Understated elegance - Restaurant Le Bayadère, Paris
Dear readers, the scene of the Parisian haute cuisine might have changed due to the closure of numerous restaurants throughout the traumatic period of Covid, however, with the gradual recovery, the pursue of the Parisian haute cuisine became in demand again, especially for those who would like to discover something innovative, artistic and delicious in Paris, and I happened to be one of them! After almost six years returning to this beloved city of mine, of course I’d like to recapture some of the magical moments that I once had before, including, an elegant Parisian meal on my big day, and one of the most impressive dining experience during this Paris trip of mine, is having my dinner in the Restaurant Le Bayadère.
Located in the 8th arrondissement on Rue de Berri, only a short-distance walk from the world’s most beautiful, Avenue des Champs-Élysées, and the historic monument, Arc de Triomphe, this elegant Parisian restaurant was tucked in a fashionable yet tranquil neighborhood. As part of the luxurious 5-star Hôtel Elysia playing an important role as their highlighted F&B venue, the interior design of this classy restaurant literally appeals me right at the first place upon my arrival, the modernity and coziness derived from its crispy clean ivory interior, with the wooden flooring and its delicate and soft touch of chocolate brown wooden furniture, chicly arranged table top and setting, adding the understated and soothing white orchid floral arrangement, plus the warm romance created by the illumination through both the golden geometric designed wall-lamps to the circular minimalistic ceiling lamps, which created a welcoming, harmonious yet luxurious atmosphere, being interpreted in a contemporary Parisian language of interior and taste, which for some reason, it reminds me a lot about Jean-Louis Deniot, one of my beloved French interior designer’s work and even the designer himself as a person, that exudes the charm and elegance of the contemporary Parisian style, and the character of this high end restaurant. So we have the ambient and setting, then what about the cuisine itself? Does it live up to the standard as elegant as the interior?
Each dish prepared by this restaurant is just impeccable and unquestionably sophisticated, thanks to the talented chef Khalid Mansour, he certainly combined his sensibility about high end French culinary, and the stylistic reference from the city’s most notable asset - the detail of Parisian haute couture; I was impressed by the elegant garnish of each dish, and the manner of how the chef arranged them, with those edible floral and petals, like those elegant floral decorating details of a Parisian haute couture gown. I started with the “Bouchot” mussels broth with apple and cucumber minestrone, which is delicious and presentable, the refreshing and succulent mussels combined the fresh greenery of cucumber and apple broth, to me it’s such a delightful starter especially after being outside throughout the hot day in Paris, pairing with a glass of crispy and elegant Pouilly-Fumé from Loire Valley takes the starter to the next level, which adds the whimsical floral bouquet of the wine into the food, delicate and sumptuous. For the main course I decided to stick to my favorite white fish, as it doesn’t make my stomach feels heavy and it’s a much healthier choice in my opinion, the Turbot filet “poivrade’ artichoke once again impressed me with its elegant and haute-couture-ish presentation, the simple garnishing in fragmented violet-coloured edible floral on the fresh juicy white filet, with the delicious sauce underneath alongside with the artichoke which being cooked just right without loosing much of its moist and taste; this dish reminds me of the intricate paint stroke appeared in the masterpiece painted by those reputed French painter, however it enables one to taste the beauty of such remarkable work-of-art that being interpreted in a form of Parisian contemporary haute cuisine.
My final surprise was the dessert, which in fact it was unexpected as I was about to ask for my bill, yet, the restaurant was extremely thoughtful and realized that it was my birthday that evening! The dessert was the red and black berries Pavlova with strawberry sorbet, and of course, with the birthday candle lit before it arrived on my table, with this little delicious and elegant gesture, which marked a memorable and unspeakably special birthday evening of mine, under the elegant and modern ambient, in the chic and romantic city capital of France.
Despite the crowd and chaos of the Olympic games out there, spending this wonderful dinner and evening in Restaurant Le Bayadère is undoubtedly one of the great choice that I’ve made, it certainly brought me back the Parisian glamour I once felt after my last visit about six years ago, and being refreshed with this sumptuous and elegantly prepared Parisian haute cuisine experience in this sophisticated and luxurious address.
Image courtesy of Restaurant Le Bayadère, Hôtel Elysia, Paris
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