La Toupie

Things are going round and round at this spot named after a spinning top! In a remote little village in the Jura, an association of freethinking-drinkers and winemakers (including Lionel Masson, the local vegetable farmer turned restaurant manager, along with Céline and Steve Gormally of the Domaine Les Dolomies) joined forces to revive the village’s beloved old-time dive, jazzed up by local artist Nathalie Novi. Come for a true masterclass in seasonal, flavor-packed bistronomy, doled out by chef Israel Dédéa Dos Santos (ex-Bistrot des Claquets in Arbois) in the form of a wine-forward twist on the classic “workers’ menu.” The day we went for lunch, seated on the massive terrace where calm and sunshine reigned, we devoured all of the following: shared appetizers featuring some excellent homemade pork terrine, punchy red cabbage slaw with peanuts and coco de Paimpol beans, zucchini seasoned simply with parsley, a Spanish tortilla-style potato tart that was nice and runny; followed by divine roasted tomatoes stuffed with freshly butchered pork and bacon from Vincent Perrin, served with garlicky rice with herbs and toasted almonds; before an unabashedly indulgent apricot clafoutis. At night, you can expect an even more titillating and elegant three- or four-course menu: head cheese with a yogurt emulsion; a slice of BBQ roast beef; or smoked eggplant for the vegetarian option; strawberry sorbet with rhubarb granita doused in absinthe and dotted with Swiss meringue…. Or shared plates that’ll make your head spin in the wine bar section, like polpette, eggplant fritters, charcuterie and cheeses. // Pascal Diagonale

FEELING THIRSTY? The best of Jura wood-barrel aged wines, featuring the collective’s favorites like Les Terres Vagabondes, a chardonnay by Hugo Courvoisier, a former student of Stéphane Tissot (€5.50 a glass), Les Trouillots, a savagnin ouillé from the Domaine Les Pieds Sur Terre (€43 a bottle) or Pif Purple, a hybrid red from Didier Grappe (€33).
PRICE: : Set menus €19-23, kids’ menu €15-18 (lunch), set menus €36-43, kids’ menu €18 to €21.50, plates €8-12 (dinner).