Paris - L'Ecurie

L' Ecurie
2, Rue Laplace
75005 Paris, France



Having read about this little hole-in-the-wall, we were on a mission to find what was reputed to be a not-to-be-missed spot for a real French menu. The first thing we see is the proprietor, chain smoking outside dressed in an old sweatshirt and ripped jeans.



Literally around the corner from the Pantheon, and in the university district, to my extreme pleasure I discover that this was a place where I had eaten once before: in 2004 a friend who had been to the Sorbonne showed me around Paris, and we had lunched here then.



The blackboard of specials probably hasn't changed in decades, but then it seems that neither has the price.






The menu is simple and looks as if it's been coloured in by a 4 year old. Maybe it was?



What we're after is the super gambas - reputed to be every bit as super as it claims to be. Easily the most expensive item on the menu at €20, most mains cost around €6-7, and entrees around €3.



Beef seems to be the speciality of the house.



Along with bottled wine, house wine is served in jugs for €8. Remembering it to be quaffable in my poorer days as a student, we decide to give it a go.



Delicious young table wine with crusty bread- lunch of the everyman.



Augmented by a slab of farmhouse pate. I had ordered the blackboard house set menu - three courses for €11.50 - now that's a bargain!



Steak frites for €10.90, but for 60 cents more we were offered two more courses.



The chain-smoking owner served us, while his business partner manned the small kitchen located right at the entrance to the small store.

Having first waved us indoors, we asked if we could sit on one of the two small trestle tables outside. Being February, and still rather chilly, the man shrugged and made a noise somewhere between disbelief, acceptance and the disclaimer that our health was in our own hands.



The aioli joins the bread.



Sitting outside the restaurant, we are literally a stone's throw from the Pantheon.



My steak frites arrives. Rather than a cheap cut of meat, as would befit a cheap set lunch menu, and certainly what one would expect from any restaurant in the UK, I was served a beautifully thick piece of entrecote, rib eye, grilled on the surface and bloody and rare on the inside - exactly how I specified it. The frites were hot and crispy, and didn't need the rich and garlicky aioli - but that didn't stop me.




A's super gambas was every bit as good as reputed: the prawns were enormous, but aside from the generous serving they were also incredibly delicious. Fresh as can be, the prawns were grilled hot and fast so that the shells crisped and became crunchy. Just below the surface was trapped mouthfulls of rich juices augmented by sweet aromas of garlic and savoury smells of the sea. Served simply with a half lemon and three halves of grilled tomato, the prawns outshone my almost-perfect steak. Even the tomatoes were incredibly flavourful, well seasoned, and a superb palate cleanser.



The final course of my set menu was a rather large creme caramel. Not perfect, it was still smooth and soft, with a sweet caramel sauce.



On a quick trip indoors we snapped off a couple of photos. Although small, the place was full of what looked like regulars. From our vantage point outside, we could see customers arriving in twos and threes, pay the outside decor and menus nary a glance and duck into the dark interiors. Obviously regulars!



Dark and full of little corners, the restaurant is relaxed and intimate.



The grill where our meal was made. Simple and small, the skill and speed at which our courses came was surprising given the constraints.



Odd decorating motifs in the window.



The very friendly proprietor, who did not speak English, had bustled over us for the duration of lunch, checking that everything was ok, and bringing everything with a proud flourish. He did all of this in between chain smoking cigarette after cigarette outside the restaurant.

After desserts were cleared, he returned with two generous glasses of calvados, apple brandy, and presented them to us with a slightly embarrassed smile saying "for the cold".



The damage: a set menu and a super gambas came to just over €40. An absolute steal given the quality of the food and the absolutely lovely service.