Paris - Les Bouquinistes
Autumn 2008
Frank's view 
'would you buy a car from this waiter?'
“I gave your table to someone else” said the maitre d’ as we walked from the riverside of Quai des Grands Augustins into Les Bouquinistes, one of Guy Savoy’s five Parisian restaurants.
Our guests were running late and I’d asked the concierge at the Four Season’s George V to call and change the reservation from 8.30 to 9pm.
“First you said 8 o’clock, then you said 9 o’clock. We have lots of people asking for tables and I cannot wait.”
The time was 8.50pm and this Camel was on the verge of a spitting fit when he smiled, put his arm round my shoulder and said.
“Only joking. I have a special table for you here.”
This was a truly extraordinary example of French humour. I’d never been here before, let alone met the man.
The waiters were clones of this Parisian ‘Flashman’. All good looking males, in their early twenties and dressed in dark suits, each one moved slickly around the restaurant at lightning speed. It was as if the sales team of the local BMW dealership was moonlighting.
Guy Savoy is a 3 Michelin star French chef who also has a restaurant in Caesar’s Palace Las Vegas.
Les Bouquinistes is one of his less formal dining rooms with wooden floors, rendered walls revealing chiseled brickwork and not a fabric in sight, other than the white tablecloths.
The space is divided into two. The front room has views over the Seine and the rear area sits behind a low level wall which is there to serve no purpose other than ambient effect.
The food is good and surprisingly inexpensive in a town where even a traditional bistro can charge almost €40 for a simple lamb dish.
Jambon Serrano et melon au porto to start was €17.50. My Homard et tourteau (Lobster and Brittany crab prepared in a beetroot ravioli) was excellent (€21).
Ordering tuna in France can be risky unless you favour well done or the tinned variety but the Thon Marine (€33) was an example of perfectly seared tuna accompanied by a crispy risotto, a rectangular block of rice flash fried to form a golden crispy exterior.
Les Desserts pour deux followed the Ramsay concept, (or did Gordon follow Guy?) of a plate with a taster of each dessert.
Wine is rarely a bargain in France these days. I asked our waiter to recommend a bottle around the €50 mark. It’s an interesting approach I sometimes employ and the waiter or sommelier invariably points to a few options below the given guide price. The super salesman of Les Bouquinistes had no hesitation in taking me directly to a bottle at €65.
“See you again,” grinned the maitre d’ as we departed.
He probably will.
Les Bouquinistes
53 Quai Des Grands Augustins
75006 Paris
+33 1 43 25 45 94
http://www.lesbouquinistes.com/
Our guests were running late and I’d asked the concierge at the Four Season’s George V to call and change the reservation from 8.30 to 9pm.
“First you said 8 o’clock, then you said 9 o’clock. We have lots of people asking for tables and I cannot wait.”
The time was 8.50pm and this Camel was on the verge of a spitting fit when he smiled, put his arm round my shoulder and said.
“Only joking. I have a special table for you here.”
This was a truly extraordinary example of French humour. I’d never been here before, let alone met the man.
The waiters were clones of this Parisian ‘Flashman’. All good looking males, in their early twenties and dressed in dark suits, each one moved slickly around the restaurant at lightning speed. It was as if the sales team of the local BMW dealership was moonlighting.
Guy Savoy is a 3 Michelin star French chef who also has a restaurant in Caesar’s Palace Las Vegas.
Les Bouquinistes is one of his less formal dining rooms with wooden floors, rendered walls revealing chiseled brickwork and not a fabric in sight, other than the white tablecloths.
The space is divided into two. The front room has views over the Seine and the rear area sits behind a low level wall which is there to serve no purpose other than ambient effect.
The food is good and surprisingly inexpensive in a town where even a traditional bistro can charge almost €40 for a simple lamb dish.
Jambon Serrano et melon au porto to start was €17.50. My Homard et tourteau (Lobster and Brittany crab prepared in a beetroot ravioli) was excellent (€21).
Ordering tuna in France can be risky unless you favour well done or the tinned variety but the Thon Marine (€33) was an example of perfectly seared tuna accompanied by a crispy risotto, a rectangular block of rice flash fried to form a golden crispy exterior.
Les Desserts pour deux followed the Ramsay concept, (or did Gordon follow Guy?) of a plate with a taster of each dessert.
Wine is rarely a bargain in France these days. I asked our waiter to recommend a bottle around the €50 mark. It’s an interesting approach I sometimes employ and the waiter or sommelier invariably points to a few options below the given guide price. The super salesman of Les Bouquinistes had no hesitation in taking me directly to a bottle at €65.
“See you again,” grinned the maitre d’ as we departed.
He probably will.
Les Bouquinistes
53 Quai Des Grands Augustins
75006 Paris
+33 1 43 25 45 94
http://www.lesbouquinistes.com/
Be Frank: agree or disagree? What do you think?
