Bouillon République

Tipped off by one of my French friends, we made a reservation for Bouillon République that was within walking distance of our hotel.  A bouillon in France is a traditional expansive restaurant that serves up French cuisine at reasonable prices.  That is exactly what Bouillon République is known for since it opened in 2021 in the former home of Chez Jenny.  After a brief wait, we were seated in a very traditional-looking dining room that was bustling with activity.

We ended up ordering a good amount of food beginning with the Eggs with Mayonnaise and Farmhouse Pâté with toast and gherkin.  I thought the eggs were quite good where the whites were not rubbery while the mayonnaise was creamy, light and well-seasoned.  The pâté was a little dense, but was definitely meaty and also well-seasoned.  We definitely got some natural pork flavour and aroma.  The toast wasn't really toasted, so it was somewhat lukewarm and bready.

We also got the Pickled Herring with French potato salad and also the classic Escargots in parsley butter.  Served cold, the pickled herring was tender and flaky with the unmistakable fishiness.  It had a good tang to it while the potatoes underneath were tender and delicate.  As for the snails, they were soft and completely seasoned by the rich seasoned butter.  Of course we dipped some bread into this.

For our mains, I went for the Boeuf Bourguignon with smoked bacon and pasta.  This was pretty good with tender nuggets of beef with a rich cooked down red wine sauce.  The sweetness of the onions were present while the meatiness of the bacon and beef came through.  Viv went for the Sea Bream Fillet atop ratatouille.  The fish itself was slightly overdone, but wasn't dry.  It was mildly-seasoned, but the tangy and sweet ratatouille added plenty of impact to the dish.

My daughter went for the 1/2 Caramelized Ham Hock & Fries.  This was quite good as the ham hock was tender and shred easily off the bone.  Naturally, it was salty with some sweetness.  The side of fries were crispy and served hot.  My son didn't stray from the usual, having the Steak Frites with a shallot sauce.  This steak was cooked to medium-rare and was somewhat chewy, but still wasn't difficult to eat.  It was nicely seared while the aroma from the shallot sauce was a good compliment.

Finally, we ended with the Chocolate Mousse and Strawberry Tart.  Similarly with all of the food we had, these desserts were solid.  The mousse was light and chocolatey while being purposefully sweet.   As for the tart, the shell was firm with an appealing crunch.  The custard was semi-sweet while the strawberries were ripe.  Overall, the food at Bouillon République wasn't amazing, but it was good.  Considering the price, it did the job and we went away happy and satisfied.

The Good:

- Solid eats

- Inexpensive

- Lots of choice

The Bad:

- Don't expect the most amazing food

- Service is good, but hurried

Breizh Cafe

After spending the morning heading to the Eiffel Tower, heading up the tower (all the way to the top!) and then descending down, we were pretty hungry.  Seeing how we hadn't had a legit crêpe yet (we had one from a food truck on the first day), we headed over to the closest location of Breizh Cafe.  Often known as one of the best places to grab crêpes in Paris, it is also one of the most expensive.  But whatever, we were on vacation where calories and prices do not count...

We snagged one of the last unreserved tables and it took quite a long time before we had a chance to put our order in.  Our server was friendly, but seemed to be overworked.  Viv ended up with the Cured Ham with egg and comté.  You can actually see it in the picture where the thin crêpe was nicely browned and crispy.  I found it to be appealingly thin and aromatic.  Inside, there was plenty of the aforementioned components which made it fulfilling and flavourful.

For myself, I decided to get something meaty in the Beef Pastrami with comté, cabbage, caramelized onions and yuzu-kosho cream.  With a consistent crêpe like the previous one, it housed a good amount of pastrami, hence making it a fairly hearty creation.  I thought the caramelized onions were a good match for the salty pastrami adding a balancing sweetness.  The cabbage provided a fresh crunch while the yuzu-kosho added both acidity and spice.

My son loves smoked salmon.  So much so, when I get the entire fillet from Costco, he devours it within a few days.  Hence, it was no surprise he went for the Organic Smoke Salmon with goat cheese, chive cream and green salad.  Naturally, the combination of buttery smoked salmon and whipped cream cheese was a match made in heaven.  That reminded him of having that atop a bagel, but instead in a light crispy crepe.

For my daughter, it was all about the duck in the Smoked Duck Fillet with pan-fried mushrooms, comté, organic scrambled eggs, fresh cream and espelette pepper.  If the components elicit thoughts of a rich and robust crêpe, you would be correct.  Lots of cheese and eggs meant this would be filling.  Add in the tender smoky duck and the aromatic and buttery mushrooms, there was a lot to like about this creation.

To end things off, we had a dessert crêpe with the Churned Butter with brown sugar.  There were 3 choices for the butter, but we went for the classic slightly salted butter.  Unlike the savoury versions, this crepe was soft, fluffy and a bit chewy.  It was aromatic and of course slightly sweet from the caramelized brown sugar.  Adding a velvety hug, the butter brought it all together.  So from this experience, I would agree that Breizh Cafe is definitely a good spot for crêpes in Paris (and apparently in other places in the world).  A little pricey, but worth it in my opinion.

The Good:

- Excellent crêpes

- Lots of choice

- Multiple locations

The Bad:

- Pricey

- Service is really slow

Asia Bo Bun

Here we go again with non-French eats while in Paris.  For lunch, we wanted to grab a quick bite before some touristing.  We hadn't done any Vietnamese so far and since we were in France (they colonized Vietnam at one point), we had to get some Phở right?  Our first option (Song Heng) was not open for the Summer, so we went somewhere nearby in
Asia Bò Bún.  Hey, they are highly-rated on Google, which sometimes means nothing at all.  So I guess we were about to find out if this was going to be good or not...

Things started off on the right food with Spring Rolls that featured a rice paper wrap.  Just to be clear, rice and wheat wrappers are both used in Vietnam, but for me, I much prefer the rice paper variety.  Why is that?  Well, the crispiness of the fried rice paper is very different than that of the wheat wrapper.  Whereas the wheat wrapper shatters and is lightly crispy, the rice wrapper has a bit of resistance and almost chew to it.  It also can shatter, but it is even crisper (just like using rice flour instead of wheat flour).  This one was good and the filling was moist and flavourful from the sweetness of the veggies, in particular, the onions.  They supplied us with lettuce and basil to wrap these spring rolls (the traditional way).

Onto the most important item, in my mind - Phở Dặc Biệt.  As per usual, I omitted the cilantro because I'm one of the rare people who thinks it tastes like soap.  Anyways, this gave me a better chance to taste the broth as it was meant to be.  It was mild and clean with a slight meatiness and background sweetness.  Pretty good!  The rice noodles were both al dente and plentiful.  I found the meats to be good too with rare be tender as well as the brisket.

My son had his usual in the Lemongrass Chicken with Rice.  No egg this time, but didn't really matter as the rice was chewy but not dry.  As for the chicken leg, it was bone-in and nicely grilled.  Skin was mildly-rendered and the chicken itself was brined enough to have a salty aromatic sweetness going on.  Furthermore, the chicken was succulent and juicy.  Add in some of the nuoc cham and this was a legit version of the dish.

For my daughter, she had the Bò Lúc Lắc and it was not filled with any filler.  Normally, you would find onions and peppers in many versions, but this was how we like it - with just beef!  This was subjected to a good marinade and wok fry where the meat was caramelized while still being juicy and tender.  Plenty of flavour from the meat (in a salty and aromatic way) but the tomato rice was pretty tasty too.  Good texture being chewy but not dry.

Viv also went for her favourite dish in the Chicken and Spring Roll Vermicelli Bowl .  Well, I'm not really sure what to say about this one as we had already eaten both the spring rolls and chicken in other dishes!  The chicken in this one was in strips, so it wasn't as juicy, but it wasn't dry.  You see, we had to get this dish anyways because the restaurant is called Asia Bo Bun (the beef version of this).  Like the rest of the food, the vermicelli was well-prepared.  Solid Vietnamese in the heart of Paris.

The Good:
- Solid eats
- Moderately-priced
- Well-portioned

The Bad:
- Service is friendly, but a bit sparse

Le Relais de l'Entrecôte

Going back to French food, we did a touristy thing and decided to check out Le Relais de l'Entrecôte.  You might of heard of it, you know, the place where they only serve one thing - Steak Frites.  Also, you can get more if you finish your plate, at no extra charge!  No, they do not take resos, so you'll have to go at opening to snag yourself a table.  We decided to take a chance at the Montparnasse location since it was further away from the busy areas.  It also helped that the metro station was right in front too.  Our plan worked as we got a table no problem at opening.

So with every meal, it starts with a Walnut Green Salad with a classic Dijon vinaigrette dressing.   Nothing complex with this as it featured fresh leafy greens with nutty walnuts.  A few slices of radish added some colour.  As for the dressing, it was sweet, tangy and a touch creamy.  This was a light start to our meat-focused meal.  In addition to this, we were also served a sliced baguette and butter.

So onto the one and only main course - Steak Frites.  The medium-rare sirloin was quite tender.  This was true for all of our plates.  I've read reviews about it being chewy and that was not the case with our steaks.  It was drenched in their famous Café de Paris sauce.  I think their version has a combination of chicken livers, butter, cream, Dijon and other seasonings.  Hence, the richness of the sauce coated each piece of the tender meat.  It createed an umaminess that further enhanced the beef.  As for the frites, they were super crispy but still had some potatoness left.  We ended up getting 2 orders each and really that was enough.

Onto dessert, we ordered 2 including the Sévigné and Crème Brûlée.  The former is a chocolate cake served with vanilla ice-cream, hot chocolate sauce and Chantilly cream while the latter is the classic custard topped with burnt (torched) sugar.  We really enjoyed the chocolate cake as it was rich and definitely chocolatey but not overly sweet.  That sauce was a bit sweet though.  The crème brûlée was also really good where the sugar topping was torched expertly being crunchy, sweet and smoky.  Upon cracking it with our spoon, it revealed a creamy custard that wasn't too heavy but was rather sweet.  Could definitely taste the vanilla essence.  So in the end, the meal was about the steak frites and it was good in our opinion.  Sure, the place is a bit touristy, but worth a visit still.

The Good:
- Solid steak frites
- You can have more if you want!
- Desserts pretty good

The Bad:
- No resos, have to lineup
- Service was decent, but rather hurried

Sushi Club

Okay, laugh if you want.  Insult me if you want.  Heck, you can just stop reading right now if you want.  Yes, I actually ate AYCE (all-you-can-eat) sushi in Paris.  We actually spotted Sushi Club a few times as we walked around the Bastille area after we had our meal at Clamato.  Prices seemed reasonable and in reality, the kids just wanted something different (just like when we were in Rome and Pisa).  So after a long morning and part of the afternoon at the Palace of Versailles, we trained it back to have some late lunch.

For 14.80 Euros, we could eat all the mediocre Japanese food we wanted.  But sometimes, that is all it takes...  So we started with an assortment of fried things including Chicken Karaage, Fried Veggies and Japanese Chicken Spring Rolls.  Not really sure that chicken karaage should be coated in a panko, but it was good nonetheless.  Chicken was moist and the outside was crunchy.  Same could be said about the veggies as they were definitely crunchy.  Not a fan of the spring rolls as they were a little dense.  But they were also crunchy!

Next, we got some Salmon and Tuna Nigiri as well as some Maki Sushi.  I have to say that the rice was maybe a bit soft, but not overly mushy.  There was some chewiness left, but the rice was a bit bland.  As for the fish, it was actually decent having a nice sheen and fresh taste.  Love that they put cream cheese on top of the "Salmon Cheese".  I didn't like the rice-to-fish ratio as there was too much rice (of course they did, for AYCE).  The rolls were pretty typical and serviceable.

For a 5.50 Euro supplement, we were able to have 10 pieces of Salmon Sashimi (we had 2 orders of that for a total of 20).  I found these to be actually decent and worth the cost.  They were buttery and fresh-tasting.  Also on the lunch menu, we found Brochettes and we got chicken, zucchini, chicken wings, beef & cheese and chicken meatballs.  These were actually quite good with a nice char and being not overcooked.  We had 2 orders of these.

For dessert, we had some strange items in Canned Lychee, Canned Fruit Cocktail and Chinese Peanut Candy.  I guess these were fine as they did the job and were sweet things of some sort.  But whatever the case, the price was right and we just wanted to get something Asian without going high-end.  Sometimes we can't eat gourmet all-the-time and places like these serve a purpose.  Food was okay while the service was a bit slow.  It was friendly though.

The Good:
- Cheap
- Serviceable food
- People are nice

The Bad:
- Food is average at best
- Service was slow  

Clamato

Having already scored reservations for Septime on our last full day in Paris, we decided to check out their sister restaurant, Clamato, situated right next door on our first day in Paris.  Focused on fresh sustainable seafood, Clamato's menu reflects the daily deliveries from French fishing ports.  Unlike Septime, Clamato does not take reservations.  We arrived at around 6:45pm for their 7:00pm opening time and was easily seated (as well as most of the other people in line).  If you are any later, then you will need to leave your name on the waitlist and they will call you.

Since they feature only fresh ingredients, the menu that we were presented with was very different than the one found online.  We decided to start with the Cod Roe Tarama with EVOO.  This was deliciously smooth and creamy with the brininess of the cod roe coming through.  There was a background smokiness and the seasoning was on point with it being salty enough.  Loved the pool of EVOO in the middle as it provided aromatics and naturally the silky smoothness of olive oil.

Another seemingly simple dish was the Sardines with roasted lemon and smoked creme crue as well as a good smattering of EVOO.  Those sardines were texturally appealing with a tender meatiness.  They were tangy and briny while completely and perfectly accented by the tart lemon and the smokiness of the creamy crue.  This went especially well with the warm baguette served when we were first seated.

One of my favourite items was the Palourde Clams with green curry sauce and fig leaf oil.  Those buttery clams were delicate and so naturally sweet.  Loved the cook on them as they were perfect with a soft texture with a slight chew.  The showstopper was the sauce as it was bright and mildly rich at the same time.  It was cilantro-forward and tasted really green, but the coconut milk tempered that.  I had to soak up the sauce with the bread because it was so good.

One of the brightest dishes was the Pollock Ceviche with fermented peach and chipotle.  I literally spooned the ceviche liquid and ate it just like that.  A nice balance of acidity, sweetness and spice with the emphasis on mild tanginess.  Therefore, it wasn't strong enough to overwhelm the delicate pieces of pollack.  About that pollack, the slices were tender with a bit of firmness. 

Another favourite of mine was the Mediterranean Octopus with shaved fennel and roasted garlic sauce.  The fairly thick slices of octopus were beautifully textured with a very tender chewiness.  Loved that it was easy to eat but had a certain firmness still.  It was adequately seasoned with a balanced salty sweetness but the garlic sauce was delicious.  It was creamy and rich with all of the best things about roasted garlic.

One of the more interesting dishes was the Albacore Tuna with spruce tips and pickled blueberries.  Apart from the fact they were paring fish with blueberries, the dish worked in my opinion.  There was an earthy foresty thing going on with the spruce tips while the fish itself was already tangy from the marinade.  The blueberries were intensely sweet and acidic which made it pair much better than just plain blueberries.

Viv's favourite dish was the Heirloom Tomato Salad with trout eggs and basil oil.  Another seemingly simple offering but with superior ingredients, this was full-flavoured and super fresh tasting.  The tomatoes were bright and sweet while the tomato water only helped highlight the main ingredient even more so.  The basil oil added herbaceousness while the crunch of the croutons provided complimentary texture.  Let's not forget about the briny trout eggs too.

One dish that was only liked by me was the Bell Pepper & Smoked Haddock Carpaccio w ith langoustine-kimchi jus.  I thought this was genius as the rich cooked-down jus was aromatic and briny with a background tangy spice.  The haddock was lightly smoky and had just a bit of saltiness. Texturally, the slices of fish were a touch firm but still buttery.  Those roasted red peppers were sweet and deliciously tender.

Another dish that no one else seemed to like, but only for me, was the Fried Eggplant with kalamsio, kasuobushi and hazelnuts.  I thought the eggplant was perfectly textured with a slightly crispy and firm exterior giving way to creamy tender insides.  It was nicely flavoured with a fermented saltiness as well as some tanginess.  The crunch of the hazelnuts were definitely needed here.

Lastly, we had the Monkfish from Finistere with grilled zucchini and spiced mussel butter.  Loved the flavours here as the mussel butter was rich and briny with natural sweetness.  The intensity of the sauce was further amped by the background spiciness.  The fish was perfectly cooked being a touch rare in the middle.  The mussels were plump and buttery.  As you can see, Clamato dishes up some creative fresh, mainly raw, seafood dishes that incorporate different accompaniments and flavours.  I found them unique and most of them worked well in creating a delicious composed product.  A worthy sister restaurant to Septime.

The Good:
- Fresh seafood
- Impactful and unique flavours
- Approachable and casual

The Bad:
- Pretty popular and they do not take resos
- Menu is pretty focused and it worked for us, but it may not work for everyone's tastes

Brasserie Georges

With all the choices for dinner in Lyon, we decided to hit up a historical one in Brasserie Georges.  Operating since 1836, this expansive dinning hall has served some pretty famous people.  There are even plaques attached to the seats commemorating their visits.  Another reason we decided to dine here is that it is one of the few places with continuous service.  That means we could have an early dinner at 5:30pm.  Most places do not open until 7:00pm.

After being seated at one of the seemingly hundreds of tables, we set down to ordering.  We did so in French and our server seemed to understand us.  One of the first dishes to arrive was the Piperade with poached egg, basque-style sauce and Serrano ham.  This was like an eggs benedict of sorts except for the base being peppers and onions rather than a bread or other carb.  This was rather rich and filling due to the velvety sauce and soft-poached egg. 

Next, we had the Terrine of Pork & Chicken Liver with porto and a side salad.  This was a quite a big slice and it was more than enough for my son as he had this as a starter for the Menu Lyonnais.  As you can see in the picture, this was quite rustic with discernible chunks of meat and fat mixed in with the liver.  It was definitely meaty and aromatic while being sweet.  We could definitely taste the port wine, but it stayed mainly in the background.

One of the most delicious, yet inconspicuous dishes of our meal was the Rockfish Soup with a side of rouille and croutons.  This was so flavourful and concentrated with the aromatics of saffron.  It was naturally sweet with some background fennel notes. Almost a bouillabaisse except without the shellfish. Naturally, we found some creamy rouille on the side that we could spread onto the croutons and dip into the soup.  So much aroma and textures!

For my son's Menu Lyonnais main dish, he chose the Local Pork and Pistachio Sausage in a white wine sauce served with mashed potatoes.  This type of sausage is a Lyon specialty (as we also had at Muzette).  This was also under-the-radar tasty where the sausage was plump, full of meat texture and juicy with the nuttiness of pistachios.  The white wine sauce was lightly creamy and cooked down properly.  It went very well with the starchy, yet smooth potatoes on the side.

Next, we found more of the flavourful summer veggies of the piperade accompanying the roasted Tender Pork Breast with rosemary.  This piece of pork featured crispy skin that stood up to the jus.  It was aromatic and nutty.  Underneath, the pork was not overly fatty with plenty of tender meat.  Definitely got the woodsiness of the rosemary, but not strong enough to take over the natural sweetness and umaminess of the pork.

My daughter had the Grilled Fillet of Sea Bream with herb vinaigrette, roasted eggplant and tomato.  Texturally, this dish was pretty much uniform, but it wasn't a problem though.  The eggplant was tender but not mushy while the tomato added a bright acidity.  The sea bream was cooked perfectly being moist and flaky.  With an herbaceous tanginess, this made the dish more bright than it appeared.  The olive oil added even more butteriness to the fish.

For myself, I went for the Veal Calf’s Liver with wine vinegar and shallots.  This was a big piece of lightly floured liver that was cooked to a medium-rare.  Hence, it was still juicy and a bit gamy-tasting in the middle.  However, I'm all about that flavour, so it was great.  It ate fairly tender except some of the less cooked portions.  Keeping things from getting too heavy, the sauce was almost like a gastrique where it was acidic but had a touch of sweetness. 

Served on the side of my veal was some Cheese Penne that was a bit dry, but was okay after I mixed it with the cheese sauce.  I originally wanted some French Fries and I totally forgot to order them.  So I decided to use my rudimentary French (that I used to order in the first place) to add them to our list of dishes.  Our server nodded in understanding, so I guess I did okay?  Well, the fries were good, being hot and crispy.

Onto dessert, we had the Frozen Nougat with candied fruit and red fruit coulis and the Macaron with fresh raspberries.  Really enjoyed the frozen nougat as it was like a semifreddo where it was creamy but slightly firm.  The candied fruit added both texture and sweetness while the pistachio provided nuttiness and texture.  As for the giant macaron, the shell was pretty good with a crisp exterior that shattered into a soft and chewy centre.  Inside, the raspberries provided tartness to balance the sweetness.

One final dessert belonged to my son's Lyonnais Menu with the Crispy Chocolate and Praline Cake.  This was really chocolate mousse with crunchy and sweet pralines inside.  The mousse itself was creamy and rich with purposeful sweetness.  Loved the velvety dark chocolate ganache on the outside.  Overall, the meal at Brasserie Georges was solid and well-priced.  Sure, it wasn't the best food I've ever had, but it was consistent across the board.  That suited us just fine.

The Good:
- Lots of choice on the menu
- Consistent across the board
- Reasonably-priced

The Bad:
- Expansive dining room has its appeal, but for those looking for a quiet meal, this ain't it