John Talbott's Paris

Le BAT in the 9th: Just a bar a tapas/tartares - Not!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

7.6 Le BAT, 16bis Boulevard Montmartre (Metro: Grands Boulevards), 01.42.46.14.25, closed weekends, is supposedly named Le BAT because at lunch it is a bar a tartares and at dinner a bar a tapas, but that's a gross understatement of its food. It's located in the weirdest restaurant location, on the Grands Boulevards among the McDo's, Indiana Cafes, Hard Rock and Chipotle's of the world - and I passed it twice before realizing it was there.  It's got a very open bar/kitchen and a lot of wines (starting at 5 E) open and by the bottle (25 E and up).  But first, some:

Backstories and disclosures: My oldest food critic pal, whom I refer to as the RFC (real food critic) in an attempt to shield my friends from unwanted negative publicity having eaten with me, emailed me in November when it opened and suggested we go for lunch.  I read the reviews and called and asked - "Is it true you only serve tartares for lunch?" "Yes, and tapas in the evening."  Told the RFC - "Nah" he said. But then as I read more & more I figured out it was based on a tartare concept but broke out of the reins reliably.

So, I said, "will you reserve?"  "Sure, in your (that is my, name)."  OK, understandable, since he's fairly well-known -so well-known that upon leaving the resto a young couple asked if the male half could take a photo of him with the female half of the couple (of course he was flattered and agreed).  Anyway, he said he couldn't get there at 12h30 so 13h00 would be better and he'd try to negotiate more than tartares with the chef.  Well, I enter at 12h55 and there he is at the counter in a heated discussion with Chef Yariv Berreby, whom I recognized from the Ledeuil Empire. Oh yah, I recalled, the place is staffed with ex-ZKG and KGB folks.  Indeed within seconds JeromeTaverny appeared and said "Mr. Talbott, how's your wife?"  Jeez, did the air go out of my balloon.

Final backstory and disclosure: I love William Ledeuil, ZKG and KGB beyond measure and could not imagine any of his culinary progenies failing to deliver really interesting food.

We wrestled over what to have with both the chef and Jerome and finally settled on an attempt to try a lot of different things, including one tartare.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Our first - shared - was a seafood (mussels, razor clams, clams, cilantro, leaves of this and that and the sort of spices and herbs one loves at ZKG/KGB, were there - it was the highlight of our meal.  But not shabby were the plates of lightly smoked carpaccio of monkfish with radishes and tartare of veal.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Now Nosy or Nosey Parker that I am, I spotted some vegetable tempura headed towards another couple and said to my pal "That wasn't on the menu - did you see it? - we gotta get some."  The chef with a big smile said "Nope, no more" and promptly delivered an order.  Apparently it accompanies another dish but we settled into my fine barbu with slices of big differently colored Japanese radishes and my friend's quasi of veal which he took a few bites of and said - "boring."  I misheard him and had a piece but dropped it inadvertently in my condiment of kumquat "chutney" (my descriptor) and the veal came alive, wonderfully alive.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

At this point we were out of wine and after much discussion settled on glasses of La Rosine, described as a "serious Syrah" and they showed us the evening tapas menu (above) which looks really good.

Our bill was picked up by my friend, but if one had 3 courses (at 25 E) and wine and coffee and a half-bottle of water, I'd guess it to be 100-110 E per couple.

Go?  Fast, it was full of locals at 13h00, but also visit the loo to see some great whimsical art.

FAQ: "We want adventuresome food. Where do we get it?"

Just today, a poster on Paris by Mouth wanted to know where to go in Paris for adventuresome food.

First off, I'd guess that the term "adventuresome food," is a very subjective one.  I'll bet mine and other bloggers' list of such would be quite different.

For instance, I would consider all places Inaki Aizpitarte has touched, from La Famille to MacVal to Chateaubriand and Le Dauphin, to be adventuresome.  But I think such adventures come with a risk, to wit, he often misses the mark and dishes are over the top or off the edge.

On the other hand guys like David Toutain at his eponymous restaurant, Daniel Rose at Spring, William Ledeuil at Ze Kitchen Galerie, Gilles Choukroun at MBC and Franck Enee (at Franck Enee) combine ingredients in clever ways that are often quite thrilling.

Then there are the places where it seems like the chefs are coming up with twists on familiar foods that make you snap back - some such as at Pirouette, Clandestino, Neva and Le Pario were born and began in other countries and although they don't impose their native cuisines on French dishes, clearly tweak them in those directions.

And then there are the French guys, who just have a knack for surprises - of which the primary example is MaSa (which means Manipulateur de Saveurs) but includes places like Les Saisons, Le Sergent Recruteur, Terroir Parisien Bourse, Pierre Sang Boyer of Oberkampf and Le 122.

And finally, we've got the cuisine cooked up by the wonderful recent influx of Japanese chefs cooking French food.  These guys just keep coming and surprising: at Les Enfants Rouges, Aki, Abri, H. Kitchen, Sot l'y laisse, Vivant and L'Office to name but a few most recent ones.

So if you're looking for adventure, you'll find it in Paris.

Paris Pix: Street Art Without Borders

Courtesy of Doug Webster.

Reviews of reviews: The week of January 13th, 2014.

Monday-Tuesday, in A Nous Paris, Jerome Berger gave 3/5 dots to Tsubame, 40, rue de Douai in the 9th, 01.48.78.06.84, closed Sundays and Mondays, costing 11.50 and 12 (bento) E for lunch and about 25 E a la carte for dinner – run by a Japanese-Vietnamese couple from Atao who serve Asian food as well as writing a little squib on the previously mentioned Degustation by Westermann; meanwhile Philippe Toinard gave only 2/5 dots to the previously mentioned Terroir Parisien Bourse as well as writing a little squib on the return of the previously mentioned David Toutain. 

Tuesday, in Le Fooding, Yves Nespoulous reviewed  Dessance, 74, rue des Archives in the 3rd, open from 15h00-23h00 most days (noon on weekends) for tea and pastries although they do have vegetables and salads and wines for 6-44 E.

In the Figaroscope, Emmanuel Rubin tested his usual 5 new restaurants, awarding 3/4 hearts to the previously mentioned David Toutain and 2/4 hearts to the neocantine Balls, 47, rue Saint-Maur in the 11th, 09.51.38.74.89, closed Sundays and Mondays which has a lunch formula for 13 E and a la carte runs 25 E for items such as boulettes (meatballs/dumplings, hence the name Balls) of lamb or vegetables or polenta.   One heart each was awarded to Trois-Quart in the 17th, Tsubame in the 9th and Mamma Roma in the 6th. 

In their Dossier, Alice Bosio, Hugo de Saint Phalle and Colette Monsat described the new places along the Grands Boulevards:

BAT

Medi Terra Nea

La Conserverie

Circonstances

Maison F

Pret a Manger

Chipotle

Higuma

And the places in the Passage des Panoramas: Racines, Gyoza Bar, Passage 53, Noglu & Les Grands d’Espagne. 

And Francois Simon's Hache Menu tried the previously mentioned L’Hotel where he says to go and plan on spending about 150 E per person.

Paris Pix: Beautiful walls

Paris Pix: Goofy walls

Paris Pix: Bizarro

FAQ: Where should I eat in Paris if there for two weeks?

Yesterday this question was posed on Chowhound where the poster gave a list of over 20 places to be reduced to 14.  My approach was to provide a diverse list to “include” not exclude places from the original list:
Oysters Huitrerie Regis
Other fish Clamato (also open on weekends)
Meat Hugo Desnoyer
An old style bistro Le Cafe des Musees
A new style bistro Bistro Volnay & Pirouette
Bistronomique Les Bistronomes
An old style resto Le Florimond
A new style resto Goust & Les Tablettes
An elegant resto 110 Taillevent
A bar a vins plus Le Verre Vole
One by a Japanese chef Abri
One by a French chef with Asian Ingredients Ze Kitchen Galerie
One by a Brazilian chef Le Pario
One by a Yankee chef Spring
One by a Korean/French chef Pierre Sang Boyer in Oberkampf
(I confess I have not been to L'Ambroisie, Caius or Atelier Joel Robuchon in years nor Aux 2 Oliviers, Chatomat (I only eat at lunch) Bistrot Victoires, Lilane, Ouidino, or Suave ever)
(And there should be a place for L’Auberge Flora, L'Arome, Le Cornichon, Le Pantruche, Le 6 Paul Bert, Le Saotico, Les Papilles, & Regalade St. Honore somewhere on the schedule).
(And I dropped entirely - Le Petite Cour, Philou, Pramil, Toyo and the two Darroze's on another thread)

Reviews of reviews: The week of January 6th, 2014.

Monday-Tuesday, in A Nous Paris, Philippe Toinard gave 4/5 dots to Napoleone and Jerome Berger awarded Clamato 3/5 dots – both have been mentioned here before.

Tuesday, in Le Fooding, Yves Nespoulous reviewed David Toutain, 28 rue Surcouf in the 7th, closed weekends, which for 51 E serves a variety of dishes from eggs to foie gras, from chicken innards to desserts.

Emmanuel Rubin tested 5 new restaurants, awarding 2/4 hearts to a champagne bar Degustation, 93, rue Lepic in the 18th, 01.46.06.25.20 open 7/7 and costing about 25 E for items such as eggs with spinach, foie gras en croute and a filet of beef.   He gave 1 heart each to Caluc, Les Nautes, Papacionu and John Weng.

In their Dossier, Alice Bosio, Colette Monsat and Hugo de Saint Phalle gave a list of what one can get for 10 Euros and where:

A tart du jour & boor at the Tuck Shop

A dish & drink at Boco

A burger at Blend 2

A cocktail at La Faille

A café gourmand at the Mini Palais

A pulled pork sandwich at Frenchie to go

A jambon-beurre & coff at Lazare

6 oysters at La Cabane a Huitres

A sandwich & ice at the Verre Vole

A cocktail at Calbar

A formula at Caluc

A breakfast at the Café Francais

A sandwich &tisane at Lockwood

Four-Five verrines at Nano

A tonkatsu at Hunitoraya

A tartiflette at 58 Quality Street

A formula at the Breizh Café

Three pastries at the Gateaux Thoumieux

A bo bun at the Rouleau de Printemps

Three tacos & fresh water at El Guacamole

A marguerite at Da Vito

A clap's at Gustave

An Ole Moly at Freddie's Deli

A galette & kouign amman at the Pointe du Groin

A pita with meat at Miznon

A children's menu at the Café Grenadine

6 Choux a la crème at the Maison du Chou

8 gyoza & green tea at Gyoza Bar

A kebab & mineral water at Grille

And Francois Simon's Hache Menu tried the previously mentioned 68 Par Guy Martin where two ate cod and had a bottle of Cloudy Bay and Chateldon for 118 E (he says go).

 

Paradis in the 10th; a pleasant enough place but it has some kinks to work out.

5.5 Paradis, 14 rue de Paradis in the 10th, 01.45.23.57.98 (but they don't seem to answer their phone much despite a large staff); open 7/7 eventually, but now closed Sundays (Bus 32).

Paradis has received a welcome welcome from the Figaro guys and Trip Advisor, but has pretty much slipped under everyone else's radar.  It's on the street where all the crystal & dinner ware folks used to be; the street goes from scuzzy to Bobo to haute in a few hundred meters.  The resto itself is really cool; all glass, raw wood, neat rug under the common table and a very cool metal staircase railing (our dining partner said it was bought at auction and came from the France (remember the elegant ship?).

We entered and there were/was no coat rack(s) and no offer to take ours despite the genuinely warm welcome from the staff.  We were surprised to see on the tables those tiny wine and water glasses those of you old enough to recall seeing in Italian restaurants on the West Side had in the 1950's.  Ok, cut'em some slack.  The menu (all a la carte) was quite interesting and ample; we settled on a variety of items.  Decibel level as the hipsters arrived moved from 74 to 84 dB.

Our friend, the famous food critic, had the "perfect" egg with a rich soup/sauce; I had wonderful coques (zesty and flavorful) and a second dish with the classic gratin of sweet onions from Cevennes toped with a small salad of young beet greens; Colette got stuck with a huge plateful of al dente vegetables which may have carried Alain Passard's blessing (as Emmanuel Rubin implied), but was not flavorful.

And now a short intermission, actually a long wait for Colette's first as well as our mains.

Colette and our friend hated the Rhone Syrah I had ordered and thus we passed over to a Jura Arbois very speedily.  Then we waited.....and waited.....and you get the picture.

Our friend chose the veal cru as his main, OK but not out of this world; Colette had the medallion of veal, equally OK without fireworks; and my duck two ways had a normal duck (OK) but spectacular chopped duck and its innards in a nice sauce with vegetables.  Our waggish friend suggested that this dish included all the veggies that Colette left over from the first course.

 

Now we get to the point: the cheese and dessert: our friend's cheese and Colette's caramel mousse were quickly consumed demonstrating that the dessert chef here had us pegged.

Our bill, with no bottled water, but good bread and coffee and 2.16 bottles of wine, was 186 E for three; thus 124 E a couple - but in our defense, we were in the place more than 3 hours.

Go again?  Hummmm.  Once they get the kinks ironed out, maybe, but I dunno.

Some bonuses: the whimsical sign of all versions of Paradis and the wonderful fascades of the Boulanger et Co building practically next door.