2007 December | Vegetarian Experiences in Paris

Monthly Archive for December, 2007

La Victoire, Suprême du Coeur. Vegetarian in the Marais

Published

on December 23, 2007

in 4th Arrindissement, French cuisine, Vegan Friendly, closed restaurant, restaurant and vegetarian-friendly

. 1 Comment

I came across this charming Marais restaurant while searching for a much needed Falafel dinner. While I didn’t have time that night to try this restaurant, it is at the top of my to-eat list. La Victoire has everything a vegetarian in Paris wants.

Their menu (.pdf) is filled with the French standards as well as creative veggie variations on the meat-filled plates filling every other restaurant in the city. The location is on a quiet street near Hôtel de Ville. It is bright, cheery, and full of great expectations.

The restaurant also has an air of vegan-superiority wit. Be sure to grab a few of their postcards on the way out. Your Meat Eating Friends will appreciate them.

Updated: Full review of La Victoire

I had a chance tonight to stop off at La Victoire. I was craving some soup and new this place would have a selection of vegetarian soups. There are some really great things about this restaurant. But there’s one downside that keeps me from giving it my full blessings.

I think the perfect vegetarian restaurant shouldn’t taste of compromises. The food should be super tasty, just without the animal products. For the most part, this restaurant succeeds. I had plenty of tasty bites. Unfortunately, this restaurant also slipped into this trap.

First off, the winners.

1. Free wifi – woo hoo! I am able to update this blog while sitting in the restaurant. I don’t have to worry about forgetting the flavors. It’s also quiet, comfortable, and restful.
2. Onion confit – Their sweet confit of onions is served with a mushroom terrine. It tastes like a marriage between lotus-flower honey and softly cooked onions. It outshined its compadre, the mushroom terrine, which was flavorful but had no texture.
3. Tarte chocolate with pralines - The chocolate part of this tart is great. It’s rich and satisfying. Unfortunately, the crust is a bit hard, in fact a chunk went flying off the table as I was trying to cut it. It also begs for some creme anglais. It’s still a tasty dessert that any chocolate lover will appreciate.

The losers

1. The bread: Why oh why in this city of amazing bread does a restaurant have to serve dry, whole-grained bread. There has to be a better recipe. This bread would have been great in New Mexico, but not Paris. This is the kind of compromise that makes your meat eating friends refuse to return. Give us some darn good bread that just happens to have whole grains.
2. Eggplant, tomato soup. It was good, warm, and filling. It just didn’t knock me out.

That’s not such a bad list. I will return to La Victoire. It’s in a great location in the Marais. It is affordable, the people are friendly, and they have a wonderful selection of food and drinks. It’s a small oasis of veggie goodness in the middle of Paris. Now, if they could only get some better bread.

Update – October 30, 2008 – Another visit

I decided to stop by tonight for some soup. I am happy to say they ditched the bread and replaced it with the standard “Poilane” slices. This is a big improvement. I also had a pumpkin/coconut milk soup (it was better than it sounds) and a Veggie burger with fries and a salad. The salad was salty, the fries were ok, but the veggie burger was great.

Update – January 12, 2010 – the restaurant has changed

Suprême du Coeur has changed. It is no longer a vegetarian/vegan restaurant. It now serves all types of French cuisine. Fortunately it still has some vegetarian options on the menu.

La Victoire, Suprême du Coeur: 27-31, rue de Bourg Tibourg, 75004; Metro: Hotel de Ville; 01 40 41 95 03

Overall: 4/5 stars/5
Location: 4.5/5
Taste: 4/5
Service: 4/5
Vegetarian Friendly: 5/5
Vegan Friendly: 5/5
M.E.F. Friendly: 3/5

Falafel Alley in the Marais

Published

Ted

on December 23, 2007

in 4th Arrindissement, Mediteranean, Vegan Friendly, popular and vegetarian-friendly

. 5 Comments

I grew up in Southern California with a taco shop on every other corner. The greasy, salty, fatty, cheesy peasant food coming from these brightly colored drive-throughs is a part of my being. I can resist the temptations for chocolate, sugar, coffee, and other normal binge-foods. But nothing can stop me when I crave sloppy, juicy, greasy peasant food.

Crepes, paninis, pomme frites, tartines … nothing in Paris has quenched this craving for me. One night I saught a new cure for this binge. I remembered seeing some falafel stands in the Marais and I was a man with a mission. How determined was I? I passed La Victoire, the perfect vegetarian restaurant without a second thought. I zipped by Jewish bakeries filled with tempting strudels, crepe stands, and the mother of all Jewish delis (only to find out later that they had incorporated a falafel window).

Finally I found eden: rue des Rosiers. I was surrounded by falafel stands with names that reminded me of my taco-shop heroes. I spun around trying to decide between super falafel, falafel king, falafelbertos, el falafelitos, las quatras falafitas… Well maybe I am stretching it a bit. However, there are a few supers” and “kings” on the street. I finally chose one because the cook was tapping on the window, waking me from my daze, and beckoning me in for a treat.

Big shoes to fill

Don’t get me wrong, but I am a jaded falafel eater. San Jose, California has the ultimate falafel experience. All things falafel must be compared to the The Falafel Drive-In’s sandwhich. The falafel balls are the star of the show. They are crisply fried, green and moist on the inside. They fill the pita and the veggies and pita are merely supporting actors. It is fast, friendly, packed, and you think about how good your lunch was for days.

The Verdict

That’s a hard standard to beat. How did Falafel Alley hold up? They are different. Satifying, tasty, vegan, comforting, messy, but different. You have to search for the falafel in this salad in a pita. You’ll get an overflowing pita pocket with some falafel balls, cabbage, roasted eggplant, tomatoes, tahini sauce, and more.

It actually comes full circle to my original taco-shop craving. San Diego burritos are simple. A vegetarian burrito has refried beans, rice, cheese, and maybe guacamole and/or sour cream. The beans are the standout, they are cheap, and filling.

I was shocked by the vegetarian burritos in the San Francisco Bay area. These behemoths can weigh several pounds. They are filled with everything you can imagine, no ingredient stands out, they cost a bit more, and they are too filling. They leave you distended and wishing you had left half of the burrito on the plate. But you stil look forward to the next one. (El Galope in East Palo Alto is by far the best taco shop in the world. Trust me!)

So, back to Falafel alley. Give this area a try if you are craving a hearty dinner on the go, miss the peasant food of your local area, don’t want to spend a fortune (6€), and are on or near the #1 line. Take the St. Paul exit and start meandering towards the center of the Marais.

Cocoon – a cozy vegetarian restaurant

Published

Ted

on December 15, 2007

in 17th Arrindissement, Vegan Friendly, popular, salad and vegetarian-friendly

. 0 Comments

This tiny restaurant hidden in the 17th arrindismont plays to the local lunch crowd. Just look for the small facade painted in an odd purplish hue with a line of anxious people out the door. There will equally be a stream of people leaving with bulging paper bags.

Cocoon is not your typical Parisian restaurant. It’s a throwback to the old cafeteria diners. Their menu is as small as their floorplan. You’ll walk in and see a display case of freshly made soups, drinks, and desserts. Grab what you like and make your way to the counter. There you will be greated by a friendly saladier who builds a unique salad to your desires. They also offer sandwhiches but everyone I saw had soup and salad.

To continue the small theme of this restaurant, your Meat Eating Friends can choose between tuna and tuna for their salads. Yes, this is a Vegetarian restaurant and that makes me happy. What’s even better? It’s cheap and just around the corner from my office.

Proximity is actually important for Cocoon as they have virtually no space to stay and eat. It’s also not easy to find. You’ll want to visit this place if you work or live in the 17th arrindissmont.

For lunch today, I had a very flavorful lentil soup, a small salad, perrier, and fromage blanc with raspberry confiture. This soup menu is 8,50 euros, tasted great, and is much healthier than most of the places in the area. Cocoon is open for lunch but don’t get there late. I arrived after 2 one day and they had already been cleaned out.

Cocoon: 3, rue Galvani (17°); 01.45.72.59.12; Pereirre; Fast and healthy

Overall: 4.5/5
Location: 3/5 stars
Taste: 4.5/5
Service: 4.5/5
Vegetarian Friendly: 5/5
Vegan Friendly: 5/5
M.E.F. Friendly: 1/5

Jonaki – a not-so vegetarian Indian restaurant

Published

Ted

on December 9, 2007

in 12th Arrindissement and Indian

. 0 Comments

You can always count on a good vegetarian selection at an Indian restaurant. Or so I thought. I visited onaki in the 12th arrindissmont. It was a cold rainy night and I wanted to get out and try something new. The sign drew me closer and the friendly staff brought me into this small establishment.

However, I was a bit disappointed in the menu. It was stacked with lamb, fish, and chicken. The vegetarian selections were the standard Paneer-based curries. Their fixed price menus included no vegetarian options. I’m sure they would be happy to provide a vegetarian dish on demand.

The lack of vegetarian options did not keep me from enjoying my meal. Here are some of the highpoints

Unique and very tasty chutney/sauces. The samosa entree came with a trio of side sauces. The standout was a tamarind and banana chutney. The pickled mango chutney tasted home-made.
Naan with cheese. When in Rome…. This restaurant delivers a naan stuffed with French cheese. While it was difficult to tear into chunks with one hand, it tasted great.
The service was very friendly and the restaurant is comfortable, cozy, and quiet. Several regulars stopped in during the night for their favorite dishes.

Location

This restaurant sits on a side street in the 12th arr. It’s not an easy place to find and probably not the location for a tourist. The closest metro is probably Daumesnil or Dugommier.

Jonaki Restauran Indienne: 8, rue de Wattignies 75012; Metro: Dugommier or Dugomier; 01 43 46 96 62

Overall: 3.5/5
Vegetarian Options: 2/5
Vegan Options: 2/5
Value: 3/5
Location: 2/5

Meat Eating Friends

Published

Ted

on December 9, 2007

in Meat Eating Friends

. 1 Comment

Dining in Paris is a social event. While we enjoy going to vegetarian restaurants; we also need to find restaurants that make our Meat Eating Friends (MEF) comfortable. This could be a restaurant that has vegetarian and non-vegetarian options. It could be an ethnic restaurant that provides a wide spectrum of non-meat items that the MEF’s forget nothing died for their meal.