PART 1: PARIS RESTAURANTS Around the beginning of November, I posted a message asking readers which Paris restaurant they considered the best. As I expected, the consensus was that Jamin/Robuchon has the finest kitchen and that Taillevent is the best for the all around grand dining experience. Surprisingly, almost no one mentioned Lucas-Carton. Has Alain Senderens' star finally burned out? Unfortunately, a couple of weeks after my posting, my dentist (muttering something about wanting to take his wife to the Hotel del Coronado) informed me that I needed $850 of dental work. We reluctantly scaled back our plans, cancelling our reservation at Jamin (sigh). Determined to eat at least one meal in a multi-star place, we finally settled on lunch at L'Arpege, whose owner-chef came very highly recommended and which has a 290 F lunch menu. I called the Tuesday we left for Paris, reserving for the next Tuesday. On several previous trips to Paris, we had not hand much of a dining plan, depending on following our noses supplemented by a little spur of the moment perusal of the Michelin Guide or Gault-Millau. This time our trip had a theme: we decided to eat most of our full meals at "little brother" restaurants, i.e. the less expensive second restaurants associated with some of the big name places. We also decided that for main meals, we would try places that were new to us, and that for smaller meals, we would follow our nose. Consequently, as far as I remember we went to none of the places recommended by netters except for some wine bars. Many were places where we had been before, and others just didn't get fitted in. We are, nonetheless, extremely grateful for the advice. We certainly have a large database of places to try next year. We were in Paris from January 6 through January 13. Reviews of restaurants where we ate are given below. Places we would like to have tried, in addition to the little brothers Le Bistro d'a Cote and the Rotisserie du Beaujolais, include the two-star Amphycles, Apicius and Jacques Cagna, as well as Pile ou Face, Le Maraicher and La Tour de Montlhery. Another spot we intended to try and didn't get to was the little fast food place ! on the quai des Grands-Augustins (and elsewhere). It looked good and had decent prices for its cold plates and sandwiches. A couple of general observations: The no smoking ordinance seems to have had minimal effect. I think that smoking is generally less in Paris than, say, ten years ago, but can't attribute any of the decrease to the new ordinance, which most places seem to be implementing half-heartedly if at all. Also, everywhere we went we were served a little bar of Valrhona chocolate with our coffee. In the past we have often gotten chocolates at the more upscale places, but this time we got them everywhere, even the most unpretentious bars. I wish that I had the Valrhona concession for Paris. A couple of notes on style: After much deliberation, I have omitted all accents. I don't know the French ASCII conventions and didn't like what I tried. The TeX style also seemed to clutter the text too much. I hope that the French readers will supply the accents and that the non-French readers won't know the difference! I have also quoted all prices in francs. The exchange rate was around 5.45 francs to the US dollar while we were there. About reservations: As noted above, we reserved for dinner at L'Arpege a week in advance. I think that in the busier seasons you probably would need to call a little earlier to be sure of getting in. For the other places where we had a full meal, we made same day reservations, calling about 10 am for the lunch reservation at Bistro de l'Etoile, and around 18:00 for evening reservations (at 20:00 or 20:30 -- horribly early in Paris, they eat later and later every year). We had no trouble getting a reservation at any place we called, although all of them essentially filled up by 21:00. Do you need to make a reservation? In the off season, maybe not always, but I think it's a good idea. Now to the restaurants. Jeremy's Sandwich Shop, 43 rue Fontaine, 9th. Wednesday lunch. Jeremy's is a funky little sandwich shop near place Blanche that appears to have a mostly local clientele despite its listing in Cheap Eats (one customer even put her lunch on the tab). If you go there, check out the coffee machine in the front corner: it's shaped like a seminude female torso, supposedly in honor of the area's working ladies. A wide variety of sandwiches and salad plates are offered, along with fresh fruit juices and milkshakes. I had a smoked salmon and cucumber sandwich and a large glass of fresh squeezed grapefruit juice. Laurie had a Perrier and a sandwich of rare roast beef, gruyere, lettuce and tomatoes. Both sandwiches were more than we could eat. The total bill was a cheap 92.60 F. Auberge Landaise, 23 rue Clauzel, 9th. Wednesday dinner. A country looking place -- exposed beams, whitewashed stone walls, heavy wooden furniture -- with two rooms expertly served by a single waiter with a bit of assistance from the proprietors, the Auberge Landaise serves up hearty Southwestern cooking. We ran across this restaurant early in the evening while strolling around the neighborhood of our hotel, liked its looks and decided to inquire about a table for dinner later. When we walked in, everyone almost panicked, but smiles broke out when we explained that we weren't any readier for dinner than they were. When we came back at 8:00, still the first customers to arrive, a table was all set up for us with an amuse-gueule of saucisson and sesame and cheese flavored puff pastry strips. By 9:30 it was filled with locals, many of whom seemed to be regular customers. For the first course, we both had a simple salad, the frisee Landaise, of curly endive, mache and trevise lettuce topped with meltingly tender preserved duck gizzards). For her second course, Laurie had an "elemental" confit de canard. (You will notice that she's given to greater fits of poetry than I.) I had cuisse de canard aux cepes, a duck leg served with meaty cepes and a dark sauce of red wine and duck stock. Both dishes were garnished with garlicky pommes a l'huile. Except that my duck was way too salty, everything was excellent. For a wine, we chose a 1988 Domaine de Diusse Madiran (150 F), a rich hearty wine that was just slightly tannic. We were surprised to get Ferrarelle for the water. Apparently the Italians are taking aggressive advantage of the open trade: we saw Italian water all over Paris all week. For dessert, we both had a mixture of citron, passion fruit and cassis sorbets. With our coffee, we were served a plate of almond tuiles and orange flavored chocolates. The restaurant has a deep but not very wide collection of vintage Armagnacs dating back to 1908. Most of the most recent (last 40 years or so) were from Michel Trepout. I had a glass of velvety Marquis de Roquebrune 1950 (170 F the glass). Despite the one problem dish, we liked this place very much and will probably go back sometime. The total bill was 761 F (a more reasonable 591 F without the Armagnac). Lafayette Gourmet, boulevard Haussmann at rue Mogador in the Galeries Lafayette department store, 9th. Thursday lunch. As the name implies, Lafayette Gourmet is a gourmet food shop in the Galeries Lafayette department store. Several of its departments are set up as little islands where you can get a light meal as well as buy products to take home. For example, one side of the cheese island is a counter with seats for about eight customers. Nearby are a few of the tall table-stool combinations you find in fast food places. There are similar areas serving caviar and smoked fish (Petrossian), grilled meats and fresh fish. We chose the cheese island, sitting at the counter. The rest of the customers appeared to be neighborhood workers. I had a cheese plate consisting of a giant salad dressed with vinaigrette and covered with slices of tete de moine, tomme de chevre, roquefort, brie, vacherin and a strong cow's milk cheese with caraway seeds that I couldn't identify. The cheeses were all good although a couple of them, especially the brie, were aged a little more than I prefer. Laurie had a roquefort lover's dream, the same giant salad with the vinaigrette, covered with a creamy roquefort dressing as well as several slices of roquefort. With a couple of glasses of Sancerre rouge, the bill came to 196 F. Gaya, 17 rue Duphot, 1st. Thursday dinner. When Jean-Claude Goumard bought Prunier, the grand old fish place that had finally closed after years of decline, he renamed his old restaurant, just down the street, Gaya and turned it into a simple fish bistro. It has the right look, with walls covered with blue and white Portuguese tiles that have been there since the '20s, banquettes and lots of old dark wood furnishings. Having an upscale restaurant and a bistro allow Goumard to contract for fishermen's entire catches, with the more expensive fish, like daurade, going to Goumard-Prunier and the cheaper ones, like dorade, to Gaya where they are simply and deliciously prepared. To start, Laurie had an outstanding soupe de poisson, while I had a bowl of small clams and mussels "mariniere", i.e. cooked with white wine, shallots and herbs. Laurie then had grilled dorade with a basil sauce while I chose aile de raie bouclee au chou, poached skate wing served over braised baby cabbage and surrounded by a fantastic chive beurre blanc. We both had pear sorbet (all desserts are made down the street at Goumard-Prunier) and coffee for dessert. During the meal, we had made friends with a boisterous group of Portuguese at the next table who treated us to a glass of port to end our meal. I rarely enjoy drinking port (I usually don't like port; it seems always to have a sherried taste to me, and I *hate* sherry), but this port had a bright clean fruity flavor that I really liked. Now if I only knew what it was. With a bottle of 1991 Sancerre Blanc from Domaine de Saint Pierre (195 F) and a half bottle of Badoit, the bill came to 704 F for a most enjoyable evening. Bistro de l'Etoile, 19 rue Lauriston, 16th. Friday lunch. One of three bistros of this name run by two-star chef Guy Savoy, this is a small place near the Arc de Triomphe crowded with tables that, at lunchtime, are crowded with a well-dressed business crowd. The daily specials, written on the mirrors that circle the room, run to traditional bistro fare done up smartly, with an emphasis on variety meats -- beef tongue, hog jowls, brains, etc. For a first course, I had salad tiede de queue de boeuf en ravigote au chou et a la moelle (as you can see, Savoy is not a believer in terse menu descriptions). This was a spicy salad of oxtail that had been braised with carrots, onions and other aromatics, served warm over wilted baby cabbage leaves and topped with a piece of marrow. An outstanding dish. Laurie had a simple green salad dressed with walnut oil and good red wine vinegar. For the second course, I had piece de veau fondante, mijotee au vin rouge, carottes caramelisees. This is one case where my French failed me: I understood all the words, but got something completely different from my expectation. What I expected were veal croquettes (fondante) simmered (mijotee) in red wine, with caramelized carrots. What I got appeared to be roasted veal sauced with pan juices and red wine, with noncaramelized carrots. It was ok, but not something I was really in the mood for. Laurie had rable de lapereau "marine roti" aux herbes, puree des pois casses. This was exactly as expected: saddle of young rabbit, marinated in herbs and then roasted, served with pureed peas. For dessert I had a good chocolate fondant with preserved clementines; Laurie had an exquisite very thin warm apple tarte. The service was fast and efficient, even a little brusque, befitting a busy lunchtime spot. As far as we could tell, we were the only foreigners. I would expect that at night the pace would slow down considerably and the clientele would be more international. With a carafe of the house Beaujolais, a half bottle of Badoit and coffee, the total bill came to 448 F. L'Ecluse, 15 quai des Grands-Augustins, 5th. Friday dinner. This is a stylish wine bar a few doors down from place St-Michel. It is part of a chain specializing in Bordeaux wines and serving a small but interesting carte of items prepared fresh daily in a central "laboratory". Service from the three-man frontroom staff was friendly and efficient. I had a plate of good charcuterie, a watercress salad and two glasses of a very good 1988 Fronsac from Chateau Herve-Laroque. Back in the '70s, Fronsac was supposed to be the next big Bordeaux appellation. Its boomlet fizzled, however, and now Fronsac is hard to find in the US. A pity, since this can be a luscious, fruity wine with a big nose. Laurie had chicken breast with an herb stuffing, watercress salad and a glass of the 1990 Chateau Hostens-Picant, a white Bordeaux from Saint-Foy-Bordeaux. This was a new appellation to me. The books say that these wines are usually semi-sweet, but this one was a typical dry white Bordeaux. For dessert I had a glass of a slightly thin, but tasty, 1984 Chateau Coutet; Laurie had the chocolate cake. With the food, four glasses of wine, a half bottle of Badoit and coffee, and a bill of only 320 F, we left quite satisfied. Le Repaire de Bacchus, 13 rue du Cherche-Midi, 6th. Saturday lunch. Mostly a wine shop, this tiny place across from the Poilane bakery has seats for about six customers. It offers a choice of a a charcuterie plate or a cheese plate, accompanied by Poilane bread and a glass of about six different wines of the week. We both ordered plates of charcuterie. With hers, Laurie had a 1991 Chateau Haute-Fabregues Faugeres. I had a 1985 Cuvee de la Commanderie du Bontemps Medoc. The Medoc was everything it should be; the Faugeres was fantastic. When it came time for a second glass, I switched to the Faugeres. For the excellent charcuterie and four glasses of wine, we paid 170 F. Mariage Freres, 13 rue des Grands-Augustins, 6th. Saturday afternoon. I suppose that this place just has to be experienced. A tea shop dating from the 19th century, it serves over 350 different teas, along with pastries and cold lunch items. The menu comes with a thick book called something like The Art of Tea, which describes in great detail how to choose the appropriate tea for the occasion. And if you still can't decide, then the oh-so-serious waiters can help you make just the right selection. I had a green tea mousse, with a pot of Mikado, an aromatic blend of Chinese teas. Laurie had a vanilla thing with raspberry sauce, washed down by cinnamon flavored tea. Neither pastry was worth the 40 F; the teas, however, were outstanding. Next time we'll skip the fancy pastries and have scones with our tea. The total bill for pastry and tea was a chere 142 F. Mariage Freres is a classy place that takes its tea very, very seriously. If you're a tea fanatic, it's a must stop. If you're not, it's probably better just to head around the corner to L'Ecluse for another glass of good Bordeaux. Bistro du Dome, 1 rue Delambre, 14th. Saturday night. Joyce's old Dome has turned into an upscale seafood house (with a bit of the old cafe up front) and spawned an informal bistro across the street that specializes, like Gaya, in simple preparations of the freshest fish. This is a gay place with a ceiling covered with molded glass light fixtures nestled among grape leaves, lots of greenery and tables filled with happy customers. Unlike most Parisian places, the Bistro du Dome seems to turn most of its tables (at least on Saturday night), packing in the customers early and late. In keeping with the spirit of the place, we chose simple dishes and were rewarded with our second memorable seafood meal of the trip. I had delicately fried rouget (a little too large still very good), followed by a whole small daurade baked with thyme. Laurie had grilled fresh sardines and sea scallops (with their coral -- why don't we get the coral in the US?) Provencal style. With the seafood we drank a bottle of 1987 Clos du Bourg Vouvray (96 F). For dessert Laurie had cassis and grapefruit sorbets, while I had a pear and prunes poached in red wine and served with a thin sweet sauce of red wine, pear juice, cinnamon and allspice. This was the most satisfying poached pear I have ever had. With coffee and a half bottle of Badoit, the bill was only 491 F. A la Grignoterie, 21 quai des Grands-Augustins, 6th. Sunday lunch. This is a simple little salad and quiche place, with a variety of salad plates and a selection of quiches that changes daily. Laurie had quiche lorraine; I had a tomato-onion-mustard quiche. A green salad comes with the quiche. The house wine is a decent Pays de Var. The quiches were good, and we can recommend A la Grignoterie for a quick lunch or dinner. In the afternoon it is a salon de the. Judging by our desserts, I'd try someplace else. My creme caramel was curdled and had a refrigerator taste. Laurie had crummy mousse of some sort. I don't seem to have written down what we paid, but I think that it was about 150 F for the quiches, desserts, two glasses of wine and two coffees. Cafe Drouant, 18 place Gaillon, 2nd. Sunday dinner. Paris is full of restaurants like Maxim's or Laperouse that have been reduced from their Belle Epoque grandeur down to expensive, tarted up tourist traps. We had always placed Drouant in that category until good reviews by Robert Noah and Catharine Reynolds stirred our interest. So, thinking that it would be fun to relive its between-the-wars luxury for a night, we decided to head there Sunday evening. Drouant is really two restaurants sharing a common kitchen. On the right as you enter is the very formal main restaurant, and on the left is the cheaper, livelier cafe. True to our little brother theme, we chose Cafe Drouant, aggressively Art Deco with a famous gold fish-motif ceiling, deco lamps mounted on mirrors and a spectacular '50s jukebox. Lots of leather, marble and dark paneling complete the impression of glamorous luxury. At dinner on weekdays and all day on Sunday, the cafe has a 230 F menu that includes three courses, a glass of wine and coffee. For her starter, Laurie had an excellent salade de foie gras a l'huile de noix ("the best foie gras I ever had"). I had fondant de poireau et pommes de terre au saumon, sort of an individual sized terrine of layers of salmon, potatoes and leeks bound together with a bit of mayonnaise. For our second, we both had Coquelet warren grillee au diable, a young rooster flattened (Laurie calls it "smashed chicken"), grilled and served with a peppery wine and vinegar sauce. For the wine, we had two glasses each of a decent 1991 Cotes Catalane Chardonnay from P. Puig. Dessert was chocolate cake for her, and a mixture of pear, raspberry and passion fruit sorbets for me. Now for the down side: Despite of the experts' enthusiasm, we can't recommend Cafe Drouant. The food tasted like it had been cooked by an anal-retentive Cordon Bleu graduate who takes the best ingredients and then prepares them by precisely following step-by-step a recipe he learned in school. The food was "perfectly" cooked but completely lacking in soul. The second problem area was the service. This restaurant had more service staff per customer than any other place we ate, including the two-star L'Arpege. The staff were experts at the entrance and exit bows and flourishes, but the rest of the time, there was a lot of bustling around but very little good service. For example, another table ordered a bottle of wine, which was placed in an out-of-reach ice bucket. Normally that would be ok: Drouant definitely gives the impression of being the kind of place where there is someone whose only job is to refill wine glasses. Wrong impression. Several times the wine glasses sat empty or very low while the staff rushed about accomplishing very little. And I had to almost tackle the waitress to get more bread. The third thing we didn't like was the attitude. The place was full of tourists (mostly Japanese) and definitely had a tourist trap feel about it. Despite the oily reception at the door, you got the impression (subtly, mind you, this is a classy place) that you were regarded as an uncultured foreign rube not to be taken seriously as a diner. If we had it to do over again, we would try the Rotisserie du Beaujolais, which is also open on Sunday night. With an extra glass of wine each (30 F the glass) and a half bottle of Badoit, the bill came to 542 F. Fauchon, place de la Madeleine, 8th. Monday lunch. After staring hungrily at Fauchon's window displays for years, we decided this time to try out their self-service located in the basement of the section of Fauchon located behind the Madeleine on rue de Seze. There are separate counters for drinks, pastries, cold plates and hot plates, and a small dining area accommodating about 50 diners. The day we were there, the customers seemed about one-third neighborhood workers, one-third tourists and one-third well-dressed older Parisian women shoppers. To get your food, you go you go from counter to counter placing your order and having the selected items entered on a little "credit card". When you have finished ordering, you take your card to a cashier, pay and receive a ticket for each item chosen. The tickets are then taken back to the counters and traded for your dishes. We both had a smoked trout plate and a bottle of Badoit. In Fauchon fashion the plates were very pretty, the trout decorated with cucumber scales and a sprig of red currants in gelee and surrounded by colorful diced vegetables. For dessert Laurie had a wonderfully tart and creamy tarte au citron, while I had to settle for a merely perfect pear-chocolate tarte. The bill was approximately 150 F. Rotisserie d'en Face, 2 rue Christine, 6th. Monday dinner. This is the second restaurant of two-star chef Jacques Cagna, located just around the corner from his eponymous grand grand place. There is nothing grand about the Rotisserie d'en Face, however, except the food. The room is rather self-consciously rustic, with brick floors, country style furniture with paper tablecloths, and pictures of livestock on the walls. Service is much like at the Bistro du Dome, informal but friendly and efficient. The food is fine home cooking dressed up a bit. To start, Laurie had snail and mushroom ravioli in a bouillabaisse broth, while I had salade maraichere, a winter salad of carrot, cauliflower, broccoli, lima beans, zucchini, cherry tomatoes and cornes (What are cornes? Do they have an English name?). For a second, we both had the parmentier de confit de lapin et son jus au thym, sort of a "pot pie" of succulent pieces of rabbit in a thyme flavored sauce encased in a little cylinder of mashed potatoes, surrounded by a wild mushroom fricassee. The bread was a perfectly rustic homemade five-grain bread. For a wine, the waiter suggested a 1991 Olga Raffault Chinon Prime Cuvee (130 F) that went perfectly with the rabbit. For dessert Laurie had fromage blanc with sour cherries and I had a pear clafoutis, both outstanding. The Rotisserie d'en Face has a three-course 175 F menu. At lunch, you can choose two courses for 140 F. We both had the 175 F menu. The total price, including the wine, coffee and a half bottle of San Pellegrino was 528 F. This restaurant seems to have a closer relationship to its more expensive sibling than some of the others. It is literally just right around the corner, and both Jacques Cagna and his sister came through while we were there to check things out. It is deservedly very popular, with a raucous crowd of people having a good time. It's open late and when we left, a little after 10:00, the bar was crowded with people waiting for a table. L'Arpege, 84 rue de Varenne, 7th. Tuesday lunch. We chose L'Arpege because we had decided to economize on our "fancy" meal. Two-star chef-owner Alain Passard has the reputation of being one of the most exciting cooks in town, and the restaurant offers a bargain five course 290 F menu at lunchtime. It seemed like the perfect combination. Once we saw the carte, however, our tight-fisted plans went out the window. The amuse-gueule was a chaud-froid d'oeuf a la creme. A lightly poached egg yolk was placed at the bottom of an egg shell and topped with a tart, light mixture of whipped egg white and creme fraiche. A little drop of syrup on top accented perfectly the savory flavors of the dish. For her entree, Laurie had languistines de Guilvine au caviar (220 F), a sort of carpaccio of langoustines that had been pounded flat, accented with a bit of cayenne, and surrounded by little pearls of caviar that floated in a reduction of fish broth and cream. I had rougets barbets a la tapenade de sardine (180 F), a larger, lesser type of rouget, pan grilled and served with a smooth, gutsy sardine tapenade. (This was also the entree on the 290 F menu). It was fantastic. However, I am still kicking myself for a moment of cheapness. I should have paid the 140 F more and gotten the carpaccio de St-Jacques aux truffes, wonderful thin coins of raw scallop interleaved with little coins of black truffle. It was a beautiful, and I am sure, fantastic dish. Fo our main course, we chose game and had poule faisan au genievre for two (440 F), a wild pheasant hen (I have a piece of shot for evidence), perfectly scented with juniper and roasted while we had our first course. The pheasant was expertly deboned at the table and just as expertly reassembled with the innards placed on the side. The innards looked awful, but once we tasted them we gobbled them up. The plates are ungarnished, so Laurie chose a salad of mixed wild greens and I had a plate of sauteed winter vegetables. For dessert, the waiter recommended the millefeuille vanille au whiskey, which was the most delicate millefeuille I have ever had. Laurie had feuilletage au chocolat, several delicate chocolate pastry leaves sandwiching a chocolate cream. Exquisite. With the coffee came the classiest act of the day: a typical little plate of goodies came with the coffee, tuiles, macaroons, chocolates, etc. Then, after we had greedily devoured all of them, the waiter brought out another plate, all different from the first plate! We resisted the temptation to see how long he could keep it up. With the pheasant, we drank a 1988 J. M. Boillot Beaune Montrevenots (280 F), a supple, elegant, medium-bodied Burgundy. The water was Italian again -- Ferrarelle. L'Arpege is fancy, having recently been decked out in the most tastefully expensive materials, but not stuffy. The frontroom staff are young but very smooth. (With one glitch: As we left, they very efficiently had our coats waiting for us at the door. The only problem was that I hadn't worn a coat.) Our reservation was for 1:00 and, except for two women chatting with the chef, we were the last customers to leave at 3:30. From beginning to end the service was attentive and gracious without ever descending to obsequiousness or snobbery. Even after we were the last customers left and most of the staff were discreetly twiddling their thumbs, the waiter was still trying to press "just a bit more" coffee on us. It was a great meal and a great dining experience. The total was 1410 F. As I mentioned, there is a 290 F five course lunch menu (amuse-gueule, entree, main course, cheese, dessert), as well as several 690 F menus available both at lunch and dinner. Except for the special lunch menu, there are not separate cartes for lunch and dinner. Whether you eat a la carte or choose one of the menus, you get your money's worth. Le Jardin du Fruit, 41 quai des Grands-Augustins, 6th. Tuesday dinner. Since our lunch at L'Arpege didn't end until 3:30, we didn't want much for dinner. In the evening we strolled around the Louvre and along the Seine, planning to stop somewhere like Taverne Henri IV for a light supper. However, we fooled around too long and places had begun to close by the time we were ready, so we headed down toward place St. Michel to find a simple place still open. On the way we ran across Le Jardin du Fruit which, despite its name, is mostly a creperie. It's a youthful place, opening and closing late and featuring a continuous program of music videos. To get to the toilets, you go downstairs and through an early '70s living room complete with shag rug, tv and large sleeping dog. The kitchen is also down there, and the kitchen staff, idle for the moment, were lounging around watching tv. The crepes were pretty good. Laurie had a ham and blue cheese one; I had lardons, potatoes and cheese. We shared a tasty poire and cinnamon crepe for dessert. No coffee -- the machine was broken. With a half carafe of 1991 Haut Poitou rouge (only a couple of levels above plonk but drinkable enough) and a half bottle of Badoit, we paid 167 F. Juveniles, 47 rue de Richelieu, 1st. Wednesday lunch. A wine bar that fit our theme, Juveniles is the less serious sibling of Willi's, specializing in tapas and Spanish and less "serious" French wines. We made a delicious lunch of a 50 cl carafe of the 1991 Domaine des Entrefaux Crozes-Hermitage (60 F), eggplant tapenade, Spanish tortilla, good jambon cru from Auvergne and gratineed potatoes. Dessert was a big bar of Valrhona chocolate and a coffee. The bill came to 210 F. La Luna, 69 rue du Rocher, 8th. Wednesday dinner. Good reviews in the Oct-Nov 1992 Gault-Millau magazine and Jan 1993 Gourmet led us to this little seafood restaurant on a side street between the Parc Monceau and Gare St-Lazare. Burled wood paneling and a dusky red wall covering gave the room an informally elegant feel. Service was friendly and efficient. Although owner is Norman, the place had the feel of the south, and the menu reflected that southernness. For her first course, Laurie had mussels in a saffron cream sauce. I wanted the sauteed razor clams, but they were out, so I decided to take advantage of the opportunity to have once more my favorite fish, the little rougets de roche, this time fried and accompanied by a tapenade made from bitter oil-cured olives and herbs. For the main course Laurie had filets from a larger rouget (too large to be rouget de roche, perhaps they were grondin), grilled over wood and served with the tapenade. I had "andalusian" bouillabaisse, large chunks of fish and strips of pimiento in a spicy tomatoey fish broth. The wine list was a little pricy, and we chose a flowery, dry 1991 Sancerre de Bue from Gerard Morin (180 F). It was good, although a light red might have been better with the bouillabaisse. For dessert I decided on soupe d'agrumes au Sauternes. I understood all the words -- citrus fruit soup with Sauternes -- but unlike at Bistro de l'Etoile, I had no idea what I was getting. It turned out to consist of fresh grapefruit and orange sections arranged in a shallow bowl around candied orange peel, with about a quarter cup of Sauternes poured over it. It was just the right thing to follow the bouillabaisse. Laurie had nougat glace vodka au miel, kind of a nougat ice cream with a vodka-honey sauce. The coffee was a good Brazilian Santos. With coffee, a half bottle of Badoit and a large glass of Marquis de Roquebrune Armagnac VVS for me, the total came to 773 F (713 F without the Armagnac). Which places were our favorites? Leaving out L'Arpege, which is in a category all to itself, and Cafe Drouant, which is in a completely different category all to itself, we would have to say Gaya and the Rotisserie d'en Face. The cooking was uniformly excellent at all three seafood places, but we enjoyed the evening at Gaya very much. Of course, for the price there is a lot to be said in favor of the Bistro du Dome. I don't mean to slight La Luna. There is absolutely nothing wrong with the cooking, service or atmosphere. Perhaps, it was just the mood we were in or some other intangible, but we just preferred Gaya. Of the other three places, the cooking at Rotisserie d'en Face and Bistro de l'Etoile was significantly better that the cooking at Auberge Landaise and both were cheaper. I would like to try the Bistro de l'Etoile at night to get a fair comparison. But we liked the cooking at Rotisserie d'en Face a little better and the atmosphere a lot better, so that's our place of choice. Tom Jacob Department of Computer Science University of North Texas From X Thu Jul 8 11:37:58 EDT 1993 Article: 5538 of rec.food.restaurants
Paris, France