Where Colin Ate (Paris Edition)
For his annual Paris birthday trip, our columnist hits new finds and "non-negotiables"
Colin Camac (aka @resyguynyc) is officially Blackbird’s “Strategic Sales Lead,” and unofficially is our resident insider’s insider. He is out, on the town seven nights a week, sniffing out the city’s best joints, skateboard in one hand, martini in the other.
For the past three years, I’ve gone to Paris in early February to celebrate my birthday and, honestly, just get out of town (NYC midwinter is rough, amirite?). At first, it was just me heading out with a friend of mine, but very quickly our circle of friends grew to involve new local friends and more people from NYC coming to join. One of the random and cool things about this time of year in Paris (or the week I went, specifically) is that there are a a few wine fairs that draw a lot of hospitality people from all over the world. It makes for a really fun atmosphere, where anywhere you go you are bound to run into someone you know.
Ok, here are my standouts, all of which you need to add to your list.
Colin
Le Doyenné
📍Saint-Vrain
🍽️ French, farm-to-table
For me, Le Doyenné is one of the most special restaurants in the world. Watching their evolution, from the first time I went three years ago to where they are now, has been incredible. If you have never been or heard of it, I would compare the experience to that of Blue Hill Stone Barns (just outside of NYC) but with much of the farming and story kept in the background. The similarities are plenty though, most notably the gorgeous farmhouse dining room, the surrounding farm, and the fact that it’s about an hour outside of a major city. Everything felt right driving up to Le Doyenné this time. My trip consisted of mostly grey weather, but when we showed up at the farm, the sun had peeked through the clouds, lighting up the grounds perfectly. This was my first time going during the day for lunch and I highly recommend it – the experience of walking through the farm is pretty magical. They also have several rooms above the restaurant where you can stay and enjoy (from what I’m told) an amazing breakfast in the morning. The overall experience is very laidback and comfortable in a way that you don’t find in the States for a restaurant of this caliber. When you arrive, rather than a busy host ushering you around, you just hang your jacket on a coat rack up front and are warmly greeted. The staff lets you know you are more than welcome to have a drink by the fire and tell them when you are ready to get started. The menu is up to the chefs, serving all of the best food of the day. Some of the highlights for this meal were the 36-month aged ham (older than the restaurant apparently), an amazing two-course lobster prep that started with lobster tail and sunchoke and was followed by the knuckles cooked with sweetbreads and fresh herbs, all of which was absolutely insane and a showstopper. When we arrived, the chicken was slowly being grilled in the backyard, and it was later served as a main, alongside a potato gratin topped with truffles that upped the decadence just a bit. The cheese course here is always top notch (there is truly nothing better than cheese in Europe), and the desserts are all made in-house, including a massive citrus and cream Paris Brest-like cake followed by pâte des fruits and fresh madeleines. I can think of no better way in the world to spend a long, lazy Saturday afternoon.
Mokonuts
📍11th arrondissement
🍽️ Middle Eastern-ish
Mokonuts is a true one of a kind place. It is operated by a husband and wife team (Moko and Omar), who run the entire 25ish seat space with the help of one other person in the kitchen. They also now have Mokoloco (which I have still yet to try) that hosts rotating chef residencies as well as the brand new Mokochaya, where a good friend of mine is currently working. We stopped in to an absolutely buzzing Mokochaya which serves coffee, tea, and pastries as well as a daily bento box that looks amazing. All of the pastries are Moko’s recipes and have a bit of a personalized twist. As Mokonuts is sometimes a hard reservation to book, this is a great way to check out their style without committing to a reservation – I would highly recommend it. Back to Mokonuts, which is one of my absolute non-negotiable meals when I am in town. They are only open for lunch so make sure to plan and book well in advance. The first few times I came to Paris it had come highly recommended but I never got my shit together in time and didn’t really understand what the place was all about. You used to be able to buy pastries in the morning before the lunch service (now this has all moved next door). My first visit was three years ago. The menu is very small and as a table of four you can usually do the whole thing. The cooking is honest and simple but absolutely packed with flavor and incredible sauce work that brings it all together. As soon as you take your first bite you realize how lucky you are to be there, and it only gets better. For wine, I always let Moko choose and it all seems to work out. This visit we had the Labne to start, followed by a bright hamachi crudo, and an absolutely lights out dish of morels with egg that had so much depth it was incredible. The mains were a roasted pork loin and a trout confit that were equally delicious. You always have to get dessert and the standouts for us were a kumquat tart and the selection of Moko’s always flavorful cookies. The surprise on this visit was a gochujang cookie, which left a slightly spicy burn on the aftertaste that was delicious. The chocolate chip are perfect specimens as well. Mokonuts is the best.
Maison Sota
📍11th arrondissement
🍽️ French
Maison Sota has been a restaurant I have been looking forward to for years and it absolutely lived up to my expectations. Chef Sota first made a name for himself at Clown Bar, which—back when I first went in 2017—was one of the hardest places to get into in Paris. That meal blew me away, from the exciting menu to the incredible execution of the dishes. I had the fried mullet coated in a tempura batter made with squid ink that gave the dish a startling appearance. Even more startling was the whole brain with dashi and yuzu. But the dish that really blew me away was a pigeon, perfectly cooked, with fried sunchokes on the side that, if memory serves me correctly, were covered in lardo. It was an incredible dish that I think about often. All of that is to say, it had been years since I’d had the pleasure of dining with Chef Sota and I couldn’t have been more excited to try his eponymous restaurant. We opted to go for lunch, which I have to say is perhaps one of the best deals around at 85 euro, with an optional pairing for an additional 65 euro. The room feels like a farmhouse with a long communal table down the center surrounded by several tables all facing towards the live fire hearth that Chef Sota tends to throughout the experience. The menu started with a few small bites, a raw fish dish and a cracker with bitter greens and cheese washed down with a warm bone broth (I think?!). The first course was a fresh scallop with orange citrus, balanced out with butternut squash that really made the dish. This was followed by celeriac roasted and wrapped around cuttlefish, similar to a ravioli in a creamy sauce that was perfect for sopping up with the warm bread. The next dish really amped everything up: a seemingly classic (and perfectly cooked) trout, with crispy skin and an inside that was just over rare, all of which was then zhuzhed up by lentils left firm enough for the right texture and sneaky pops of trout roe. The final savory course was a guinea fowl, both light and dark meat baked whole in bread and salt and accompanied by two onion bulbs, one filled with a coarse potato filling and the other chanterelles. It was a showstopping dish. We also opted for the cheese coarse, paired beautifully with three wines. However, the real highlight was an aged sake that paired with the blue and goat cheeses, both in completely different ways. Overall, it was an amazing meal and it will be on my list to check out the full dinner experience next trip.
Passerini
📍12th arrondissement
🍽️ Italian
Passerini was a place I had held off on going to for years. I kept hearing great things about it but for some reason getting Italian in Paris, no matter how good, felt like a backburner type meal. I could not have been more wrong as this was one of best dinners I had on the trip. The restaurant has been open for close to ten years now and feels like a staple. Since I wanted this trip to have as many places I had never been to as possible (while still hitting all my non-negotiables) it seemed like the perfect time. The menu is rustic but plated in a way that makes it all beautiful. We started with the house vermouth and soda, which was the ideal way to get re-energized after the marathon lunch at Sota. The first bite I had was of the Trippa all romana, which is tripe cooked in a pomodoro sauce with cheese grated over the top – absolutely amazing. From that moment I could tell this was going to be a special meal. We followed that with beautifully plated rabbit and artichokes and a very tasty fried sardine dish. Then we went on to the pastas. We settled on two of the three and went with Casarecce alla Genovese and Linguine with langoustines. Both pastas were cooked perfectly with the texture of the Casarecce really standing out, but the highlight was definitely the linguine, which really blew us away. The last dish was their famous Passerini Pigeon, and it came in two parts. The first was a homestyle Tagliatelle served with the the offal of the bird (hearts, liver etc.) with shiitakes, olives, and parm. The pastas were all much larger portions than I am used to, but I wasn’t complaining. The second course was the rest of the roasted bird—cooked a perfect medium rare—with an onion gratin and jus. Incredible. Passerini should definitely be on your itinerary to break up the classic bistros Paris is known for.
Lao Siam
📍19th arrondissement
🍽️ Thai/Laotian
For my actual birthday dinner, we chose something a bit more laidback where we could gather a good group of people and it wouldn’t have to be a “whole thing.” Lao Siam fit the bill. It came highly recommended from my local friends, and we were able to secure a table for nine of us. Lao Siam is a Parisian institution. It opened in 1985 and is still run by the same family. It specializes in Laotian and Thai cuisine. Given how many industry friends recommended this spot, it felt like the Parisian equivalent of NYC industry group dining favorite Wu’s Wonton King. The big difference with Lao Siam is instead of BYOB they actually have a very impressive wine list, which to me was a pleasant surprise. My friend Josh, who is a super talented chef, took the reigns on the order for the table. Hits included a delicious Pad Thai that had seemed to be made with quite a bit more corn starch than I usually see, which lead to a pleasingly slick texture to the whole dish that I really dug. We also had pineapple fried rice (served in a pineapple, naturally), lightly cooked shrimp in the traditional lime, fish sauce, sugar, chili that makes everything taste great, a rare beef salad, duck, and an amazing fried chicken. Overall, it was exactly the type of laidback meal I was looking for. The one thing of note here was it felt like the food had a toned down spice level compared to the Thai and Laotion food I’ve had in NYC. I don’t know enough about Laotian food to really know if this was how it’s traditionally made, or if the restaurant accommodates a different palate, but it was worth noting. The Thai food I have been used to both in Thailand and NYC has always had much more of a kick, but this was very delicious all the same, just a little bit more sweet and sour leaning without the intense spice.
Le Rigmarole
📍11th arrondissement
🍽️ French
Le Rigmarole is one of my favorite restaurants anywhere. Besides being an incredible place, it’s entirely original – there is just nowhere else in the world where you’ll find a restaurant like it. My first time here was right after they opened in late 2017. I was on a solo trip to check out Paris, and it was my first time back in town as an adult. I had been set up at a few other restaurants, but my friend Evan gave me a tip that his friends, Chefs (and husband-wife duo) Robert Compagnon and Jessica Yang, had just opened a new spot. I ended up going that day. As it turned out, Robert and Jessica had both moved to Paris from NYC, and, because the world is incredibly small, Robert and I had opened restaurants next door to each other about eight years prior in NYC and had actually met each other. Anyway, Le Rigmarole, as I mentioned, is restaurant unlike any other in that it specializes in Yakitori, has amazing pasta, as well as seasonal salads and snacks. It sounds strange as a concept, but throughout the progression of the meal it all really makes sense and works. Everything is done with incredible care, and watching the three to four person team run the whole room and cook at the same time is something to behold. The pasta in particular is always a standout. This visit included a ricotta Ravioli of some sort, as well as a Spaghetti with perfectly grilled rouget resting over the top. The meal always ends with Tsukune (chicken meatball) served with a house-made flatbread and a yogurt sauce which is another curveball to the style of meal, but one that really makes the experience fully their own. I could not love this place anymore than I already do.
Tarántula
📍11th arrondissement
🍸 Mexican
Tarántula is a Mexican restaurant in Paris that opened fairly recently and came highly recommended. I have to say, it was a great time. The staff was on top of everything, mezcal selection was short and sweet, and the food hit all the right notes. Coming from the States, I would say that the food doesn’t really read incredibly Mexican, but you can definitely see the influence all over the menu. The chicken was absolutely delicious, swimming in jus, and both the pork and the mushroom tacos were on point, as well as the deceptively simple potatoes in a cream and pepper sauce – fantastic. Tarántula was definitely a much needed change of pace from the normal bistros and food you find throughout the city.
Vantre
📍11th arrondissement
🍸 French bistro
Out of every restaurant I’ve been to on my recent Paris trips, Vantre has to be one of my favorites. The wine list is absolutely insane, and the laidback atmosphere and French bistro-style food with an Asian touch is always incredible. My first visit to Vantre was three years ago, with their previous chef who blended Japanese and French techniques brilliantly. The current chef has picked up right where his predecessor left off, but his food skews a bit more Southeast Asian in flavor profile. To me this is a perfect restaurant and one that flies under the radar but will be on my list for every visit. One of the really cool things about Paris is so many amazing places are open for lunch, so spots like this are much easier to squeeze into a busy itinerary. For this visit, I was with a bunch of industry friends both from both NYC and abroad and we blew Vantre out for the first lunch of my trip. The chef had several off menu dishes, including wild boar served two ways, as well as a ginger scallion-style sole that stole the show. We ended with an amazing cheese plate, some vintage chartreuse, and a crêpe cake that blew my mind. This should be at the top of your list the next time you visit Paris.
Plus some Paris cocktail bars I dig:
Candelaria - great place for mezcal in a town that doesn’t have much of it. Super friendly staff and great vibe.
La Mezcaleria - hidden in the back of a hotel, but probably the best mezcal bar in the city. Less of a vibe but, still, good spot for a few drinks.
Little Red Door - this is a classic and always worth a visit, the menu turns over several times a year, and they are always doing something fun and environmentally friendly.
Bar Nouveau - a new one for me and I was only able to drink on the main floor, i.e. didn’t get to the lower level which opened later in the day. Bartenders were super knowledgeable and made a great drink.
Mesures - another new one, Japanese listening room-style (honestly, seeing this all over the place there) with sold cocktails and some snacky food.
how was dandelion? Saw it on your IG but not mentioned here