When the tourists stagger out bleary-eyed from the Gare du Nord, coming from CDG airport or the Eurostar, they're often both hungry and exhausted. How else to explain the fact that the brasseries en face are nearly always full?
I walked past this restaurant row last night on my way to a new place. The barkers out front were in full swing, trying to seduce anyone with a suitcase or a square jaw. "My Miss - croque monsieur - we have!!!"
Declining this rare delicacy, I continued along my planned route to L'Ardoise Gourmande. Around the corner and less than five minutes from the train station, this is the better refuge. Open only three weeks, this place was already humming smoothly and has won my bargain-hunting heart.
The setting: a softly-lit dining room with slate walls and black velvet banquettes. Proper linens on the tables and a pair of chandeliers overhead.
All photos by Mu Foo
The service: perhaps the best I've ever had outside of a starred restaurant. Warm, knowledgable, and (maybe too) discreet - we almost wished they had rushed us when we realized it was 1:00 in the morning. This is most definitely the sort of place you want to bring someone for a lose-track-of-time tête à tête.
What I've told you so far isn't so out of the ordinary, certainly not in the posher parts of town. What makes this place special is that the sexy setting, kind service, and transport-friendly location are accompanied by a jaw-dropping €22 menu. Two courses (even at dinner) including wine. And we're not talking croque monsieur, either.
My friend and I both stuck to the menu (there are pricier options à la carte) and were very pleasantly surprised. Steve's entrée du jour was a pile of coppa (cured beef) with aged parm and balsamic drizzle.
The freakishly cold weather led me toward a camembert rôti sur mesclun. Not anything new, of course, but they were well-done and devoured.
Next up: an osso buco (the plat du jour) for me, and porc échinée à la sauge for Steve. Both came with fresh tagliatelli and shared the same glistening demi-glace, amped on Steve's plate by fresh sage. A half-bottle (1/4 per person) of very drinkable house red accompanied all this on the €22 menu.
While quite full from the generous portioning, we succumbed to the supplementary dessert carte. Always suckers for a cute name, we shared the pain perdu 'After Eight'. French toast and choco-mint ice cream were both tasty on their own without entirely working together. At these prices, one can be forgiving.
Sticking to the menu, a pair can escape here for an unheard-of €44. Throwing in a pair of Petit Chablis starters, a second half-bottle of wine, dessert and two coffees, our bill was in the seventies. Even so, that's still a deal and I will certainly be back. Hopefully before everybody else finds out about it...
L'Ardoise Gourmande, 12 rue de Belzunce, 75010
