Bham -- New French Place?

Question

Anyone tried the new French restaurant in Lakeview? I called today and they have started serving dinner (they started out just with lunch), but don't have their liquor license yet, there was some problem and they had to reapply. Wondered if anyone had tried it yet.

Answer

Sorry - didn't see this thread at first. I just posted a lengthy review in the thread titled "Cafe de Paris in Birmingham" - here's a link to that thread: http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/590367

Answer

My wife and I had an early (5:30) dinner at Cafe de Paris last night and, for the most part, were very pleased with the food. It was also the first night that they had their liquor license. We had been told when we made our reservation that we could bring our own wine and there would not be a corkage charge, and they honored that commitment without even bringing it up -- a good start. The amuse bouche sounds like what Dax was served at lunch, except no roe on top. It was quite tasty, and we got 3 apiece, which seemed overly generous if you'd like people to order an appetizer too. We decided on separate appetizers. My wife opted for the seafood-stuffed pastry, and she had nothing but praise for it. I, on the other hand, ordered the only disappointment of the meal, described as "Salad of Crab and Avocado -- Crab Meat, with Diced Avocado, Peppers and Diced Tomatoes." What it turned out to be was a handful of mixed greens with a light vinaigrette dressing, a single wedge of tomato, no peppers, no crab meat and two light pastry cones, each about 6" long and 1" in diameter at the open end that appeared to be made from crepes. Each was filled with a creamy substance with very little flavor to it at all. It was almost as if someone had forgotten what the dish was supposed to be. Things definitely changed for the better when our entrees arrived. They, and the accompanying sides were absolutely delicious. My wife ordered the Mediterranean style snapper, which turned out to be two nice size fillets served in a sandwich arrangement with ratatouille-style vegetables in the middle and on top. For sides, she ordered the rice pilaf and the braised cabbage. I chose the Atlantic grilled mahi-mahi, which was not grilled (the server pointed that out when I asked how the dish was finished), but was lightly coated in bread crumbs and pan sauteed. It was a generous portion, and was served much like my wife's snapper, two pieces of fish with ratatouille-style vegetables in the middle and on top. This was just fine with me. I ordered the same sides as she did. Now, you should know that I am a big fan of all kinds of fish, as long as it is fresh, but my wife is quite partial to shellfish, and doesn't order fin-fish that often. Be that as it may, we each spent the rest of the meal commenting on how much we loved our entrees, both agreeing we would order the same thing again in a heartbeat. The sides were also excellent, with a combination of spices in the flavoring in each case that was somewhat unusual to our tastes, but which we both really liked. For dessert, we decided to split a piece of "bread pudding." I put that in quotes because it was like no bread pudding we ever had in New Orleans (and we've had lots there), nor anywhere else for that matter. It was, however, very good and of a size that made it nice for sharing. The bill, including two cups of coffee, but no liquor, came to about $78 before tax and tip, which we thought quite reasonable for the quality and quantity of food we had received. As to service, I would say it was adequate, but nothing super. We did, however, observe a young man waiting on a few tables near ours, and were extremely impressed with his manner, his knowledge of the menu, his willingness to make suggestions, etc. Next time we go there (and there will be a next time soon), we will definitely try to get him as our waiter. One more comment, and that is on the restaurant's popularity. The space (formerly occupied by Los Angeles restaurant) is not small, but by the time we left at about 7:30, it was pretty much full. We happened to drive by there this morning about noon, and it seemed to be almost 3/4 full for brunch. If you're planning on going, therefore, you want to be sure to make a reservation. It looks like this could become one very popular place.

Answer

I visited Cafe de Paris for lunch a couple of weeks ago. They had just gotten their liquor license but I like to drink wine usually and was disappointed with the lack of a wine list. All they had were house wines. The server told me that they are working on getting more wines in so I am am anxious to go back once they do because I loved the food. I couldn't believe how much food I got for $10, actually. I got the pan-seared salmon with a lemon-dill cream sauce. The sides change daily and I got the potatoes and the sauteed vegetables. It was all very delicious. They use whatever veggies they can find fresh and saute them in olive oil and rosemary and they were perfect, not overdone. I also loved the amuse-bouche, which was a wheat toast with a paprika mousse topped with a sliver of smoked salmon and a black olive. I never got to try the bread because it was not ready while I was there and he brought me the amuse-bouche after I had already gotten my entree, but that was no big deal. The server was helpful (I ask a lot of questions at new places just to see what they are about and how knowledgeable the staff is) although he was new and he informed me that they were short-staffed. The restaurant filled up quickly at lunch but the owner still found time to come by my table and talk to me. He seemed very nice and we spoke a little French with each other. I am very anxious to go back for dinner when they have more wines and try some dessert too!

Answer

I recently attended Cafe de Paris for dinner with my husband and my sister, who was visiting from out of state. It was absolutely the worst dining experience any of us have ever had! The food was okay, but I've definitely had better. We ordered the pyramid de crab as an appetizer. It was cold, flavorless and was barely enough to feed one person. As entrees, we chose the mahi-mahi, sole, and beef tenderloin. Both fishes were tough and the vegetables were soaked in a puddle of oil. The beef tenerloin, ordered medium rare, was overcooked. They were obviously understaffed, with only 3 servers, waiting on 2 large parties, in addition to the regular guests. Our waitress was pleasant, but non-existant and clueless about the menu items. We finished an entire bottle of wine before we ever received our salads or a bread basket (at least an hour, if not longer). They tried to win us over by offering free desserts. Hesitant, we accepted and ordered coffee to compliment. The desserts weren't anything worth mentioning and the coffee was cold and stale. We had nearly finished our dessert before receiving fresh, hot coffee. Very unhappy and dissatisfied by our experience, we chose not to prolong the situation by complaining. Five days later and still fuming over a nearly $200 dinner bill, I mailed a letter of complaint to the owners, requesting a refund. Although I knew it was unlikely I would receive one, I at least hoped for a sincere apology. Serge called me after receiving the letter and was nothing short of insulting. He patronized me for having never been to France and therefore, not knowing what it was like to dine in an authentic, french restaurant. He stated that if I wanted fast food, we should have gone to McDonald's. He literally laughed at me over the discussion of a refund and said waiting 5 days to complain was too long to make such a request. Not once did he ever apologize for the poor experience we had. Finally he said, if we didn't like it, we didn't have to return. Needless to say, we won't be, and I highly caution anyone else to do so!

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