Caillebotte — Restaurant in Paris

The “Gourmand” designation is not misleading or exaggerated in any way. And neither is the “Bistro” designation. The dishes were beautiful and delicious and they arrived quickly.

Compared to a formal restaurant with 1 Michelin star for example, we felt that this bistro did not spare any expense on key ingredients such as the fish and beef or on selecting the freshest salad leafs. The dishes had their own signature (omg the bell pepper stuffed with aubergine!), worked great in both texture and taste and were enhanced rather than dominated by a couple of sauces, unlike the case in so many formal Michelin restaurants.

We were served by a very efficient and attentive server with a smile (the monsieur with curly hair). His level of personalization made us feel much more welcome and simply more at ease than an uniformed army of waiters who you have to chase down for a bottle of wine before your food gets cold. Here, the wine was the second thing on the table after water.

The total came to just under a century for two entrees, two main courses and one glass of wine. But the best bonus was being done within an hour - the first course arrived almost immediately. This saved us time to explore more of Paris, which is the most important reason for this trip. By the way, the street is especially romantic on a rainy night.

Thanks Caillebotte for making our...

We made a reservation here at the suggestion of a Parisien friend, so we came with high expectations. At first glance, the price was quite good for a place with a tasting menu in Paris and in the Michelin guide. Service was fine and the atmosphere was quite lovely.

But our experience with the food was extremely disappointing. The ingredients were not good quality (tuna was not fresh, vegetables were lacking flavor, meats were stringy). But the main issue was that there were problems with the cooking and the seasoning. Some things were under salted, others over salted, other dishes had way too much sauce, and the sauces didn't match well with the dish. The proteins were at least cooked properly, but the rest of the plate would be unbalanced. The dishes all looked pretty, but it felt like they plated the dishes to look nice and no one checked to make sure that they tasted good as well, versus in most other restaurants we have been to in France the dishes are beautiful and they taste even better than they look. Desserts were fine though a bit uncreative, but again, the fruits used were not great quality. The bottle of wine we ordered, though not cheap, was bland and one of the worst we had on our trip.

Overall based on the cuisine alone, it was very disappointing. I don't know if they had an off night or this is just how the restaurant...

BEST MEAL WE HAD IN PARIS! Our last night in the city we stumbled into this boutique restaurant, and we are so glad we did. This is a gem in the 9th arrondissement. Little did we know, it is recommended that you make a reservation. They were able to get us two seats at the bar, which turned out to be the best seats in the house! From the bar we watched as the chefs worked from the open kitchen in perfect unison to create a phenomenal 5 course tasting menu. It is my understanding that the menu changes seasonally, but you cannot go wrong with the tasting menu. The flavor combinations are creative and delicious, and they are presented in an artful way that shows the passion of the chefs for their work. To top it off, it was one of the most affordable meals we had all week. My colleague requested that the chefs come out to the so she could personally thank them for the amazing job that they did. Both the chefs and the waiters were extremely kind and fun to talk to, which made the experience even more pleasant. This is a place I will return to every time I am in Paris, and a place you must put on your must visit list...