This is a great spot - they have a lot of cool bottles with age on them that you rarely see, like large formats of older Beaujolais. And the food is very good.
What are the best BTG wine bars in Paris?
High end glass pours - Taillevent 110, one of the best in the world.
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The only catch is that (for me) Juveniles is never a quick lunch😂. Entirely because I love spending time there
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We ate and drank there in 2017, food, wine, and service were excellent. Do they have a bar space where you can just drink and snack?
Pretty sure.
Can I just drink at the bar at 110 Taillevent?
I’m sort of looking for a place to drink a couple of glasses on a night I’m not dining?
I think so, but maybe send them a note.
It is definitely more of a restaurant than a bar.
The bar at Caves Legrand is u shaped and and always has a good crowd, maybe check that out.
Not sure how their BTG program is, but they have great wine, and if nothing else, I am sure they have a few half bottles.
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Back from Paris again with more confusion over this restaurant.
Went to one of our regulars where we hang out with the staff after dinner is over and everything is very jovial and casual. Mentioned my shock with Gagnaire and they kind of praised me for being able to see that it sucked. One guy high fived me.
The chef explained that there is competition for obtaining the finest products and the purveyors expect to deal directly with the chef or sous chef and this does not happen at Gagnaire.
Went through the best known review sites- both the American and French ones and most of the latest reviews still say Gagnaire is superb.
https://www.thefork.fr/restaurant/pierre-gagnaire-r657513/avis
Also met with a friend there who is I trust greatly and he recently went there and said it was poor also.
The only way I can rationalize this is by cynically concluding that opinions are like rear ends- everyone has one but most of them stink. You may remember my post about neurogastronomy where I described top down processing as the mechanism of optical illusions and this may be going on, like an emperor’s news clothes phenomena.
Great daily variation does not exist at this level. I worked at 2 three star restaurants and know this for a fact.
ADDENDUM does not seem to have linked this to the initial post:
Am glad to see 2/3 posters were non praisers. I was shocked by a terrible demonstration of cuisine and service but saw that almost all recent and past reviews consider this places extraordinary. Maybe its the emperor’s new clothes phenomena.
First of all, in a side room was an extremely loud dinner party of about 10 businessmen. They were laughing and carrying on at level you would expect to see at a bachelor’s party . Loud noise carried throughout the whole dining room. I worked in two 3 Star restaurants many years ago and I am certain staff would have said something. I suspect that money comes first here and they do not want to discourage these high profit business dinners. They could have partitioned off this separate room with noise reducing walls since I suspect this happens repeatedly.
Two problems with the food-organization and quality. It seems Gagnaire’s philosophy is to put down 4 or 5 small "satellite plates " around the main course. Most of these satellite dishes had no relation to the main course or to each other. They had to be placed so far away from the main course that we had to reach out to access them and then bring the spoon or fork back to our mouth over a pretty long distance requiring us to bend forward over the main plate… These dishes had extremely different tastes and we were given only one fork and spoon so we had to clean the utensil with our mouths before trying the next satellite dish. The fish main course was an average piece of fish I can’t even remember as I was so unimpressed. It was served in a sort of chive beurre blanc sauce that I could have made myself. I ordered pork and got an extremely large piece but 80% of it was pure fat. The waiter looked over and noticed that and became concerned. I do not see how the chef could have missed that before cooking it. He said he would bring me an alternative which was supposed to be a small piece of cooked foie gras but when he returned instead was just a small piece of pork, at least this time without the fat. On one course they started to place my wife’s choice in front of me and when I corrected them and they seem somewhat annoyed. They make the fancy presentation and lift the domes off the plates but this was done by 1 server who did them one at a time. At one point due to these satellites, we probably had 10 finished dishes on the table. Nobody did anything about this until roughly 10 minutes later after I had to tell someone.
The sign of a great restaurant is that you leave with memories, maybe only 1 or 2, but last you forever. I can still recall certain dishes I had a great restaurants 40 years ago. I left here with nothing.
The chef was not there that night. He was at his other restaurant in Paris. In addition he has 5 or 6 restaurants around the world. The two 3 Star chefs I worked for had only one restaurant. If Gagnaire was competent, that should not have effected the food and certainly should not have effected the confused service.
I know enough to not discuss this with my French chef friends because bashing Gagnaire would be blasphemy. It was the same with Bocuse while he was alive but as soon as he passed away they started removing stars.
I cannot understand why a restaurant that is rated so highly on Internet was so terrible for us. Consistency is imperative. Jean Troisgros once looked out at the room and told me that any one of the tables may have saved up all year to be there
Tried two new (for me) restaurants this weekend. Both Michelin starred.
First was Anona. This is in my new neighborhood and I was hoping to find a place where I could become a regular. The menu was on the pricier side, but was excited. Went for the full menu. The plusses: there were a couple of amazing dishes, especially the oyster dish. It was spectacular. The minuses: two of the dishes were based entirely on vegetables I detest: carrots and cauliflower. I couldn’t finish the cauliflower dish, the taste is just repulsive to me. On the whole, it was more misses than hits, even putting aside the carrots and cauliflower. Far too little protein, and the sauces sometimes were overpowering. The only reason the carrot dish was edible for me was the overpowering of the vinegar in the sauce. This was a disappointing experience. Service was fine, if not a bit overwhelming.
Second was Restaurant H, in the Marais. This is my old neighborhood and I had wanted to go there since it opened a surprising 9 years ago. The price was less than Anona. Again went for the full menu. It started out on a high note and stayed there pretty much the entire meal. The only dish that rivaled the oyster dish at Anona was the chef signature dish (razor clams in parsley sauce). But all of the dishes were outstanding.
I would definitely go back to Restaurant H someday. Not sure if I will go back to Anona soon.
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Need a casual option for a meal somewhere in central Paris - ideally with a decent but not flashy wine list.
BUT
Needs to be 4-6pm on a Sunday - and somewhere that takes reservations…
Any ideas? Bouillon seems one option.
Thanks for the write-ups, Tim. Have you been to Le Faham? That’s the one I was thinking of hitting in your hood (among others).
Philip - Thanks for your second (identical?) review of Gagnaire. (Good to know about underperformed/ resting-on-their laurels places). Why didn’t your French “chef friends” tell you to go to/recomend Donckele/ Plenitfude?
if you do not like cauliflower avoid david toutain as that is (or was) the main component to the signature dessert with white chocolate!
nice to hear about restaurant h. i went for lunch when they first opened and it was quite enjoyable. some how quality can fly under the radar. another spot that comes to mind is restaurant es. japanese chef with a great resume, very precise cooking and not much buzz.
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Haven’t been there, but will put it on the list.
One other note, both Anona and Restaurant H featured kumquat heavily in dishes. Not sure if it is a trend.
Also another restaurant in my hood that is quite nice is Les Poulettes Batignolles. Not Michelin level, but definitely worth a visit.
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And now again same situation Sunday ‘pre theatre’ (different Sunday).
Any suggestions in Pigalle? Otherwise it will be the other branch of Bouillon.
I thought I’d share some feedback on our recent Paris restaurant experiences:
Juveniles- Same as it ever was. Convivial atmosphere, solid wine list, very tasty food. What’s not to like?
Cheval d’Or- This was the place on our list I was most curious about, since I’d seen some lukewarm reactions, but booked based on @Robert_Dentice’s raves about it. We had a great meal and thought the dishes were very creative and delicious, especially a couple of the dumpling dishes (a scallop dumpling with chanterelles and Hollandaise and the Barabjuan with chard, ramps, shiitakes) and the tortelline with mapo tofu and veal. Knowing that State Bird is one of Robert’s favorite places, his love of this place makes sense. They feel like cousins stylistically (and that is a compliment of the highest order). We loved it.
Restaurant AT- There were some real highs here (the signature uni dish with carrots, & “camouflage”, which was visually stunning and delicious), but there were also some dishes that were merely good. The desserts were both excellent (I’m not normally a dessert person). Overall, it felt a bit, sterile, maybe? One strange (and slightly off putting) interaction we had concerns one of my (and my wife’s) culinary nemeses- oysters. Whenever I make a reservation for a tasting menu and there is an option to leave a comment/request, I always add, “We would prefer no oysters.” If they show up on the menu anyway, no big deal, we generally eat them. We just don’t enjoy them. At all. I don’t make a deal of it once we get to the restaurant and I don’t bring it up. There was an oyster dish on the menu here. It was served, described to us, we both ate it (and as oyster dishes go, it was better than most). As our waiter came to gather our bowls, he says, “You don’t like oysters. How was it? Did you like it?” I thought it was bizarre to acknowledge the request I had made only after the dish had been served. My expectation, when I’m dining at a Michelin starred restaurant and spending 190€ would be, if the restaurant bothered to read my request, at least acknowledge the oyster issue at the outset, rather than after the dish has been consumed. I suppose it is a minor quibble, but it did color the experience for me. Glad we went. I have no desire to return.
Les Enfants du Marché- plenty has been written here about this place. We had a delicious lunch, drank a not so natty rosé, and got none of the attitude we got on our previous visit here. Nothing but smiles and enthusiastic service. Prices are high, but still decent value, given the quality of the cooking.
Le MaZenay- a modest bistro in the Marais. Dishes tend to be bistro classics with a Vietnamese twist. We had an excellent time here on our previous visit (over a year ago). Lan (wife half of the couple who own the place) remembered us and we had another great conversation about wine. We ended up closing the place down because we kept talking with her after everyone else had left. The wine list is solid, though with fewer deals than there were a year ago. The food is comfortable and delicious. I’m a fan, but it’s not a place that will dazzle or earn any Michelin stars.
Clamato- we had a small lunch with a couple of glasses of wine. The food was great and a couple of the dishes were excellent, especially a scallop crudo. Worth a return visit.
Pétrelle- I chose this place because they are open on Sundays and Meg Zimbeck’s review was very positive. Our experience was great as well. Another tasting menu, every course was interesting and delicious. The wine list is impressive, with a few relative bargains and lots of high end stuff (priced accordingly). We drank a 2019 Ganevat en Billat Savignan that was perfect with the fish/vegetable-centric menu. As a bonus, after discussing wine options with the sommelier (and expressing that I was having trouble deciding between Champagne and something from the Jura), he brought each of us a glass of Tarlant Brut Zero to drink while I was perusing the wine list, on the house. The space is beautiful and romantic- red velvet, candles everywhere, big spaces between tables- and it is quiet enough to be able to easily carry on a conversation. We would happily return.
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Thanks for the great report! Happy to see you enjoyed Cheval d’ Or.
Juveniles is like a big, warm hug that gets the praise it deserves yet feels slightly overlooked
Don’t know if I’d agree with the overlooked part, but then I’m a homer, I guess. This was my go-to place for visitors (including @Michel_Abood who doesn’t really feel like a visitor) and their library Clape prices, specifically, are the best in Paris. Have been there at least 30-40 times and it’s never missed. Go Margaux!
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