The three Michelin stars L'Ambroisie (9,pl des Vosges 75004, tel. 01 42 78 51 45) has probably the most beautiful and the most romantic location of all the Parisian "grandes tables". When you arrive in place des Vosges and enter the restaurant you feel like travelling back in the times of 'Le Roi-Soleil". Lavish, rich interior with old parquet floor, dramatic paintings and enormous chandeliers... Nothing modern, but it fits very well to the royal spirit of place des Vosges.
I have never been in L'Ambroisie before , but have always had it in my wish list. Three Michelin stars and so many praisings... The place just had to exceptional... In a certain way, my dinner was exceptional.... I have experienced the French gastronomic cuisine how it was twenty years ago. Bernard Pacaud's cooking seems to be " sealed in time" - bourgeois, classic, not trying to surprise.Probably even more classic than Paul Bocuse cooking.
In the images .
The amuse bouche of lobster ravioli. Correct and very classic mariage of tastes. What i found out later- the best what i had during that dinner.
"Soft boiled eggs, aspargus, watercress "sabayon" and osciètre caviar" . The appetizer of my friend. Very good, but very generous for a starter.
"Lobster "feuillantine", sesame seeds, curry sauce" . The classics of "L'Ambroisie" . Very straightforward marriage of tastes and very very classic... I didn't like the spinach on which the lobster was topped. Also, the sesame seeds made the overall taste a little vulgar.
"Sea Bass fillets with clams, vegetables "parisienne" with" olives" . This was the worst dish of the dinner. Basically fish on a vegetables purée. Very boring and shallow, something you would eat in a mediocre brasserie... The clams has some strange taste... I didn't even finish it.
We shared an assortment of all desserts. I often skip the dessert part when dining in high end restaurants ( i prefer salty), but this time i just had to "wash away" the mediocrity of the main course. What surprised me a lot that they saw that we didn't finish our main courses, but didn't even care to ask the reason. (Of course, they didn't forget to bill them.)
The desserts were simple, but very good.
"Chocolate tart, vanilla ice cream"
"Strawberry soup, almonds"
"Exotic fruits "chaud-froid", coconut cream"
The dinner was quite disappointing... Maybe because i expected of the Bernard Pacaud cooking so much, i found the food boring that was definitely not worth 3 Michelin stars. Very little choices on the menu...Many dishes included aspargus, which made the choice even more limited. Who wants to have aspargus in both, the entrée and the main course?
I would recommend L'Ambroisie only if you are curious about the interior and if you think it is worth to spend € 650 for two people just for the ambiance... But if you search for a gastronomic journey, you can find much better restaurants in Paris(and not necessary three Michelin stars...)
