It was our final evening in Paris...Friday nightout. We met with my French friend Francois and caught up with Steve (who had just arrived via TGV from Geneva).
I had, years ago stumbled on the Pot Au Feu (literally translated from French as "pot of fire") with Kin and Edward while wandering around the 2nd, after a tiring day of sight seeing and shopping. And we remembered it to be a remarkable meal...not for its inventiveness, nor the use of special and exotic ingredients, but it was a nice warm meal, hearty, home made...in the middle of a very cold spring evening, and it warmed us up. We remembered the service to be friendly, and the menu short.
We ordered some red wine:
Côte Rouennaise Rouge: a kind of a table wine...already decanted, and poured into this unpretentious bottle. The wine was a little light on the nose, but had a deep, dark hue which was beautiful. On the palate, it was heavy, dark, brooding perhaps. With a hint of tannins to lift it up, and a good complement to the beef we were about to have.
Starters was an kind of French Onion soup:
Hearty, simple, and frankly quite delicious...in a truly homey kind of way.
And the Pot au Feu Royal...house special:
The meat was sinewy, but nonetheless the long hours in a pot of fire, boiling away, have broken down the tough muscles into tender, soft, and very delicious meat. The marrow inside the bone, a la osso bucco, was absolutely sinful, but captivatingly delicious. Accompanied by bolied vegetables, it was indeed like your mom would cook at home...if you were French, and lived in a small town in France. Very hearty!
For desserts, we were served the very nice pear sorbets...I had one which is laced with Calvadose - an apple brandy from Basse-Normandie. A thick, viscous, liquour added depth and kick to the home made sorbet of pear.
A superb ending...and a highly recommended restaurant, especially after a few days of fine dining, and rich French cuisine.
The next morning, we were off at the Gare de Lyon catching the TGV back to Geneva, and from there on to Zurich and home.
Le Roi du Pot au Feu
34, rue Vignon, Havre Caumartin,
Paris, France
01 47 42 37 10
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1 comment:
Superb ending indeed to cap off a thrilling adventure. A trip that will be remembered fondly for years to come. Thanks again Peter...
As an aside, interestingly enough that the dessert was laced with some fruity liquor. I assume a normal occurrence in French cuisine?
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