"In the high rent district, centered just yards/meters between the Ritz and the Meurice, you expect a sophisticated meal and a demanding clientele. The friendly greeting and the warm and professional service are an added and welcome bonus. With decades of experience in haute cuisine, chef Dutournier is at the helm of a well run and distinctive restaurant. The repertoire is extensive. Some dishes are delightful, others just competent. The wine cellar is legendary and covers a wide spectrum of regions and vintages. Their prices seem fair and no one was trying to pressure one into the most expensive bottles. They do offer a nice selection of decent wines by the glass. In keeping with the occasion, we ordered a 2000 Gevrey-Chambertin and were pleased with the choice and value. The decor is distinctive, and even if not entirely to one's taste, it all hangs together well. The restaurant deserves its Michelin Star, but I can sense why it probably lost the second one. We were here to enjoy a fine meal and not play restaurant critic. Still, having dined at dozens of restaurants that have received Michelin's highest honors in half a dozen countries I found the meal enjoyable but not extraordinary. Many of the amuse bouche seemed more academic than meal enhancing. My appetizer (ecrevisse) and main course (caneton/duck) were solid but not soaring. My wife enjoyed her foie gras, but not as much as at a modest bistro a few nights before. She did find the sweetbreads excellent. We both concurred that the desserts were superb. By choosing a la carte items rather than a menu, perhaps we didn't have courses that the chef wished to highlight, although they were not exotic but mainstream choices. All in all, a satisfying meal at a fairly high price. That's understandable by virtue of the rarefied real estate and the platoons of staff. Would we return? Perhaps."
