You'd think it would be easy to find places serving food in Paris on a Friday night. Yes it was around 2230pm but that isn't late for any decent sized city. But in the 3rd arrondissement the pickings were slim as the places closed their kitchens. Everywhere that was open until 12 or 2 or 4 weren't serving anymore food. I'll admit to being a little picky considering nearly everywhere served exclusively meat dishes that sounded appealing.
In the end a corner restaurant that had a French menu with a few token smokers sitting outside was the last option and luckily it was a welcome re-introduction to Paris.
- Escargots x12 €14 - beautiful little creatures covered in garlic parsley butter and perfect to be absorbed by the slices of bread;
- Pan-roasted tuna steak (with coriander sauce, sweet potato puree) €18 - a fully-cooked but at least not overcooked seasoned fish with a healthy mash;
- Beef tartare 180g (with homemade French fries) €15 - the waiter had to check I knew it wasn't cooked. It was an interesting version with diced beef pieces mixed with onion and pickles, rather than the finer mince I'm more used to. Nonetheless nice and served with excellent fries;
- Crepe with sugar & lemon €4 - a simple sweet offering to finish.
It wasn't a place I wanted to go nor a place I would normally have picked. But it was open, serving food, French and a fine bistro meal to start.