Le Pré Catelan is a beautiful restaurant in the Bois de Boulogne, an enormous public park/forest on…read morethe edge of Paris, in the 16th arrondissement. Matt B. and I went for a fancy date night during a family trip while my parents watched our kids. I admit I picked it because it was a 3-star Michelin joint, the only one that had availability on the night we wanted by the time I looked, about a month in advance. It was pretty much what I was looking for, a tremendously nice restaurant with excellent service and top notch food.
Our reservation was for 7:00 on a Saturday night, and we were the only guests in the dining room when we arrived late, around 7:10. The space was quite opulent, decked out in marble and wallpaper and chandeliers and draperies, a lot of white with splashes of green. Our table faced a wall of windows that looked out onto the park. The sun set very late, and it was a little weird being in that bright dining room with the full staff and no other customers. Thankfully, others arrived soon after us--I guess Pré Catelan doesn't even open until 7:00--but the vibe remained quiet and subdued throughout our dinner.
Service was formal but warm, with a whole team attending to our every need throughout our visit, which lasted just over three hours. Pré Catelan offers two tasting menus, and we went with the Orsay, the more pared down option. (We were told we'd want to budget at least four hours for the Menu du Pré.) We started our evening with a couple glasses of rosé champagne, then shared a bottle of white Burgundy with our meal--the 2023 Saint-Aubin Premier Cru "Murgers des Dents de Chien," recommended by an impressive young sommelier from the Ivory Coast. There was no wine pairing option, which was too bad, as we enjoy the ceremony, but this wine was a great pick.
The first bite of food was a tiny tartlet with cheese, bell pepper, and tomato, a delightful amuse bouche. This was quickly followed by crusty house bread and good yellow French butter. Then, the first course listed on the Orsay menu: eggplant with caviar, avocado cream, and curry under a crispy pastry shell.
The heart of our dinner was a series of elegant seafood dishes, every one of them creative, finely wrought, and delicious. There was sweet crab in a flavorful foamed broth of dashi, hot jelly, and fennel cream. Then a house signature, also Frenchy foamy: the langoustine ravioli with duck foie gras emulsion, draped with a thin layer of duck jelly speckled with gold flakes. A marvelous, playful dish that helped make Chef Frédéric Anton's reputation. The next course was actually two courses, both made with cod. First, a perfectly cooked fillet dusted with seaweed and lime zest and served over beurre blanc. Maybe the single best piece of cod I've ever eaten. Then a soft brandade, a salty layer of cod whipped with potato and olive oil and likely a lot of butter.
There was one meat course, a tender, hearty piece of poached squab glazed with honey and dates, then studded with a crust of crunchy semolina. Then we had a cheese course that looked like dessert: an airy steamed soufflé covered in a lush, fragrant aged Comté cream. If I had one criticism of this meal, it would be that there was a skincare aisle's worth of rich foams and creams, but every one of them tasted fantastic.
I loved the palate cleanser, a small, refreshing scoop of sorbet with dill, basil, and lemon. Then there were two desserts. A delicate sort of pollen sundae with sablé and honey ice cream, light and not too sweet; and a smooth, dark bitter cacao pie, served with vanilla ice cream. Finally, a few mignardises: lemon tartlet, fig and spice pâte de fruits, and chocolate truffle, three neat little bites.
the woods
