3.0 La Crypte Polska, 1 Place Maurice Barrès (in the crypt of the Church of the Assumption) in the 1st, 01.42.60.43.33, closed Sunday night and Mondays is a place my downstairs Franco-Polish neighbor, Chowhounds and others have talked about and which I've been curious about for years. But how shall I say it, I've never been that curious about eating there after my experiences at Polish weddings and restos in Buffalo, NY and trips to Eastern Europe. But all that changed today. On my way from WH Smith up Rue Cambron, I drifted by the church and resto and scoped the menu; hummm.
Actually, earlier this week, I'd reserved at Vin Chai Moi, a tad farther up towards the Madeleine and my dining partner and I received a rude shock to find it closed. Having no "Plan B," I gathered my wits and mental map - Goumard, Flottes, Flottes O'Trement, l'Ardoise, Le Souffle, Laduree ? - but then looked at my chef-pal and said, "how about Polish?" "Sounds great," says he, "Just like Grandma's." "Oh pirogies, oh boy." "No," I said "I looked at the menu, no pirogies, but kielbasa and jarre de porc and stuff like that." "OK."
And it really was a crypt of a real church - "cool" we both said. Menus arrive. "Look," he says, "a whole page of pirogies." My gosh, for sure. And all the other stuff including about 4 "menus".
We decided I would do the Warsaw menu and he 3 small plates, but he was so hungry he ordered up another roulade of beef (rolled around a pickle.) Halfway in, he looked up and said, "It's just like Chanukah, I feel like opening presents."
His came out first: Matyes herring a la polonaise - delicious, pirogis with cabbage and mushrooms and crème fraîche - terrific, and a galette of potatoes with more cream- fanstastic. He was happy with his plates and a Zywiec Polish beer.
I, on the other hand started with what he deemed to be "shtetl soup," watery, grey and saved only by sliced kielbasa ("for the holidays," he said) and boiled egg. Then both of us had the afore-mentioned beef rolled over a pickle with kasha and sauce which I washed down with fine Romanian box Merlot.
We then split the only two desserts; a tarte with cheese (not unlike NYC cream cheese) and an apple tart - both fine.
He had to go back to work but I did not so I had some Sobieski vodka with our coffees.
The bill = 84.10 E.
Go? For a beer, pirogies, herring, and potato galette, indeed.
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