My friends make fun of me, me?, because I love coming out/going out to Levallois-Perret; I regard it as a day trip to a place and a time gone by, that you can still reach by Metro. I mean, look at the building above. I thought it was maybe the Hotel de Ville but my genial host said, "No, it's just an ordinary chateau," come on, a chateau in Paris? How cool.
The area is a mixture of these old places and ghastly modern glass and metal monstrosities and bizarre shops such as that featuring (in English) "Foot diagnosis and treatment" that costs up to 108 E. And next to the restaurant is a several story trompe l'oeil, OK, it's kitchy, masked-ball Venetians and all that but......
there's a lovely garden on the side of the restaurant in front of a large terrace that surely is dynamite in summer. It must be part of the Hôpital Notre Dame du Perpétuel Secours (a Garrison Keillor sounding name if ever I heard one) in the back. Nice setting.
5.0 * La Cerisaie, 56, rue de Villiers, 92300 in Levallois Perret, 01 47 58 40 61 56, is (from the ardoise outside) apparently open 7/7 and today featured specials of a shrimp and scallop salad and bar with potatoes. "Sold American" as the TV ad said.
I know, I know, you don't know the reference, "sold American." Well, it was a Lucky Strike cigarette TV ad long ago and a silly reference to the fact that walking here I realized I was smack between the Franco-Brit and American Hospitals and when an English menu was handed me, I said "Must be a lotta Anglos here?" "Yes," my genial host answered, "many."
He was most welcoming, calling me M. Talbott throughout the meal - nice touch - and the place had the air of a country inn, including a spacious bathroom with a chair, a chair, at a dressing table - when have you seen that last?
In any case, I ordered the two specials and some wine (they start at 20 E a bottle or half-bottle). The starter had warm tiny shimp that were over-cooked and scallops that were tremendous product, perfectly cooked, on a bed of very nice greens with an Asiatic sauce/dressing - good start for a starter. But the main of cod was pretty ordinary and the palourdes aside were swimming in creamy/caloric sauce just South of warm on a bed of mashies that was OK, even for me, a mashie-ignoramus.
I decided to quit at that point, pleading a sick wife, incipient gastroenteritis and other foolish excuses.
The bill without bottled water, dessert or coffee was 55 E (weekdays 2 courses are 32 and 3 are 39 E).
Go? Well, what's there not to like about this place? the setting, host and products were OK. If you have a friend in either of the two Anglo hospitals during summer-time I'd say yes indeed, but otherwise, given the schlep, nah.
*I must amplify the 5.0 rating. It's an average mark, which means 5 is in the middle of 0 and 10; as a friend of mine explained to the governmental panel investigating an infamous shooting rampage recently, someone's being the in lower 1/4th of his class means he's in the bottom 25%, I mean, someone's got to be.
"Sold American!" I can still hear the monotone gobbledygook of the auctioneer's voice, going up a fifth at the end and descending again to the tonic.
Posted by: John Whiting | February 23, 2011 at 01:51 PM