Fulgurances — Restaurant in Paris

Wow! This was our second favorite meal during our gluttonous week in Paris. It was a simple three course lunch, but what exquisite flavors. Fulgurances concept is well known by now. Aspiring head chefs are invited to apply for a residency as head chef at Fulgurances. Most of the applicants have amazing culinary pedigrees. Our chef was Alban Chanteloup, whose background includes stints in Australia and Geneva, Switzerland. He is destined for great renown.

Fulgurances is a modest, narrow space, with tiny tables crammed together. You get to know your neighbors well, but we are in Paris, where people are joyous and share in their love of good food. Servers were just as happy, sharing their appreciation for the food, magnanimously speaking English, so we would feel as comfortable as possible.

Our amuse bouchée was a light and refreshing tasteful bowl of Tofu and something else I don’t remember. In this case, my photo has to tell the story. My entree’ was a “knockout,” a veal tartar with flavors that made my tastebuds “trip the light fantastic.” The main or plat, was a mild white fish that began with the letter “M.” It was delicious, with a light citrus sauce. Desserts were also good, with a chocolate nutty mousse like consistency. However, I could have that Veal Tartare for dessert. It was that good!

Our bill for two came to 65 Euros, including two glasses of Muscadet and a bottle of water. What a great price for a...

Oh man... as a huge fan of their sister restaurant in NYC, I was excited to come to where it all started. I'll never go back.

We ordered the 8 course tasting. To say that the portions were small was an understatement. And all vegetable, save for a bowl of roe. Tasty? Maybe two of the dishes. I kept saying to my boyfriend, "I bet the next one will be the main!". And it's not like we were craving meat - he was vegan for three years - we just wanted some sort of volume. Minus bread, I'm guessing it was 500 calories max.

The chefs rotate, so for sure these two were a miss, but in any case, the kitchen and front of house were also woefully understaffed. 3 chefs total? 2 servers for something like 30 people? It took 20-25 minutes between courses. Our plates sat in front of us until they were ready to serve the next course. Folks who arrived after us were able to leave sooner. It's as if we were in a black hole. Perhaps we didn't order enough wine to matter?

My boyfriend invented a family emergency to get us out a course early. 3 hours and 19 minutes later, I've never been more grateful (or hungry!) for a lie.

To their credit, we were charged for six vs eight courses... I suspect one waiter knew but simply couldn't do...

This restaurant was an incredible experience! We had the tasting menu with the wine pairing. This was the first time I had ever had a tasting menu where every course was a surprise, but there were genuinely no misses, and every wine paired was both delicious and spot-on with the dish. The artistry with the food was incredibly interesting, and you could see the through-lines/themes running through the courses as well as possible influences from the chef's personal and professional history (our in-residence chef was from Mexico and had worked in China and the Basque country). The food was meant to be eaten slowly and deliberately, simply so you could try and appreciate all the flavors and textures in each bite of each dish. The sommeliere took the time to explain in detail each wine we were drinking, how it was made, and her thought process for pairing it with the dish we were about to eat. The service was universally excellent (and very accommodating with our not speaking French), and the price for the meal...