restaurant

Mantra

Imbattable au (dix) Mille Bornes

Restaurant Mantra (Paris)

© Aurore Nguyen

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Is this “fusion”? Off to the lion’s den with the word! Let’s go with the more serious-sounding “bridge,” which fits this restaurant like a glove, spanning the thousands of miles between France and Malaysia. Here, Jonathan Caron, former owner of the now-closed L’Innocence, and chef Manogeran Shasitaran (who trained at Saint James) are repeating their tried-and-tested mantra they honed at L’Itinérance in Picardy. In the minimalist dining room (black walls, marble-topped tables, tube pendant lights), vegetables fresh from their kitchen garden and flatfish from the Baie de Somme are gently bewitched by stunning Indo-Sino-Malaysian techniques. The evening we went was a masterclass: amberjack sashimi brushed with clarified coconut water and dusted with coconut; flash-seared mullet served with sambal sauce and glazed eryngii mushrooms; lobster timbale with a red curry reduction made from the lobster’s head… Next up, a jaw-dropping scallop trilogy: served raw in a brilliant blend of syrupy pickle juice and rose vinegar; confit, lacquered with beet caramel and topped with blood orange and crispy pork; and finally, submerged in a tamarind-infused fish soup, finished with chili aioli and puffed tapioca pearls. Still hungry? The warm chocolate mousse hiding a black sesame crumble and a candied ginger center will defeat even the most determined appetites. · Agatha Crispy

FEELING THIRSTY? A natural, organic wine selection that gets straight to the point: a muscadet from Domaine de la Haute Févrie (€12 a glass), a morgon from Lapierre (€69 a bottle), a chablis from Moreau-Naudet (€95) and a Roannais rosé pét-nat from Domaine des Pothiers (€59).

PRICE: Lunch menu €39 (3 courses), dinner menus €89-145 (5-8 courses), wine pairings at lunch €19 and dinner €49-89.

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