À La Biche au Bois

It is quite possible to become a victim of media like TripAdvisor or Eater. This is, no doubt, a temple of simple but delicious French traditional food; the coq au vin, the andouillettes, escargots..., I could go on. And it's thoroughly good at À la Biche. But with international fame come the challenges: "all the world" want to experience the genuine French food and the atmosphere of the place. And suddenly, the servers find themselves explaining the most obvious facts to a clientele who don't know what an "andouillette" is, ("you problably won't like it"), "gesiers", "ile flottante"... I could go on. There's nothing wrong with that. But even the most patient staff will eventually be influenced by having the role of an "instructor". The result? The rhythm and speed of the meal increase, you feel rushed when you should feel relaxed, and the dishes are served as speedily as possible ( perhaps to clear your table for the next guests?) These are the consequences of becoming a part of the tourist industry. Lovely coq au vin, and very nice staff, but when I wanted to finish my red wine before ordering the dessert, I was asked three times by three different servers if I was ready to order. So I ordered my ile flottante, ate it, paid and cleared the table. I believe it's the curse of TripAdvisor and others. A pity, for it is a nice place, you know.

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This is an unassuming little bistro in a working class area of Paris that delivers a truly enjoyable dining experience. We were able to get seating without reservations at around 7 pm but the place was packed within an hour. The owner, Bertrand, is a very congenial host and makes an effort to chat with guests at all of the tables. Wife had the coq au vin and I the veal shoulder in a vegetable- type stew. Both were served in simple small crock pots without fanfare but were remarkably delicious. The red wine recommended by our waiter paired very well with the meal. Our two kids, 12 and 8, devoured their fillet of salmon with frites. Creme brulee for dessert was also excellent. The bill came to 115 euros which is very good value for this type of meal.

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We have been looking for a nice restaurant in paris to enjoy a lovely meal but these were hard to find. Untill we found this place where we enjoyed one of the little good dinners during our stay in Paris. The staff was very helpfull and enthousiastic. The dinner was good for a reasonable price, although we found the fries to be a bit soft to our liking. When we ordered a medium steak it first came back a bit on the rare side. This was immediately noticed by our waiter who suggested to send it back to the kitchen to cook it a little bit further. The dessert was also tasty. We also enjoyed a free glass of wine as suggested by our waiter.

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We happened to stubble across this cute little restaurant whilst looking for somewhere to eat near the train station. We arrived at 7 having not booked a table so were lucky to get a table as it soon got very busy! €32ish euros for a 3 course meal and cheeseboard meant we were veeeery full by the end of it! The service was great and the staff made excellent recommendations. We had the snails as a started which were incredible!We had a table outside at the end of a very hot day so was nice to sit in the cool evening air!Ultimately a very nice place with LOADS of food for the money!

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So, I left the restaurant 3 minutes ago and I am back in my hotel. I consider myself well travelled and a lover of food and good service. Words cannot express the delight I have just encountered. Food delicious and plentiful, atmosphere Parisian and warm, service absolutely 100% second to none....... when I return to Paris this will be the reason!!!!!!

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