Hey onz, nice write up and photos. I’m so glad you liked this place as much as we do. I wish I had time on this trip to go back there again.
No thanksgiving dinner for you last night? I remember when we lived in Paris long long ago we found a small store that specialized in selling American food and brands I tried to make an abbreviated thanksgiving dinner in our tiny apartment. I did get their canned (!) corn tortillas and made enchiladas a few times.
There was actually a place in the Marais, on Rue St Paul I think, called Thanksgiving, that sold American dry goods and groceries & brought in holiday food during… well, Thanksgiving. Probably 10 years or so ago.
I remember a place like that on rue de Grenelle - long long ago. You could buy corn flakes and peanut butter, etc… Sometimes the woman who ran the store made a pan of brownies. I went in on such a day and bought one and asked if she could cut me an “interior” piece. She showed mock exasperation and told me that every American who bought a brownie told her exactly where they wanted their piece to come from! I told her “C’est normal”!
I was down in Burgundy tasting fantastic wines from a great vintage. I had a nice, if simple, lunch in Nuits-Saint-Georges:
I googled that place because the name and location seemed right but it’s only been open since 1990’s and I’m talking about a long time ago-1977! We had a studio apartment on Rue Des Ecoles and walking across to the 4th sounds like the right location. Maybe a precursor to our spot.
I remember doubling over after seeing the prices of ordinary US packaged goods at Thanksgiving, particularly seasonal “necessities” like canned cranberries and pumpkin.
Thanks for the report - looks great. We’re staying on Rue Marcadet in a couple weeks. Hope they’re open sometime that holiday week.
Le 975 was a mostly pleasant 2km walk from our digs in Saint-Ouen, lengthened by a bit of exploration in an area previously unfamiliar to us (worthwhile nearby destinations include Alba Coffee Roasters, the Atelier P1 bakery, and the well-designed urban park in Square LĂ©on Serpollet). We went for the bargain lunch.
We normally try to have different things, so as to taste more dishes, but this time, it seemed best to go for our identical preferences: the squid, the hachis parmentier, and the clafoutis. I don’t have a photo of the wines by the glass, so I don’t remember if there was a list or just some suggestions. This is what I had, which I enjoyed (price was probably 7-8€):
This dish was visually stunning, and while it tasted good and the ingredients went together well, I felt the squid and rice part could have used something more to perk it up: a bit of spice, or maybe just more salt. There was a nice tanginess to the ume sauce, but nothing unexpected from the avocado mousseline.
There is no way to make this dish photogenic, so I chose a snap that caught some of the construction. Hachis parmentier is basically shepherd’s pie, and it can range from stodgy to comforting. This was definitely comforting, but went beyond that. It was really good. The vegetables were crisp-tender, the salad well-dressed and manageable, the potato purée tasty on its own, and beneath was a generous amount of duck morsels, properly sized and well-seasoned. I would have been happy with this dish and a glass of wine for the 25€ menu cost.
Clafoutis is a classic French dessert, and cherries were in season. It is easy to make (I make it, even) and can be served warm or cold. I have had it on bargain menus before, and expected a wedge or block cut from a larger round or pan. Nope.
An individual tart (with a thin crispy crust), and coulis also! The tarragon sorbet was barely sweet, and I could taste both almond and vanilla in the clafoutis batter. The cherries were pitted. This was a terrific dessert.
Bread was good here, as it was everywhere we ate (not always our experience, even in Paris), so I am not going to mention it each time. Service was very friendly. They did take a few walk-ins after our 12pm arrival, but the place was full when we left, not surprisingly. Despite my minor criticisms of the entrée, the whole experience was well worth the price, and I would travel from elsewhere in the city to eat here again. I would also be intrigued to try their 59€ five-course dinner formule, or à la carte.
I’m so glad somebody tried this place that I’ve been a loyal fan of since 2018. Thanks so much for your write-up with photos, @plragde!
