Renewed hope for the Saint-Pierre neighborhood comes in the form of this lively café run by friends Sarah Chougnet-Strudel and Lucien Salomon. This cheeky bistro/bar boasts pine green walls, a zinc-topped chestnut wood bar and a tree-lined courtyard that’s open when the weather’s nice. What’s more, the latter (ex-Greenhouse and Antidote in London) sends out impressive plates that will make you want to tip generously. And the lunch menu the day we went was a fine demonstration of their combined talent: plump brioche French toast under a thick layer of Mornay sauce and flame-charred Mimolette cheese, topped with pomegranate seeds, jus de viande and a warming spice mix; incredible grilled pork belly with beets and a briny mussel cream – or glazed cauliflower snuggled up against polenta and mole sauce, plus grated sheep’s milk tomme cheese on top; before a baba au whiskey with a pinecone-infused syrup, squash cream and vinegary butternut squash chunks. And for lovers of all things tart, there’s a damn delicious citrus tartlet for dessert! // Juliette Mallat
FEELING THIRSTY? Outstanding wines at affordable prices: a Loire white from La Paonnerie (€5 a glass), Alsatian sparkling wine with fine bubbles from the Goepp brothers (€26 a bottle), a Gamay from Robin Goutallier (€23)
PRICE: Menu €25 (lunch), à la carte €30-42.
