Lynn wasn’t available for lunch this month so I had lunch with my friend John Talbott, who regularly reviews Paris restaurants on his blog John Talbott’s Paris. I let John pick the restaurant and it was a more uptown/upscale experience than the lunches with Lynn. He chose L’Orrriu di Beauvau, a newly opened Corsican restaurant near the Elysees Palace. The attractive dining room with cherry red banquettes and tables accessories in accents of red was nearly empty when I arrived at 12:30. John was already seated and we caught up since we hadn’t seen each other in a while. Since I was “uptown” the prices were reflected in the menu with most of the plats coming in at over 20€, but the plat du jour was 19€. I decided to go with the uptown flow and sprung for the 29€ formule of two courses. One reason was the starter of a sardine tart looked so appealing. It was even more appealing once it arrived, beautifully presented on a black slate plate topped with a mountain of fresh arugula and mint and garnished with oven-dried cherry tomatoes. The flaky pastry and the salty sardines were delicious and satisfying and best of all I got my share of healthy greens. John had octopus salad festooned with giant leaves of Romaine lettuce, which he enjoyed very much.
John carries a portable decibel whenever he dines out. He complained about the high noise level at a newly opened restaurant, where the decibel level was off the charts and he could barely hear himself talk. Luckily L’Orrriu di Beauvau got a low score, perhaps because it was mostly empty. We chatted on about many things but after about 25 minutes we noticed we hadn’t gotten our main course, which was unusual because the restaurant only had 4 other people. A large party of businessmen dressed in slick, well tailored, close fitting suits and good shoes- probably senior staff members of the Elysees Palace- streamed in. Finally after about 30 minutes our plat came, a large white ceramic pot filled with stuffatu, something we both never heard of, a Corsican stew with veal. John enjoyed the dish more than I did, as I felt that even though the meat was tender and the mashed potatoes well prepared, it wasn’t flavorful enough event though I added salt. Even though I wasn’t crazy about my stuffatu, I enjoyed it and would surely return to L’Orrriu di Beauvau, as many of the other dishes looked like they were worth a try.
4 rue des Saussaies, 75008
Tel. +33 (0) 1 42 65 24 90
http://lorriu.com
stuffatu
John's decibel meter
I am happy to announce the launch of Eye Prefer Paris Cooking Classes. Come take an ethnic culinary journey with me and chef and caterer Charlotte Puckette, co-author of the bestseller The Ethnic Paris Cookbook (with Olivia Kiang-Snaije). First we will shop at a Paris green-market for the freshest ingredients and then return to Charlotte's professional kitchen near the Eiffel Tower to cook a three-course lunch. After, we will indulge in the delicious feast we prepared along with hand-selected wines.
Cost: 195 euros per person (about $210)
Time: 9:30AM- 2PM (approximately 4 1/2 hours)
Location: We will meet by a metro station close to the market
Class days: Tuesday,Wednesday, Thursday,Friday, Saturday, and Sunday
Minimum of 2 students, maximum 6 students.
Click here to sign up for the next class or for more info.
Come experience Eye Prefer Paris live with Eye Prefer Paris Tours, which are 3-hour walking tours I personally lead. Eye Prefer Paris Tours include many of the places I have written about such as small museums & galleries, restaurants, cafes, food markets, secret addresses, fashion & home boutiques, parks and gardens and much more. In addition to my specialty Marais Tour, I also lead tours of Montmartre, St. Germain, Latin Quarter, in addition to Shopping Tours, Gay Tours, Girlfriend Tours, Food Tours, Flea Market Tours, Paris Highlights Tours, and Chocolate & Pastry tours.
Tours start at 225 euros for up to 3 people, and 75 euros for each additional person. I look forward to meeting you on my tours and it will be my pleasure and delight to show you my insiders Paris.
Check it out at www.eyepreferparistours.com
Click here to watch a video of our famous Marais tour