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The Kitchen Galerie bis restaurant – still just as good

Paris Restaurant guide

After writing a review of Kitchen Galerie bis for the blog in 2009(!), we recently read that the place had been renovated and redecorated.

Even after eleven years, our experience at the restaurant stuck in our minds – it’s right at the top of our list of favourite meals ever – so we decided it was the perfect moment to go back, see the new décor and check whether the food was as delicious as ever.

And we were not disappointed….

The Kitchen Galerie bis restaurant, Paris
photos: JasonW

Kitchen Galerie bis is the little brother/sister of nearby Ze Kitchen Galerie, and since our initial article in 2009 they’ve even opened a third space – Kitchen Ter(re) (that we hope to visit soon).

The three venues seem to have modern art as their common theme, the new looks of Kitchen Galerie bis keeps most of the paintings that were already there, although some have been moved, and a couple of new pieces have been added. The biggest change (which isn’t very big) is that some wall previously painted lilac are now white. It brightens the place up just a little.

The Kitchen Galerie bis restaurant, Paris
The Kitchen Galerie bis restaurant, Paris
The Kitchen Galerie bis restaurant, Paris
The Kitchen Galerie bis restaurant, Paris
The Kitchen Galerie bis restaurant, Paris
The Kitchen Galerie bis restaurant, Paris
The Kitchen Galerie bis restaurant, Paris
The Kitchen Galerie bis restaurant, Paris

The restaurant’s logo has changed too. Instead of the prime-colour slightly childish scrawl, there is now a designer logo and pastel tones. The menu appears more chic and minimalist, and there are fixed menus at lunchtime that won’t break the bank, from 29€ (two dishes) to 49€ for a four-course tasting menu.

Of course, you can still order à la carte, but at lunchtime it would be a shame not to take advantage of the lower prices.

The Kitchen Galerie bis restaurant, Paris
The Kitchen Galerie bis restaurant, Paris
The Kitchen Galerie bis restaurant, Paris
The Kitchen Galerie bis restaurant, Paris

The restaurant’s star turn, in their trademark style of mixing French and Asian cuisines, is what they call ‘Zors-d’œuvre‘, four little starters (that change regularly) served on a wooden tray.

These can be tailored a little, if you’re vegetarian for example, but part of the fun is the surprise. Our chosen menu at 36€ contained four Zors-d’œuvre, a main dish and a dessert.

The waiter explains what’s in each tiny dish, and it’s tough to remember it all, but ours included:

— a Thai soup with marrow and marinated foie gras

— a pork ravioli with tamarind chutney and marinaded papaya,

— haddock, Purgatorio beans, lemon chutney

— leeks, taramasalata, trout eggs, smoked eel, black sesame seed

— marinaded sea bream, daikon, wasabi-avocado

Wow, what tastes! Every mouthful revealed astonishing mixes and innovative combinations.

When you first see them, the zors-d’œuvre might look small, but four make for a substantial starter.

The Kitchen Galerie bis restaurant, Paris
The Kitchen Galerie bis restaurant, Paris
The Kitchen Galerie bis restaurant, Paris
The Kitchen Galerie bis restaurant, Paris

For our main dishes we chose yellow pollock with chickpeas, spinach, fennel bouillon, and pork with Anna apple, red cabbage, violet mustard and olive condiment.

The mains are more classic than the starters, with a more standard presentation, but they are still cleverly crafted with lots of different tastes. We very much enjoyed them.

The Kitchen Galerie bis restaurant, Paris
The Kitchen Galerie bis restaurant, Paris
The Kitchen Galerie bis restaurant, Paris
The Kitchen Galerie bis restaurant, Paris

To finish off our agreeable luncheon, we chose a dessert each. The choice on offer is a very short list of revisited classics – we went for rice pudding with gianduja, coffee and pecan, and an apple financier cake with diplomate cream, honey and pear sorbet.

Again, these were great, and the rice pudding was quite copiously served. By the end of the meal we were certainly no longer hungry.

The Kitchen Galerie bis restaurant, Paris
The Kitchen Galerie bis restaurant, Paris
The Kitchen Galerie bis restaurant, Paris
The Kitchen Galerie bis restaurant, Paris

What a great lunch! There’s a reason we remembered the Kitchen Galerie, and it’s great to know they’ve kept the level so high all this time.

Their lunchtime fixed-price menus are reasonable, and at the moment they can serve dinner early (starting 6pm) so that everyone can be home before the curfew (last diner must leave by 8.30pm).

Essential.

P.S. You can even order online and have your food delivered, although the choice of dishes is reduced. Click here to take a look.

The Kitchen Galerie bis (here) is open Tuesday-Saturday, midday-2.15pm and (reservation obligatory) 6-7.45pm

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