MONSIEUR MADAME - BRASSERIE RESTAURANT — Restaurant in Paris

Mice, feathers in vegetarian food, and bad service. I don’t understand how this place has so many good reviews! I attended the restaurant as part of a hen party, so obviously we wanted to have a special evening to celebrate our friend who is getting married! Firstly, we arrived at the restaurant and ordered our drinks. We had to ask multiple times to be able to order and were waiting a long time, despite the restaurant not being very busy. Unfortunately several of the group received the wrong order of non alcoholic cocktails. New ones were made and we were told we could keep the ones we hadn’t ordered (we didn’t even want them!). We then ordered our food. One of the group did not receive their main and when the waiter went to go and check, he came back and told us they had forgotten to cook the dish. We complained and were told that they had given us « free drinks » (the non alcoholic cocktails we hadn’t ordered!. We had to ask multiple servers to get basic things like ketchup and salt. Part of the way through the meal, one of the group found a feather in their vegetarian burger. We complained and were told that they would make another burger. Several of the group had ordered vegetarian burgers so no one really felt like eating them after that as they had likely all been cooked as part of a batch. Then we saw A MOUSE. A mouse running through the restaurant. We told the server and he laughed. Unfortunately my phone has not captured a photo of it very well but please find it attached in the review. Honestly awful service, awful food, and more than anything, I didn’t feel like it was hygienic (how does a feather end up in a vegetarian burger?). The worst meal I’ve ever...

From the outside, the restaurant looked charming, and the menu seemed promising. Unfortunately, appearances can be deceiving. I ordered the mussels, a classic dish I was really looking forward to. The pan arrived looking full—full of empty shells, with barely a trace of mussel meat, just the occasional scrap here and there.

The sauces? Pre-packaged ketchup and mayonnaise straight from the jar, which only added to the disappointment. When I pointed out that the mussels were empty, the waiter, without offering an apology, whisked the pan away and returned with a "new" one within a minute. It was so fast that I couldn’t help but suspect they simply shuffled the same pan around and brought it back.

No one bothered to check if the meal was to my satisfaction, even as the pan of mussels sat untouched on the table—surely that should have raised a red flag? But no, the staff remained silent. The bill, however, came at full price, with no offer of compensation or even acknowledgment of the issue.

A pretty façade and a tempting menu can’t make up for empty mussels and an equally empty sense of service. Definitely not...

We happen to be staying near this restaurant, and decided to give it a try because we wanted to have moules marinière while in France, which is an traditional French dish.

To put it simply, this place did not disappoint. The food was delicious, flavorful, and served with a nice presentation. But just as great as the food was the service. Our waitress was sweet, thoughtful, and attentive to us and especially our daughter (who enjoyed the salmon fillet very much). The manager is just as gracious as his staff. He is so friendly, welcoming, and draws you into conversation with such ease. We felt like more like regulars being welcomed back to a favorite spot, and not like new tourist finding our way.

The restaurant balances having a laidback bar atmosphere with the comfort of a fine dining establishment. And I love that it is so open and one can find a view of the streets outside and take in the Parisian life.

We are planning to return a second time before our trip is over. I would highly recommend this place to anyone looking for good food...