Friday, February 12, 2010

Restaurant Review: Le Comptoir (Paris)



When I was in Paris last June my parents told my brother and I to go eat at a little gem that they loved called Le Comptoir de Relais Saint-Germain. We ended up catching the metro one late evening to make our way to the bistro that is just north of the Jardin du Luxembourg. It was really busy when we arrived and we asked this older scary looking woman if they had room for us and she started yelling at us for absolutely no reason! We were in shock and people around us were reassuring us that she's just a bit crazy that she does this to everyone who comes in. She finally found a seat for us outside and I was watching her yelling at other customers and her staff who would literally bow down to her...I was in shock and instantly gave her the title of The French Soup Nazi. A couple sitting next to my right said that they have been coming to this restaurant for years and that she is mean to you at first, but then warms up to you as the night progresses, in other words to not worry that beneath her rough exterior she is a sweet heart. This was hard to believe but by the time we were eating dessert she was laughing with us and joking and smiling and finally gave us a kiss goodbye as we left...I am assuming she was bipolar. Anyway the restaurant was so cute and very tiny and you could tell it was a very special place since it was evident that most of the people dining there were local Parisians.We drank loads of wine, ate an abundance of cheese and bread, and for my main meal I had cow knee stew....yes the knees of a cow in a stew...it sounds a bit crazy but it was actually the best meal I have ever had in my entire life...and I've had a lot of good food in my lifetime. We chatted more with people eating around including a fabulous young couple to my left who were gorgeous American tennis lovers who travel the world. We had an amazing time with them and I completely regret not telling the woman about my Conde Nast internship when she told me that she worked for LVMH....damn! That would have been a great connection. We finished the night off with crème brûlée and a nice coffee then said farewell to the friends we made that night and headed off into the metro to go back to our hotel to rest for our next fabulous day in Paris. I miss it there so much and I cannot wait to go back and visit The French Soup Nazi :)

My brother and I at Le Comptoir



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