Oh my, shame and embarrassment and dishonor fall on my head. Day 4, a Sunday, of Tous au Restaurant week, there weren't a lot of choices (stop apologizing), and we'd not been to Le Grand B since the Freres Blanc revamped it earlier this year to mild acclaim as Paris's (and perhaps the world's) biggest rotisserie (please stop apologizing), and I had memories of that rotisserie place a few meters away that served those great pommes soufflés (alright already), and at the time it sounded like a good idea - sitting on the Blvd des Italiens in the 80 degree sun watching children of all nations parading by (done confession). But I went with my eyes wide shut knowing how the bros had ruined Charlot, Le Procope, Le Flora Danica, Le Sud, La Fermette Marbeuf, Au Pied de Cochon, l’Alsace, Chez Jenny, Le Brasserie Lorraine and Chez Clement (well, they could hardly ruin a ruin).
3.0 Le Grand B, 24 Blvd des Italiens in the 9th (Metros: Opera, Richelieu/Drouant, Chausee d'Antin), 01.55.33.10.00, open 7/7 is a wonderfully-sited, wonderfully-embellished, wonderfully-decked out red-type estab along the Blvd des Italiens. Great, great setting. Good news first.
They have decent white and red wines by the carafe that are inexpensive. We started with a half liter of Vin de Pays d'Oc with spectacular spicy rilettes of confited roast chicken and for dessert had a blow-your-mind-out roasted 1/2 a banana with ice cream and caramel sauce. Ah, but John - the main food.
First off, on Restaurant week, right, which this year is offering 2 for the price of 1 meal (as opposed to last year's more USA-type prix fixe event where lunches were 20.10 and dinners 35 E) the lunches here, which normally are 16.90 E, were offered today, two for 35 E - Hey, wait a minute, unless Mrs. Mason taught me math incorrectly 35÷2 = 17.50 E which is more than 16.90 E. Second, the sliced tomatoes were of the lowest supermarket/hothouse quality possible (and this is the end of September), the feta cheese and olives atop them passable but the dressing thoughtless. And third, the chicken (actually a whole frigging coquelet reminded me of a variation of the old Catskill's hotel joke - the food was horrible but it was made up by there being so much of it) was tasteless and the beans that came with it, soggy and limp.
Our bill for 3 meals, a liter and a half of wine, a pathetic roll and two coffees, was 106.80 E
Go? Heh, heh, me thinks the the Fratelli Blanco are the bacio della morte for a restaurant.
I thought the Catskills' hotel joke went something like this:
"The food is awful," said Colette.
"Yes, and such small portions," replied John.
Posted by: mitch weinstein | September 26, 2011 at 03:11 PM
What's a shame !
Posted by: lilibox | September 29, 2011 at 09:36 AM