This large place is in the elegant Four Season Hotel George V and the dining room is a fittingly beautiful room. It’s been several years since we were there but we wanted to visit again because a chef we enjoyed at Restaurant Ledoyen, Christian Le Squer, is now head chef at Le Cinq and since his hire they have been awarded their third Michelin star. It is an old school kind of place where women don’t get menus with prices and most of the waiters are men with women carrying the trays the men serve you from.
The staff are good at their jobs but the formal vibe replaces the friendly one, except for Le Squer who couldn’t have been more welcoming. For example, I mentioned that I vividly remembered the delicious buttery, flakey rolls Le Squer served at Ledoyen and not only did I get my serving of his new version but he sent some out to Frankie too and then they packaged some up for me to take with me. It’s thoughtfulness like this that makes a lasting impression on people. Not to leave out the meticulously presented food that hasn’t forgotten the taste factor and a price to reflect that. We visited at lunch that offers the diner a wonderful way to try this place at an affordable price but meanwhile they also offer an a la carte menu.
Everyone starts with several one-bite amuse bouche, 3 of which came out at the same time. The ginger jell was a nice but mild flavor whereas the scrambled eggs and truffle was a ‘wow’ in your mouth. They also served a warm bowl of bread baked in brioche style and studded with chorizo. Yummy! Their bread tray is filled with house made options and all that I tried were great. The olive bread reminded me of a really thick pita bread, soft and chewy. The multigrain was croissant like with tons of buttery layers and absolutely delicious. The baguette was very nice and seemed to have some wheat flour but was ordinary in the shadow of the other 2 options.
The next amuse was green peas, red currant and yogurt and the fresh sweet peas were a real treat.
The sea urchin with cauliflower was our first lunch course and served on a non-edible pile of salt. It was quite nice.
Next was the “gratinated onions” served “parisian style”. It was accented with parmesan cheese and truffle and the little onions were filled with liquid onion flavor. There was something crunchy in the dish that added needed texture. All in all it was very good with all the elements combing nicely with each other.
We both chose the lamb over the red mullet for our main dish and it was cooked perfectly and the sausage was also good. Cous cous, harissa and faux olives rounded out the dish.
There were a couple pre-desserts before the options listed on the menu, both nice bites. One listed dessert was banana under a sheet of clear sugar and with a creamy filling. I liked it but the banana was lost under the stronger flavors. The other dessert option was cranberries with tangerine and the plate it was served on had to made for the dish – it was that perfect. It was a tasty option but I thought it had more looks than taste. Next came the Brittany flaky pastry rolls I mentioned earlier. They were divine. Lastly you’re treated to the dessert cart that has a supply of chocolates, nougat, caramels, marshmallow and on and on. You pick what you want and then they also present you with a box of some of these treats to take with you. Lunch itself was fairly light but when you add in all the extras you won’t go away hungry!
