[Paris, 11e] Clamato

Clamato is the sister restaurant to the very popular Septime (which is also next door to it). I couldn’t score reservations to Septime for this trip, so I walked into Clamato for a late lunch on a Sunday afternoon. Clamato does not take reservations and the day I went there were a few seats available.

Menu
Seafood focused.

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Bread
Really good bread with a moist crumb, reminded me a bit of the country loaf from Tartine in SF.

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Rillette de Maquereau (€7)

Kind of tasted like a tuna salad with mayonnaise, only with mackerel. A good amount of parsley in there as well. Fine but not very special. I spread some on the bread.


Huitre Belle de Code de Quiberon N°4 par 6 (€22)

A half dozen oysters (pic of 1). Expensive at nearly €4 an oyster. Good and briny. They didn’t sever the adductor muscle on the bottom of the oysters though, not sure how normal that is in France.


Asperge Blanche des Landes, Merlan Fume, Sauce Gribiche (€14)

White asparagus, smoked eel, gribiche sauce. Gribiche sauce was like a cold mayo and hard boiled egg sauce, kind of like a tartar sauce. This was delicious. The pieces of off white smoked eel kind of blended in with the chunks of white asparagus, and had a good salty smoky flavor that worked well with the delicate white asparagus.

Service was very friendly.

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That’s completely normal in France. They want the oyster to stay alive, so it gets to you as fresh as possible.

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I remembered participating in the finding a name for “Clamato” when dinning in Septime years ago, of course my suggestions weren’t used!

As for the oyster muscle, places I went, they them have severed the top, sometimes the bottom too. We ate at some market places, they knew we would eat right away, and the bottom were severed. At home, both.

I’ve eaten oysters all over Paris, in Brittany, in Normandy and I was never served oysters that had been severed from the bottom shell.

Interesting, maybe it depends on the restaurant, shucker, and/or the type of oyster. I’m guessing it may also depend on whether the restaurant shucks to order or if they do it a bit in advance. These were apparently Belle de Corde oysters from Brittany. In the US when I get oysters they are usually severed on the bottom (and sometimes flipped over), though I’ve definitely been to some places where they are left intact as well.

Do you recommend the restaurant? Does it live up to your expectations?

Yes, I liked it! Though I probably wouldn’t order the rilletes again. Also as a disclaimer I had just gotten into town from a 11 hour or so flight so I was pretty jet lagged. Have you been? I’m curious how it compares to Septime or if they are completely different.

Unfortunately I haven’t been to Clamato, Septime is more fine dining with a certain experimentation, while Clamato looks more causal and good seafood.

Yes, I liked it! Though I probably wouldn’t order the rilletes again. Also as a disclaimer I had just gotten into town from a 11 hour or so flight so I was pretty jet lagged.

But 2 meals review already! Hope you will get better tomorrow!

Ah, that makes sense. Clamato does seems like a more casual seafood bar.

Thanks - my trip was actually last week though, am back in the US now. Off topic a bit but I think it’s probably a good idea to take it easy with respect to food for the first couple or so days in Europe coming from California.

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I always take the more serious or refined meal towards the end of the stay in each city. If I have the best meal on day 1, every meal I took afterwards could be a disappointment.

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As this question continued through several posts, my interpretation was that it shows the client that the product is entirely correct, not some pre-shucked pretender presented in a shell .

At the time I wrote that, it was correct. But since then we have eaten twice at Istr, in the 3rd, and there the oysters were served in the shell, but had been severed from the shell.