Le Pre Catelan: Pleasant, If a Bit Overrated, French Country Dining (Paris Restaurant Review No. 3)

In our continuing quest to eat at Michelin 3-star restaurants, we chose Le Pre Catelan, which seemed like a typical old standard French experience. The location of this restaurant is wonderful. It is in the Bois de Boulogne, a beautiful, woodsy park on the outskirts of Paris. We arrived early, so were were able to take a nice walk, and saw many sleek Paris pigeons and other wildlife.

We got to the restaurant at 7:30, somewhat late by our standards, yet we were the first party there. Obviously the French are late evening diners, which would be a big problem for us on a regular basis. The captain was nice enough to us but he became so appalled when the customers sitting next to us dared to talk on their cellphone that he stormed off, never to be seen again. Ah, the French.

We started with a bottle of Chateau Petit Village wine, a Pomerol. Steve liked this a lot, but Lisa thought it a bit too tart. Our initial amuse bouche was a fish in a custardy, foamy presentation, which looked somewhat odd, but tasted very good. For appetizers, Steve had the tomatoes, which consisted of three types of that fruit, along with mozzarella. Some of the tomatoes were a bit tasteless, but overall the dish was ok. Lisa really liked her homard (lobster), which came in 3 parts (bisque, body and mousse), all of which were excellent.

Main courses were not so great. Steve had the lamb, which came with the typical lamb filet, but also came with such delicacies as the kidney and the brain. The brain even looked like a brain, but was very small, making one wonder how lamb get around. The filet was ok, but Steve disdained the kidney and brain (although Lisa's sister-in-law later told us brains are good). Lisa did not care for her langoustine (prawns). It tasted a bit fishy and one was somewhat overcooked.

The cheese course was the best part of the meal. All the cheeses were superb, however their identity will remain a mystery since no one explained that to us. The dessert was good. Lisa really liked the chocalate fondant, which had the right darkness for her tastes. Steve ordered the souffle, which came as a big green Christmas ornament-type ball, of pure sugar, with a custardy souffle inside. Steve thought this was a bit too sweet, but didn't dislike it.

The restrooms were very clean and had a good decor but they were a bit too small to garner a perfect rating.

The bucolic setting and nice decor of Le Pre Catelan make it a pleasant place to dine. However, for a price as steep as you pay for Michelin 3-star restaurants, Guy Savoy and Arpege were much better.

Dinner for two, with a bottle of wine, was about 700 Euros, and would have been about 600 with wine by the glass, which, as noted, we found a bit pricey for the quality.

Our ratings for Le Pre Catelan, Route Suresnes, Bois de Boulogne Paris:

7.5 of 10 Berets 2.5 of 3 Bathroom Brushes