(clockwise from top left: œuf cocotte aux morilles et écrevisses; gigot d'agneau de lait rôti, pommes boulangères à notre façon; soufflé Williamine, sorbet poire; and Quenelle et écrevisses)
I made a reservation here at noon to attempt to fit in as many meals I could in a day (including tea at Ladureé) and then thought to myself: the restaurant's going to KNOW I'm a tourist - who on earth in Paris eats lunch that early?!
So I was much relieved when I arrived at noon and the restaurant was already half full, and they were turning away people without reservations.
It is perhaps unsurprising that Aux Lyonnais is such a successful venture. Lyon is widely considered to be the heart of gastronomy in France and Aux Lyonnais serves hearty bistro (or bouchon) food with the subtlety and excellent usage of seasonal produce representative of Lyonnais cuisine.
First of all, some advice - skip the menu du jour. My friend had this and spent the entire meal wishing she had ordered à la carte. The menu isn't bad at all and for 3 courses at 28 euros represents fairly good value. BUT there are extremely alluring options on the à la carte and if like me, you don't live in Paris and only get to go once in a long while, then eat at McDonald's for dinner if you have to, but order from the à la carte!!
To illustrate, my friend had for her starter, as part of the menu, salade de groin d'âne, œuf mollet in other words a caesar salad of sorts with bacon and poached egg, which was delicious (I'm a sucker for anything with poached eggs) but rather uninspiring. I had the œuf cocotte (also poached egg in a steamed custard like mix with morels (as you can see from my other writeups on this trip to Paris, morels were in season so they popped up absolutely everywhere) and crayfish tails - which was the best œuf cocotte I had this trip - smooth, oozing, full of the sweetness of crayfish. And when my friend tried some she swore she was going to have it the next time. Even the next table were impressed.
Mains too did not disappoint - lamb was tasty and moist complemented by little baked slices of potato and toppings, and the crayfish and quenelles (a sort of dumpling) from the menu was new to us.
As for dessert, the pear souffle I had was enormous. I know it doesn't quite show up in the picture but I've never had a souffle that huge. And while I'm not crazy about souffles, they are really magical things - kinda just one grade down from xiaolongbaos! I suppose it's the impermanence of the souffle... and anything with lots of air always seems like fun (like the current worldwide culinary obsession with froth). And the size! Things that are unusually big or tiny are always so endearing. As for my friend's rice pudding with red fruits - I'm incredibly biased towards "rice pudding" so I didn't try it but she did say it wasn't bad just a little too ordinary.
Anyway, I had lots of fun at Aux Lyonnais. Even after many other delicious meals, I remain convinced I'll be back the next time I go to Paris. And while this might be one of Alain Ducasse's restaurants, you won't have to pay through the nose for the privilege. We didn't have wine, but my share of the meal (including water and service) came up to just under 60 euros... well worth it considering how warm and fuzzy I was upon leaving the restaurant!
____________________
Aux Lyonnais
32 rue Saint-Marc
Paris75002
Tel: +33 (0)1 42 96 65 04
Métro: Bourse
___________________
