Jean Chauvel's Restaurant 3B - On the Rise in Billancourt

Is it a brasserie? A neobistrot?  A cozy bar and lounge for a relaxing drink and aperatif?  Oui, oui, and oui. Jean and Nelly Chauvel's new establishment in the heart of Boulogne Billancourt is finally here, after a two-year hiatus following the sale of their Michelin-starred Les Magnolias in the Paris suburbs.  I'm not sure the name is the best choice, but it is quasi-efficient in a functional sense, highlighting the location (Boulogne Billancourt) and the more welcoming, low-key Brasserie aspect... not necessarily in that order.  The name misses the lounge and neobistrot pieces of a grander Gestalt, but perhaps you get the idea when you recognize that Jean Chauvel is the driving force of the enterprise.

The elegant new address boasts an accessible brasserie that is open all day long, Mon. - Sat., offering breakfast, lunch, or dinner highlighted by a lunch menu of 26€ (2 plates) or 34€ ( 3 plates).  Things get serious in the evening in the back room, offering high cuisine a la Les Magnolias.  There you have two options: a menu confiance priced at 76€ and a more formidable menu degustation at 98€.  Take the latter if you haven't eaten for a couple days; Co. and I found the lower-priced alternative to be more than ample, especially in light of M. Chauvel's penchant for bringing out surprises along the way.  In fact, it is all surprises for dinner - unlike the brasserie, which does actually boast a descriptive carte, the most you are told regarding the high-class dinners is 'you'll find out.' If you don't like surprises, stick to the brasserie.

I had a sneak preview of 3B back in March after accepting an invite to attend a pre-opening open house.  The Chauvel's have a lot of friends and the warm atmosphere sensed then has apparently carried over to the new restaurant.  It's the early days for the back room, but Co. and I were eager to try.

from the March open house

You don't find this much space in your typical Paris restaurant.  In the elegant back room, it's nice to know that you can have an intimate meal without revealing your secrets to the diners sitting at the next table.  Nelly Chauvel is present throughout, amiably overseeing the operation.  The wine list offers a number of reasonably-priced alternatives and thankfully is pared down from the monumental and overwhelming tome one was handed at Les Magnolias.  I don't know how much of the cave stayed at Les Magnolias when the Chauvels parted, but the current cave certainly is not lacking.  We opted for the 45€ Chateau Moulin Cantelaude 2009. 

 







And check out the size of  the kitchen - I want one like that.

The 3B kitchen

As for dinner, the menu confiance included some Les Magnolias souveniers along with some new inventive twists:

mise en bouche1

mise en bouche 2 - cucumbers

The homard entree - without question, a highlight

One of those surprises I was talking about - to accompany the homard, an amazing plate of Asian noodles covering some caille eggs, along with a sweet potato to drink

If you're familiar with Les Magnolias, this is probably a favorite - M. Chauvel's famous ham and cheese sandwich in a glass

For the main plate you choose - fish or meat.  This is meat (beef)

And this would be the fish - St. Pierre, along with anisette-flavored asparagus

A couple familiar accompaniments for the plate - the mustard macaroon and mashed potatoes - two more favorite carry-overs from Les Magnolias

A nice little cheese interlude leading up to dessert

Dessert, part 1

Dessert, part 2, and yes, that is mint-flavored cotton candy

A closer look at dessert, part 2

Overall, a great meal.  It would have been nice to see fewer Les Magnolias favorites - even though they are favorites - and some new novelties, especially for the main plates, which were more conservative offerings than I have come to expect from a Jean Chauvel kitchen.  It's early and it will be interesting to see how the restaurant evolves over the next year.  Unfortunately, I can't comment on the brasserie, though a friend who works in the bustling neighborhood mentioned that the place is plenty busy at lunch time.  Whichever option you choose, other than the bar and lounge - you should be attentive to the 3Rs - reserve, reserve, reserve.  It's going to get tough once word gets around.

Restaurant Jean Chauvel  
3B Brasserie Boulogne Billancourt
33 ave du General Leclerc
92100 Boulogne Billancourt

tel: 01 55 60 79 95
website: http://www.jeanchauvel.fr/#first

Catching Up Before the Ball Drops - Gaigne, L'Ilot, Magnolias, 52, Will, Enfants Perdus, etc.

When you fall this far behind, catching up is more or less impossible, especially in the 6 hours or so hours before 2014 turns into 2015.  Nonetheless, always up to a challenge, I will give it a shot so that later I will begin downing many shots.  I'll be brief for the former, but probably not the latter, which I no doubt will regret on new year's day. 

What the hell have I been doing since Halloween night, my last post?  Glad you asked.

• Bad news, good news:  Co. and I were really, really sorry that LE GAIGNE had left the Paris restaurant scene a couple years ago, although they left with the promise that they would return in a bigger, better venue.  Surprisingly, that promise was kept when the Beaubourg area mainstay reopened not far from the Gare St. Lazare.  It's bigger and better, though not necessarily better.  Everything has a more upscale feel about it than was true of Gaigne I.  I loved how we were all crammed into the original little spot on a blustery Friday night - great food, great atmosphere.  When Co. and I showed up on a Friday night a month or so ago, the restaurant was big and largely empty.  The food was maybe a notch or two better, the waiters accommodating and friendly, explaining in extremely convoluted terms how owners merged (business-wise, not what you're thinking), and a  5- course menu degustation that lived up to it's, as mentioned, elevated price (65€).  With a Cotes de Beaune thrown in at 34€, the meal for two came to 168€, taking us over the PRAB average.  Although close to the train station, Gaigne is unfortunately hidden away on a side street.  I hope they survive, though the empty tables during our visit were a bad sign.  I'd love to see this place get into a groove, loosen up, and dump the irritating muzak.

Le Gaigne menu degustation, Nov. 2014 (click to enlarge)

        RESTAURANT LE GAIGNE   2 rue de Vienne, Paris 8  (tel.  01.45.22.23.62)

• Try to find a decent restaurant around Gare du Nord, where the Moose and I decided to meet up, on a rainy, Sunday night... that is OPEN.  As a person always up to a challenge, I found this task to be nearly insurmountable.  We settled for the next best thing: a decent restaurant that was open on a rainy, Sunday night near the Gare de l'Est, one metro stop away.  This was the roomy but homey LES ENFANTS PERDUS, which was probably something like the fourth restaurant this year where I've eaten with the word 'enfants' in the name, ironically, because they don't even like children in Paris.  But there we were, feasting on a bottle of Morgon Thevenet (35€), dorade, sole meuniere, cote de veau , and a cafe gourmand.  It wasn't like fantastic, but it was filling and enjoyable and worth a return visit.  Dinner for two, with wine, came to 95.60€, minus one dessert, which the Moose typically foregos in order to maintain his buff shape.  And let me tell you, the night we dined we were rewarded with an amazing soundtrack over the speaker system - obscure garage stuff, 60s classics, some jazz.  It's rare to hear background music when dining in a decent restaurant in Paris, and even rarer to hear good music, but at least on that one rainy night in early November, it was a real treat, especially for a music fanatic like myself.

          LES ENFANTS PERDUS   9 rue des Recollets, Paris 10 (tel. 01.81.29.48.26)

• Co. and I always seem to have a craving for oysters once November rolls around.  I know, I know, that's not exactly unusual in France.  Although we still intend to make our annual end of year visit to Pleine de Mer, where the oysters can't be beat, we decided to try out the tiny little seafood joint in the 3rd, L'ILOT, which I had heard good things about.  I enjoyed our meal a lot, but it's hardly a venue you would go to with another couple for a lingering, candlelit, quiet dinner.  It's the sort of place I would be popping into a couple times a week if I lived in the neighborhood.  Seated at one of the wooden tables on stools, we thoroughly enjoyed our meal of mozarella poutargue, soupe poisson, oysters no. 3, brochettes espadon, kouign aman, and red wine (77€).   That's about all I remember, but it's another one to add to the list of 'places to go back to next year.'

         L'ILOT  4 rue de la Corder, Paris 3 (tel. 06.95.12.86.61)

• The gourmet tapas/open late trend continues in Paris, and I was happy to have had the chance to try out a couple spots that had been on my list for a while - 52 FAUBOURG SAINT DENIS and WILL.  Although both were excellent, I'm perplexed as to why Parisian restaurateurs are so name challenged.  When you have to resort to your street address or first name of your chef (William Pradeleix) to dub your restaurant, you have to wonder why all the creativity has to stop in the kitchen.  But I am being harsh, because after all, you don't eat the name (although it may seem that way when I try to pronounce my French the way a true Parisian might).  Moose and I had a nice time at 52, with our bottle of Chinon (28€), and not so small dishes of espadon, betterave, and saumon, with prices ranging from 8€ to 18€.  As is usually the case in trendy, hip spots like 52, I appeared to have double the age of the typical patron.  The Tuesday night of our visit in early December, 52 was packed and jammed with YOUTH, which always leads me to ponder the question - how can young people afford trendy, quality restaurants in Paris during an economic crisis?  An even better meal was had at the aforementioned WILL.  Meeting up with Co. on a cold, rainy (haven't they all been?) Friday night in mid-December, I had my new Lytros, focus after you shoot camera in tow and I took numerous photos of our meal.  A word of advice - don't buy a Lytros shoot now, focus later camera until the technology improves.  With dim lighting and no flash, there was very little the Lytros software could do to rescue my photos.  So you'll have to go to Will and eat there yourself.  Then you can upload your photos to this blog and I will thank you immensely.  By the way, the clientele at Will were a bit more in the adult age range than 52, and the venue had a more upscale, though still relaxed, feel about it.  We opted for the menu degustation at 45€, which turned out to be not much of an advantage over a la carte, especially for Co., who ended up not getting the dishes she was hoping for.  I liked Will - ahem, the restaurant - a lot and definitely WILL return in 2015 (I couldn't resist).

sample menu, Will (click to enlarge)

        

                 52 FAUBOURG SAINT DENIS   Paris 10 (no phone, no reservations - arrive early)

                 WILL   75 rue Crozatier, Paris 12  (tel. 01.53.17.02.44)

• Just last weekend, Co. and I returned for the first time to Lao Lane Xang 2 in the Chinatown around Tolbiac in the 13th.  We had a decent meal at the heavily Laotian leaning restaurant a couple years ago and vowed to return and order the stuff that was on other customers plates, which looked way, way better than ours, all of which seemed to be some variation of a soup.  So I did some investigating online first, checking out photos that previous patrons had uploaded, and then ordered some of the more appealing looking dishes.  This resulted in one of the more enjoyable meals we had all year.  We started off with a spicy salade de crevettes, seches sechees et nois cajou and laotian crepes, and then moved on to a couple amazing duck dishes.  There are tons of Asian restaurants in Paris, but Lao Lane Xang has defnitely become my go-to venue.  Ask for a table upstairs, but be prepared to rub elbows with your neighbors.

          LAO LANE XANG 2   102, avenue d'Ivry, Paris 13  (tel.  01.58.89.00.00)

• Biggest disappointment of 2014: LES MAGNOLIAS, RIP.  You have read my praises ad nauseum for one of my favorite restaurants in the world, Les Magnolias, just outside of Paris in Le Perreux-sur-Marne.  Well, when Co. and I returned there last late Spring, we could feel that something was different from the get-go.  The place was nearly filled at 7:30 pm, which was really, really odd, because usually, we'd be the first to arrive and action didn't start to pick up until around 9 pm.  If we had been more observant, we would have noticed that chef/owner extraordinaire
  Jean Chauvel's name was no longer on the canopy at the entrance.  We were greeted at our table by Madame Chauvel, who explained that she and her husband had only a short time earlier suddenly sold their restaurant and have decided to open up something new eventually on the west side of Paris (she was only there that night to give some assistance and advice to the new staff).  The name may be the same, but without Chef Chauvel in the kitchen, a decline in quality is nearly guaranteed.  And that's what we found - the meal was good, but merely a watered down version of the Magnolias we came to love . . . and at the same (rather elevated) prices.  This is a really sad turn of events because, man, we really loved what the Chauvels had going in Le Perreux.  Hopefully, they'll move on to bigger and better horizons at a new establishment.  I'll keep you posted, or vice versa, if you beat me to the punch.

New Year's 2015 resolutions:  1.  become more conversational on blog.  2.  get readers to contribute - that means you - if you don't comment, what fun is it? (just click the 'commentaire' link below).  3.  share some personal recipes/dishes (though I'm no expert, I like to eat and much of what I eat I cook).  4.  replace my Lytros camera - it's cool, but the photos are garbage.  Happy new year.

2013 - End of the Line

As the hours tick down to Jan. 1, it's time to put a wrap on 2013.  I had a bad feeling about '13' last year at this time and I was right.  Was 2013 a shitty year or what?  Anyway, as commissioner, owner, president, and CEO of this here  restaurant blog, it is my duty to provide my readers with something I am sure they are waiting for regarding 2013 - closure.  So without further adieu, some highlights and lowlights, from my own personal, egocentric, and biased perspective.  I promise to keep this short and sweet and keep my fingers crossed for good things in 2014.

• Bones - despite all the hype, I liked this new entry into the Paris bar/tapas/bistrot scene anyway.  Co. was less than impressed, but I'm looking forward to a return trip.

• Alain Milliat - way over there near the Eiffel Tower, this venue has a lot of potential.  Small but innovative dishes.

• 6 Paul Bert - Paul Bert has expanded into more gastronomic country.  This may have been my  favorite new venue of the year.

• For tapas, Mary Celeste rose to the top of the list.  Innovative food and drinks, lively place.  Braisenville didn't reach those heights, but there's something intriguing about braised tapas.

• L'Apibo - enjoyable late summer dinner, bears watching.

• The grilled fish in Lisbon.  I want more.

•  Les Caves du Roy (31 Rue Simart, 75018 Paris) - finally I find a place that sells bitters for my martinis.  And where else in Paris can you find Aviation, Citadelle, and 6 Ravens gins (for the martinis)?  And speaking of the Ravens - the ones from Baltimore, that is - thanks for bringing the Lombardi trophy back to my original starting point Baltimore (Super Bowl 2013).

• The Splendid Table - with nothing else to listen to on the radio on Sunday mornings, this show really fills a void (via TuneIn's WNYC feed on my tablet).  Lynne Rossetto Kasper's laugh and other vocal mannerisms are nerve wrenching, but boy does she know food, or does she know food?  http://www.splendidtable.org/

• My new Fang laptop and Nexus 7 tablet.

• Old favorite: Les Magnolias. . . keep on truckin'.

• Le Gaigne - RIP.  Why, why, why?  Please come back, as you promise online.

• La Gazzetta - au revoir chef Petter Nilsson, who returns to Sweden.  Bienvenue to  Luigi Nastri, who has big shoes to fill

• Mansouri - I remember when this was a very good couscous restaurant.  Not any more.

• Mama Shelter - interesting place, lively bar, blah food.

• Septime - such a great restaurant, such a nightmare to reserve.

Au Revoir 2013, less than 7 hours to go.  And don't come back.

Time of the Season - 2012 Greatest Hits

It's that time of the year again when I say "It's that time of the year again."  Time to look back at another year on the restaurant scene, both here (Paris) and farther afield - this time as far as Chinle, AZ, where as you will read below, frightening things await.

As in the past, this is not intended as a 'best of ' list  in the sense of 'best restaurant in Paris' - I probably can't afford that one anyway - but rather in a more personal, 'this is the best restaurant I ate at in Paris this year' sort of way.

2012 Favorite: Le Chateaubriand.

I am sure this is old news, since many have long since waxed eloquently about this Paris venue, but when I think about the meals that really stood out this past year, Chateaubriand keeps coming to mind.  There was that great dinner Co. and I had with our pardners from the US of A, highlighted by an amazing turbot, fenouil, and poutargue dish (1st photo), and the follow-up this past November, with the memorable lait ribot, herbes, beurre noisette and tocino del cielo  dessert (2nd photo), 3/4s of which consisted of ingredients that rarely appear on dessert plates.  Chateaubriand has its detractors, but who cares?  It's to be expected when the chef - in this case, Inaki Aizpitarte - dares to take risks with creative manifestations that do not always work - but hey that's what experimentation is all about, sometimes you just can't reject the null hypothesis.  All I know is that I'm always surprised at Chateaubriand, and mostly in a good way, and I love when the place starts building a buzz as the evening unfolds with a diverse mix of diners and laid back bohemian servers.  I'm also impressed that those servers never fall through the trap door behind the bar, which curiously remains open for much of the evening (3rd photo).  And, yes, Monsieur Aizpitarte does uncannily resemble Joe Flacco, had the latter decided to give up quarterbacking for the Baltimore Ravens and become a famous Parisian chef.

 

 

LE CHATEAUBRIAND: 129 ave. Parmentier, 75011 Paris, tel: 01.43.57.45.95

Best New Paris Restaurant Movement: La Dolce Italia.

To be honest, this probably isn't a movement at all, and if it is, it was no doubt underway before I came upon it, but the influx of really good Italian restaurants in the capital is certainly a welcome trend.  Two quite enjoyable dinners in 2012 were had at the Italian spots, Caffe dei Cioppi and Vilia.  At the latter, the elegantly simple bowl of DeCecco rigatoni and parmesan cheese got me buying DeCecco pasta and parmesan cheese the rest of the year, though not with the same effect.  I wouldn't go so far as to call La Gazzetta an Italian restaurant because it is oh so much more, but I can at least mention it here because, after all, this is my blog and I can babble to my heart's content.  Seriously, Gazzetta continues to be a personal favorite that I get back to as frequently as possible, for some of the same reasons that keep me returning to Chateaubriand.

Finally, although it has nothing to do with Italy, our return visit (finally) to Septime proved well worth the wait.

CAFFE DEI CIOPPI: 159, rue du Faubourg St. Antoine, Paris, tel: 01.43.46.10.14 

VILIA:  26, rue de Cotte, 75012 Paris, tel: 09.80.44.20.15        

LA GAZZETTA: 29, rue de Cotte, 5012 Paris, tel: 01.43.37.47.05

SEPTIME:  80, rue de Charonne, 75011 Paris, tel: 01.43.67.38.29

Worst Restaurant of 2012, USA: Garcia's.                                                                                      My worst meal of the year was had more than 5000 miles from Paris, Garcia's in Chinle, Arizona, which is definitely a good thing.  Chinle happens to be well located for visiting such famous sites as Monument Valley and the Canyon de Chelly.  The Garcia's decision is clear-cut, there are no competitors, because this was probably the worst meal I have ever had anywhere - save that Montezuma revenge special of fried chicken that I had in a greasy spoon in old Jerusalem, but please, let's not go there.  If you search Trip Advisor for Chinle restaurants, the first comment that pops up for Garcia's is 'As good as anywhere in town,' which doesn't sound too bad until you realize the alternatives are Burger King, Thunderbird Lodge restaurant, and that place next to the Best Western that looks like it dropped out of horror film.  Garcia's is the Chinle Holiday Inn's restaurant, and it's not like Co. and I were expecting much.  One has to eat, period, and the options in the local convenience store didn't offer much as an alternative.  One thing Garcia's has going for it is an 'all you can shove into your big fat face (an apt description of the typical Garcia diner, however politically incorrect that may sound) salad bar.  I'm just glad I got to it before I saw another patron coughing and wiping his nose, and then selecting items from the bar.  Our waitress certainly was pleasant enough, but visually, she was a disaster, slaking my appetite even before I had a look at that salad bar. I don't remember what I ate or why, but Co. made a big mistake with the most expensive item on the menu, a sirloin steak.  When I asked about alcohol, I was told, sure - just get back in your car and motor 200 miles south, you'll find some, but you won't find any on an Arizona Indian reservation, which is where Chinle lies.  To my chagrin, I had to settle for a Kaliber non-alcoholic beer, my first and last, trust me.  At any rate, I am sure there are worse restaurants in the world, I just hope I never have to find that out for myself.

Worst Restaurant of 2012, Paris: Abri.             No, in my view, you do not have to actually eat at a restaurant for it to be named to a 'worst of' list, especially when one does such a crack job of alienating customers before they ever get to your door.  And getting through the door at Abri appears to be a pleasure that only a select few have ever experienced.  Paris was abuzz about Katsuaki Okiyama's Abri in 2012, a creative sandwich shop by day and supposedly wonderful tasting menu restaurant by night.  So how did they get a reservation?  Because each time I call Monsieur O, I get the very same response: 'complet.'  Being a paranoid ex-pat, I quickly began to think that Mr. O discriminates against would-be diners with heavy English accents, but once I called and he said 'complet' before I got any further than 'bonjour.'  When I asked in November when it would be possible to snag a dinner reservation for two, Monsieur O became, for him I guess, veritably prolific, spitting out the response 'complet a la fin de Decembre.'  In short, I don't care if Abri is the bee's knees or not, Monsieur O. can shove it where the sun don't shine.  With all the hassles I've had reserving at Septime, at least they gave me some advice as to when to call, which nights were better than others, etc.  Monsieur Okiyama apparently doesn't have the courtesy to do even that.  So my only conclusion is that he is restaurateur asshole of the year.  Ironically, the 2013 Le Fooding guide awards Abri a 'palmare' for 'Fooding D'Amour.'

 Biggest Disappointment of 2012, Paris: Roseval.

                                                            Speaking of that 2013 Le Fooding guide which, as always, is a great inexpensive guide to 400 French restaurants, the Palmare for 'Meilleure Table' went to Simone Tondo & Michael Greenwold's Roseval, where the ambiance 'screams modern elegance, and the food is simply ambrosial.'  Well, based on my one dinner there this past Fall, there was nothing overtly elegant about the restaurant's interior, especially the pompous and impolite servers, and the food was good, but far from ambrosial.  I guess Roseval has been anointed this season's hot new thing, but move along reader, nothing that interesting here.  Far less disappointing was L'Agrume, another personal favorite that just didn't wow me this year the way it has in the past.  A different menu every day, amazingly, but the price has gone up and they still lack those little extras that could take the place to another level.

 Best Comeback Restaurant of 2012, Paris suburbs: Les Magnolias.

        I've done my share of hyping Les Magnolias, but somewhere along the line, my return visits to said venue were increasingly spaced, a bad sign.  But  Co. and I returned during the summer and had a magnificent meal.  I would go so far as to say that the food was ambrosial and the setting in Le Perreux-sur-Marne elegant.

 

LES MAGNOLIAS: 48, ave. de Bry, 94 Le Perreux sur Marne, tel: 01.48.72.47.43

 

My Favorite Homemade Drinks of 2012.  Hendrick's gin on the rocks with a slice of cucumber.  And to soothe my aching stomach from consuming too much spice, there is nothing better than a White Russian composed of 2/5s Smirnoff Black vodka, 2/5s Kaluha, and topped off with milk, some ice, and well-shaken with a coffee foamer.

Best Place(s) to Buy Spices in Paris. 

 I don't deny that the multi-colored spice display at Galeries Lafayette Gourmand is a sight to behold and tempting as hell, but my recommendation is to look, but do not buy.  Why?  Simple - it's far cheaper to go to the Indian district's Cash and Carry shops, where one can find a diverse range of spices at miniscule prices.  Case in point.  I purchased 50 grams worth of paprika at Gourmand for a price around 7€.  At one of my habitual C&C's, I found a 400 gm. package of paprika for 1.99€.  You can do the math, and I detected no discernible difference in taste.  At same C&C, I picked up a 400gm package of hot madras curry powder for 2.99€ and a 1kg package of garam masala for 4.89€.  At those volumes, you won't have to make multiple trips to the store to resupply.  The two or three C&Cs I visit regularly are located down the strip from the New Pondichery restaurant (where I usually buy a few pieces of chicken tandori to go) on rue du Faubourg-Saint-Denis, right near the Gare du Nord train station.

Best Films that Didn't Make it to Paris in 2012:     The Master, Django Unchained, Lincoln, Zero Dark Thirty.  Best Film that Did:  Turin's Horse. 

Worst Films Appearing on Most French Best Films of 2012 Lists: Holy Motors, Cosmopolis (what is so fascinating about weirdos riding around town in a limosine?), Looper, Magic Mike, Moonrise Kingdom (a kid's movie).  In my view, these overrated films were interminable to sit through.

Disclaimer: Sorry about the line spacing, it is driving me crazy and nothing I attempt can get it to change.  Time for another White Russian.

 See you in 2013.   

Comments, feedback, gripes, glowing praises? - just click '(Aucun) Commentaire.' Spammers beware.