The Week of November 17th, 2008
Sunday, in the NYT, Elaine Sciolino mentioned places to eat while “doing” the three Picasso shows this Fall: Les Saveurs de Flora, Orsay Restaurant + Café Marly.
Monday-Tuesday, in A Nous Paris, Jerome Berger reviewed and gave 3/5 dots to Al Taglio, an Italian place in the 11th and Philippe Toinard, next column over, gave 3/5 dots to the world food place Family Affair in the 17th. In the sidebar they mentioned Pierre Herme’s new branch in the Publis Drugstore and Le Nansouty, 35, rue Ramey in the 18th, 01.42.52.58.87, a new wine store which serves eats such as charcuterie and steak.
Tuesday, in Le Fooding, Sebastien Demorand reviewed Chamarré Montmartre, {see busted heart review by Emmanuel Rubin just below} and loved it, saying where else, except at Vongerichten + Roka, can you get this quality of food, for example: oysters in jelly and milk-fed pork, prepared by three chefs, Antoine Heerah and two others; lunch menu = 35 € (water & coffee included,) mini-portions of "bar food" with cocktails and other menus at 52 € and 65 €, with good wines priced about 9 € a glass or 32 € a bottle.
Wednesday, Emmanuel Rubin’s “Cest nouveau” in Figaroscope gave the photo, blurb and first slot to the ¾ heart place Jadis, 208, rue de la Croix-Nivert in the15th, 01.45.57.73.20, closed Saturday lunch and Sundays where on the menu-carte of 32 € one can have poached egg with spinach, sautéed rabbit or yellow Pollack with smoked cabbage. He gave 2/5 hearts to the formerly only delivery of sushi-sashimi place Matsuri Bac in the 7th and one heart to the puzzle-fast-food Italiante B Di Comiso in the 9th. Two busted hearts each were awarded to the Italian sounding but apparently French striving l’Atelier du Parc, 35, blvd Lefebvre in the 15th, 01.42.50.68.85, closed Sundays which has menus at 29 and 34 and the Beauvilliers makeover as a Franco-Mauricien restaurant, Chamarré Montmartre, coordinates in the 18th same as Beauvilliers, open 7/7.
This week’s Figaroscope’s Colette Monsat et al, did a rating of the best baguettes a la tradition that I’ve posted in that topic.
{For reasons not clear to me} Francois Simon in his Hache Menu reviewed a ham-cheese sandwich from Café Parvis, in the Gare Montparnasse, total for 2 with drinks = 13.60 € and he insists you go before your train leaves.
Wednesday as well, Richard Hesse of Paris Update, reviewed Lavinia where he found the wines well-priced but the food way over-priced, albeit OK.
Wednesday-Thursday, Jean Claude Ribaut in Le Monde wrote one article on beef miroton and Beaujolais and another on truffles and where to get them served up: Le Pré du Moulin, Sérignan-du-Comtat, Le Grand Pré, Roaix, Le Temps de vivre, Uchaux, and the Villa Augusta, Saint-Paul-des-Trois-Châteaux.
Thursday, l’Express posted a review by François-Régis Gaudry of la Remenance in Lyon.
Thursday as well, in the throwaway ParuVendu, Philippe Charles gives his “selection” of bistrots as: Au Fil du Vin, Table d’Adrien, Carpediem, Miroir, Chez Casimir, Le Carré des Vosges, Chaumette + Chez Margot converted last September from l’Ecume, 25 bis, blvd Henri IV in the 4th, 01.42.72.39.85, menu = 16.50 € for leeks with egg, cote de boeuf Bearnaise and frites and pain perdu.
Saturday, Francois Simon in his Figaro Croque Notes reviewed and called Gerard Vié’s new place on the rue du Cherche Midi the “address of the month” liking his rabbit terrine and paleron of beef in particular. Saturday as well, he reviewed six new books, most about famous chefs:
Anton, le Pré Catalan, the “most spectacular”
Les Bons ustensiles et les Bons Gestes F. e. Grasser Hermé
Olivier Roellinger Trois etoiles de mer
Dictionnaire du gastronome Benoit France & Jean Vitaux
Simplement Bistot Yves Camdeborde,
plus one on Italian cooking.
Sunday’s Journal du Dimanche had several articles of interest: in the Version Femina, Astrid T’Serclaes reviewed Zebra Square where she judged the chef impeccable; Aurelie Chaigneau wrote up three places where the chefs put on a show, Bigarrade and two foreign ones Pates vivantes + Al Taglio. In addition their Business Section devoted a whole page to gastronomy; Benoist Simmat quoted a Crédoc study showing that restaurant custom was down 30%, business by 8-15% and that it affected small neighborhood places, brasseries, theme places, mid-range and one-stars but not the grand tables, bistrots and fast food chains; talked about the scandalous mark-up (3-10 times the price) of wines; Marie Nicot wrote of Cojean’s successful formula of fresh food, good product and fast-food in its 13 stores and CDT uses Vaudeville as an illustration of empty brasseries and the Flo Group’s loss of 10.5% clientele, largely from business folk, even though they’ve introduced low cost items and menus.
October, Alexander Lobrano, in Where, reviewed the results of the new chef at the Brasserie du Louvre, Place Andre Malraux, 01.44.58.38.38, where he liked the foie gras, (one of the best) risottos (in Paris), beef carpaccio, lamb and desserts, Arthur, coordinates already given, and the ItalianDiVino. The November issue contained a spread by Lobrano of the empire of Alain Ducasse and reviews of the Palace Elysee, Le Gaigne + le Mouton Blanc, recently renovated at 40, rue d’Auteuil in the 16th, 01.42.88.02.21, where he mentions the frisée salad, crayfish gratin, steak tartare, onglet and salmon.
In the December Travel & Leisure, there were two articles of note: one blurb mentioning the Senderens run resto at the new hotel Mama Shelter and an article “Europe for Less”, by Anya von Bremzen that defined "affordable meals" as "$100 for dinner for two and about $40 for lunch.....[with] interesting $30 bottles" [of wine]. The restos she names in Paris are: l'Entredgeu, l'Agassin, Itineraires, l'As de Fallafel, Breizh Cafe, Comptoir de Tunesie, Cantine de Quentin and Afaria.
Saturday/Sunday, in Bonjour Paris, John Talbott wrote an essay on “Watching chefs work.”
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