Bouillon Racine — Restaurant in Paris

TLDR: "Elevated classics" this was not. If you read the NYT 36 hours in Paris and came expecting that kind of French restaurant–a classic brasserie with exceptional preparation, French ambiance and impeccable service–you will be disappointed. Do not waste one of your precious Paris dinners at this establishment.

I made a reservation and confirmed upon arrival. Upon entering, my party was whisked from the 1st floor, with its inviting widely-spaced rows, open door, cool breezes, french brasserie benches, and calm ambiance to the hot, crowded, noisy second floor. There were windows but they were not open. We were handed menus that were in English. That and the historical background in English screamed tourist trap. I thought of trusting my instincts and asking if my party wanted to move on, but the prices were reasonable. How bad could it be?

Our waiter approached. Despite being saddled with English menus without asking, our waiter only spoke French. That we were English speaking was not communicated by the host to our waiter. I would have been happy to use Google Translate, but our waiter left and sent us an English speaking waiter.

Despite the heat–and this clearly not being that kind of a restaurant–our waiter arrived in a suit and appropriately sweaty, which accentuated that he was expected to dress inappropriately for the temperature and class of restaurant (well known, mirrored, tourist trap) in order to perpetuate the facade that you are in that kind of restaurant.

Our order was taken and entrees arrived within 5 minutes, while we still had our appertiffs. The entrees included one of the mains, which was a salad. We didn't realize the mistake until later in the course. Our wine was not poured for us, likely because we had just received our appertiffs. We were not served bread, as other tables had been, and had to wait for the third runner that tried to hurriedly take our plates to make a request for bread in order to clean them. Entrees were fine: well prepared; good, but not great flavors.

Mains followed shortly; only two items for a party of three. Wine still unpoured. Mains were also fine, with the exception of the vegetables on the plate with the chicken, which were inedibly salty; like salt was accidentally spilled salty. Some time into the Plats, a runner approached with another salad, which we refused, attempting to explain. They left before we were successful. Then our waiter approached with the salad. At first they were confused, not understanding that the kitchen and runners had made a mistake. Eventually they understood and offered the dish anyway, but we had had enough food. I had also had enough of the 2nd floor sauna. No apology for mistake on timing, or offer of a coffee, drink or dessert.

We...

Victorian style old French eatery since 1903. French classics. Foir gra tasted beyond the words can describe. Sails were awesome. The fried sturgeon on the main course was a bit dry. The fried fish had noticable river aftertaste. It was ok though. Great ambiance.

The waiter, Kamrul, was kind and attentive. He gave us tips to pick the best menu items. All the time he kept an eye on our table immediately being available for our queries.

MINUS 2 POINTS because of MIKA (or Meeka).

TERRIBLE guest service !

This is the guy at the door/sitting service. Sucks. Apparently, he must be a hired manager. The French restaurant owners take personal pride in their service and food. It's local tradition, I guess, for an owner to welcome guests personally with a warm family touch. Instead, Mika's sharp attitude and unwelcoming tone was apparent from the start. Just shy of being rude after we kindly asked to be seated at the table by the window. I even offered an extra pay, too, to sit at the desired table. Mika responded relentlessly lying that the table was reserved. Thought the table was unoccupied the whole night. Moreover, he turned away a few incoming visitors pontificating that they are too busy, whereas only a few people were in the restaurant. Unless it is an intentional sabotage, this guy is direct loss to the business. The restaurant looked empty, and unoccupied throigh whole night, perhaps, for a good reason.

Finally, when I was about to finish the main course Mika rushed to my table questioning if I'm done. Before I managed to reply he quickly dropped my utensils into my meal, the unfinished mashed potato topped with a large unfinished piece of sturgeon. To my humble remark that I was still earing, Mica unceremoneouly picked the fork and knife soiled in the mashed potato with his bare fingers while insisting to bring a new set. After my firm refuse he realized the mistake and even tried to make up for it with some stupid remarks. Unfotunately, it was too much and too late. Ruined experience. The French ambiamce vanished. My wife was upset. Very un-French. Despite the terrific food, we left the place...

Based on previous reviews, it seems like we might have caught them on an off night.

We arrived about 10 minutes early for our 8:10pm dinner reservation, and as usual, the restaurant was bustling and full. There appeared to be only one manager and a single server handling the ground floor. After some time, we were seated and given menus.

The server, clearly overwhelmed, kept rushing past us. We waited nearly 40 minutes before the manager finally took our order. Another 20 minutes passed before our drinks arrived, and by then, my cocktail was watered down from the melted ice. The evening continued with long delays between ordering, receiving drinks, appetizers, and eventually the entrées. When the mains finally arrived, my mother-in-law received the wrong dish, which led to even more waiting as they corrected the mistake. Unfortunately, there was no apology, despite her clearly ordering the pasta instead of the cod.

By the time we were ready for dessert, we had already spent two exhausting hours waiting. Frustrated, we asked for the check, intending to skip dessert, but instead, the server brought the desserts, adding even more time before we could settle the bill.

I like to think of myself as patient, but in total, we spent over two and a half hours at the restaurant, with at least 1 hour and 45 minutes of that time waiting to be served. No one ever acknowledged the delays, nor explained that they were short-staffed, which I suspect was the issue. This was supposed to be a special last night in Paris for my mother-in-law, but the extended dinner meant we missed out on our plans to visit the Eiffel Tower for a champagne toast.

It was a deeply disappointing experience.

4 stars for the food, which was excellent overall, except for the crème brûlée that had an unset, soupy texture. 1 star for the service. I understand that things can go wrong, but the lack of communication or any apology made for very...