Le Chateaubriand

Restaurant
This is our second time back to Le Chateaubriand.  I have always liked the concept of this restaurant particularly if you are the owner of the restaurant.  45 euros and whatever they are serving that day, is what you get.  Certainly is easier on the kitchen and each day gives the chef total creativity.  The downside is if you have reservations for a particular night, you might not like what they are serving (although they try to be flexible and ask if you don't like something). 

The restaurant was packed last night and they were understaffed.  We sat down at 830 and didn't leave until 11pm.  The food came out slowly and that was not the case last time we were there.  This wasn't French time it was understaffed time. The menu was interesting but nothing blew us away. 

Amuse bouche
First thing out was the Amuse Bouche.  A small bowl filled with tiny squares of potatoes sitting in a warm fish broth and a piece of thinly sliced raw squid sitting on top.  Definitely creative and tasty.  The basket of warm bread to wipe the bowl clean was the way to go.

Burrato
The second plate was a small piece of burrata that had a good texture, nice and runny.  The cheese wasn't that flavorful.  It was combined with one stalk of purple asparagus and a thin slice of raw asparagus and a chopped mixture of asparagus and something fishy that resembled a pesto.  It was a nice second course but nothing spectacular.

Fish
Third course was fish.  A poached piece of white fish sitting on I believe a parsley pesto that looked like it had been painted across the plate.  Served with this was 2 small artichokes and roasted olives.  The olives were a nice touch and delicious. 

Veal
The main course was veal.  The veal was almost raw.  Maybe that was the concept but it make me really think that they were seriously understaffed last night.  The vegetables on the plate were roasted turnips and tiny beets.  Very
organic.  Some thinly sliced and others split in half.  Very bland. 
There was also small pieces of a sardines on the plate not sure the
preparation.

Cheese
The last course was either a cheese plate or dessert.  Fred and I went for the cheese which was really good.  All small tastes of different cheese.  Josh and Emily went with the dessert. 

Dessert
One dish was a chocolate sorbet with a smear of orange sorbet underneath the chocolate.  The other bowl was whipped cream over a pear and plum crumble with a hint of thyme. 

Kitchen
I want to give Le Chateaubriand a thumbs up because they have been the leaders in the changing restaurant culture in Paris.  There are new restaurants popping up daily in Paris.  Many of the chefs are trained in the classic Michelin rated restaurants and have gone out on their own to open something more relaxed and innovative.  It is wonderful to see.  Perhaps the restaurant was just understaffed, perhaps they were just too packed last night, perhaps, perhaps, perhaps but as I said earlier, nothing blew me away last night and for that reason, I came away disappointed. 

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Comments (Archived):

  1. leafar

    You should give a look at this video realized by the chef for beaubourg: http://www.omnivore.fr/?p=3895I live at the corner of the street ;-D But i stopped going to le chateaubriand because of the crowd. They will open another place in a few months.

  2. jspava

    GG: Your last paragraph reminded me — I hope you’ve been able to check out this week’s New Yorker, which I picked up from the mailbox as we were leaving for the airport to Paris last night. Gopnik give a nice overview of the French Fooding movement, and mentions a bunch of restaurants that you have recommended in the past on your blog. See: http://www.newyorker.com/re