joan, hungry for Paris is timely and a fairly new book, Judith Vikmanis uses it for her picks.

Hi Mimi,

I'm sure the book is good! Books just cannot tell you what a place was like last night. That's why so many enjoy e-gullet..it's all there...also fun reading!

Joan

We have eaten at L'Ardoise twice. Since both times were on a Sunday evening it was very busy. Actually we were seated at the same table in the basement too. We really liked the food. The first time all I remember is that Tomas had a nage of tuna that I have always thought I should try to recreate. This is what we had the second time:
Entrees- Asparagus, Jambon Iberico with Ouef Mollet
Carpaccio of Tuna with ginger & basil
Plats- Duck Breast with black pepper and pureed potatoes
Scallops in the shell with brown butter sauce and pureed greens
Dessert- Roasted Apple, Caramel Ice Cream and Caramelized Raisins
Chocolate and Mandarine Orange Pot de Cremes

Since we usually arrive in Paris on Sundays we are always looking for a place to eat and this is one of our favorites.

I have been reading 'Hungry for Paris' which I bought with Mimi. It is very good and I am sorry I didn't go through it throughly before our trip. That said I think EGullet is the best place to get up to date information about restaurants. We had a fabulous lunch at Itineraires (5 rue de Pontoise 5th Arr) which we wouldn't have known about without EGullet.

Abby, so glad you enjoyed your meal at Itineraires. We thought it the second best of our trip, just behind Fables de la Fontaine. Dina4, I would recommend this place to you for one of your family meals as well. The food was fantastic--only prixe fix if I recall correctly--but quite reasonable and the whole place had a wonderful youthful vibe with a sort of "we're on our way" quality. Other places you might consider (and which I'll be writing more about if I can get going on my trip report) are: Mon Viell Ami on Ile St. Louis, Petite Pontoise, a block or two from Itineraires, and Ferrandaise, a Pudlo favorite in the 6th.

ADRIENNE- thanks for the info on Polidor. I think i'll scratch it off for now.

MIMI- thanks for your tips and for the "Hungry for Paris" rec. It looks great!

GRACEJOAN - i have been meaning to spend some time at egullet! will definitely check it out.

AGM CAPE COD- thanks for ANOTHER great rec for L'ARDOIS! I did notice that ITINERAIRES is not in the 08-09 pudlo guide. is it fairly new? i've heard it mentioned on this site often!
I will definitely add it to my list!

JULIE -
my condolences for your friend Maurice, who sounds like a such great guy!!
and I hope you had a fun birthday at Disneyworld!

thank you so much for your detailed and thoughtful advice on the restaurants I listed!

Mon Viell Ami, Petite Pontoise, Itineraires, and Ferrandaise have also been added to the list!

Now to narrow things down...
Yikes!

Thanks again!
Dina

dina4,

You will enjoy egullet. It can get a little heavy for some of us, sometimes. Some very knowledgeable good people on the site. Many have their own websites with some very good reviews, too. It is so great because of it being so current. Itineraries has been well spoken of there. Ferrandaise has not had a recent review there. I did take my granddaughter and husband there last spring. A bit out of the way. It was fine for us..cow pictures, I think!

So many, many places....

Joan

I always have my Michelin and a Zagat along, but use egullet all the time.

Dina4, when you speak of your family, how young are the youngsters in the group? One place that we chanced on on our recent trip that isn't real inexpensive, but could be reasonable with judicious ordering and that is fantastic for decor that I think would appeal to young people is Mollard. It's a turn of the century Art Nouveau masterpiece with mirrors and mosaics everywhere. For food it's typical Brasserie with expensive shellfish platters, but also sauerkraut dishes and other typical "French" fare that certainly looked to me as good as that at Bofinger and I dare say the decor almost puts the beauty of that stalwart to shame. It's across the street from the Gare du Nord. I see that Pudlo lists its prices as about 10 euros higher than Bofinger, but I'd also say their decor is about worth it. I think kids would love it.

There was an article in the NYTimes, "Paris for the Barbar Bunch." They suggested Le Cafe du Marche, 38 rue Cler where the majority of the tables spill out onto the sidewalk.
Cafe Marly in the Louvre is mentioned. They serve cheeseburgers and the children can run around pyramid under
their parents' watchful eyes. also mentioned as a favorite among Parisian families, Le Relais de l' Entrecote in the 8th.

Our "kids" are 16 and 19. :)
So financially, they eat as much as (if not more than) adults!

Mimi-
haven't heard of La Cafe du Marche, but will find that article. We have eaten at Cafe Marly and Le Ralais de l'Entrecote on our last trip in '06. (The first was really fun for just for afternoon snacks with wine and hot cocoa, and the latter, I must say, was quite disappointing).

Julie,
thanks for the Mollard tip! It sounds gorgeous. I also liked your earlier idea of maybe having a drink at Bofinger. Would you also suggest that for this place? Or do you think the food is consistently great?

Thanks,
dina

Bofinger and all the other gorgeous brasseries, I eat the fruits de Mer.

Dina, a place you might consider is Fish, La Boissonerie
(69 Rue de Seine, 6th). It isn't that expensive and the menu is Mediterrean in style. Not a lot of heavy French sauces. Lots of interesting wines by the glass since it is owned by the same people who own the wine store Le Dernier Goutte. It is also open on Sundays.

Dina4, we were so hungry by the time we got to Mollard, I didn't even note whether they had a bar, but if you're in the neighborhood, you might just pop in to see if they do--and incidently check out the beautiful decor, or check the food and decide for yourself, whether you want to stay for drinks, a full meal or just be content to snap a picture or two. Pudlo seems to feel the food is good. We had a gigantic plateau de fruits de mer. It was very good, but expensive and, of course, gives you no clue about how good their prepared/cooked food might be.

AGM, good suggestion on Fish. I would also think the atmosphere there which is very casual, would appeal to the teens.

Julie,
The decor at Mollard, as you stated, is belle epoque at its best, designed by the guy who did the casino in Monte Carlo, however it is across the street from Gare St. Lazare. The also pretty brasserie across from Gare du Nord is Brasserie Nord.

Laidback, thank you so much for the correction. Sorry to have mixed up my gares. For those interested, check out this place at www.mollard.fr It couldn't be more beautiful. Totally over the top.

mimi- can't seem to find that NYTimes article...

I think this is the article.

http://travel.nytimes.com/2006/02/19/travel/19kids.html

thanks -- really great article!

We also ate at Mon Vieil Ami on the Ile on our recent trip and liked it very much. Allard is the restaurant we always go to on our first night in Paris. They have wonderful coq au vin (on Saturdays)..
We loved Le Reminet, on quai de Montebello. Probably our favorite restaurant of this last trip.
I wouldn't go to Polidor if I only had three dinners in Paris.
Auberge Bressane is an excellent choice, especially on the day you go to the Eiffel Tower.

If you want simpler fare, and lunch, our family loves Les Deux Abeilles, on rue de l"Universite. The best lemon tart (cut from a large pie, not individual ones). My daughter-in-law always gets the lentil salad.

Check the menus online, if possible, before you make choices. Sometimes the menu is heavily skewed towards organ meats, which does not appeal to us.

Benoit is a favorite, as well, but it has become a bit pricey recently. Perhaps they have specials that would bring the cost down.
Near it is Le Grizzli. I've never been, but my son has taken his children there a bunch of times, and they like it.
My son, who is a foodie, also likes Ze Kitchen Galerie. We also like it.
Bon Appetit.

BkMking