L'Instant d'Or - Paris

Out of this world on the Avenue at L'Instant d'Or, Frédéric Duca has put his bags down in the former Flora Mikula restaurant, bringing with him a brand new interior design that is totally white and zen yet with a slightly manga edge.

At only 34 years old, the young chef has already honed his skills at Passédat, Taillevent and Hélène Darroze. Now captain of his own ship, he has brought on board an elegant and highly qualified staff that includes the great sommelier Marco Martinetti.

All the necessary ingredients are there: location, design, ambiance and staff. The cuisine is remarkably intelligent and beautifully presented; the products are of an excellent quality. The chef often flirts with the very top by proposing truffle, lobster and wild sea bass.

L'Instant d'Or - Paris

Salmon is prepared in a perfect tataki whose firmness is in exquisite contrast with a creamy cauliflower mousse accompaniment, followed by cucumber sorbet to cleanse the palette. The green asparagus, half pureed and half roasted, is paired with frogs’ legs in a beef jus.

The show goes on with large artichoke ravioli that appear miraculously to stand up all by themselves. The roasted sweetbread medallion, delicately flavored with pineapple sage, melts in the mouth and is a perfect match for the potatoes creamed with morels and vin jaune sauce.

The head pastry cook is of Japanese origins and she invites us to discover a dessert of tangy lemon cream whose acidity is countered by a daring celery sorbet.

In sum, time spent at the latest Parisian gastronomic gem is indeed ‘golden’. Faultless, the chef’s work shimmers from the beginning to the end of the meal.

Vanessa Besnard for "Terroirs de Chefs"

Terroir Parisien by Yannick Alléno ©Jean-Francois Mallet

Terroir Parisien by Yannick Alléno

The best of regional Paris in your plate

The three-star chef pays a glowing tribute to his hometown at the new ‘Terroir Parisien’ restaurant, attached to the Maison de la Mutualité.

Four years after launching the ‘Parisian produce’ trend and publishing a book of the same name, Alléno wanted to invite Parisian gourmets to come and taste for themselves the excellent products cultivated in their local, greater Paris region.

The different produce is carefully selected and flavors delicately developed in the plate: ham or mushrooms from Paris, mustard and Brie from Meaux, veal, mint from Milly–la-Forêt, belle de Fontenay potatoes…

The modern bistro design is by Jean-Michel Wilmotte, whose graceful blend of cobblestone, zinc and wooden themes produces an elegant mix of polished and matt textures.

Since the restaurant’s triumphant opening on March 10, the 74 seats (60 in the dining room, 14 at the counter) are besieged daily and it is a good idea to reserve a day or two in advance.

What are the ingredients for such success? Chef Alléno proposes a contemporary, often cheeky, reinterpretation of traditional products and dishes, all at a reasonable price.

Le veau-chaud sauce gribiche façon hot-dog  ©Vanessa Besnard - Foodmark

The house specialty is without a doubt the ‘veau chaud’ or veal hot dog with gribiche sauce (whose reputation has already made it to New York!). Nestled in its own little box bearing Alléno’s name, a baguette is wrapped around a veal sausage made from calf’s head and creamy bone marrow. Other delicious options are frou-frou eggs, Pantin paté, soups and watercress salad.

Next, skate is prepared with a butter-based sauce to which capers bring a perfect, acidic tang. Stuffed cabbage is revisited to become a divine, multilayered and generous millefeuille with creamy filling and crisp cabbage.

After a black Brie or ash-rolled goats cheese, there is dessert: milky brioche pudding or an apple pie bearing a strong resemblance to a mini galette des rois, with a perfectly cooked apple quarter hidden in its heart.

The diners are lovers of authentic, good cuisine and the restaurant leaves a pleasant impression of ‘the old days’, when we could fetch produce from a neighboring farm, basket in hand. The chef has said he is proud to propose, after much work, a genuinely Parisian cuisine. Well, frankly, we are delighted to taste it.

Vanessa Besnard
Terroirs de Chefs

Le Chemise - Paris

Le Chemise
In the bistronomy trend.
An ex-Tour d’Argent is at the stoves of this chic and modern bistro.

After meeting at hospitality school, Fabien Demarty and Cédric Lacaze opened their first bistro in December 2011, near the République Square in Paris. The two thirty-somethings are perfectly cast: Fabien at front of house gives a sincere, good humored welcome to clients, while in the kitchen the quieter Cedric concentrates on preparing his appetizers. Formerly at the Tour d’Argent, he has developed a culinary style that is both traditional and inventive.

The menu changes every month and currently features a creamy chestnut soup drizzled with truffle oil, a homemade duck foie gras and a duck confit flaky pastry. But the real winner is the plate of melting prawn dumplings delicately perfumed with lemongrass.

The main dishes are just as delicious: 7-hour thyme-infused lamb shanks, Erquy scallops with Noilly sauce, Chateaubriand beef tenderloin with green peppercorns, or salmon gravlax panned on one side, the flesh turning lolly-pink.

The wine list is well thought out and proposes very reasonable vintages such as the Morgon Domaine Bouland 2010 at 25€ or the Pinot Noir ‘Signature’ at 21€.

For a sweet and light finish to the meal, there is brioche done French-toast style and a pear pound cake that confirm the chef’s talents as a pastry cook.

The two young men have succeeded the feat of offering bistronomy quality at a reasonable price, and the lunch menu at 15€ is a steal. Intrigued by the name of the establishment? Ask Fabien, who will be pleased to recount the numerous versions of the tale….

Review by Terroirs de Chefs 

L'Escient - Paris

Two chefs: a father and daughter team... L’Escient is a traditional bistro cuisine with a touch of Asian influences.

Open since August 18 2011, this pretty restaurant with a violet-grey façade is part of the neobistro trend. Thus far overlooked by critics, l’Escient might well be the gem of last summer.

The restaurant is located in Paris’ 17th arrondissement, on rue Poncelet where the daily street market and its cheerful, haranguing vendors are the vibrant heart of the neighbourhood.

L’Escient is a family affair: mother is at front of house while father, Pierre Méchin, and daughter, are at work in the kitchen. Father provides the technical basis of the menu, whilst his Ducasse-trained daughter reinterprets classical dishes with distinct flair.

One can choose from daily specials on the blackboard or from the menu that proposes 5 or 6 starters, the same for mains and desserts.

L'Escient - Paris

For starters, the Japanese radish Daikon is served with king prawns and an emulsion of lime-tinged taramasalata. It’s a fresh and original starter that awakens the taste buds. There is also mushroom caviar with foie gras shavings, nestled at the bottom of a deep plate. We discovered the secret of the surprisingly firm, almost wooden, foie gras: grate when cold.

The mains did not disappoint us: organic suckling pig tenderloin with a honey-soy glaze, accompanied by minty, coriander-perfumed vegetable nems and crunchy Paimpol white beans.

L'Escient - Paris

For dessert, a Paris-Brest revisited in the form of three pretty little choux puffs and a chocolate cuboid resting under caramelized puffed rice. The chef almost apologized for not having yet fully developed the dessert menu – we can’t wait to go back and try and final version!

In sum, a luxury bistro with excellent value for money, whose discreet design includes an elegant display of good wines.

Vanessa Besnard for Terroirs de Chefs

Cobéa - Paris ©hystericstudios

A star is born in the 14th arrondissement of Paris

Cobéa is the new discovery on everyone’s lips. The arrondissement has until now been cruelly lacking in restaurants worthy of the title, defect that has been corrected since last September thanks to Philippe Bélissent, former Michelin-starred chef at L'Hôtel  (rue des Beaux Arts) and his front of house partner, Jérôme Cobou.

The young men have opened their restaurant on the former site of the well-known Monsieur Lapin. 

If the interior design seems a little old-fashioned (with an air of Sunday family lunch), the idea of opening the kitchen out onto the dining room is excellent.  Our taste buds start to tingle at the simple sight of the head chef behind his stove. 

The menu is refined and seasonally inspired, always premium.  The two partners have retained the 38 Euro lunch menu so successfully installed by Monsieur Lapin.  After delicious nibbles, razor clam with squid accompaniment is delivered to our table, followed closely by foie-gras sautéed with chestnut.  As for the main dishes:  wild young partridge cooked à la plancha, cod with braised green cabbage. The plates are both works of art and divine in the mouth.  The partridge needs a little sauce?  The chef himself comes from kitchen, saucepan in hand, to drizzle some over.

Comté aged for 24 months with a yellow wine zabaglione followed by a lemon-ginger sorbet to cleanse the palette, and it is already time to finish with the round biscuit dressed with a salted crème caramel.

The service is lively, the kitchen worthy of a star, the lunch menu is a boon.

The 14th arrondissement can at last boast its own grand chef!

Vanessa Besnard, Terroirs de Chefs

Septime - Paris

With the opening in Paris of attractive newcomer Septime, the neo-bistrot style has confirmed its place, thanks to highly talented young chefs who are reinventing cuisine with modern recipes and affordable prices.

Bertrand Grebaut is no exception. Formerly at Robuchon then Passard and l’Agapé, his launch is a perfect hit. The decor is attractive, the service particularly attentive and the menu clearly focused on quality produce. Basically, a recipe for success.

The menu is simple: 3 entrees, 2 mains and a nice selection of desserts.  The choice and price of the fixed menus-21 and 26 Euros for lunch, 55 Euros for the dinner menu of house specialities- explains their popularity.

A few minor drawbacks however: the room is very noisy and the portions a bit, well to be honest, too small.
In order to recharge our batteries, my guest and I decided to have 3 entrees, a main dish, cheese AND dessert!

By Thibault Leclerc, Terroirs de Chefs

Frédéric Simonin - Paris ©Frédéric Simonin

When Joel Robuchon took over from Ghislaine Arabian on Avenue Bugeaud to create ‘La Table de Joel Robuchon’, regulars quickly noticed the brilliant manner with which Frédéric Simonin executed the menu written by ‘le chef’.  

Today, following the purchase of ‘La Table’ by Jean-Louis Nomicos, Frédéric Simonin has decided to sign his own opus with a new venture on Rue Bayen in the 17th arrondissement.  

The restaurant has been completely redecorated in a modern, discreet, elegant and convivial style.  

Aged only 34,Simonin has thus decided to become his own master.  

We have become accustomed to his emphasis on seasonal produce and there is no exception here.   It is thus with great pleasure that we discover his crab served in tangy avocado jelly, green peas, red mullet, veal cutlets and the legendary ...."purée “.

There is also a slightly Asian touch, common to many of the ‘Robuchon stable’. And then there are the desserts, which are simply irresistible. 

Let’s be clear; we are in the presence of an emerging, future great chef. This is not an archive for the good memories from the ‘Table de Joel Robuchon’. The quality of the youthful service merits special mention: skilled, relaxed, friendly and unpretentious.

The wine waiter is excellent; you can safely put yourself in his hands. 

Count on 38 Euros for the fixed menu, going up to 100 Euros for à la carte.

Happiness has a cost, but here it is justified.

By Thibault Leclerc, Terroirs de Chefs