6.5 Uptown, 18, rue Francoeur in the 18th, (Metro: Lamarck-Caulincourt) 01.84.05.62.79, closed Mondays is an absolutely charming place with mismatched furniture and the look of your grand-aunt's country breakfast room (or at least mine in Ontario). After spending 48 hours fleeing Snowmaggeden in Washington, Boston and places inbetween I was ready for Parisien cooking and Uptown looked like it on a dank, dark, rainy Sunday afternoon. I called and the guy answering says "All tables booked up til 4:30 but we have bars" (it goes without saying with stools) - "OK, I'm on my way."
I get the menu - "BRUNCH" it says it big letters: "Talbott you dope, you forgot to ask." Here I am on a 4 inch stool, jammed at a bar, staring at Brunch. Then I look around: croissants, pains au chocolat, butter - "Talbott you idiot, you didn't even look." I call the terribly nice wait guy over and he asks what hot drink or cold drink I want, "None" I say rather sullenly, "Bring me a glass of Malbec" thinking I'm stuck. He explains the Brunch menu, clearly my face shows I wish I were back in 3 feet of snow in the Middle Atlantic. "Ahhhh, that's all," crying, say I?" "Just a minute" I see him go back to the rear and consult with a more senior guy who looks like a consigliere; who nods; he returns with the "regular small plate menu." "Because you're a local and may become a potential customer, we're breaking our rules and letting you see the real thing" I can see him thinking; he says though "Here, please, exceptionally we're offering the "menu"".
I get the nice Malbec, some house-bottled water (free) and tuck into the spicy veal tartare: it's chunky, which I like, spicy, which I like, but comes with some farm-to-table root veggie, which I don't, mainly on principal. Then I had three of the most well-sourced, well(under)-cooked and well-tenderized pieces of beef ever - boy are they good, with a nice assortment of winter veggies - but, and it's a huge but - it's slathered with a soya sauce that I find so offputting I just cannot enjoy this fabulous dish.
My bill with two glasses of wine and decent coffee and bread, comes to 40 E.
Come back? I will, but next time I'll insist no sauces with soya.
Recent Comments