Arpege in Paris: Who Knew Vegetables Could Be Good (Paris Restaurant Review No. 2)

Our goal in Paris was to go to as many three Michelin star restaurants as possible. Unfortunately, some of the ones we really wanted to go to, including Napoleon's favorite, were closed for summer vacation (those lazy, crazy French). So we had limited choices. One of the those was Arpege, which we approached with some trepidation since its calling card is its chef's love for vegetables (love and vegetables are not usually spoken in the same breath by either Steve or Lisa). However, it turned out that Michelin was right.

We started with L'Eglise Pomerol. One wonders why a wine would be named after a church, but in any event we both liked it a lot. Our amuse bouche was a wonderful egg custard which even Lisa, who usually doesn't like the texture of custard or taste of eggs, liked.

We didn't know what to order, so we ordered the tasting menu. This started with a tomato consumme with some sort of creme fraiche, which Steve liked, but he did not like the rest. Lisa liked this dish. Next we had the lobster appetizer. Lisa thought it a bit sweet but overall liked it. Steve absolutely loved it, particularly the fresh taste of the lobster. Next came an onion tartin which Steve again loved. Lisa is not really an onion person, so she was not all that impressed. Then we had a vegetable course, with many colors of veggies. We both thought that for veggies this tasted excellent (although we still will not become veggie eaters any time soon). The fish course was an outstanding turbot. Normally our fish likes are limited to salmon, shrimp and tuna, but this turbot was so tasty, particularly with the excellent sauce, that we could have eaten two or three. The poultry course was not quite as exciting. Steve liked it enough but Lisa thought the sauce was again a bit too sweet.

The cheeses were absolutely tremendous. Too bad we don't remeber what they were, but we can assure you they were unbelievable. Dessert was an apple tart with caramel. Lisa really liked this, but Steve, as usual, thought there was not enough caramel. Lisa did, however, really like the accompanying Spearmint ice cream. Steve was disappointed in that too.

The bathrooms were immaculate and quaint. They were, however, a bit small, which prevented a perfect rating.

Arpege is definitely not cheap. However, it is such a pleasant experience that if you are searching for something a bit out of the ordinary (if you want more mainstream go to Guy Savoy, our choice for best restaurant ever - see Review No, 1), this is a must try, and if you like veggies, all the better. Dinner for two with a bottle of wine was a mere 800 euros ($1,200 bucks, but who's counting) and would have been "only" about 650 euros with wine by the glass.

Our ratings for Arpege, 84 Rue Varenne, Paris:

9 of 10 Vegetable Skewers 2.5 of 3 Bathroom Brushes