Alluma — Restaurant in Paris

As expected, our meal at Alluma last night was excellent. My much better half and I each had a starter, main, and split a dessert along with a fantastic bottle of Chablis. Our experience was a meal of layered complexity, balance, and wonderful proportion, at an excellent value, served in a beautiful space.

Since we both chose seafood for the main, Chablis seemed a good choice since I was not familiar with the other offerings from Greece and Turkey. While my experience with Burgundian wines is limited to a few producers as well, the Daniel-Etienne Defaix Chablis 1er Cru Vaillons seemed a good option. The vintage was 2012, which was a good vintage for Chablis, and the wine was excellent! This was a richer (described by some as more generous) expression than what I expected, but with excellent acid to balance and wonderful minerality. It was a great pairing for the meal.

For starters, I chose the fried zucchini blossoms, served on a bed of tzatziki and topped with shaved, pickled zucchini and cilantro. These were the lightest examples of fried zucchini blossoms I have ever had, and they were truly enjoyable. The tzatziki and shaved, picked zucchini and cilantro were an excellent combination of flavors with the blossoms, and added another welcome dimension to the dish.

My wife started with the marinated sardines, with beefsteak tomatoes and salad. The sardines were so fresh, briny and played well with the other items on the plate, just wonderful. L loves sardines and was pleased with how pure these were with no hint of fishiness at all.

For the main, my wife chose the grilled fish and I the grilled octopus, both of which were delightful. Both dishes were cooked to perfection, with an excellent balance of char throughout, but not overpowering the dish. The fish had a wonderfully crispy skin and was just lucious, sitting on a bed of tomato and chickpea pureé and topped with a salad similar to the sardines, but with a different profile. I was enamored with the combination of the octopus with the smoked eggplant puree and caponata, just marvelous!

For dessert, we split the rice cooked in milk, with orange flower water and ice cream. We were surprised and delighted by the use of black rice, which still retained a wonderful crunch despite the liquid elements. We were also impressed with the delicate touch displayed with orange flower water, which added another layer of complexity but was not overdone at all. The plums added another dimension, and the ice cream was also light and did not overpower the dish at all.

In closing, we are so glad we are spending a few months in Paris, as we plan to return more than a few times to this...

Book a table 2 weeks in advance and I was high expectation about this place, and I can’t said that I left very satisfied. Start with the service. The waiter was very attentive, she know all the menu by each ingredient, and know how to make the adjustment for the right diet (we were 2, one of us vegan). The wine selection was very nice. I was looking for rose which they didn’t had the same evening, but instead she offer us other wine , something like and “orange wine” which was very good and go along with the food As for the food. We order 4 starters (all vegan), 1 main (fish) and dessert. All were very impressed. Small dish but with a lots of flavors and can see that someone think hard how to make this food so special. I know this kind of food, but never had this in this version which was very impressed. So yes. We had a great night with amazing food and good wine with great vibes. All cost around 150 Euro which I think it’s was really value for money . Really enjoyed, and when I’ll back to Paris again sure will visit again to try other sides. Thank you Liran and the team for great evening. Well...

Dinner at Alluma was a highlight of our visit to Paris so far (we’re a month in).

We were a table of 4; we all speak French but were speaking English together. Our lovely server spoke English to us which made the experience uniquely seamless. I’ll add that she was kind and professional.

The food was outstanding! We had a tuna crudo and a brochette of mussels appetizer; as main courses we had a shrimp on a paella-inspired bed and the catch of the day (some sort of cod-like white fish) served with a delicious slightly peppery sauce and topped with fennel. The photos I’ve included here don’t do justice to the food!

The restaurant is bright and spacious. I appreciate the choice Alluma’s owners have made to keep the tables a reasonable distance apart. The spacious arrangement enhances the dining experience.

A lovely woman (an owner I think) explained to me that they’ve recently shifted from a tasting menu format to 100% a la carte. (So some older reviews may be addressing the prior format.)

We all four concluded that Alluma offered a delightful...