Double

Restaurants count Double! There’s no two ways about it, David Israël (the co-founder of Dizen) and his accomplice Jonathan Gainville have placed their trust in a chef with a rock-solid resume to run the solid oak counters of their tiny hideaway. His name? Tsuyoshi Yamakawa, a Japanese chef with a love for cucina italiana, who used to work at Saturne, Le Verre Volé and La Crèmerie. The result? Dinner plates nibbled under the rust-toned lights, taking inspiration from all over the place: scallop tartare with smoked ricotta and shaved Chioggia beets; a comforting maritozzo (a plump brioche) filled with lemony ricotta and dotted with salmon roe; quail prepared two ways (roasted thigh and as a North African “brick” pastry), served with potato purée and a deeply reduced jus de viande; some divine tagliatelle fatte a mano, paired with pan-fried shiitakes and monkfish glazed in ponzu butter; and for the final act, a dorayaki, that famous double pancake stuffed with azuki bean paste, here served plain but topped with praline mascarpone, toasted hazelnuts and a coffee cookie. At lunchtime, the mood changes as the chef goes back to basics, serving onigiri-a-go-go: miso-glazed eggplant, ginger chicken, celery root and Kewpie mayonnaise… only available to go. // Alain Cop

FEELING THIRSTY? : Around 20 living wines: Sauvage, a skin-contact gewürztraminer / pinot gris blend from Sons of Wine (€9 a glass), Môl, a red blend by Patrick Bouju (€50 a bottle), Gaia, a Campanian fiano from La Cantina Giardino (€90)… And if you want something to quench your thirst with your take-away lunch, there’s ginger beer or homemade lemonade (€2.50 each).
PRICE: : Onigiri set menus €9-12 (lunch, to go), à la carte €35-65 (dinner).