John Talbott's Paris

Mark Singer's Dodin in the 17th: The Yanks are coming* - still, again, yet, already.

4.7** Le Dodin de Mark Singer, 42, rue des Acacias in the 17th (Metro: Argentine), 01.43.80.28.54, closed Sundays and Mondays is an upper-scale recreation (complete with voiturier) of his resto in the 19th and was drooled over by none other than the Pudlo himself.

Let me start with a declaration of my prejudices (that is pre-judgments):
+ This site (the ex-Petit Colombier) is where I held my never-to-be-forgotten 60th birthday party in their private room on Etage 2.3,
+ I desperately want to see Yanks do well in Paris, from Daniel Rose to Braden and Laura to the brash newbies at l'Office from Del Posto.
- My beloved game resto - Le Petit Colombier - is gone forever, alas,
- Mark Singer was never consistent at the old Eric Frechon location in any of its (I figure) 3 formulas/incarnations he tried.
So -2 +2 = 0 right?  No prejudices/pre-judgments.

I enter and am seated and note M. Singer talking to three customers of my young age in what my tin ear perceives to be pretty flawless French - impressive.  Madame my eating partner enters later than I was was late due to (oh you don't want to hear about dsk, the banks/Euro failing, light-bulbs blowing out and wonderful painter) circumstances.

There's a nice looking 35 E 3-course menu which compared to the prices on the carte, that quickly add up to the 60's and 70's, was what we wanted.  The Jerusalem artichoke soup amuse was quite decent but the bread quite dreadful.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Her Essau lentil soup with floated bacon was alright and my terrine of bunny with chopped veggies equally OK; so far, no fireworks.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Now we come to the mysterious muddy middle (and not just because of the herky-jerky photo).  Her dish was described as pork gnocchisotto - so me, practicing my Italian for tomorrow's trip to Bologna, superciliously says to the waitguy - since sotto means low/under, "the pork is under the gnocchi right?"  (Meanwhile Madame is wildly semaphoring - "Jerk, it's a play on words - he means a risotto.")  "No" says the waiter "it's like a risotto."  Except it wasn't.  It was gnocchi - look at the blurry pix.  Score one for the Bologna FC Calcio.  And my dish of a panache of poisson with lobster was, how shall I say it nicely?, oh, come on John, out with it, well it was awful/tasteless/yuck, there.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Now we come to the high part of my meal.  But first, Madame's apple tart with ice cream.   Hummmm.  OK.  But my white chocolate thing was divine, saving the day, leaving me with a great taste in my mouth, sending me off to FNAC in a fine state of mind.   So Mark, if I run into you in a dark alley some night, remember this nice comment I made.

Our bill, with a bottle of sparkling water, bottle of cheapo wine and two coffees, was 106.50 E.

Go?

*Apologies to George M. Cohan, he of "Over There," written in 1917, but I'm not going "over there" again.

**4.7 You think these numbers are pure baloney don't you?, well, just you wait until my essay on the subject of the dismalest science of ratings comes out in living technicolor January 10th.  Can't wait?  Tough.

Sex and this City: Rodin, the Assembly National and Metro.

The Rodin Museum is showing a exhaustive and exhausting show of 300 of Rodin's works on paper, most of which deal with breasts and bush, some with fingers therein.

Meanwhile down the street, "sexworkers" are holding the manif/greve du jour with the slogan "Sexwork is Work."

If that wasn't enough, there was this poster in the A.N. subway stop.

Ah back to the dull old 18th.

L'Os a Moelle in the 15th; Stéphane Schmidt takes over big time.

5.9 Schmidt L'Os a Moelle, 3, rue Vasco de Gama in the 15th, 01.45.57.27.27, closed Sundays and Mondays (Metro: Lourmel) is the old L'Os under a new ex-Constant/Violin d'Ingres chef Stéphane Schmidt.

It's been so long since I've been that I truly don't recall if the interior has changed; why did we stop going?  The usual reasons; other places appeared, the prices bumped up, Times winged chariot,...... etc.

Now I have a nose for things German (my first language acquired just before the Anschluss) and while there is an Alsatian spin to some dishes, the onion amuse gueule, for instance and the Alsatian white wines, it's not pronounced.

There is a nicely priced "menu" (2 courses for 24 E and 3 for 29 E) and quite reasonably priced wines (18 E on up).

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

My dining partner chose to go with the menu, the entree of which was a soup of cepes, foie gras and chestnuts and I ate off the carte with sauteed foie gras with pear, chestnuts and a chunk of baby lettuce; both were quite good.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Then she had the menu main - 5 decently sized scallops with an accompaniment of fall delights and I had the gun-shot special, a perfectly cooked bird with no buckshot but plenty of succulent lentils and a big slice of fatty pork (yum) on top.

My mother drummed into me that I couldn't have dessert if I didn't clean my plate and since I'd Ziplocked-away half my bird/lentil dish, I passed but Madame had the so-called baked apple which was more like an apple strudel with ice cream - again, quite good.

With a glass of that Sylvaner, a bottle of Maine red (I didn't know they made wine in Maine), no bottled water but two coffees, our bill was a respectable 97 E.

Go?  The darndest thing, while I had resolved to go long ago, when I saw on my Continental/United ticket from the USA that l'Os a Moelle was one of four places they recommended eating at (the others were the Brasserie de l'Ile St-Louis, Le Jules Verne and the Cafe Marly, I almost reneged, but I'm glad I didn't.  One of my colleagues must be spotting these for the airline.)

FAQ: Where do I find typical French food in Paris? Part I

I recently received this from a reader, but it’s typical of questions I and others are asked frequently.

“Hi John,….I'm ….in search of some typical authentic, but most of all delicious Paris food. Any recommendations?

This is the first of two attempts to answer the question; I’ll start with the food and next week move on to restaurants where one can get it.

When I was 18 and first came to France, I thought anything I ate here was exotically French, from pureed soups my “French mother” made from last night’s leftovers, a sliced tomato fresh from the field, baguettes, cheese (even La Vache Qui Rit), tinned foie gras and pate and desserts I’d never seen before. Even steak/frites were outasight (frites in those days were never frozen, classically fried in goose fat and the steak tasted nothing like the MidWest feedlot stuff I was used to).

On going back to the States though, it was not these items that I dreamed about and considered “typical French food” but snails, frogs’ legs, cornichons, petits pois, haricots verts and choucroute as well as the pastis, wine and Armagnac my “French father” served.

Once married and dragging along children of all ages, the sliced tomato fresh from the field, baguettes, cheese (especially La Vache Qui Rit), tinned foie gras and pate and desserts were relegated to picnic lunches and I began to think of “typical French food” not as the fish or meat on the plate but the butter, cream and stock sauces that covered them (remember this was on the cusp of the Gault/Millau, nouvelle cuisine/minceur, revolution.)

Now fully mature – ha – and cognizant of the harm animal fat does to one’s body’s vessels I think of typical French food as abats; foie gras, tripes, sweetbreads, thymus and brains and refuse to have any of them at more than one meal a day.

Just yesterday I ate with the biggest trencher-person I know in France and predictably he took me to a place I’d passed time out of mind but never entered, thinking (terribly wrongly) that it was “just one more fungible local Parisian joint.” The carte was classic and had all the major food groups: museau, rillette, rosette, foie gras, escargots, andouillettes and beef 9 ways not to mention veal.

All kidding aside, they also had eggs mayo, radishes with butter, celery remoulade, leeks vinaigrette, head cheese, lentils, mackerel & herring, sole & trout meuniere, crème caramel, chocolate mousse, Baba and nougat glace. Talk about “typical French food.”

So, if you want some "typical French food in Paris" and don't want to wait until next week's Part II, hie thee to:
Les Gourmets de Ternes
87 bvd de Courcelles in the 8th, (Metro: Ternes)
T: 01.42.27.43.04
Closed Weekends
A la carte 60-70 E

 

Reviews of reviews: The week of November 21st, 2011.

Monday-Tuesday in A Nous Paris, Jerome Berger reviewed and gave 3/5 dots to Camelia, coordinates given before in the Mandarin Oriental while his compatriot, Philippe Toinard visited and gave 2/5 dots to Sens Unique, 44, rue Damremont in the 18th (the old Le Winch space and the old Winch Breton fish emphasis), open 7/7, with a 15 E menu at lunch, 30 & 35 at dinner and 50 E a la carte. The center bar gave a brief squib on Le Renouveau du Bougainville, 5, rue de la Banque in the 2nd where Christian Mourel revived this family bistro, serving sandwiches, chicken and rise, pear tart on a lunch menu costing 16.50 E. In addition they summarize Claude Lebey’s favorites: Les Bistronomes, Itineraires, Le Sauvage, Cobea and Jadis; and for single dishes Le Boudoir and Kei.

In Tuesday’s Le Fooding, Yves Nespoulous reviewed L’Affable, 10, rue St-Simon in the 7th, 01 42 22 01 60, closed Sundays and Mondays, with a 26 E lunch menu, a la carte 16-35 E, for items such as Spanish ham, terrines, Thai bouillon with beef tail raviolis and cheese cake.

Wednesday, Figaroscope’s Emmanuel Rubin reviewed five new places, two of which merited two of four hearts : the restaurant Le Metropolitan, in the hotel of the same name, 10 place de Mexico, 01.56.90.40.04, open 7/7, costing about 50 E a la carte but with an unbeatable lunch menu at 28 E for slow cooked eggs, poached cod and a baba and Sens Unique, coordinates given above serving Breton seafood for the most part. One heart went to La Cantine, 46, rue Balard in the 15th, 01.45.57.78.13, closed Sundays and Mondays (for dinner), costing about 40 E (menus at 16 + 19.50 [lunch] and 23 E) , serving eggs with salmon overcooked paper mache-like, pepper steak and apples ; and the neo-bistrot Baroche, 101 rue de la Boetie in the 8th, 01.43.59.69.57, closed Sundays, costing between 15 and 30-40 E for scallops, pork belly and iced nougat. A busted heart went to the fast food Benji’s, 9, rue Godot-de-Mauroy in the 9th, 01.42.65.03.78, closed Saturdays and Sundays serving plastic food 9h00-20h30.

The Dossier this week by Colette Monsat, Alexandra Michot, Hugo de Saint Phalle and Francois Simon was on the “15 Best Bistrots in Paris” that included:
Le Café des Musees
Le Comptoir du Relais
Fish La Boissonerie
Le Café Constant
Bistrot Paul Bert
L’Ourcine
L’Entredgeu
Le Baratin and the new ones:
L’Office
Racines 2
Le Pantruche
Le Garde Temps
Vivant
Philou
Chatomat.

And in Francois Simon’s Hache Menu he returned to the now menu-less Itineraires, coordinates well-known, where the discovery « menu » is 59 E and 2 dishes at lunch 329 E. Go ? He says yes for your birthday, no for « amateurs de liberte,» whatever that means.

In another article, Colette Monsat and Francois Simon gave addresses of places in the 8th :
Maison Blanche
Mini Palais
Café Pleyel
1728
Epicure
Il Carpaccio
Relais Plaza
Senderens
Le Bistrot Napolitain
Le Bar de Garnier
L'Évasion
Le Griffonnier
La Maison de l'Aubrac
Flora Danica
Café Prunier

Finally, in yet another article, Francois Simon collaborated on naming restaurants where « those on the Left and Right go » :
The left : Au Vin des Rues (XIVe), Le Baratin (XXe), Bistrot de Paris (VIIe), Marco Polo (VIe), La Cagouille (XIVe), Le Bistrot de Paris ( VIIe), Maison de l'Amérique latine, (VIIe).
The right: Le Père Claude (XVe), Tong Yen (VIIIe), L'Epicure du Bristol (VIIIe), Guy Savoy (XVIIe), Giulio Rebellato (XVIe), Cercle Saint-Augustin (VIIIe).
All stripes: Chez Françoise (VIIe).

In l’Express, Charles Patin O'Coohoon reviewed Chez Moustache, 4, rue Jean-Pierre-Timbaud in the 11th, 01.43.38.26.88, closed Sunday night and Mondays, with lunch menus at 12 and 15, a la carte 30-40 E, serving burrata with truffle oil, artichokes and braised chicken with fries and Francois-Regis Gaudry reviewed Le Galopin, coordinates given before. In addition, Tristan Savin reviewed the Clos Heurtebise in Remiremont in the Vosges.

Sunday, in the JDD, Aurelie Chaigneau reviewed her usual old and new places: Café Constant (8/10), the original Racines (7.5) and little-plate, soup/salad Chez Causses (6) 55 rue Notre Dame de Lorette in the 9th. In the version femina Astrid T’Serclaes reviewed Galopin.

Les Gourmets de Ternes in the 8th; A typical French restaurant serving typical French food.

6.1 Les Gourmets de Ternes, 87 bvd de Courcelles in the 8th, 01.42.27.43.04 (Metro: Ternes) is a place suggested by my Pal J. when my suggestion of a place near his work didn't meet his food demands.  I'd never been even though it opened in 1962 and is next to a resto - the Lorraine - we used to go to all the time, principally for its unlimited fish soup.

I was blown away by the tile in the main dining room, reminding me of Vivant and Gallopin (not Galopin mind you) and the menu

looks like those mimeographed ones from 1962 as well.  Anyone really wishing to read it should go here.  Pal J., who's been coming here since highschool when his best buddy invited him to eat at the family joint, knew exactly what he was getting but it took me a moment to decide; it's a big meat, esp beef place, but I saw the goose foie gras on the chalkboard and it's such a rarity I went for it.

But first he had the eggs mayo and I the herring with requisite potatoes and crisp sharp offsetting but not offputting onions; delicious.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

His beef with moelle was good and the frites fine but my foie gras was just what this or any doctor ordered, super fine.

He finished with a terrific creme caramel and I with an equally good baba with red fruits and creme fraiche and St James rum as well as syrup.  My oh my.

Our bill, with two coffees, 50 cl of red wine and a bottled water, was 117 E.

Go?  For two reasons yes.  First, I'm in the midst of writing an essay on typical French food and if any place typifies typical, this is it, and second, how can you not love a place with a photo of Jack Nicholson with the chef (Pal J's old classmate) on the wall?

Continental takes over beloved United 914/915 route Dulles- Paris with diasterous results.

I must give some background.  First, I’m a frequent flyer, having logged in a million miles at United alone. 

Second, while I love to be treated as a special person, as a Frequent Flyer on airlines or a very senior Professor/Physician at medical centers or Congresses or by publishers, I always wonder if I were a poor, harried, scared 23-year old, non-perfectly-speaking-English immigrant, would I be treated equally.  And third, I come in with lots of prejudices, that is pre-judgments, about Continental, about CEO Jeff (no tie, must mean a common man, cool guy) Smisek’s claim that the new merger creates the “greatest airline in the world,” and about United’s judgment/business decision/etc in turning over one of its most valued routes – Dulles-Paris – to Continental.  Now lest you think this is just one more cranky old guy complaining, in looking up Smisek on Google I came across this:

“In my opinion Jeff Smisek has taken my airline of choice Continental that I have flown for over 20 years and run it into the ground. What is going on? I have been on several Trans Atlantic crossing with not enough flight attendants, crappy food, and broken video systems.”

OK. Get to the point Dad, as my kids would say.

Last night’s flight #130 Dulles-CdG,   This is a route I’ve been taking since 1985, which until October 1^st, was run very efficiently and very effectively, by United; I take it twice a month (old UAL 914/915, now Cont 130/131).  The staff, ground and cabin crew as well as pilots, male and increasingly female, under United, loved their jobs, even during the tough years, had connections in France (daughters, families, friends).  They were devastated to be offered reassignments to Lord-knows-where.

So I figure I’ve got little choice – a million miles, let’s throw a little good money after bad. See what Mr. Smisek can do.  Oh I timed my distance to Phila for USAir which had two seats for you and your partner/50 year wife/or business associate. 

Your cabin crew says “We know you have a choice of airlines…….”  Mr. Smisek, we do.

Last night.  I had an Economy ticket, granted in the primo seat in the primo row – 21 C, thank God I can still go to the United Red Carpet Club (but for how long?) and then got in line for the 5:05 PM departure.   Problems:

1. 45 minute delay; announced as 20 minutes, no reason given – do you have any idea how crazy that makes people?  – just say “We don’t know what’s wrong, the computers are out, the engineers are looking into it, we were delayed by snow in Maine – whatever.”
2. I  found and got into my 21C seat (Row 21 A-C was the only row in the area with someone in the middle seat – so be it.)
3. But the TV screen was scrolling down.  And down.  And down.  I give a wave to the smiling male tattooed Flight Attendant (the only male in the Economy cabin); "oh," he says, “Don’t worry, it’s just booting up.”  I wait 20 minutes, it keeps scrolling down.  And down.  And down.  I ask him to help again – and suddenly he becomes snippy – have I questioned his authority, the technology of Continental, what?  As dinner was served, no cocktails first, no Sir, dinner first, cocktails later – Huh?  The blonde F.A. (there were two and I didn’t see her badge and thus didn’t get her name but she deserves a medal) who did liquids leaned over and I asked if she could either get the TV fixed (since the  aforementioned guy couldn’t have given less of a hoot) or get it turned off.  She refused my payment for wine and was apologetic/nice/appropriate but the scrolling continued all night. 
4. The food.  Now after 60 years of flying, I realize that airplane food is a lost cause and my beloved wife of 50 years insists on taking our own.  Whether it’s sushi from San Diego or Wolfgang Puck from Denver or cheese from Quatre’Homme in Paris, it works.  To add insult to injury, last month I flew First Class on #130 and had what was the most uncuttable, most tasteless and most inedible piece of beef I’ve ever had, and as a sometime food writer, I’ve eaten a lot of bad beef.  So I was not surprised that my Economy Class chicken last night was tasteless – what was surprising was the rancid sauce.

One is always advised to say what remedies one wishes.  Simple:

1. It's clear that the entire staff needs training/coaching/charm school stuff (the ground staff at CdG clearly doesn’t want to be there.)
2. Sensible seating; that is: some First Class, lots of Business Class, ample Economy Plus and an end to 3-3 and restoration of 2-5-2.
3. Or return the route to the superb United team who are trying hard to fill in the ghastly gaps Continental has created.

Le P^RK Ch^umont in the 19th: Cool design, cool menu, cool food.

5.0 Le P^RK Ch^umont (I'm trying to do the A's as best I can to convey cool, but failing badly with the M), 84, Av. Secretan, crnr of Mathurin Moreau in the 19th, 01.42.06.44.21, open 7-2 AM 7/7, apparently crept in on "little cat feet" (thank you Carl Sandburg) 2 months ago, but one of my eagle-eyed food finders who runs her dog in the Butte every day, spotted it and said "it's open Sundays, it has brunch BUT also regular stuff, shall we try it?"

From top (bar, wall tiles and tables), down the smooth banister, to the bottom (toilettes) - it shouts "cool!" "Really cool"

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

As I said, there are two roads to cool for Sunday lunch; brunch and regular.  Now as a brunch hater, I hesitate to judge their brunch carte but it looked pretty cool: 4 of them - Brit, their own, Scandinavian and Mediterranean; likewise 4 regular lunch items: a 1/2 cocquelet, beef, complexo-burger and Caesar with chicken.

Madame, the dog-runner, had the complexo-burger with thick fries and a salad; why do I call it that?  Because it had mushrooms, cheese, ham or bacon (I stopped listening after that) and I had the chickie-lickie.  Both were cool; cool, yah cool, as in the Free Dictionary's fourth definition: "Marked by indifference,....."

They had a cool wine list and we had a cool wine, all mentions of which except for the food as in definition 6 a. "Excellent; first-rate...." and cool coffees.

Our bill with two dishes, a bottle of wine and two coffees, all cool in one sense or other, was 60.10 E.

Go?  Well, it was a Sunday, maybe the chief chef was cooling, let's give them the benefit of the doubt.  If you live near the Butte, try it on a weekday night and report back; you'll find it cool for sure.

Descendents: If The Artist had Oscar written all over it, this film has the Golden Globes in its sights.

Descendents is one of those movies that makes you think that Hollywood can still make great films. 

George Clooney has gone from being another pretty face to a fine actor, whose emotional range is on full display here and whose intelligence, body movements and sense of humor are a delight to watch.

And when do you see a movie where not one person in a cast of dozens, is miscast and where everyone from 10 year olds to aging monsters (like Beau Bridges) is superb?

A wonderful way to spend two hours.

Roger la Grenouille in the 6th: Ouch! An archival* review.

1.0 Roger la Grenouille, 26, rue des Grands-Augustins, 6th, 01.56.24.24.34, closed Sundays. Why did I go to this place described as “old” and “old school” by two friends? You’ll recall Bogart in the role of Rick Blaine replying to Captain Renault as to how he got there: “I came to Casablanca for the waters. Captain Renault: The waters? What waters? We're in the desert. Rick: I was misinformed.”

And so it was. Someone, somewhere, said they had a new chef or something new, well, in my defense, they opened in 1930, so something must have changed in 76 years. As I was walking smack in the heart of the Right Bank in the 6th between the backpackers’ cheapo places, you know them, 10 Euros plus wine for 2 courses on the ardoise, and Jacques Cagna/William Ledeuil/Relais Louis XIII-land, I had a sinking feeling that I was walking into a trap (I know, I read too many polars.)

Entering, I thought it looked exactly like it did in 1930. And it probably does. But the ardoise said “New Proprietor,” there were two young men in the salle rather than the older Maitre d’ described elsewhere and there were two young women in the kitchen.

I was mostly alone in a place that must seat 100 covers; a French family with a screaming kid left after one tantrum too many and their replacement, a three generation triple, didn’t sit down ‘til I was almost finished.

Anyway the food; it’s Roger la Grenouille, after all, so I wanted and one gotta have frogs, right? If anyone can fix them well, they must, right? It’s old and old school, right? Wrong x3.

They were barely OK (basically tasteless but without any accompanying sharp parsley zip or garlic zatch) and their price was outasight (25€ for 6 as an entrée and 31 for a main course). I also didn’t like the chopped fennel either – so there!

Then I had veal kidneys that were properly cooked as we had agreed (that is pink) with potatoes dauphinoise. I dunno what happened, the kidneys were again barely OK, the bordelaise sauce ditto but the potatoes were again tasteless and uncrispy on the exterior.

The coffee was great so I have something nice to say, but the financier was limp and chocolate cookies less than basic.

Now sometime during the meal I noticed that while the women were bustling about the kitchen, out of the window observing every bite I ate was an older guy and when I got the check they handed me two cards, one for Roger and one for Allard with the same names on both and like Jonathan Safran Foer, suddenly everything was illuminated: the Allard bunch had taken over this tired place and were transitioning the old guys out to be replaced by younger kitchen and waitstaff; but I got caught in the middle. Cost of lesson = 59.70 €. Ouch!

*Originally published in September 2006.