Dining recs in Marias, and near Eiffel tower and Luxembourg Garden

dcmom, if I remember correctly from amother post, you'll be staying at the Hôtel Castex? If so, there is a good restaurant just around the corner on boul. Henri IV. Here's a copy of a review my wife wrote on our trip report from February 2007:

"L’Écume 25 bvd Henri IV, 4th www.imagespro.fr/lecume); Metro: Sully-Morland or Bastille; Menu: €25.80 This one isn’t in Time Out, but it’s one we’ve been back to, and it hasn’t disappointed. It specializes in beef from Salers—grass-fed and dry-aged—which the owner chooses himself. This is an unpretentious place, with a warm welcome and excellent service. There’s nothing fancy about the cooking, but that simplicity allows the quality of the ingredients to shine through. If you order à la carte, there is excellent charcuterie from the Auvernge, and the main courses include chicken and fish.

Menu Parisienne: noix d’entrecôte de Salers aux trois sauces, purée beurre maison, salade verte, pignons de pin, Brie de Meaux A.O.C.

The steak is superb, thick and perfectly grilled, and it’s hard to choose a favourite among the sauces: béarnaise, sauce au poivre, and huile de tomate. The mashed potatoes are delicious and buttery; the pine nuts add a lovely dimension to the lightly dressed salad; the brie is nicely aged. Some of us ordered dessert: a pleasant vanilla-flecked crème brûlée, dark chocolate mi-cuit, and orange and strawberry sorbet.

Would We Go Back? Definitely! The steak is the best we’ve eaten anywhere, and since they now have brasserie service (12 to 12), it might well be our choice for an early meal."

There have been families with children on two of the three occasions I have dined there, so absolutely no worries on that score. It's closed Sunday and Monday evenings.

I should add that two other posters here have been to L'Écume since we were last there: robjame and Leely, and both gave it good report cards.

Anselm