Brion opened earlier this year to largely very positive reviews. I went this past week to see if the acclaim was justified. My report is here.
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I had an excellent dinner there last night and encourage you to go. My report is here.
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We had lunch yesterday at Brion.
TL/DR: this is that “hidden gem” Parisian bistro every American foodie hopes to find.
We each got the 3 Step 39E lunch menu. They also have a small a la carte menu with some additional choices.
It’s a nice room. It was a beautiful day, we got the table by the large open window (not shown, but ideal for both temperature and people watching). They had a few tables outside on the sidewalk as well, most but not all with some cover from the sun. By the end of lunch I’d say they were about half full.
The first course was an excellent eggplant-based tart with a parmesan cream, cucumbers and what seemed like a Spanish romesco sauce. It was a generous portion, not too rich, with all the elements of the dish balanced superbly.
We both got the fish for our main, nicely undercooked pan-fried trout, with baby new potatoes and a beurre blanc with just the perfect amount of smoked paprika. Up there with the best fish dishes we’ve had this spring.
In both cases, the whole of each dish was clearly greater than the sum of the parts. It’s very apparent that this is a talented chef.
Dessert was a nice financier-like cake with blackberries. Very enjoyable, and not too sweet, but not quite in the same league as the two savory dishes.
Forgot to note that I had two glasses of the “house” wine, one white, one red. Neither was remarkable, and each went well with the dish. What was remarkable for Paris is that they were only 6.50E each.
I described it as a bistro above, but Brion calls itself a restaurant. Still, it seemed to me more akin to (excellent) “bistronomie” than a “fine dining” restaurant, with fantastic qualité-prix to boot.
I can’t say it is in the same league as our new favorite, clearly deserving of a Michelin star Géméllus. But it is without doubt for us the second best onz’ “find” of our trip, and I’m already trying to figure out what to cancel so we can get back there once more before this year’s stay in Paris ends.
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We returned, along with our daughter, to Brion on a Monday evening for another excellent meal.
The pastrami-style bonito tuna, the veal tartare and the white asparagus and rice (sans trout eggs and sardines) starters were all very good.
The mains were even better. My wife loved her vegetable pithivier.
My daughter’s swordfish with peas and a pistachio beurre blanc was excellent.
I had the star dish of the evening: braised lamb shoulder with a fantastic Szechuan peppercorn glaze/sauce over garlic orzo. Just wow!
For dessert, we shared one very nice strawberry tartlet, with a mattcha-flavvored custard and almond ice cream.
I don’t remember my first glass of white wine. The glass of red went very well with the lamb.
IMO prices are very fair for this quality.
I’m almost as grateful to @onzieme for point us toward Brion as I am for his recommendation of Géméllus.
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Wow, drooling over here. Thanks for all your reports!
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