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Passage 53 (53 Passage des Panoramas 75002 Paris - 01 42 33 04 35)
Chef: Shinichi Sato (former of l'Astrance (Pascal Barbot) and Aida)
Have I been there before? No
Ambiance: nonexistent. Because the restaurant is so small and has a huge window to the Passage des Panoramas (it used to be a philatelic shop), makes you feel as if you are eating ,well,.. in a philatelic shop.
La Régalade (14 Avenue Jean Moulin 75014 Paris - 01 45 45 68 58)
Chef: Bruno Doucet
Have been there before? Yes
Ambiance:busy, lively and convivial
Melons for 500 dollars are a bargain compared to the current price of black truffles in Paris. One kilogram in Fauchon shop costs 3000 euros. Or, you just need to cross the place de la Madeleine and you will have even a "better" price at La Maison de la Truffe - 3490 euros a kilo. The good news is that a small( 20-30 grams )truffle is enough to turn your meal into something very magic. So, finally,no need to get a bank loan!
Opinionated About Dining continues the great tradition of asking chefs and bloggers what was their meal of the year.You can see the whole list here. Ms Luxeat is on the list too ;)
Harutaka (1*,Kawabata Building 3F, 8-5-8 Ginza, tel. 03 3573 1144 )- the last sushiya from the sushi from Tokyo series this year. And my favorite so far. Harutaka Takahashi ( left) comes from Sukiyabashi Jiro "school", so you can see many similarities with Sukiyabashi Jiro Roppongi(and, i would guess with the original branch too). The rice was almost identical - each grain was very firm and separate.So different from another legendary sushi master Hachiro Mizutani , whose rice was much less al dente. The fish at Harutaka couldn't have been fresher or higher quality.Many people i spoke to ( Tokyo chefs or waiters), named Harutaka sushiya as their favorite. The chefs can't be wrong, no?
Claude Colliot ( 40, rue des Blancs Manteaux, 75004,Paris, tel.01 42 71 55 45) is only two weeks old. Maybe you can feel the freshness of the place in the decor and the attitude of the waiters, but the cooking of Claude Colliot is solid and memorable. (He used to work at Bamboche and L'Orénoc -not really a culinary beginner.. ) The carte could be longer and i wish that potato purée was served with the suckling (and very crispy!) pig instead of that boring pumpkin soup, but everything else was so honest and delicious that i would love to come back to this cosy restaurant in the Marais very soon.
Foie gras cream with beetroot, pistachios...
..club sandwich with foie gras, black truffles and celery. Obviously,Fauchon continues it's tradition of high end "fast food"...
I was inspired by Turkish aubergine salad when i was in Turkey earlier this year.What i love about it that you don't have to do a lot (when it comes to my own cooking , i like to keep it simple) - the oven does the work you.
The recipe is for two-three people served as a meze
1 big aubergine,1 big tomato,2-3 cloves of garlic (or more if you like garlic),1 red hot pepper,half of an onion,olive oil,some lemon juice,fresh parsley,cumin,paprika,salt,pepper
Grill the aubergine(after piercing with a fork) in 200 degrees Celsius oven, turn it from time to time. After half a hour,add the tomato, garlic cloves, onion and pepper, drizzle all with olive oil and grill half an hour more.Let the vegetables cool down a little, then remove the flesh from the aubergine, tomato, garlic, chop the pepper and the onion. Mix everything with some lemon juice,organic olive oil and spices, add the chopped parsley.
I missed my plane back to Europe, so instead of waiting at Narita for the evening flight i went back to Tokyo and had lunch at Sukiyabashi Jiro in Roppongi Hills. (The one Michelin English speaking sister restaurant of the three Michelin Sukiyabashi Jiro in Ginza. The sushi chef is Jiro's son Takashi ).
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