Bonjour! My name is Heather, also known as the Blue Ribbon Baker and Chef, living in Southern California, and for today's blog, I am presenting to you three dining reviews of a fabulous Restaurant, Brasserie and Bistro in Paris, France.
Where in Paris, with over 8,020 eating establishments available, does a person go for fabulous food or a unique dining experience? Ah, but this is a difficult question to answer, because for most any Parisian, gastronomy, or the art and science of good eating and drinking, is more than a pastime; it is a way of life in a city where the inhabitants spend a greater portion of their income on food than they do on almost anything else.
As I pondered the original question, I first looked for inspiration by looking at the "entire city" as a whole. From the photos below (scanning from a left to right direction) at the highest point in Paris, at Montmartre, I had to decide where were my absolute favorite eateries to dine for either lunch or dinner.
From the left of Montmartre....
from the center of Montmartre
from the right of Montmartre, looking at all of Paris....
Since I have just returned from Paris a few weeks ago, and we ate at over 12 dining establishments, I am writing a review of each type of French eatery: My favorite Restaurant (a flully feldged restaurant offering elegant, classic haute cuisine in a more refined setting, with higher pricing), a Brasserie (a lively, smart, yet informal restaurant that serves food at any time of the day and often late into the night, with moderate pricing), and a Bistro (traditional, home style cooking). I will be reviewing le Relais de l' Entrecôte , Le Bonaparte and Le Minotaire.
At this time, my favorite Restaurant in Paris, is hands down le Relais de l' Entrecôte (also known as le Relais). This unique restaurant is still the only one of its kind in all of Paris and actually, quite unique anywhere in the world! You see, whether it is lunch or dinner, there is no need for seeing a menu, because there is only one option offered and they don't have a menu at this Restaurant! The Restaurant has four locations: Three in Paris and one in Geneva, Switzerland. The location that I am reviewing is in the 6th arrondissement (or District). The location is sublime. It is off of a small street intersecting the Boulevard Saint-Germain, which is a major Boulevard, down the street from stores such as Louis Vuitton and Patisserie Pierre Hermè.
The owner Marie-Paule Burrus along with her son Paul Gineste de Saurs, came up with a very fabulous idea in 1959. The idea was to have only one specialty to serve at their Restaurant at any time of the day. Essentially, the customer would not have to worry about deciding anything to eat, except for what they would have to drink or have for dessert. This formula was an instant success. le Relais de l' Entrecôte is basically a steak Restaurant and whether it is lunch or dinner, you will find a very long long waiting outside of the Restaurant to get a seat. You can clearly see this by the aforementioned photo that I took.
What this Restaurant does offer is delicious, over indulgent cuisine. What they do not offer or accept is reservations (which is unusual in Paris, as most Restaurants in this fabulous city almost demand that you do)! We discovered this restaurant by walking by and being intrigued with the continuously long line and its charming red colors and inviting ambience. We tried to come for dinner here on two other occasions and were turned away. On the first attempt to eat here, they had no seating available for the rest of the evening (this was at 8:00 p.m.) and on the second attempt, they were closing for the evening (we had only arrived @ 10:15 p.m., and they appeared to not need/desire any other customers), even though they are always open until 11:00 p.m. Normally, my husband and I eat dinner around 6:00 p.m., but in Paris and much of Europe, people socialize and anticipate sitting down eating until late in the evening. We were so curious about what this Restaurant was about after seeing such long continuous lines and being turned away. We were DETERMINED to eat here!
So, finally one night, on our third attempt, we were able to get an immediate seat, and were charmed by the tables which were very closely placed next to each other. Paris is all about experiencing life by being with someone or watching, others eat, shop and love. Our waitress in her classic black dress and white apron, rattled off some very fast French as she placed a plate of extremely fresh baguette slices on our table. The waitresses are very focused on getting the patron seated and eating immediately.
The consistently bustling Restaurant, has one specialty here. It is a salade aux noix (walnut salad), le filet de boeuf (steak) and pommes frites (french fries). The one question that your waitress will ask you (yes, I said waitress-There are no male waiters at any of their locations), is "how you would like your steak prepared/cooked?" Well, since none of the waitresses speak English (only French), they actually would ask: "Comment vous voulez votre steak préparé?" My response was "à point (medium-rare), s'il vous plait." The salad dressing is fabulous. It is very different from most Parisian salades (which tend to have an egg base to them). I asked the waitress for the ingredients and in french, she told me that it is quite simple: Grapeseed oil and a lemon vinagrette. The combination of the two is a perfect marriage of both a light and intense flavor.
The ever so popular steak sauce is a complex butter-based sauce containing tarragon, marjoram, dill, rosemary, thyme, basil, paprika, anchovies, dijon mustard and numerous other condiments and spices. This is one hidden, well, actually a very popular treat in Paris.
The "Relais" patron will receive a menu for choosing whichever dessert or beverage he/she fancies. For dessert, my husband and I were so satiated, that we split a dessert. We chose the gateaux de chocolat (chocolate flourless cake), avec creme.
You can come to eat at le Relais de l' Entrecôte up until 11:00 p.m. (23 heures). A trip to Paris is not complete without eating here. You won't find a restaurant like it in the rest of the world. Few restaurants these days can stay consistently on course, packing in hundreds of people every day and every night; delivering a simply presented, but beautifully executed le filet de boeuf (steak) and pommes frites the way they do here and have done so for many years.
Did I mention that the quantities are limitless? Yes, if a person could handle so much food, you can have two or three servings of everything! It blew my mind of how much food was served on our plates. Interestingly, what I really wanted was two servings of the salad. The restaurant exudes Parisian passion and attitude at it's best. The quality of ingredients, portion sizes, authentic cream steak sauce and salad dressing, make you want to come back again and again.
Open your mind and experience something new!
http://zagat.com
Parking : St-Michel, St-Germain
Other services : Air conditioned - English spoken
le Relais de l' Entrecôte
• Paris VI• 20 rue Saint-Benoit, 75006 Paris, France 0145491600 Address : 20, rue Saint-Benoit
Zip code : 75006
City : Paris - France
Prices : Less than 50 € for the entire 3 course menu, for two people
Metro/Bus : Saint-Germain des Prés/Line 4
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My favorite Brasserie in Paris is called Le Bonaparte. Le Bonaparte is one of the finest cafés
of Saint-Germain des Près. The cuisine here is consistent and it is a great spot to dine for its location and people watching. Its terrace offers breathtaking views of the abbey
church. Above all, it is quiet place in the center of this tiny village of
Paris, which was for many, many decades the center of thought for intellectuals (near Les Deux Magots and Café de Flore), such as the artist Picasso and poets like Breton and Verlaine. The Brasserie is off of a small street intersecting the Boulevard Saint-Germain, which is a major Boulevard, and just a few buildings down the street from stores such as Louis Vuitton in the heart of the Latin Quarter and at the crossroads of three Parisian districts: Saint Germain-des-Prés, the Latin Quarter, and the Luxembourg gardens. The Saint-Germain-des-Prés, is the most desirable district, abounding with boutiques and shopping par excellence. It is considered the "Golden Triangle" of great restaurants and coffee shops, as well as extensive art galleries. 
For the French, there is a big difference between the names Bonaparte and Napoleon. Bonaparte is a symbol of the Republic of courage and daring for the campaigns of Italy and Egypt. For decades, like its namesake, Le Bonaparte Brasserie has built its reputation, after a great symbol of culinary detail and quality and has attracted the students of the Fine Arts school and intellectual sociery. The decoration and interior architecture has been redesigned, but it keeps its soul. It has a unique attraction. When you go down to the restroom, take the lift and you will see on the walls scrolling pictures of Napoleon and his great love, Marie Louise.
The interior of the Brasserie is at the same time, both beautiful and masculine; which is very much in alignment with the theme of balance between two personages: Napoleon and Marie Louise. Le Bonaparte is different from other French eateries. It is actually a cross between a brasserie and restaurant. It serves also as a "cuisine de bar" that puts the product at center of purpose. Michel Tafanel, the owner, found his way to Damascus, a few years ago and refined many culinary concepts to incorporate into Le Bonaparte the. If fine wines, professional and friendly service, and an excellent range of salads and tartines is what you are craving, then Le Bonaparte is the Brasserie for you. You can sit on the fine terrace and watch all of the people of Saint-Germain pass by without having to spend a fortune.
The view from our table was perfect. I took this photo of the old church of Saint-Germain (which is the oldest church in Paris) from my seat at the dining table, zooming in at exactly the perfect moment, where the sunset and clouds were in perfect alignment for lighting, to capture the utmost perfect image of what I was experiencing at Le Bonaparte. This photograph was taken at 9:30 p.m.! Although, clouds were moving in quickly to bring an unexpected down pour of rain, eating at Le Bonaparte on this evening was magical.
Within minutes of ordering our dinner, like an Orchestra conductor, the waiters quickly rolled down the red canopy, to protect any of us patrons from getting wet. It was delightful, magical and one of those rare moments in life where so many events, weather changes and people changed position in a very short time span.
I must say that the menu here is diverse, nouvelle and "green." The word "organic" has become obvious for Michel Tafanel, a man who
raises Salers cows in Normandy.
He firmly believes in innovation with great tasting, healthy food. The menu offers choices such as a savoury organic salers beef tartare served on a slice of toasted bread
Moisan, with potatoes and parmesan (18 €). If you prefer sea products you can
taste the thaï shrimps (25€), smoked salmon (25€), an omelet made with organic eggs
(9 €), or a chicken Caesar salad (17 €).
As an appetizer, unlike the typical baguette, our waiter first brought us little trays of rice snacks. This was an interesting touch and added to the ecclectic food offered at this Brasserie. Everything here is consistent. Nothing is too pretentious, but everything is enjoyable. The service was impeccable and this was the first café, out of over 12 that we ate in Paris, that brought ice in our glasses, for our carafe of water (tap water). We did not even have to ask for it. Ice in water glasses is an American custom and most European's do not like ice in their water. It does not seem to agree with their philosphy of digestive cohesiveness.
My husband ordered the roast beef sandwich, which as you can see, has no bread on the top of the meat. Rather, in a typically French fashion, each slice of Normandy meat, is delicately wrapped on top of a miniature singular slice of french bread. My husband, hands down, felt that this was his best meal in Paris. It was divine. The perfect balance of a dijon sauce on top of the bread, then wrapped with the freshest roast beef, that I think I have ever had in my life! The finishing touch was the delicate spring leafy lettuce, accompanied with shoestringed carrots. This dish was "La perfection absolue!!"
At Le Bonaparte, my husband and I shared a dessert and we were delighted to experience this epicurean delight as simple, but richly done, to accompany a great meal. The idea behind this gateaux au chocolat avec la crème glacée à la vanille et creme fraiche et framboise (flourless chocolate cake with vanilla ice cream, crème fresh and raspberries), is to take a little portion of each of these three elements in one spoonful. Individually, each tastes average, but when married TOGETHER they are a dynamic explosion of intense flavors. What a simple concept, yet offering such flavorful complexity!
Other services : Air conditioned -English spoken
Le Bonaparte
42 rue Bonaparte, 75006 Paris, France 0142273678
Open 7 days a week
Address : 42 rue Bonaparte
Zip code : 75006
City : Paris - France
Prices : Less than 25 € for the menu and from 25 to 50 € à la carte.
Metro/Bus : Saint-Germain des Prés/Line 4
Zip code : 75006
City : Paris - France
Prices : Less than 25 € for the menu and from 25 to 50 € à la carte.
Metro/Bus : Saint-Germain des Prés/Line 4
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Le Minotaire has been serving up traditional Greek cuisine and specialities on this quant little street, for what it has called home for many years. I highly recommend eating in the Latin Quarter if you are in Paris. It is a small area with many restaurants and it's common for restaurant employees to stand in front and try to get you to eat at their business. I really enjoyed the energy, the food options (Greek, Middle Eastern, Italian, French, etc.) and the location in this area of the district.
Le Minotaure is traditional Greek food, located in the 5th arrondissement of Paris, France.
Here is one of the waiters actually taking a break outside the Bistro eating one of his favorite gyro sandwiches, which is actually very common in Paris. It is one way to lure customers into their dining establishments.
We arrived early one afternoon with the hope of finding some unique establishment that was a change of pace from our French cuisine that we had for most of our meals that week. Even though we searched the menu for several options, we decided to order the traditional Greek Lamb Gyro, with a side of pomme frites ($15.00). A fabulous combination! The pomme frites were dense and crispy on the outside with a wonderful soft center, which made for a perfect combination for the palate. The lamb had a robust flavor and a zesty yogurt sauce that complimented the meat perfectly. The service was fairly quick, as is the case in most Parisian Bistros, Brasseries or Restaurants.
My husband and I both enjoyed the casual ambience and change of pace from the very consistent French nouvelle cuisine bourgeoise and cuisine regionale. Le
Minotaire's decor has a well worn and comfortable look of a Greek restaurant, with a Cesar statue, disco ball and live Greek musicians to entertain you while you munch on your taramosalata. The atmosphere was casual, crazy, and super fun. If nothing else, come for the ambience of the music and Greek celebration of eating and celebrating life, one day at a time.
Other services : Air conditioned - English spoken
Le Minotaure
24 Rue Huchette, 75005 Paris, France 0155420352
Address : 24, rue de la Huchette
Zip code : 75005
City : Paris - France
Prices : Less than 25 € for the menu and from 25 to 50 € à la carte.
Metro/Bus : RER B et M4 Saint-Michel ******************************************************************************
Zip code : 75005
City : Paris - France
Prices : Less than 25 € for the menu and from 25 to 50 € à la carte.
Metro/Bus : RER B et M4 Saint-Michel ******************************************************************************
Heather Moloian visits restaurants unannounced and pays for her food. If you know of a new, unusual or just fabulously great restaurant, please contact her at blueribbonbaker@verizon.net or become a blog visitor at:
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