This is just a great Bistro! It's a wonderful local bistro, that seemed to have mostly local customers, in an of itself a great recommendation. We became acquainted with Christian Etchebest because he collaborated last summer with a local Cape Cod French chef, Phillipe Rispoli (who trained with Paul Bocouse in Lyon, and opened Daniel Baloud's Las Vegas restaurant which earned a Michelin star). That restaurant, PB Boulengerie and Bistro is in Wellfleet, MA. If Chef Rispoli has high regard for a chef, we should all pay attention. In this case, we're absolutely delighted that we did. Of course Chef Etchebest's deserved reputation is sufficient by itself.
We called for reservations because we couldn't do it online. English was not a problem. There are 6 Cantines. This is the one on Rue Cherche Midi. 2 of the 4 of us had just arrived so it was an early dinner, and quite a good one.
We started with Foie Gras, a wonderful leek dish, and my wife ordered razor clams (which rated A+).
Plats: 2 of us ordered a lovely, simple, beautifully prepared veal dish. 1 of us had a well prepared cod dish, and my wife had amazing pork cheeks with pui lentels. We had 3 veggie sides, served family style: mashed potatoes, Ratatouille, and Salade Verte...all excellent.
Desserts: we split Ile Flottante (floating island) and Pomme Crumble. Both wonderful, but the former was particularly so.
The service was attentive, professional, and friendly, but not intrusive, and this was one of the memorable meals we've had in Paris. We're not talking about haute cuisine here. But you'd be hard pressed to find a better bistro experience, and we'd definitely return! read more