5 Comments November 13, 2010
L’Astrance
4 rue Beethoven, Paris, France
I’d always considered French cuisine to be stagnant and unchanging: thick mother sauces blanketing filets of meat and fish with fancy adornments. It was when I actually lived here for a few years that I discovered the new wave of French cuisine led by garden fresh vegetables and lighter preparations. Mother sauces were on vacation.
L’Arpège quickly became the restaurant spearheading Paris’s back-to-the-garden movement. L’Astrance peaked my interest when I heard of the restaurant’s compulsiveness for fresh vegetables combined with its ability to integrate elements of molecular gastronomy: spherification, foams, and non-traditional flavor extractions made this menu really exciting. Here was a young and extremely talented chef, Pascal Barbot, who went from one Michelin star to three in just under seven years.

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This is easily the most thoughtful review of Alinea that I've encountered--thanks a lot! While I still made a reservation to dine at Alinea a few weeks from now, I did it with far more hesitation due to some of the shortcomings you noted.
Hi, I'm a chef-in-training and I find your blog really amazing!! Really helps me to push me on to where these guys are!! Thanks and I hope to see more!! BTW, Mongo-Ika is cuttlefish as oppose to squid so you may wanna try that.
Drooling OMG
Hi Josy -- So glad you found it. Sounds like you had a nice lunch! Were the coordinates correct?