But someone's loss is another's gain. Later in the year, Le Meurice finally put all the rumors to rest and announced that they would be handing the kitchen reins to Chef Alain Ducasse. In came new Head Chef Christophe Saintagne who has been working for Alain Ducasse for many years and most recently was working at Plaza Athénée, another Michelin three-starred establishment where he also was the Head Chef. Hopefully all the changes in the kitchen won't make a dent in our dining experience.
Le Meurice has one of the world's most beautiful dining rooms. I think no one could argue with that. And it's definitely one of the most elegant and romantic place I've ever dined in.
For a restaurant of this caliber, they certainly didn't set the price totally out of reach. The lunch menu started only at €85 for two courses, €110 for three courses and €130 for four.
A first amuse bouche was presented at the start of the meal - a mackerel taco with salmon roes and spinach which happened to be quite tasty.
It was followed up by a pair of homemade baguettes and handmade French butter.
Just when we were still enjoying our baguette, our server suddenly appeared with what looked like a Chinese style bamboo steamer in his hands. Chinese bamboo steamer in an exquisite French restaurant? What a sight it was!
When the lid was finally open, there were different root vegetables steaming with blocks of rose pink salt rocks from the Himalayas. Artichokes, carrots, potatoes, yams, radishes, beetroots, onions and baby leeks all nicely displayed...
It was served with a special olive based sauce.
A special long fork was provided to spear the vegetables into the dipping sauce. That was really yum (6/10).
After spending a bit of time with our steamed vegetables, it was time for our starter to shine - slightly seared bonito with vinegar, garlic flower, eggplant and cream. This was a remarkable dish with the bonito fish providing a rich and prominent flavor (8/10).
The last savory dish for us was the pan seared sea bass with citrus oil and pesto. Let's be honest about it. I like the bonito a lot more (6.5/10).
Dessert was what our server called "Variation of strawberry" with fresh strawberry, strawberry marmalade and rhubarb puree. Very good if you don't mind lots of acidity (6.5/10).
Time for some petite fours and surprisingly there will be no macarons, marshmallows or jelly candy here. Instead they were offering us some waffle chips with walnut and pine nuts, and some handmade chocolates.
I just had a full plate of strawberry so the last thing I want was more acidity. But freshly made sorbet with seasonal fruit was just too good to turn down so I ended up having some passion fruit and grapefruit sorbet.
It was an experience of a life-time dining at Le Meurice where historic opulence meets contemporary chic. I thought the food was very good and the service and ambiance were second to none. We were glad we were able to cross this one off our to-do list.
Food Rating: 7.5/10
Price: €€€
Address: 228 Rue de Rivoli, 75001 Paris, France
Closest Metro Station: Tuileries
Tel: +33 (0)1 4458-1010
Website: www.dorchestercollection.com/en/paris/le-meurice
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