Le Mesturet
77 rue de Richelieu, 2nd
M° Bourse
Tel 01 42 97 40 68
Last month I had a wonderful meal at a typical French bistro hidden on a side street between the Opéra and Palais Royal. Le Mesturet has the long zinc bar, the vintage wine bottle chandeliers, and traditional French fare and wines. Their winter menu includes paté, foie gras, escargots, rabbit fillet, lamb, veal and, coq au vin…there’s fish, but strict vegetarians shoud go elsewhere!
Their prices are very good, with an express menu at the bar for €9, the dish of the day at the bar for €10, two-course formules at €21 and three-course menus at €27 for both lunch and dinner.
And don’t miss a very unique duck burger, Le Canard Burger, with foie gras, duck breast, grilled veggies and a salad, for €10.50!
The friendly owner Alain Fontaine and his chef Pascal Brot are very accommodating to groups and can provide multilingual menus, but this is hardly a tourist restaurant, and seems to be mostly a locals’ establishment.
Open Mon-Fri 8:30am-midnight, and on Saturday from 7pm-midnight.
This is the third year i have taken a student group from Oswego State University, NY, to "finish the course" on Paris over Spring Break.Each time, we have capped off the week with a farewell dinner; La Coupole, Bouillon Racine (another Heather recommendation) and, this year, Le Mesturet.Upon arrival i was greeted by Elisabeth, the friendly maitre d’ who had handled the arrangements via email. She and her multi-lingual staff were friendly and attentive, making us feel right at home in a casual, rustic atmosphere. Since most of my group was more familiar with McDonald’s than anything resembling "fine dining," they were astonished at just how exciting a truly good meal could be. From Aubergine grillée to Confit de Canard to Brioche Perdue, there were so many oohs and aahs i thought i had tuned into the Food Network by mistake.But the only mistake you can make is ignoring this little gem of traditional French cuisine.Another Chapeau! for Heather.Al StaglMarch, 2009