| Well, after trying for five years to obtain a reservation for this
wonderful restaurant, I finally succeeded, and this night was the night. We departed
the Ritz via cab, and the first mistake of the evening was that I naturally assumed that
the cab driver would know where Alain Ducasse was. He didn't. Fortunately
Janet had a guide book with her and we looked it up were lucky enough to find it and
were
able to show it to the cab driver. We stooped and picked up Heloisa, a client of
mine who was staying around the corner from us, and off we went. I had made reservations for four at Alain Ducasse. Other clients were going to come with us, or meet us in Paris to help in the selection of hardware for their home. At the last minute, the had to cancel. As I was meeting with Heloisa and her husband, I mentioned that I would be leaving on vacation and I doubted that work would get done on their home while I was away. They mentioned that they were also going to be on vacation as well. After a bit more discussion, we determined that we would be in Paris at the same time. Realizing that I had not canceled the extra two seats for Alain Ducasse, I told them that they didn't know how lucky thy were. The following day we learned that Nick would not be able to join us due to a previous engagement, but Heloisa was able to join us. |
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| entry, before the big event. |
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| looking up from the street, details over the entry |
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| just another view of the limestone carved entry |
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| long view up to the top. We entered, were immediately greeted and led to the lounge where I wanted to have the drink that the review had recommended. However, I didn't have a clue as to what the drink was. Of course I should have been more prepared, but I assumed that the bar tender would know, and of course he didn't. |
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| Me. Heloisa and Janet from left to right, after a wonderful meal. |
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| some detail shots of the art nuveau interior |
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| this detail was of particular interest to me. A decorative metal wrapped around the plaster column |
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| railing detail at the stair |
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| beautiful light fixture |
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| stained glass panels |
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| My impression of this Restaurant was disappointing. It wasn't that it was bad. Quite the contrary. It was wonderful. The principle of a Michelin stared restaurant obtaining the coveted third star is an indication that the restaurant had obtained perfection. This would not be the case from my perspective. It seemed as if we arrived properly and were greeted properly, but that gears did not mesh between patron and restaurant after that. When I was unable to describe the before dinner drink that I wished, it seemed that we were abandoned in the bar. We asked for our aperitif to be served to us I the bar instead of the main dining room, and that was agreed to without delay, hesitation nor argument. The first flaw appeared when only two napkins were presented instead of three. The food and sauces were tasty and quite exceptional. When we were finally attended to drink wise, and departed the lounge for the main third floor dining room, 45 minutes had passed. Once we were shown to our table, and we requested some further information about the meal selections, we were again abandoned. I asked inquired abut the possibility of an English menu. The waiter said "non" and promptly turned and departed. Perhaps about 20 minutes later, someone arrived and speedily went over the menu with us in English, explaining the words, the foods and the preparation for every single item on the menu, but in far to rapid a fashion. We ordered and were served a wonderful meal. After ordering our main courses, a desert menu was presented for our choices. Heloisa suggested that this was to allow proper time for preparation. The main course food presentation left quite a bit to be desired, although one could not fault the food itself in anyway as far as taste goes. The deserts were well presented and tasted fabulous. Upon leaving, the maitre'd presented us with their ritualistic bag of bread, and we accepted it in order to be polite, but we never ate it. The bread at Alain Ducasse was not special, but the ritual of giving departing guests a loaf of bread was a nice touch. My final conclusion was that I am glad that we finally had the pleasure of experiencing this fine establishment, leaving us with only three more three star Michelin Restaurants to go in Paris. If I had to rank Alain Ducasse and Lucas Carton, I'd put Lucas Carton on top in every category, from general atmosphere, to willingness to help to presentation of the courses, quality of food and in price. Alain Ducasse is far more expensive than Lucas Carton. I would rank them even on the appearance of the structure itself, both spaces are equally stunning. If you can only experience one Michelin three star in Paris, I do not recommend it be Alain Ducasse. From almost all of the reviews that I have read, it would seem that my opinion would not be the majority opinion. |
