Eugène

166, boulevard Haussmann
75008 Paris

Phone: 01.42.89.00.13

Metro Station: Miromesnil (Line 9)

Type of cuisine: French

Days & hours of operation: Mon to Sat Noon – 2:30 p.m. and 7:15 p.m. – 10:30 p.m.

Credit card: Visa, MasterCard, Amex

Located near the Musée Jacquemart-André on boulevard Haussmann, the restaurant Eugène lies off the tourist circuit.  We recently dined here after attending the opening of an art exhibit at a nearby gallery.  We made reservations through lafourchette.com, a service that often proposes a 50% discount off the price of the à la carte dishes (excluding beverages).  We have used this reservation service before—it has led us to some interesting restaurants that we would normally be unaware of.

The restaurant has an eclectic, kitschy look, with theatrical, floor-to-ceiling, dark bronze and red-orange curtains; platinum-colored, velour-covered walls, chairs, and benches; and paintings on the walls representing the Earth and other subjects.  Rhythmic music played over the sound system.  This is clearly a restaurant that endeavors to create a trendy ambiance for dining.

As he seated us, the waiter asked if we wanted to consult the English menu.

For the starter, I ordered Pata Negra et tartines de tomates fraîches et confites.  The dish consisted of thin slices of Iberico ham from the black pig, tender and chewy and not overly fatty or salty.  It was served with two tartines, slices of toast spread with savory, chopped tomato.  As I rarely order pata negra, an expensive cured meat, I was pleased to receive a generous portion.

My partner forewent the starter and ordered a main:  Filet de bœuf Charolais, os à moelle, sauce morilles, gratin dauphinois. She requested green beans in lieu of the side dish of gratin potatoes, fearing that the meat, moëlle, and potatoes would leave her too satiated for dessert.  She was quite pleased with her serving of Charolais beef, cooked medium-rare and served in a sauce of morel mushrooms.  The beef was served with a generous cut of bone containing marrow sprinkled with coarse salt.  Bone marrow, fatty and filling, is considered a delicacy in France.  Served in this restaurant, it was quite appetizing!

As a wine accompaniment to the meal, my partner ordered a glass of Pic Saint-Loup Château Hortus 2007, from the Languedoc-Roussillon region of France.

I spotted Sole Petit Bateau, légumes verts on the menu and selected that as my main course.  I received a grilled flatfish “Petit Bateau,” meaning that it was caught using a small boat, rather than a large one.  This apparently attests to the quality of the fish.  Whatever the case, the grilled fish was served largely deboned with a slice of lemon.  It was tender and delicious.  Alongside was a small bowl containing the same extra-fine, butter-flavored, green beans that my partner received.  They were perfectly cooked and firm to the bite.

For my wine accompaniment, I selected a glass of Brouilly Château de Toures 2008.  This medium-bodied red wine went well with the pata negra, but was not appropriate for the fish.

Ciabattina bread rolls were served alongside in a bread dish.

The dessert menu was particularly tempting.  My partner chose the Mi-cuit chocolat noir extra Guanaja, corolle de glace confiture de lait. Of the two desserts that we ordered, she got the better deal!  Hers was a two-part dessert, while mine was only one.  On the left of a long, narrow serving dish was an intensely-flavored, warm chocolate cake with a melted center, sitting in a pond of crème anglaise.  On the right was a corolla-shaped, thin butter cookie supporting a scoop of sweet, condensed-milk-flavored ice cream.  Lovely!

I requested the Cheese cake, coulis de framboise.  The disc-shaped cheese cake, encircled with raspberry sauce, was about 4” in diameter and 1” thick, one-half of which was pressed graham-cracker crust.  The top portion of the cake was quite moist—not crumbly like some American-style cheese cakes.  It tasted similar to New York cheese cakes that I have eaten.  A winner!

The bill for two persons, including two apéritifs, one starter, two main dishes, two desserts, and two glasses of wine came to 87€ after the discount.

The service was attentive and friendly.  There were only two servers—the bartender and a waiter—to handle a large room that was half-full of customers.  We heard a lot of English spoken at the tables.  At the end of the evening, we were quite satisfied with the food and service!

The dining room was rather noisy.  One customer at a table of four next to the bar continually burst out in raucous laughter. Fortunately for us, she was not seated nearby!   The restaurant bills itself as a trendy establishment; perhaps for that reason, it attracts the type of customers who like to relax, talk loudly, and have a good time.

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.