Cucumber and Yoghurt Salad
What would you imagine if your rendez-vous was in front of a restaurant whose name is translated as “In the Passageway” (Au Passage) because its address is in an old passageway, and to top it off is described as ‘market cuisine, tapas bar, and wine bar’?
Honestly, when I arrived here it was one of those places I dared to enter only because those who recommended the place went with me, and because they like eating good food, and are quite demanding of it. If I were to describe the place and what I thought about it upon arrival, I am sure I would hear laughter that would echo in my head every time someone passed through here and read these lines.
Imagine a cafeteria or lunch place just besides a gas station on the highway which would lead you into the city of Chihuahua, Saltillo, or San Luis Potosí… or any other place in Mexico. I mean, they look clean, but they may not seem like the most hip places in town from the outside. And places looking like this -visually, that is- are abundant in my country as well as in many other countries in Latin America. But hey, I’m not saying it contemptuously, for one can go eat there, just as a passer-by, and be fully satisfied with a delicacy which originated from the region. As a matter of fact, as I write these lines, I’m remembering a place where we used to stop and buy sandwiches in bread similar to French baguettes but originally from Mexico, and which we call ‘tortas’. The place is located on a highway by my great grandmother’s hometown of Matehuala in the state of San Luis Potosí, if I recall correctly.
However, the difference with such places, and the one that I’m referring to in this post is that an English-native chef named Edward-Delling Williams is the person in charge of serving guests with what I dare to describe as an uncommon cuisine, if compared to the Parisian common denominator, since, in the middle of downtown Paris, one hears music, orders being called in English, and the guests laugh and share also in English one can identify as coming from all around the World more frequently than in French, but more specifically, a place where one can eat well, where from miles away one can see that regional products have been respected, and that they have been transformed into seasonal dishes their cooks feel proud of. Also, I have to emphasize that the prices are very decent; 35€ for a 6-course tasting menu is absolutely incredible, even more so when time has passed by and one is still capable of tasting the lamb from that evening.
Anyhow, I left the blog post unfinished. To my surprise, I opened the last number of a very popular and well-reputed gastronomy magazine and found not only a piece on Au Passage, but even some recipes from their Autumn menu. I wanted to go back. Therefore, it doesn’t matter if I am staying in my beloved City of Lights, or if I am there just as a passer-by, this is one of those places worth going to, even when reservations are unavailable, and one has to wait for a table to be free for the second service. Good food, and a good glass of wine will surely be served.
Address: 1 bis, Passage Saint-Sébastien 75011 Paris
Subway Station: Saint-Sébastien – Froissart
Phone: +33 (0) 1 7320 2323
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