Miam Miam

A girl’s gotta eat!

Fish la Boissonerie: 69, rue de Seine, 6eme
Went with: Chris, Dana and the kids on a Sunday night
Had: Nicoise salad; line-caught sea bass with poached egg and sautéed spinach; and beaucoup bread from its sister sandwich shop, Cosi.
Impressions: Super friendly and delicious. I had eaten here in the summer of ’08 when I came over for vacation, propping myself up at the bar, and enjoying good but not earth-shattering meal. When I went back with Chris and Dana, it was especially yummy. The Nicoise salad was light and lovely with marinated tuna steak, delicious anchovies and eggs cooked perfectly. My main dish was a delicious mess of tender white fish; bright and runny egg yolk; sautéed spinach and a paprika sauce. Delish. Chris’s scorpionfish and pistachio risotto and Dana’s asparagus pesto linguine with smoked salmon were equally delightful.

Le Saut du Loup: 107, rue de Rivoli, 1eme
Went with: A friend from NY on a Wednesday evening
Had: Salmon and spinach salad
Impressions: You don’t go here for the food. It’s all about the glorious setting (the perfect spot and excuse to sit in the evening with a glass of champagne). That said, my salmon was nice and ginger-y and, overall, my dish was light and tasty.


Les Cocottes de Christian Constant: 135, rue Saint-Dominique, 7eme
Went with: Jerem and Tiff on a Tuesday night
Had: The cabillaud cocotte (omigodelicious); the “fabulous” Christian Constant chocolate tarte and mixed berry crumble; plus a couple bottles of wine. Sigh.
Impressions: Yum. Yum, yum, yum. I had already been and fallen in love with Café Constant and wanted to try this more casual “American diner” spot. But upon walking in, I was admittedly nervous. Was it the right place to bring my dear friends from home who had never been to Paris? Was it Parisian enough? Was the food going to be good enough? I think we’d all agree, it was more than delicious and the atmosphere, sort of lacking in my mind, was irrelevant. My cocotte, with the caramelized onions, sweet carrots and potatoes accompanying a piece of crispy-skinned cod, was out of this world. I was chided for not offering to share. But Jerem didn’t offer up any of his wood pigeon cocotte, which he said was divine. Only Tiff, who got the modestly portioned by seemingly dreamy langoustine ravioli offered to share. All three of us were in unanimous agreement on sharing the tarte and crumble and second bottle of wine. What can I say? Catching up with best old friends, over a fabulous dinner, unbelievable dessert and delicious wine is what I call happiness.

Da Rosa: 62, rue de Seine
Went with: Zack on a Tuesday night
Had: We split a deconstructed Nicoise salad from which I discovered the incredible Lucques green olives and a pesto-parm tartine covered in roquette; Zack got some ham and I had octopus salad.
Impressions: I had heard great things about this Saint-Germain tapas spot. It was good. Sitting outside on rue de Seine, sampling a little of this and a little of that, a nice wine selection, going Spanish rather than French, it was a lovely little meal.