Le Bistrot Du Maquis in the 18th: Classic, Inventive and a Huge Pleasant Surprise - That's All Folks.

By Johntalbott

7.4 Le Bistrot du Maquis, 69, rue Caulincourt in the 18th, 01.46.06.06.64, closed Tuesdays and Wednesdays, is a place my best flanneur-friend-nabe chanced on and I leapt - a good new place on Montmartre - try it.  With some research it was revealed that chef Andre Le Letty had been (alphabetically) at Anacreon, L'Agassin, Ledoyen, Prunier and the Tour d'Argent.  With that cv it might be heaven or hell.

The menu/cartes are, as my old friend and colleague, used to say - "confusigrams."  There's a lunch formula at 16 E and "menus" with 2 courses for 29 E and 3 for 36 E, and a la carte that could run 30--45 E.  But on them it's lotsa cool stuff.

For starters, the French woman who knows more about food than anyone I've ever met/known had the terrine of pied de cochon which was both classic and inventive and my buddy down the street and I both had mackerel with almost raw vegetables (carrots, fennel, garlic, beets, turnips and the like) with a tomato and ginger sauce - which was both classic and inventive - but which escaped the shuttereye.

Then my buddy had the rognons, Madame our invitee the cod, Madame from down the street the other fish, and I had three sublime pieces of pintade with a rich creamy sauce.

At dessert my camera began working again and shows the compote of mangos, strawberries and chocolate with ice cream.

Our bill, with 2 1/2 bottles of wine, 1 bottle of Chateldon (don't ask), terrific bread and 5 coffees, was 248.50 E, thus 99.40 E a couple.

Go?  Wow, since BAT and Sur le fil I haven't had such a meal - in a flash, despite the noise levelof 81.8 dB.