Brion

Opening your own restaurant for the very first time is always an emotional experience. And when it’s bon, it’s really Brion! The brand-new spot from Geoffrey Lengagne, a talented chef who worked for 15-odd years for Mathieu Viannay in Lyon, Pierre Gagnaire in London, Thomas Keller in New York and Jérôme Banctel in Paris, ticks off all the boxes for a cool neighborhood restaurant in Paris: waxed concrete floors, wooden furniture, an open kitchen… and a certain extra sparkle which lights up the plates. The day we went for lunch, the €36 prix-fixe menu included: some stunning marinated endives tucked into a bagna cauda cream with anchovies, caper leaves, smoked paprika oil and raw green apple; a graceful roasted bass medallion deliciously surrounded by a whipped green curry and buttermilk sauce, flame-charred leeks, oyster mushrooms and argan oil; and for dessert, a fantastico plump cannolo stuffed with Meyer lemon and yuzu cream, enriched with sorrel, black lime powder and chipotle, going head-to-head with an explosively flavorful mezcal granita. Not the kind of meal we’re likely to forget anytime soon! // Will Tippin 

FEELING THIRSTY? : A naturalist selection that flirts with the Savoie and Jura departments (featuring, for example, a lovely savagnin ouillé from Rijckaert at €15 a glass, or La Pente, a jacquère from the Domaine des Côtes Rousses at €41 a bottle), but which also boasts a Fanny Sabre pommard for special occasions (€128). 
PRICE: : Prix-fixe lunch menus €36-49 (3-4 courses), dinner menus €69 (4 courses, provided that everyone at the table orders it), with a vegetarian option available for each course. À la carte €42-56 (dinner).