What a way to start the Lupercalia weekend! We arrive, slightly late due to Parisian traffic, at the restaurant. While the side street may have been a little difficult to find, the corner building has “Relais Louis XIII” in bright lights above the entrance.
The room is elegantly appointed and looks formal, but also cozy. There seem to be only 7or 8 tables. We realize afterwards that we are in one of 3 or 4 rooms and that the restaurant has many more tables, which as the evening progresses are all filled with happy diners. For a nice touch, the chef comes out to personally greet us and welcome us to the restaurant.
The history of the building is amazing. It was originally a 13th Century Convent (Grand Augustine). On April 1, 1579, Henry III founded The Order of the Knights of the Holy Spirit in the Convent. Between the 15 and 17th Centuries, the Parliament of Paris held their meetings in the hall of the Convent. It was here on May 14, 1610, that Louis XIII was made King of France and Navarre during a special session of parliament, following the murder of his father, Henri IV. Present day, it is the home of the very personable and talented chef Manuel Martinez, who, since 2001, has been awarded 2 Michelin stars. It is fitting that Chef Martinez is at the helm of the Relais Louis XIII, a welcome homecoming as he was the Chef de Cuisine here in 1980 (prior to becoming Chef at la Tour d’Argent).
ELIN’S TIP: foodies, take note, for a 2 Michelin star restaurant, they offer incredibly well-priced set lunch, set dinner and tasting menu options. The set lunch menu (€60 – daily) and set dinner menu (€90 – available Tuesday to Friday) is the choice of one entree (appetizer), choice of one main course and choice of dessert; The “Le Grand Menu Dégustation” tasting menu must be done for the entire table (€140) is approximately 9+ courses. With the tasting menu, there are wine pairing options: 3 glasses for an additional fee of €55 or 5 glasses for €85.
Since I have a fish and shellfish allergy, we check with the chef if it is possible to do the tasting menu, but to substitute the fish or shellfish courses for other items. The waitress comes back with “not a problem”, so we are a go. The sommelier, Yo, is incredibly knowledgeable and tells me he will switch my wine pairings to match my different courses.
The meal was incredible. While the menu changes from week to week and season to season, certain of the signature dishes of the restaurant are usually included. Here are some of the items we were lucky enough to have.
Touretaux de l’île d’Yeu – Crab stuffed in celeriac cannelloni with consumme.
Lotte de Bretagne – John Dorry fish with Chorizo sausage in a saffron sauce.
Ravioli de homard Breton et foie gras – one of the signature items. Fat juicy pieces of lobster mixed with foie gras, in a crème de cépes. This is one of their signature dishes.
Classique quenelle de Bar – a mousseline de champignons with a glaçage au Champagne. A seabass dumpling with mushroom sauce topped with Champagne.
Turbot sauvage – wild turbot on endive, spanish ham with a smoked garlic emulsion.
Intermezzo: a pink champagne and bergamot sorbet. Think slight Earl Grey tea taste with champagne.
Quasi de veau de chez Hugo Desnoyer or Pigeon de Bretagne – either beautifully prepared veal or pigeon served with carrots and au jus.
Cheese, cheese, cheese! Mondo cheese with port jelly
Not enough? Now it is time for dessert. The Montblanc creme du blanc – Creme caramel with chestnuts with white chocolate. Followed by Ice cream with chestnut, profiteroles, pastry cups with creme brulee and the dessert star – the Mille Feuille. The Mille Feuille is insanely good, probably the best flakiest Mille Feuille I’ve ever had.
A recent article in the National Post stated that since the terrorist attacks on France, there has been a decline in table bookings for Michelin-starred restaurants. The Saturday night we were at Relais Louis XIII, the restaurant was full. This is definitely a spot to put on your special dinner list when you are in Paris, the food and service were spectacular. It truly was a meal fit for a King!
Where and when: 8, rue des Grands-Augustins, Paris, 75006 Paris, 6th arrondissement. Open Tuesday – Saturday 12:15 pm – 2:30 pm and 7:30 pm – 10:30 pm
Yummie! Good writing, too! How you and Peter stay skinny (see the picture) is beyond me. Cheers, Avner
Thank you, Avner! High praise coming from a famous author! (If you haven’t read it, check out The Debba, by Avner Mandelman- Winner of the 2011 Arthur Ellis Award for Best First Crime Novel!)