A briny bistro that’ll blow you away! High up in Paris’ Belleville neighborhood, the cheerful captain Kevin Deulio (ex-Bar Vendôme at the Ritz) has taken over Soces, a chic spot showing off its crown mouldings, timeworn hardwood floors, rough stone walls and windowed kitchen, where chef Marius de Ponfilly (ex-Clamato) cooks up everything he can get his hands on: fish, sea urchins, shellfish… The other night, we caught all of the following in our nets: white praire clams from Blainville that were electrified by Tabasco sauce and homemade apple cider vinegar; a marinated sardine bathing in a cauliflower cream; badass cuttlefish served raw with celeriac and citron; generous jack mackerel carpaccio licked with tosazu (a dashi-infused rice vinegar); mi-cuit Utah Beach cockles in a spellbinding Savagnin-infused butter sauce; and oven-roasted scallops from Erquy with butternut squash (perhaps a bit too intense). It’s worth noting that the menu also has lots of options for meat lovers: flank steak with peppercorn sauce, a hearty pork chop for two… And to round out the meal? A poached pear sprinkled with buttery crumble topping. // Sonia Sétif

FEELING THIRSTY? Well-traveled bottles (a Portuguese sparkling wine from Duckman at €30, a transalpine white by Monte Dall’Ora at €25, a blanc Champagne from Olivier Horiot at €67…), a few lovely cocktails (including a Red Hook and a Spicy Margarita for €9) or Saison Dupont beer on tap (€4-7).
PRICE: Shellfish plates €8-20, mains €18-30.