In the Little Chinatown neighborhood near Beaubourg, Le Lac de l’Ouest, with its blood-red storefront and unremarkable decor (brick and exposed stone walls, Chinese engravings) has been nourishing lovers of Chinese food for over twenty years. Chef Xu’s cuisine zips back and forth between Shanghai and Sichuan province, reminiscent of the homeland for the almost exclusively Asian clientele, who savor dishes like spicy beef or kidney hot pots cooked with chili and cabbage, mapo tofu or whole steamed bass. The night we went, we had all of the following: delicious ginger and chive shrimp swimming in a perfectly balanced sweet and sour sauce, before a comforting eggplant hot pot with ground pork. And for something sweet, head to the Shodai tearoom, located right next door, where you’ll find matcha bubble teas, ice creams and cakes. // Bérénice Delmy
FEELING THIRSTY? Basics: Tsingtao beer (€4 for 330 ml) and jasmine tea (€3).
PRICE: Mains €12-16, hot pots €20-40, whole fish €24.50 to €35.
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