Richard Hesse
Dirigeable
Up, Up and Away! Dirigeable is an oasis in the urban desert of the 15th arrondissement. I don’t have a sweet tooth, as you may recall, and unless required to partake of dessert in the line of duty, I will … Read More
Botticelli, Bellini, Guardi… in Caen
“Portrait of Z. B. Marenzi” (1737) by Paolo Bonomino. Caen’s Musée des Beaux Arts must be my absolute all-time favorite provincial fine-art museum. Set in a contemporary building excavated out of the main courtyard … Favorite
Restaurant News
RESTAURANT NEWS According to Restaurant Magazine’s San Pellegrino ranking of the world’s top 50 restaurants, announced on April 21, the giants are still Ferran Adrià of El Bulli and Heston Blumenthal of the UK’s Fat Duck, who once again came … Read More
Spring Boutique
FALL OPENING FOR SPRING BOUTIQUE Fans of Daniel Rose’s Spring will have to content themselves with the boutique until the new Paris restaurant opens in March. Daniel Rose shot to fame in a very short time with his tiny Spring … Read More
Benoît, Rech, Aux Lyonnais
Aux Lyonnais has a traditional bistro ambiance. The big news on the food front today (there are more important things happening in the world) is that El Bulli, five times rated the world’s best restaurant, will be closed in 2012 … Read More
Prunier
Prunier’s Art Deco dining room with black marble walls was designed by architect Louis Hippolyte Boileau and artist Léon Carrière. Casting around for words to describe the Prunier experience, I came up with “regal,” aristocratic” and “breeding,” in that order. … Read More
La Fresque and Le Hangar
La Fresque (pictured) and Le Hangar are safe bets in areas that are not overflowing with great restaurants. One of the most striking things about this week’s two restaurants (Christmas bonus?) is the almost complete absence of road traffic: La … Read More
Le Gaigne
One of Le Gaigne’s more colorful dishes. Pros: Good ingredients, central location. Cons: A certain drabness about the whole experience; overpriced. I was quite excited about going to Le Gaigne: it’s been written up often, and many nice things are … Read More
Le 122
The food at 122 is impeccably prepared. Above: snails in “angel hair” batter. Pros: Great food, well-chosen wines; pleasant, attentive service Cons: Decor a bit Spartan for my taste. Walking into 122, a memory resurfaced of a journalist’s comment about … Read More
Au Petit Riche
Au Petit Riche has been around since 1854. Pros: Fabulous list of Loire wines; quirky layout; pleasant atmosphere Cons: Cooking seems stuck in a rut The last time I set foot in the Petit Riche was about two decades ago, … Read More