Located above the Gare de l’Est train station at the heart of the Hôtel Les Deux Gares, this well-oiled machine of a bistro run by Frédéric Lesire (an ornate bar, blond wooden tables, Thonet chairs) is keeping customers happy. How? With the striking plates made by his brilliant chef Jonathan Schweizer (ex-Sauvage), who got us back on track the day we went for lunch: smoking hot mussels from Groix glazed in a garlicky oil, and given a green touch from the addition of lovage; crispy chicken thigh on a bed of pointy cabbage and spring onions, dressed in an intensely flavorful crab bisque; before a crowd-pleasing finale, crème brûlée under a translucent layer of caramel with a constellation of crushed Piedmont hazelnuts. It’s worth noting that things are served à la carte at night: roasted eggplant with smoked herring under a hearty dose of lemon verbena butter; veal sweetbreads with cauliflower, honey, charred garlic and tuna bottarga; octopus ragù with plums, plus a smoked squid ink and lemongrass jus… and it’s even possible to grab a coffee or a snack during the day: anchovies from Cantabria, pork rillettes, and for anyone in the mood for a briny treat, n°3 oysters from M. Jean-Paul… // Ninsu
FEELING THIRSTY? : A selection of genetically unmodified bottles: Me Softly, a Riesling from Clément Goepp (€6 a glass), Rock n’ Suale, a skin-contact orange wine from the Domaine Les 3 Saules (same price), Pino, a blend of Alsatian pinots from Aurélie Fayolle and Arnaud Geschikt (€48 a bottle), or Les Crays, a pinot noir from the Burgundy producer Julien Guillot (€67)…
PRICE: Set menus €22-26 (weekday lunch), à la carte €52-66 (dinner and Saturday lunch), snacks €9-17.
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