20, rue Henry Monnier
75009 Paris
Phone: 01.40.16.41.77
Metro Station: Saint-Georges (Line 12)
Type of cuisine: French
Days & hours of operation: Mon Noon – 2:30 p.m. Tues to Thurs Noon – 2:30 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. – 11:00 p.m. Fri Noon – 2:30 p.m. and 7:00 p.m. – 11:00 p.m. Sat 7:30 p.m. – 11:00 p.m.
Credit card: Visa, MasterCard
This establishment calls itself a cave à manger, which we would roughly translate as “a wine bar that serves food.” Whatever one chooses to call it—a wire bar or a restaurant—we were delighted to dine there on a recent Saturday evening.
The chalkboard displays a single plat du jour for 16€, as well as a variety of verrines from 3.50€ to 4€ and terrines from 6.50€ to 8.50€. A cheese plate is listed for 8.50€ and a plate of charcuterie for 13€. As for the wines, there is a limited selection by the glass and a greater selection of wines by the bottle at take-out prices. The customer may select a bottle of wine from the cave’s display shelves to drink with a sit-down meal—prices are clearly indicated beneath each bottle. In the event that the customer does not finish the bottle during the meal, a 7€ corkage fee is added to the take-out price.
For the starter, we decided to order a verrine of the Caviar d’aubergines and a Terrine d’asperges, and to share the dishes between us. The eggplant “caviar” was smooth, spicy, and quite flavorful. It also contained a lot of garlic! We spread this on warm, homemade rolls that were served alongside. The Terrine d’asperges was a thick slice of chopped green and white asparagus that had been bound in aspic. There was no stringiness that is usually associated with the vegetable—it was so tender that it seemed to melt in the mouth! It was accompanied by a lightly-dressed, mixed-green salad.
For the main course, we each ordered the plat du jour: roast veal with wild rice, carrots, and broccoli. Two tender, thin slices of veal were served in a shallow pool of gravy. Alongside was a mound of perfectly cooked, moist and savory white rice, into which had been mixed wild rice. (In France, when a menu indicates wild rice, this generally means that the serving will be white rice flavored with wild rice.) Carrots, broccoli, and mushrooms garnished the plate. My partner declared that the broccoli was a tad overcooked, but this did not dampen her enjoyment of the dish.
We chose a bottle of Domaine Montvac – Arabesque – 2006 to accompany our meal, a dark ruby red wine from a region called Vacqueyras. We found it spicy, low in tannins, round, and assertive. We enjoyed it so much that we finished it off, thereby avoiding the 7€ corking fee!
For dessert, I ordered the Nougat glacé, a frozen dessert containing nuts and candied fruits. The cylinder-shaped confection sat in a pond of strawberry sauce, and was garnished with thin slices of dark and white chocolate. If one needed a reason to live forever and ever in Paris, this delicious dessert would be it!
My partner decided upon the Tarte au citron meringuée. Upon tasting it, she declared that the filling was not the stiff, gelatinous kind that one often finds in restaurants, but rather the pale-yellow, slightly runny kind that makes you think of your grandma’s lemon pie. A triangle of nut-studded dark chocolate and a triangle of white chocolate peppered with morsels of candied fruit accompanied this refreshing dessert.
The bill for two, including one verrine, one terrine, two plats du jour, two desserts, and one bottle of wine came to 77.40€.
Le Rhône en Bouche is a delightful spot for informal dining! All of the dishes served here (except the cheese plate and the charcuterie) are homemade.
Tom Reeves has been a confirmed Francophile since he first traveled to France in 1975. A native of northern California, he moved to France permanently in 1992. Reeves’ love of French language and culture inspired him to create Discover Paris!, a travel planning service that caters to Americans interested in cultural travel to Paris. His book, Paris Insights – An Anthology, has been called “the kind of insider’s view of the French capital…that first or even second time visitors pine for.” He publishes a monthly newsletter entitled Paris Insights about history, culture, and contemporary life in the City of Light, and posts daily information about the French capital on Facebook.
