Restaurant Derrière — Restaurant in Metz

This restaurant is literally my most favorite restaurant in the world of all the places I have traveled too. I have been to Metz, France twice in the past 6 months, thanks to the fact that my very good friends live there. I was introduced to Derriere back in December and when I made this most recent trip this past Labor day weekend, I knew I had to go back there. The town of Metz itself is quaint with side streets of shops and bars. Derriere is known for the fact that the kitchen is in the front and the seating, well, is in the "back". Family run by a husband and wife and mother-in-law, you enter through the back door and you feel transported into someone's 70's style apartment. It is small with maybe only 20 seats but each seat is a different style from couches to love seats, to plastic to metal. Nothing is the same. The walls are old neon pink and black and white flowers with candles and intricate chandeliers from the ceiling. There is a beautiful Blue refrigerator also just hanging out in the dining room, but it makes this place great. So not only is the decor eclectic, the food is out of this world. You are given chalkboard menus and if you are not early, you may miss out on popular items as everything is ridiculously fresh and once it's out, it's out. They always have 3-4 specials for appetizers, main course and of course desert. The wine is fantastic and again once something is out, it will be out. Coffee and aperitif to finish the evening and I'm ready to sleep until the sun comes up the next day. If you ever find yourself in the area or even for a long stay in France, make your way over to Metz. You will not be...

Apologies for the English. Je ne parle pas bien francais. My adult daughter and I dined at Derriere last night. My swordfish was delicious but her tuna was truly inedible. It was tough and chewy. She left her plate barely touched. I mentioned it to the server who apologized and said that she wasn't a manager so couldn't take it off the bill (which I did not request btw) but offered me a shot of alcohol. I thought it was an odd response. I declined the shot and she brought a glass of champagne which I did ultimately drink but it didn't help my daughter who went without much of a dinner. The server also said we could complain to the manager but it was our last night together and my daughter asked that it not be ruined by complaints, despite how unsatisfying the dinner was for her. We are repeat customers. We have visited before and had fantastic food and service across the board. Last night was unfortunate. I have given the restaurant as a recommendation to many people since our first visit several years ago, but I don't feel I can do that anymore between the quality issue with the dish and then the unfortunate reaction of the server. Thanks for asking for feedback. I wish we had a better report. My swordfish was delicious and the decor and atmosphere are a ton of fun, but at the end of the day, we came to enjoy exceptional food and the tuna was...

This place came recommended by a friend who said she had always walked past and thought how cute Derriere looked. She was right, it's a lovely little deli with a few tables out front and and an adorable back room (derriere Derriere) filled with mismatched furniture, funky lamps and thrift store finds.

The decor is as chilled and relaxed as the pleasant and helpful service. The manager/owner was kind enough to fit us in last minute during a crowded lunch hour and serve us very quickly as we only had 35 minutes to eat.

The one failing I found with this place was the food. I have no objections to small menus - I find they tend to mean a kitchen focuses on what it can do well - but this menu was pretty stodgy for a warm August day. N's polenta and breaded swordfish was tasty enough but very bland and unexciting and my aubergine lasagna was made up of very thick slices of aubergine which never quite cooked through, and a pretty boring tomato sauce in dire need of herbs and seasoning. The prices were also a little high - over 30 EUR for two lunch plates without any drinks...

All in all the ambiance is lovely and perhaps if you go for a glass of wine and some things to taste from the deli counter it's a better experience? I was a little sad it had to be said as I so wanted this cute place to have...