, Ellen Williams tells us in her interesting little book, The Historic Restaurants of Paris, was made illegal by a hygiene law of 1948. France's salvation has been its lax enforcement of stupid regulations. Among the framed prints on the walls was a page from an ancient catalog of buggy whip sockets. May God preserve the useless! I always go for offal when it's offered, so my starter had to be g�siers confit en salade (duck gizzards with a salad of delicate mixed greens); then confit de joue de porc aux chevre frais (confit of pork cheek with fresh goat cheese and lentils). Strong honest flavors, with the complexity born of good fresh ingredients. There was a distinguished woman at an adjacent table, who addressed our waitress in fluent French with just a touch of an American accent. Following what I had been told was the custom of the house, I struck up a conversation with her. She was both intelligent and entertaining, and on a sudden impulse I suggested that we have dinner that evening at an interesting restaurant I had planned to visit. "No ulterior motives," I added directly. "I'm a very happily married man and my wife is joining me in a couple of days. I would merely enjoy an evening's company." She accepted this at face value without a flicker of surprise or suspicion. "Why not?" she said easily. "My life has consisted of doing the unexpected." In due course I would discover that much of it had also been devoted to accomplishing the apparently impossible.

01.47.05.12.27

45 rue du Babylon -- Paris

20021111 001722

Bourdonnais (Le)/Cantine des Gourmets (La)

20 17 18 �73

Ecole Militaire

Unknown

7�

A well-heeled clientele salutes this New French "near the Eiffel Tower" as "a small culinary masterpiece" that's an ideal place "to take guests"; chef Jean-Fran�ois Rouquette has "real talent", turning out "delightful gourmet cuisine" in a "comfortable" setting complete with "professional" service; though a few wince at the prices and detect a bit of "snobbism", most maintain it's a "wonderful experience."

01.47.05.16.54

113, av de La Bourdonnais -- Paris

20021004 064025

Au Bon Accueil

Unknown

Alma-Marceau

Open 12-1415 19-2230 M-F

7th

This is a good place to lunch after a bracing canter up the Eiffel Tower (or even after a mere wander round the base). The food is refined peasant: an excellent-value lunch menu offers a very good fricass�e of girolle mushrooms and petit gris snails. The puds (walnut and quince crumble, roast figs, warm moelleux with chocolate sauce) are good.

01.47.05.46.11

14, rue Monttessuy -- Paris

20021026 032936

D'Chez Eux

Unknown

Ecole Militaire

Unknown

7th

I had not yet made plans for that evening's dinner and my new friend was insistent that I book a table at D'Chez Eux. It was one of the best restaurants in town, he assured me - the most important people went there - Jacques Chirac, Helmut Kohl, Lionel Jospin and Jerry Lewis all had favorite tables. What could I say? The reservation was made forthwith.
It turned out to be a jolly, over-the- top sort of place - one of the guide books suggests that it would be an ideal venue in which to entertain a football team. Fortunately they had not yet touched down; following my usual practice I had booked for opening time. Though a big restaurant, it's laid out with lots of small rooms, so that the crew of waiters can establish and maintain an easy familiarity with the punters who are on their patch. The tone was set early when a grinning waiter picked up a sausage and carved off a thick slab which he dropped casually onto my plate. It was a crude but tasty hunk of meat, and a foretaste of what was to come.
Not having the unlimited capacity of a professional restaurant reviewer, my twice-a-day regimen was beginning to take its toll, and so I passed up the groaning hors d'oeuvre trolley in favor of a mixed salad. This arrived piled up in a bowl from which I might have bathed, and with peeled tomatoes, surprising in such a hearty establishment. (I thought of Oscar Wilde's complaint, "I asked for a watercress sandwich - not a loaf of bread with a field in it!")
This was a restaurant specializing in the cuisine of the Southwest, so against my better judgement I decided once again to risk a cassoulet. A huge pot was brought to my serving table, full of just what I had feared - pale brown, with the consistency of thick soup, unbearably salty, with stringy confit and hard sticks of sausage. I didn't feel in the mood for a confrontation, and so struggled to eat enough not to be conspicuous. I particularly did not want to offend my waiter, for when I commented that there were very few half- bottles on the wine list and that I had wanted a Cahors or a Madiran to go with my cassoulet, he offered to split a modestly priced Cahors with me, taking the other half to drink later with his cheese. When the bill arrived I noted that he had fairly split the cost as well as the contents.
It became doubly clear that I had misordered when a huge platter of roast lamb arrived at the next table and was cut up into eight juicy pink ribs, four pairs, which all went onto one plate - it was an order, not for the whole party, but for a single eager glutton. He proceeded to do it justice - a mouse would have gone hungry on what he left behind. These guys played hardball.
Finally came a moment of exquisite torture as the desert trolley was wheeled over on protesting castors. Rather than asking what I wanted, my sadistic tempter piled whole serving dishes in a half-circle around me - a wicked chocolate mousse, rich gloppy vanilla ice cream, an instant coronary called "grandmother pudding", ripe mango, candied citrus peel, and stewed cherries. There were pies on the trolley's bottom shelf which, it was made clear to me, were at my disposal and remained where they were only because there was no more room on the table.
The bill for all this, plus coffee, came to 379ff - rather less than the restaurant's expensive reputation had led me to expect. Only the cassoulet, at 183ff, was excessively priced, and that because of its quality, not its quantity. The cornucopia of desserts was a steal at 48ff. I may go back some day and wrestle with the lamb, but only after I've been seriously in training.

01.47.05.52.55

2, av de Lowendal -- Paris

20021111 001722

Languedoc (Le)

17 12 16 �25

Les Gobelins

Unknown

5�

"Real Traditional French cooking" is on offer at this bistro in the 5th that pulls a "crowd of neighborhood regulars"; friends name it a "fabulous find" for "good portions" and gentle prices, but foes say the "conservative" cuisine "lacks surprises" ("should be in a museum") and service "unpleasant"; still, the majority holds that the Languedoc "region is on the way up, and this restaurant is following it."

01.47.07.24.47

64, bd de Port-Royal -- Paris

20021004 064025

CAP VERNET

Unknown

Closed Sunday

Still the best oysters in town! I also love all their fish selections including dorade and home-cured salt cod on a bed of cabbage.

01.47.20.20.40

82 avenue Marceau -- Paris

20021124 160215

La Fermette Marbeuf

Unknown

Champs-Elys�es

Unknown

It's a favorite haunt of French TV and movie stars, who like the spectacular Belle Epoque mosaics, tiles, and stained glass (discovered by accident when the restaurant was being redecorated), and appreciate the solid, updated classic cuisine. Try g�teau of chicken livers and sweetbreads, lamb navarin with vegetables, and bitter chocolate fondant. Prices here are exceptional, considering the quality of the food, the surroundings, and the neighborhood. La Fermette becomes animated late, around 9.

01.47.20.63.53

5, rue Marbeuf -- Paris

20021006 152826

Fouquet's-Barriere

Unknown

George V

Restaurant: M-Su 12-15 17-24 Bar & Salon: 20-26

Since 1899, all major European film stars have been in Fouquet's as the Cesar film award is celebrated here, restaurant is red velvet, but you can also go for a more light snack with a view on the Champs-Elysees

01.47.23.50.00 01.47.23.50.55

99, avenue des Champs-Elysees -- Paris

20021026 032936

LA MAISON BLANCHE

Unknown

Closed Saturday and Sunday at lunch

Exciting and inviting is the Pourcel twins� (Jacques and Laurent from the Michelin three-star Jardin de Sens in Montpellier) new consulting endeavor at the flashy and fashionable Maison Blanche, on the top floor of the Th�atre des Champs Elys�es. As far as food, expect the same Provencal flair as you find in the south, not to mention a beautifully chosen selection of wines from the Languedoc.

01.47.23.55.99

15, avenue Montaigne -- Paris

20021124 160215

Port Alma

Unknown

Trocad�ro/Bois de Boulogne

Closed Sun., Aug.

16e

Madame Canal's charming welcome and the nautical-blue and pastel decor of this very pretty restaurant will have you feeling festive from the start. Monsieur Canal, the chef, is from the southwest of France, near Spain, and his cuisine is bursting with full, sunny flavors. Try turbot with thyme, sea bass in a salt crust with fennel gratin, or bouillabaisse (order ahead). Look forward to attentive, polite service, too.

01.47.23.75.11

10, av. de New York -- Paris

20021006 152826

Jamin/Robuchon

Unknown

Trocad�ro/Bois de Boulogne

Closed weekends, July.

16e

Surely it's the hardest reservation to obtain in France. Chef-owner Jo�l Robuchon has attained cult status, and his influence on cooks around the globe is great. Under his inspired vision, everything from John Dory with ginger and cream of cauliflower with caviar to saddle of lamb in a salt crust and even pig's head becomes a visual and gustatory revelation. Antoine Hernandez, chef-sommelier, is a gentle guide through the impressive wine list, and service in general is attentive and professional. Occupying a landmarked turn-of-the-century townhouse, the restaurant is one of the most beautiful and comfortable in Paris; some may find their pleasure challenged by the enormity of the bill---a three-course meal for two can easily run $400.

01.47.27.12.27

59, av. Raymond Poincar� -- Paris

20021006 152826

P�re Claude (Le)

14 10 12 �39

La Motte-Picquet-Grenelle

Unknown

15�

"A place to go when you don't feel like cooking for yourself", this "very pleasant" Classic French rotisserie near the Ecole Militaire serves a stylish clientele "copious" quantities of "good meats and chicken"; "the decor is more or less insignificant", but who cares when there's "a warm atmosphere", a "set-price menu that's a great buy" and an owner who's something of a "picturesque" character.

01.47.34.03.05

51, av de La Motte-Picquet -- Paris

20021004 064025

Michel Rostang

2 Michelin stars

Ternes / Pereire

Tu-F 1230-1430 M-Sa 1930-22

An old town house is the setting for this delicious cuisine of the Michel Rostang Restaurant with rooms as follows: Salon Art Nouveau, Art Deco, Robj 1 & 2, chef Michel Rostang is famous for his winter-truffle meals

01.47.63.40.77

20, rue Rennequin -- Paris

20021026 032936

Chartier
Unknown
Unknown
11-15 18-21
75009
Cuisine: Home style French dishes Pluses: Great decor Minuses: You will be rushed when the place is full Don't Miss: Gigot d'agneau (roasted lamb) Chartier is one of the unavoidable restaurants for several reasons: The glass dome from the beginning of the century is gorgeous, prices are reasonable, and the waiters provide a show worth watching. The restaurant has managed to keep its authenticity throughout the years in spite of being mentioned in many guidebooks about Paris. So the first thing to know is that there are many tourists, but there are also many locals and regulars. Chartier used to be an everyday place to eat for workers. Clients had their own little wooden drawer, that you can still see on the walls, for their own napkins. The atmosphere has stayed lively, easy going and informal: You can be seated with other people and share their bread basket. To match the decor, waiters are dressed as they were at the beginning of the century, with a sort of long white napkin going from waist to feet. Other than their outfit, something else will catch your attention: That's their incredible ability to carry about 10 dishes at once on one arm. Their black and white silhouettes moving quickly with piles of plates create some sort of fascinating ballet. But this skill is not their most amazing one: Counting the bill at lightning speed, from memory of course, at the corner of your paper tablecloth at the end of the meal is another interesting experience that you can live through at Chartier. You can add it again after them, and you will find that they don't make mistakes. Apart from the show, you can also eat in this restaurant. No menu, but a long list of typical French home style dishes. Some are very basic such as carrot salad or sardines in oil, or roasted chicken with fries. Other more known as French dishes such as leg of lamb with flageotlets or escargots. Whether simple or more sophisticated, recipes are plain but good, quantities reasonable, and prices low in comparison to other Parisian restaurants. A whole meal with an entr�e, a main dish and a desert with 1/4 of a liter of wine will cost you about 120 Frs. Opening hours are also different from other Parisian restaurants, they open and close early. Because of this deserved success, the restaurant is often full, so you will be served quickly. This is not the place to come and chat for hours. If you want to avoid the crowd, come at opening time. The restaurant does not take reservations.
01.47.70.86.29
7, Rue du Faubourg -- Paris
20021007 225425

Androuet

Unknown

M-Sa 11-15 18-21

75008

Cuisine: Cheese tasting plates, cheese based dishes
Pluses: An excellent wine menu, nice quiet atmosphere
Minuses: Location is a bit off the track
Don't Miss: Fricass�e de homard au roquefort (Lobster with roquefort sauce)
The restaurant is located on the first floor, above the cheese store belonging to the same owner. So as you enter the building and go upstairs, you are escorted by an overwhelming smell of wonderful cheeses. There are now a few restaurants in Paris that call themselves "cheese restaurants," but Androuet was the first one and is probably still the best one.
The restaurant is proud to serve over 200 different cheeses, that are matured in their own caves.
Basically, you have the choice between une d�gustation, which means that you can have a whole meal just tasting cheeses, from the mildest ones, to the strongest ones.
Or you can have a meal, which can be based on meat, fish, noodles, etc. prepared with a specific cheese. Most of us are used to traditional blue cheese sauce or swiss cheese sauce. It's amazing to discover how great a camembert sauce can be.
The lowest price for the fixed lunch menu is 125 Frs; for dinner, it is 190 Frs. But good wines are expensive and a cheese restaurant in France must have good wines, so the bill might be the bad surprise, but cheese lovers cannot avoid visiting the place.
Last but not least, the restaurant is decorated all in wood and gives you the impression of eating in a private apartment, with its different separated spaces.

01.48.74.26.93

41, rue d'Amsterdam -- Paris

20021007 225425

La Table d'Anvers

Unknown

Op�ra

Closed Sa lunch, Su, mid-Aug

This is one of the best restaurants near Montmartre, serving an interesting menu with Italian and Proven�al touches in dishes such as gnocchi of langoustines a girolles (wild mushrooms), saddle of rabbit with polenta, and asparagus with scampi. La Table's wide range of chocolate desserts is among the best in Paris; serious sweet-tooths can indulge in an all-dessert menu, which includes a single token fish dish.

01.48.78.35.21

2, pl. d'Anvers -- Paris

20021006 152826

Jo Goldenberg

Unknown

In the heart of the Jewish quarter, within the labyrinthine streets of the Marais district, lies this popular restaurant, which serves up popular Ashkenazi dishes, ranging from chicken soup and kreplach to beef goulash. Reminiscent of a New York delhi, the restaurant has a no-frills interior. If visitors are pushed for time, the delicatessan sells fresh pastrami, chopped herring, bagels, plaited chala bread and cheesecake.

01.48.87.20.16

7, rue des Rosiers -- Paris

20021027 062536

Le Marais Cage

Unknown

The Marais district is awash with restaurants, but not all are really that good. It is worth seeking out Le Marais Cage (Swamp Cage), tucked away in a Marais side-street and named after the district which was originally a swamp. Caribbean classics � from crabe farci (stuffed crab) to Feroce martiniquais (salt cod, avocado and pepper) and cr�pe Caraibes (Caribbean pancakes) � are on a menu that has been tried and tested for 35 years. The decor turns away from the obvious Caribbean theme, and is inspired instead by a room in Napolean�s ch�teau at Malmaison, with rich fabrics and colourful paintings.

01.48.87.31.20

8, rue de Beauce -- Paris

20021027 062536

CHEZ L'AMI LOUIS

24 14 18 �95

Arts et M�tiers

Unknown

3�

Pleasing politicos "from Chirac to Clinton", this classic bistro near the Place de la R�publique fills up serious foodies ready to feed and fork out for "Pantagruelesque portions" of "French versions of meat and potatoes" (plus "copious foie gras") at "enormous prices"; as with every success story, there are carps ("too many Americans", "dingy" decor, sometimes "snobbish" service), but the majority swears this "hole-in-the-wall" is "worth the experience, at least once in a lifetime."

01.48.87.77.48

32, rue du Vert-Bois -- Paris

20021004 053354

Cafe Marly

Unknown

Palais-Royal-Musee-du-Louvre

Mon-Sun 8am-2am

1er

Cafe Marly with its high ceilings in the Richelieu wing of the Louvre is ideal for a break to enjoy pastries from Lenotre or have a proper meal

01.49.26.06.60

93, rue de Rivoli, Cours Napoleon -- Paris

20021026 032936

L'Absinthe

Unknown

1er

Absinthe is the name of a popular Paris bistro where, though they don't serve Absinthe, they do serve excellent food in a friendly setting. Located on a quiet but very chic square, in warm weather you can dine on the terrace. The bistro is part of super-chef Michel Rostang's restaurant empire so, quality is kept high while prices run at about 40 euros per person with wine.

01.49.26.90.04

24, Pl du Marche Saint-Honore -- Paris

20021026 032936

L'Astor (au Hotel Astor)

2 Michelin stars

Saint-Augustin

Mon-Fri

L'Astor Restaurant has a Neo Art-Deco interior, Robouchon disciples offer some of his repertoire but also can still rely on their master's advice when they are experimenting with new frontiers

01.53.05.05.20

11 rue d'Asorg -- Paris

20021026 032936

Le Pavillon Ledoyen

2 Michelin stars

Champs-Elysees-Clemenceau

M-F 12-14 1930-2215

8e (Champs-Elys�es)

Le Pavillon Ledoyen Restaurant is an 1842 dining room in a pavilion at the end of Champs Elysees with a grand interior and cuisine
Chef Ghislaine Arabien is the most talked about up-and-coming chef in Paris. She sets gastronomic fashion by concentrating on northern French cuisine, and creates specialties featuring beer sauces, including coquilles St-Jacques � la bi�r. The elegant restaurant, with its gilded ceilings and walls, plush armchairs, and tables with candelabra, is set in a posh location off the Champs-Elys�es near place de la Concorde.

01.53.05.10.01 01.47.42.55.01 01-47-42-23-23

1 av. du Tuit, on the Carr� des Champs-Elys�es -- Paris

20021026 032936

Le Buddha Bar

Unknown

Concorde

Unknown

8th

A giant Buddha, beautiful people and international cuisine are on the menu at the perennially popular Buddha Bar. Located close to place de la Concorde, dishes include spiced chicken, crab or curry and pineapple sauce.

01.53.05.90.00

8, rue Boissy d Anglas -- Paris

20021027 062536

Alain Ducasse au Plaza Athenee

3 Michelin stars

Alma Marceau / Franklin-Roosevelt

Tu-F 13-1430 M-F 20-2230

Alain Ducasse was awarded three Michelin stars within eight months of first opening his Paris restaurant in 1996, at 59 avenue Raymond Poincare, 16th, where he took over from star chef, Joel Robuchon, after moving to the capital from Monte Carlo. In September 2000, Ducasse moved the restaurant to a chic new venue in avenue Montaigne, 8th, opening the Restaurant Plaza Ath�n�e. In just six months, he won back his three Michelin stars, serving dishes such as langoustine au caviar avec une cr�me citronn�e (langoustine with caviar in a lemon cream sauce).
It's new � again. Super chef Alain Ducasse has settled into his new home at the Plaza Athenee hotel, in a contemporary space designed by the young Patrick Jouin. Meals to remember (with many new dishes) from the only French chef to have received two three-star Michelin ratings in the same year. Prices to remember too. Count 140 euros and up.
Superstar chef Alain Ducasse has taken over the dining room of the Hotel Plaza Athenee in late-2000 as the Restaurant Alain Ducasse au Plaza Athenee and has added a whacky touch to the traditional grand style interior with high ceiling,

01.53.67.65.00

Plaza Athenee 25, avenue Montaigne -- Paris

20021027 062536

Ghislaine Arabian

Unknown

16th

Ghislaine Arabian is renowned for her strong character and superb cuisine, redolent with the flavours of the north � beer and chicory are some of her favourite ingredients. Her new restaurant, which opened in May 2001, is classically decorated in light colours and is already drawing clients in their hordes � it is particularly popular with the business community. Already proving popular are Flanders specialities, such as boeuf � la gueuse (beef cooked in Belgian beer).

01.56.28.16.XX

16 avenue Bugeaud -- Paris

20021027 062536

Man Ray

Unknown

8th

Johnny Depp, Sean Penn and Mick Hucknall back this oriental-inspired bar-restaurant, where a chic, sexy clientele are served everything from sushi, to Chinese stir fry and classic European cuisine. Inside the restaurant which was designed by Miguel Cancio (who also designed the Buddha Bar), Man Ray photographs hang on the deep, copper walls. Man Ray also boasts a sunken hall and wooden mezzanine. It is definitely a place to see and be seen.

01.56.88.36.36

34 rue Marbeuf -- Paris

20021027 062536

La Ferme Saint-Simon

Unknown

Rue-du-Bac

Unknown

Welcome to"The Farm". Francis Vandenhende (former student of the great Gaston Lenotre) is the chef / owner of this nice restaurant not far from the Musee d'Orsay end of blvd. St. Germain de Pres

01.45.48.35.74

6, rue de Saint-Simon -- Paris

20021124 203818