Admittedly, this is a bit more sophisticated than most of my usual bistros. But no excuses. Sometimes you just need to get your references clear. Still, despite a cuisine elaboree d'exception, the place is low key and cosy. But make no mistake, Joel Robuchon is now more than a restaurant, it's an international brand - for better and for worse. At the Atelier Saint Germain you enter a discretely designed place where you immediately get the feeling that kitchen is king: No tables, just bar counters with the hardworking food artists behind. And the beutiful thing in a high end place like this, Once seated, you simply feel at ease, the atmosphere is relaxed. The food is of course excellent. No faults. Very refined and well thought through concepts. The idea is based on small tapas style dishes, French haute cuisine in a modern presentation. For example, simple traditional dishes as oef cocotte, remade in a symphony of crayfish, peas, egg and black truffle. Simple ideas, but very eloquently executed. It is worth the quite considerable money spent, although the wines are quite pricey for Parisian standards, particularly by the glass.
www.joel-robuchon.net/
www.joel-robuchon.net/
