incontournable decor du restaurant , localisation
4 points pour les plats
Je suggere d`inclure des notes concernant les allergenes tels que le lait ou bien la creme fraiche dans le menu
Nous avions découvert ce restaurant en janvier dernier et avions promis de revenir y dîner c’est chose faite et c’est sans regret
Délicieux et un service très agréable qui plus est.
The Maître d’ of Au Vieux Paris
~ By James Fleming, MD
Notre Dame Cathedral is a great monument to humanity, and her architectural heritage spills out into the winding street known as Rue Chanoinesse. On this unassuming street, petite in breadth and length, you will find an iron grille fanning out over the door of a restaurant. This grille resembles a Cathedral tracery softened to a blue-green, and it leads the eye to the restaurant name Au Vieux Paris, painted in gold letters. This name means “in old Paris,” and it would be tempting to believe the owner selected this name for the sake of nostalgia.
However, I came upon a 1917 photograph of the building at Musée Carnavalet, that gentle mansion housing the history of Paris, and it shows the same name Au Vieux Paris already existing in black and white, existing just before the great war, before the greatest war, and during the time when Paris was in her most beautiful period.
Stand in front of this artistic façade in the evening hours, and Fredrico the Maître d’hôtel will greet you there — at that place but in an earlier time. His operatic voice will usher you to the early 16th century. Lose your phone reception there and let the LED lights of modernity yield to candlelight. Dine with the pleasure of two Maîtres d’hôtel: one is the building and the other is Fredrico. Over the years, the building has become Fredrico’s shell, such that they are nearly one — together weaving a dining experience which is only accessible to the most curious.
Some guests are content with enjoying the excellent food, including steak, fish, and poultry options. My fiancée would suggest ending with the crème brûlée. More observant guests will marvel at the exquisite cutlery and plateware, the medieval beams supporting the ceiling, and the statue of an angel which seems to float as she plays a trumpet against a wall of red velvet.
Others take Fredrico up on his offer to descend into the wine cellar and select their own bottle. I never miss an opportunity to walk into this ancient cellar carved from stone. Are these truly stone remainders of from the Cathedral — like Fredrico believes? I cannot imagine another building laying a better claim to them.
The most curious guests will accept Fredrico’s offer to join in the conversation of neighboring tables. I have never met a maître d’hôtel who curated such a lively and rich experience for guests. By the end of the night, you will have attended a wedding party. Drinks will be shared, numbers exchanged, and there will be promises to meet again.
Once home, you will pause at your desk and look back into a daydream. You will marvel that just over the Atlantic, on the far side of Pont d’Arcole, under the shadow of Notre Dame, Fredrico is buttoning his dinner jacket. He is almost ready to add his unique human touch to this iron, wood, and stone ensemble. He is ready, once again, to bring his guests Au Vieux Paris.
