Frankly, if you could re-arrange your schedule, I'd recommend going to this place on Saturday, where you'll have a much more enjoyable time and extremely good food - mostly game, a lot of blood sauces:
https://www.yelp.com/biz/a-la-biche-au-bois-paris

Furyfluffy, the date I have the reservation is 11 Feb. Do you live in Paris, does that date work for you? I'm in Burma with spotty internet access for about 10 days. Will check in when I can.

Everybody else, I really appreciate the replies. Still debating what to do, like the idea of finding a dinning companion.

I have eaten that dish at Tour d'Argent when it was 3 stars and in my opinion you could do a whole lot better eating at dozens of other restaurants in Paris.

planningtravel : yes I live in Paris and 11 Feb works for me. So I'll block that date. If you reconsider your plan and do not want to do it anymore, or prefer to eat alone, feel free to tell me anytime, there is no problem at all. I'll check this thread for every new reply.

Note: I only want to eat the pressed duck and will not order other things on their menu.

I am amazed at how people can be attracted to this sort of thing, particularly in view of the price. Yes, if you have more dollars than sense, by all means spend it at such a place.

I am a person of limited means and would never consider spending more on one meal that I would spend on the next 10 meals.

I cannot imagine paying that kind of money for a pressed baby duck. I can make you one here for about 20 €. I suppose it's about the "experience" more than the food, but honestly, that's criminal.

Someone else wrote "I had lunch with duck."
___________
First the duck is pressed. Then it is anthropomorphic. Then it is a criminal. What kind of people are the French?

I can crush a duckling as well as anyone. I don't do a lot of fussy tabletop presentation, though. I'm still astounded at the price.

La Tour d'Argent is a symbol of the french cuisine.
Everybody has heard of it. Whether it is worth the price or not is like whether a Gauguin is worth its price. Certainly not in my mind, clearly yes for some billionaires.

Since I cannot have a painting I can however go to a Michelin starred restaurant.

I have been to 2-3 of the 5 top restaurants in Bruxelles and don't regret the experience.

It was cheaper though... When chez 'bonbon' we paid only 397 € for the 2 of us. A bargain. Was it worth it ? Yes. Do I live better because I went ? No. Should I do it again ? Certainly. But probably not twice the same restaurant.

Hi PT,

As Michael has said, Tour d'Argent is now a 1* resto.

The prices, however, are still 3*.

If you are looking for a dining experience, you have a number of choices of 2 & 3* restos at that price.

If you are looking for pressed duck, there are other places that are equally good, if not better: Maison Rostang, for example.

((I))

I think those astounded by the prices have not seen the ala carte menu at Michelin starred restaurants, especially those with three stars. Even a bistro like L'Ami Louis can be quite expensive. I just had Thomas Keller's fried chicken in Napa last week and while very expensive quite delicious.

I'd much rather go to StCirq's and dine on her pressed duck. No fussy waiters, pretentious presentation, just a good meal and excellent company. For half the price of Tour d'Argent, I could bring several bottles of excellent wine. IMO, a far better evening.

How do you say "sour grapes" in French, eh? :-)

The two best meals I have had in my life were at Taillevent when M. Vrinat was still alive.

When we travel (and at home) we look for value restaurants but set aside money for one splurge restaurant.

They were worth the money. I remember having an extended conversation with a staff member on how they bake their bread.

Ils sont trop verts, dit-il, et bons pour des goujats

but that is not how the fable ends:
Fit-il pas mieux que de se plaindre?

Il faut que je relise Lafontaine je ne le souviens pas de celle-là.

In latin we cours say : de gustibus et coloribus non dispantum est.

Which translates into 'everybody does what he wants with his money as long as he didn't steal it from me'.

These threads are a lot of fun.

Btw you have a restaurant next to maison Rostang where the cooks are trained. Good food good presentation quite normal prices.

historytraveler, you are welcome here anytime. We have ducks galore, and I know how to crush them. Bring the wine on!

The price is indeed sour, but as StCirq said, it's about the "experience" more than the food. I want to learn from it, and I certainly did. I told myself there were restaurants that I must try in my lifetime, for different reasons: Tour d'Argent, Bocuse à Lyon, Azurmendi in Bilbao.

If talking about the food alone, none of the expensive restaurants that I've tried satisfies me. The best dishes are the ones my friends cooked to me.

Bonbon in Bruxelles.

The Peking duck at Guo Min in Belleville is excellent and costs about 10% of the price of the Tour d'Argent. Are you interested more in the food or the setting?