Writer: Well, I re-read Hemingway's Paris classic, "A Moveable Feast." It's a 164 pages of mostly brilliant writing. I wish I could find his blogs from Paris in the 1920s to read. As he wrote in that book:
“If you are lucky enough to have lived in Paris as a young man, then wherever you go for the rest of your life, it stays with you, for Paris is a moveable feast.”
Anyhow, here's quick write-ups on the various restaurants we ate dinner.
Le Regalade Saint Honore (Right Bank): We ate here our first night. It's a three course fixed price menu, where diners can choose from a handful of options for each course. Given my stomach issues, I just had a bowl of green asparagus soup and a bite of bread. It's definitely a locals place, as we heard a LOT more French than English.
It's a Michelin Guide restaurant, and Carol reports her food was delicious. Her main dish was the Pork Belly with confit and crispy Cantal cheese. For dessert she had their famous rice pudding (it's famous because the menu says it is) and she loved that as well.
Le Procope (Left Bank): Billed as the oldest cafe in Paris (started in 1686), that's a bit of an embellishment. The cafe was closed from 1872 to 1957, so it's not a situation where the chef was on vacation for a few months down in Provence.
Now, there is a lot of history there, as diners included Ben Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Voltaire, Napoleon, Danton, Victor Hugo, Balzac, and John Paul Jones. Overall, the café attracted many actors, writers, musicians, poets, philosophers, revolutionaries, statesmen, scientists, dramatists, stage artists, playwrights, and literary critics.
The food was tasty, and the place was hopping for a Wednesday in early April. It was rough having to pass on their escargot, but I didn't want to put my stomach further at risk. I had the French duck breast (no one does duck like the French) and Carol enjoyed the Risotto with mushrooms and summer truffle. A woman at the table next to us ordered "Procope's Vol au Vent" and it was an amazing presentation. (Yes, I asked her American friend what it was).
Cafe de la Paix (Right Bank): This restaurant is right across from the Garnier Opera House, a short fifteen minute walk from our hotel. Opened in 1862, this is a favorite with people going to an opera. It's famed for the Napoleon III decor.
Carol and I shared the ribeye steak, which was fantastic. A nearby table ordered the seafood tower, which looked incredible (I was still avoiding seafood for my stomach's sake).
Le Train Bleu (Right Bank): I didn't pick this restaurant because it was a Michelin Star. I picked it for the incredible decor. It's located in the Gare de Lyon train station, and is absolutely beautiful. The food was great too, but even if the food is average (it's way above average) the setting would be mind blowing.
Created in 1900 for the Universal Exposition, France designated Le Train Bleu a Historical Monument in 1972. According to Wikipedia:
"Each ornate dining room is themed to represent cities and regions of France and they are decorated with 41 paintings by some of the most popular artists of that time."
The restaurant has been included in seven different movies, exactly none of which I've seen. (I can't speak for Carol -- she's seen more movies than I have, so it's possible.)
The service was fantastic. We shared the duck foie gras in brioche, which was tasty. For the main course, we each had the leg of lamb. Carved at our table, it is some of the best lamb we've ever had. It's even better than my grilled lamb chops (I know, you are shocked!).
I think all the restaurants were really good, but if you only go to one of the seven on this blog post, go to Le Train Bleu. It's a magical meal with magical service in a magical setting. You might even say it's magical.
Beautiful wife, beautiful ceiling. And me.
The iconic clock at
the train station.
Having our dining room (that we never
use) redone in the Le Train Bleu style.
O'Chateau: We really enjoyed our meal at Roscioli Rimessa in Rome, so when I found something similar in Paris, I booked it without hesitation. Alas, it didn't really work out as well, as they emailed the day before to say they had "staff problems" and wouldn't be able to do the dinner and wine tasting in a group of 10-12 people.
Instead, they offered us the chance to have a table for two, be served the same wines and food. I took them up on the offer, especially since it was a Saturday night in Paris -- hard to find another restaurant at such a late date.
Our waiter/sommelier was very attentive and did a nice job talking about the wines. The food was quite good (especially the asparagus), and the saddle of lamb, while a small portion, was tasty.
(Editor: Lamb on back-to-back nights? Writer: Well, we didn't order it the second night, but yes, we could eat lamb most nights of a week).
The first glass of the four wines was a glass of champagne. But it's an unusual champagne in that the tiny bubbles are very tiny, almost to the point of unnoticeable. Basically it was like white wine with a hint of carbon dioxide. Carol and I weren't even whelmed by it, so we were totally underwhelmed. Suffice it to say, if someone offers us a different kind of champagne with the tiniest of tiny bubbles, we'll pass in the future.
The white wine with the fantastic white asparagus dish was fine -- from the south of France near the Spanish border. The red with the steak (and some weird stuff) was quite good, and the dessert wine was, well, dessert wine.
(Editor: That's sweet of you to mention the dessert wine. Writer: Where did you learn to tell such good puns? I have an idea of your inspiration!)
The white wine.
The red, from Pomerol, one of
my six favorite appellations of
Bordeaux.
The dessert wine. Drinking this,
I remembered why I don't drink
dessert wine very often.
Les Ombres (Left Bank): "Les Ombres" means The Shadow -- meaning it is in the shadow of the Eiffel Tower. And that's why we ate here; it is the restaurant considered to have the best views of the Eiffel Tower. And it lived up to its billing!
The service was impeccable, the food excellent, and the view is incredible. It is a Michelin Guide restaurant. The photos above (and video below) are from the deck -- the restaurant is up on the 5th floor of a museum. While the rooftop terrace was closed to dining because of the cold-ish weather, you could go out and take pictures. And, the entire Eiffel Tower could be seen clearly through the glazed glass of the dining room.
Give it a minute to load and hit play. This
happens at the top of the hour for five
minutes when it is dark. It's absolutely
enthralling!
This video gives you an idea of the view
from our table, primarily because it is
the view from our table!
This is how I felt at dinner. (Thanks to
mom for passing this along to me!)
Interestingly, this quintessential French restaurant is run by an American chef, so to be a Michelin Guide restaurant in Paris, you know it has to be good. Having an American chef run your kitchen would be like have a rat run your kitchen.
This is a sneaky good
movie. Haven't seen
it since 2007 with the
family, but need to watch
it again! It will be a nice
reminder of Paris, and a
much lighter viewing than
our current binge-watching
of Fauda.
It's a small, cozy restaurant with a limited menu. There is no English translation of the menu, so the waiter tells you what they have. I had the raviolis with foie gras, and Carol enjoyed the filet of French-raised beef. I think we had a dessert.
We had the table with a small window into the kitchen so that was interesting.
I must say, Le Train Bleu has the best all-around experience, with Les Ombres a close second. Le Procope was probably my favorite of the other restaurants, although Cafe de la Paix belongs up there as well!
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