This spot isn’t named after Françoise: “Sagan” simply means “left bank” in Japanese! In this small, classy restaurant (white stone walls, a dark wooden bar, an old copper luggage rack), Katsutoshi Kondo shakes things up at night, after working at Beige during the lunch shift. A shadow behind the curtain, the indisputably talented chef sliced up some small plates that had us weak in the knees the night we went: insane fried tofu plunged into a smoked dashi broth; incredible fried eggplant with finely sliced spring onion, edamame and miso sauce; striking mackerel marinated in vinegar and grilled in salt; excellent beef tataki sprinkled with fresh herbs and toasted sesame seeds; melt-in-the-mouth bass carpaccio brushed with oil and topped with a delicious ponzu sauce; before a thick, fish-shaped pancake stuffed with azuki bean paste and served with green tea ice cream for a rather exotic dessert – or a more classic mochi ice cream. // A.D.
FEELING THIRSTY? A wine list that feels a bit like a phone book: a Japanese koshu (€13 a glass), a Burgundy red from Tollot-Beaut (€54 a bottle), a Condrieu from Stéphane Ogier (€78), a 1984 Châteauneuf-du-Pape from the Domaine de Beaurenard (€120)… Plus a selection of sakes (€9-16 for 150 ml) and Japanese whiskeys (€10-200 for 40 ml).
PRICE: Plates €6-15.
