Great Little Paris Restaurants

The theme of the single chef cooking with the help of just one waitress in tiny restaurants no larger than a postage stamp could take you on a gourmet trail across Paris. Apart from Le Timbre and La Cerisaie, described in my article on 24 hours in Paris, there are others, notably the amazing Spring, whose chef/patron is a young American, Daniel Rose. You must go there, and unless it’s lunchtime (Thursdays and Fridays) you must book (dinner is served on Mondays though Fridays). Daniel has no menu, he just cooks what he feels like and according to what he finds in the market on the day, and his choices are inspired. On a Friday lunch we ate snails in a wonderful broth of coriander and lemongrass, followed by a melting lamb salad and a to-die-for chocolate mousse. We chatted to Daniel for a long time afterwards and he was pretty interesting, not just about the culinary scene in Paris (very poor) but also about Paris itself. Oh dear. To quote Daniel “Paris is dead. No it’s worse than dead – at least death is interesting. It’s fossilized”. Wealth tax, the thirty hour week and the bypassing of Paris as a financial hub has meant that educated young Parisians are largely working abroad (they all seem to be living in South Kensington, don’t they?) and the city has lost much of its sense of importance. “It’s just another European backwater of a city” another cultured but disgruntled Parisian told me. But I digress. Here is a list of small chef/patron eateries in Paris, as recommended by a couple of charming gents we got chatting to in La Cerisaie. You can find their details by entering their names and then ‘Paris restaurant’ in Google. Spring. In the 9th arrondissement Le Timbre. English chef, in Montparnasse La Cerisaie, by Gare Montparnasse Fulvio, in the Marais Le Goupil, Place Jules Reynard, Porte Maillot Atelier Berger, Rue Berger, Les Halles (Norwegian chef) L’Epi Dupin, in Saint Germain Pasco Le Temps au Temps L’Enredgeu Le Chai, in the suburb of Boulogne. Ony lunchtimes. Highly recommended by our informant Ribouldingue Le Comptoir du Relais, at l’Odeon in the 6th arr. Well known chef.