John Talbott's Paris

Reviews of reviews: the Week of December 7th, 2015

Monday-Tuesday, in A Nous Paris, Jerome Berger gave 3/5 dots to the Italien L’Inconnu in the 7^th cheffed by a Japanese guy and Philippe Toinard gave the same rating to Tastevin in Maisons-Lafitte, 01.39.62.11.67, closed Sunday nights and Mondays where for 39 and 48 E(at dinner) one can eat items such as langoustines, veal and a fruit dessert.

Tuesday in Le Fooding announced another award, this to Christophe Pele at Le Clarence.

Wednesday, in Figaroscope, Emmanuel Rubin reviewed his usual 5 places giving two hearts to four places: the above mentioned L’Inconnu in the 7^th; the previously mentioned Yar in the 9^th; the Japanese fusion restaurant Kinugawa Matignon in the 8^th and the Japanese Oishinoya in the 2^nd.  Garnering one heart only was Providence in the 10^th

And in his Hache Menu, Rubin wrote up Le Clarence, mentioned above.

The Dossier this week by Alice Bosio, Colette Monsat and Hugo de Saint Phalle was about the best pasta in Paris, giving the 1st place to Ida.

Wednesday, in Paris Update, Heidi Ellison wrote up four lunch places either mentioned here before or of foreign influence - Farago, Maison Plisson, Pickled, Naàn.

Thursday in L’Express, Francois-Regis Gaudry also wrote up La Table du 11 in Versailles and Charles Patin O’Coohoon wrote about the Warung Makan in the 9^th.

And Sunday, Aurelie Chaigneau in the jdd rated the previously mentioned Le Vaisseau vert in the 9^th a 7/10, gave only a 4 to Tres Honore but liked Roca's pizza brother – Roco – giving it a 7.

Le Cafe Pelican in the 10th: Non-Metro food from a Bristol grad at extremely reasonable prices.

6.25 Le Cafe Pelican, 61, rue d'Hauteville in the 10th, (Metro: Poissonniere), 01.47.70.07.08, closed Saturday lunch and Sundays, opened two months ago and at least today was packed to the ceiling of both floors with 30-40 year old locals from nearby businesses (advertising, publishing - you know, nice folks, our folks).  It has a simple carte but dishes as they passed by all looked mouth-watering.

We ordered thusly:
- a butternut squash soup requiring salt, pepper (in my opinion Siracha)
- a huge plate of really tasty jambon de boeuf (dried beef) covered with lettuces with OMG delicious butter and bread
- a really nicely sourced and cooked piece of merlan (whiting) with roasted onion and bok choi
- a superbly crispy crusted poitrine de porc and a coriander "pesto" and
- a sublime piece of chocolate cake (my guest called it pound-cake like, I said brownie like).

Our bill, with a liter of house wines (half white, half red), no bottled water, but two coffees, was 63 E.  dB = 82.5 but awful music - American stuff.

Go?  Hey grand-kids, this means you, 20 E for 3 courses and 5.5 E for 2 glasses of wine = 25.5 Euros - Got it?  Love, Gpa.

Les Cocottes at the Sofitel in the 8th: Nothing like the Mothership except for great food.

6.6 Les Cocottes Arc de Triomphe Christian Constant (at the Sofitel), 2, ave Bertie Albrecht at the Rue Beaujon, in the 8th, open 7/7 (Metro: Etoile CdeG), 01.53.89.50.53 is, as I said, nothing like the Mothership in the 7th, except for good food - it's swank, elegant, dressed up to the nine's with a long menu (which I've pictured twice since each photo is flawed) as well a daily entrée & main.

My dining partner and I had two dishes each. 
- four crispy gambas with a funny sauce and very nice salad
- the special plat, rare leg of lamb that was melt-in-your-mouth good with shoestring potatoes
- crispy merlan (not en colere) atop spinach leaves, and
- a fabulous chocolate tart with ice cream.

Our bill, with a bottle and glass of wine, no bottled water, 2 fine breads and a coffee, was 124 E.

Go?  A bit pricy but I'd say yes; much variety, good service, nifty place and quite quiet (dB= 58.3).

Le Pigalle in the 9th: What's the big deal?; I don't get it.

5.1 Le Pigalle (in the Pigalle Hotel), 9, rue Frochot (not the Blvd de Clichy), 01.48.78.37.14, open 7/7 (Metro: Pigalle) keeps getting written up, but advertises itself as a simple, out-of-the-can/jar where the bread comes from Breton, butter from Bordier, tarts from Paquin, etc, etc.  So it's Saturday and I wanna know "what's the big deal?"

So we order; Madame has the beans and corn, nice; Monsieur has the burrata with olive oil and herbs, nice and I had the sardinillas with butter, nice.  No more, no less - nice!

Then we had 2 desserts that we shared: a compote of pears and apples, nice; and a tarte of pears - dynamite finally!

Our bill with no bottled water, a bottle and glass of wine and three coffees, was 96.50 E for 3 or 64.32 E a couple.  dB = 75.2 (once the awful American pop music was turned down).

 

Go?  It's a beautiful bar/lounge/restaurant in a gorgeous renovated hotel, with food from famous people in the middle of dreck (sex-shops, etc.)  If you're staying nearby, which given the number of roller-boards I saw, indicates many do, this would be a quick meal say before or after the theater.  Plus the toilettes have a Wurlitzer to give you the music that stimulates your peeing best.  Otherwise, "no urgency" as my friend, the RFC, says.

Bistrot Yar in the 9th: Another nice addition to this happening arrondissement.

6.5 Bistrot Yar, 35, rue de Montholon in the 9th, 09.83.30.34.84, closed Saturday lunch and Sundays (Metro: Cadet) is one more happening place in a happening quartier that serves market fresh products cooked with precision.  I was a bit worried when I arrived that I might have to climb their steep circular staircase to the bigger salle on the 2nd floor but luckily it turned out I could eat downstairs and only the poor wait-guy had to go up and down dozens of times.

Due to the unexpected sickness of my expected blogger-friend I was eating solo but I think I got the drift of things pretty quickly.  The tete de veau was a thick, hot almost os a moelle type dish rather than a pathetically thin cold dish as is often the case; then I had the pintade (with fingerlings and braised endive rather than sweet potato which I prefer not); and ending with an absolutely superb mound of pralinated chou (worth the trip alone.)

With a half-bottle of wine, OK bread, no bottled water and a coffee, the bill comes to 45.50 E.

Go?  If coming from the deepest 16th, probably no; but if staying/living in the nabe, for sure.  If for the toilet art alone (BTW it says in English "PUSH" on the robinet).

Juste in the 9th: A clever concept, perfect products, excellent execution and superb servers.

6.6 Juste, 48 rue Laffitte in the 9th, no reservations (Metro: ND de Lorette), 09.82.34.90.29, closed weekends has a nifty concept - I entered early, having been warned the place takes no reservations and fills up quickly - One of the gregarious staff came up to me and said (in French but later spoke great English) "Have you been here?; do you know the concept?" "No, no."  "Well you go and choose what you want from the display case, take it to the counter, we cook it and bring it to you."  Cool.

Just one problem; my dining partners called me to say they were late, just now calling an Uber, so since I was installed at a table for four and the 20-30 year olds were flooding the place and eying my table, I was hogging valuable space.   So I went to the counter and ordered up a bottle of Haut-Bordeaux and 6 #3 oysters, figuring that they would make the table look occupied - and it worked.  And my friends arrived.

They both had the mushroom soup and bar with parsnips, both of which were terrific products, made well; and I had some palourdes (I couldn't tell them from the coques, but oh well) which when deshelled and served with some of the cream and parsley sauce, were as good as they get.

I then ordered a cream of chocolate that was very good and which they shared a bite of.

Our bill, with a bottle and a half of wine, no bottled water or coffee and quite decent bread and complex butter, was 97.30 E which if my math is correct is 64.86 E a couple.

Go?  This place is special and not for everyone.  No table clothes, sommeliers, fancy dishes, voiturier - but solid sea products at good prices.  dB=79.8

Mensae in the 19th: Su, super, superbe.

8.0 Mensae, 23, rue Melingue in the 19th (Metro: Pyrenees) 01.53.19.80.98, closed Sundays and Mondays, is the brain-child of two "Top-Chefs" and what a great idea it is.  Spare on the outside, and inside too, but with a carte that makes the mouth water just looking at it.

My dining partner ordered the 20 E lunch menu that commenced with a superb fresh herring and veggie "salad" and I ordered foie gras raviolis with a wild mushroom sauce that tasted almost like truffles.

My fellow blogger then had the crispy skinned poitrine of pork while I had what was surely the tastiest lemon sole I've ever had with a beurre blanc sauce that was neither too sweet nor too salty - perfect.

Even though I hadn't cleaned my plate I wanted to test the chef's desserts and ordered a pear that came with ice cream with a caramel beurre sale that again was not too sweet - just right.

Our bill with three glasses of wine, no bottled water and one coffee was 95.50 E.  dB=81.4

Go back?  As soon as possible.  After we were done chef Kevin d'Andrea dropped by and we could hardly express our delight; this guy is a talent.

Plantxa in Boulogne-Billancourt: Top chef, top cooking, alas top prices as well.

6.75 Plantxa, 58 rue Gallieni in Boulogne-Billancourt (Metro: Porte de St-Cloud and walk or take the 75 bus two stops), 01.46.20.50.93, is a place I don't think I would have thought of going to by myself, but my dining partner was in quest of new places for a new blog she's writing for and so here we were.  It's hard to describe the décor, a mixture of Freddy's and Ze Kitchen Galerie I guess and the carte looks not unusual (note there were two changes from that pictured - sea urchins with a bisque and coffee and veal with bisque and sorrel instead of yesterday's burrata and chicken).

They also had something called a "Burger Dallas" which I couldn't get a clear shot of and my ethical principles prevent me from copying but click here if you want to see 6 inches of a futuristic hamburger.  http://images.google.fr/imgres?imgurl=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.critique-gastronomique.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2015%2F01%2Fburger-la-plantxa-plancha-juan-arbelaez-boulogne.jpg&imgrefurl=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.critique-gastronomique.com%2Fla-plancha-la-plantxa-juan-arbelaez-boulogne-billancourt-92%2F&h=2175&w=3262&tbnid=w1zzgY83aQ3X5M%3A&docid=T0c_MNhWNFydfM&ei=XPxmVpGrH8mSaZjDquAI&tbm=isch&iact=rc&uact=3&dur=2216&page=1&start=0&ndsp=20&ved=0ahUKEwiRyeqBz8zJAhVJSRoKHZihCowQrQMIITAA

We wrestled over what to have and finally she said "You have the sea urchins and I'll have the salmon."  Her salmon with mango and anise presentation was positively Japanese but my lighter-than-air mousse of coffee bisque was out of this universe, it was that good.

Her main was advertised as cod with agrumes and broccoli and my veal supposed to be sorrel and bisque but both dishes had many many more ingredients that seemed to both of us to be a bit "too busy."  My veal, however was cooked to perfection, so no complaints there.

Both desserts were the best part of the meal: she had a "spritz", supposedly named for the cocktail but a cake and fruit delight, and I had a long piece of chocolate with Granny Smith slices.

Our bill with one cider, one bottle of wine and one coffee, was 122 E for the two of us.  dB's were a bit much = 84.9.

Go?  Indeed, if only for the bathrooms which are in the spirit of the entire restaurant.

Reviews of reviews: the Week of November 30th, 2015

Monday-Tuesday, in A Nous Paris, Jerome Berger gave 3/5 dots to Le Pigalle, 9, rue Frochot in the 9th, 01.48.78.37.14 (Metro:Pigalle), open 7/7, where the carte is about 30 E for a terrine de campagne, squash soup and panna cotta; while Philippe Toinard gave the same rating to Lou Bistrot, 4, rue du Debarcadere in the 17th, 01.45.72.22.55 (Metro: Porte Maillot), closed weekends where for 30-40 E one can have a pumpkin soup, encornets with cheese and a chocolate/sable dessert.

Tuesday in Le Fooding announced their annual awards, in Paris, awarded to:
Dersou
Le Bon St Pourcain
Trois Fois plus de Piment
Hero
SaAm

Wednesday, in Figaroscope, Emmanuel Rubin reviewed his usual 5 places giving three hearts to the new Regalade St-Honore across the street at #106, NOW OPEN 7/7 as well as the Comptoir Iode, 8, rue de Paradis in the 1st, 09.53.32.55.45 where one can have oysters hot or cold, poached haddock and brie with truffles for about 30-40 E and the Italian Salsamenteria di Parma in the 9th.  Garnering two hearts was another Italian place – Louie Louie in the 11th.  A busted heart went to the brasserie L’Amuse Gueule in the 4th.

And in his Hache Menu, Rubin wrote up Le Chalet de Didine in the Champs-Elysees Noel Village, saying surely don’t go.

The Dossier this week by Alice Bosio, Colette Monsat and Hugo de Saint Phalle was about the best pasta in Paris, giving the 1st place to Ida.

Wednesday, in Paris Update, Heidi Ellison wrote a negative review of La Maison Bleue.

Thursday in L’Express, Francois-Regis Gaudry also wrote up La Regalade’s successful move across the street.

And Sunday, Aurelie Chaigneau in the jdd rated La Bourse et La Vie a 7/10, Le Pigalle a 6.5 and returned to Schwartz’s Deli (6.5).

Le (new) Regalade in the 1st: Better than ever say I.

7.4 Le Regalade, 106 rue, Saint Honore in the 1st, 01.42.21.92.40, open 7/7 (they say) (Metro: Louvre-Rivoli), just recently moved from across the street to 106, which used to be Le 106 - to me it doesn't look like it has many more seats, so why Bruno Doucet moved escapes me, but he's cooking up a storm despite some hiccups in the service.  We three all entered almost simultaneously and really liked the look of things, especially the menu-carte and specials.

They plunked down their signature bread and terrine (signature actually of Yves Camdeborde in the original Regalade in the 14th so many years ago) and my friend R. said "So John, you going to order some red wine?"  But of course, and we indulged, much too much, but all were so very good the meal could have ended there, quite well indeed.

We ordered three different and beautiful starters:
- a black squid ink risotto with gambas and ham, garlic and parsley,
- a bio egg with spinach and chanterelles,
- a carpaccio of tete de veau on thinly sliced warm beets.

For mains, my two friends chose the poitrine de cochon fermier and the braised beef cheeks and I had one of the specials (12 E supplement) - a pigeonneau under-cooked to my liking with mashed potatoes; while I liked my friends' choice, mine was spectacular.

To finish off, my two friends ordered the Grand-Marnier soufflé which was heavenly and I had a chocolate x3 concoction I had to have since its sauce was described as "sauce chocolat comme un "Snickers.""  Who could pass up such a delight?

Our bill, with no bottled water but two bottles of wine (one comp'd or forgotten) and one coffee, was 158.00 E for three or 105.32 E a couple.  dB = 79.3

Go?  We're on for the day open after Christmas.