La Cigale Récamier, rue Récamier, Paris

oeuf en gelee

Foie Gras

Soufflée Henri IV

Soufflé Caramel

Paris at last! I finally went for my first trip to the french capital and was looking forward to seeing what french dining is all about. We had a reservation at the La Cigale Recamier (no website) and arrived early by french standards before 8 pm. We were welcomed and sat at a table. My aunt and uncle actually told me to order either Soufflés, something on the daily specials or the beef filet. I ordered two starters, a foie gras and an interesting sounding egg. Since you have to order desserts at the beginning I decided on sticking to Soufflés for mains and sweets. I did feel a bit rushed, it seems they we’re aiming to get our table turned very quickly and roughly 3 minutes after ordering – our appetizers arrived. I received both of my plates at the same time. The egg was very nice, even though it was cold it was wrapped in a strip of cured ham and the inside was still runny. It reminded me of older restaurant menus, which often had something in aspic and this here triggered these memories. The foie gras was horrible. A slab of goose liver, with too much fat on top covered in aspic. My family was right, it was something off the regular menu which I should have ignored. But moving on to the highlights – the Soufflés. There really isn’t much too say. I had a Henry IV, which essentially is a cheese Soufflée with a chicken sauce. In terms of airyness I’d say that this was one (small) step below an Espuma. Unlike the trendy foams this was much heartier and filling and the feeble aroma which vanishes as your tongue crushes the airy nothingness against the roof of your mouth is here to linger. Dessert was another hit, a caramel Soufflée with salt and a tad of sauce to pour over. Things kind of went sour after dinner, they brought our check, it was missing 40 Euros of merchandise we had consumed and we were nice enough to say so. It then took them 10 minutes to bring us our corrected check, next time I’ll just be a jerk and walk out the door and stiffing them. Apparently being nice in Paris is a sure way to out yourself as a tourist. Nevertheless Soufflées are fantastic and well worth the visit. Prices:

L'addition