LE SUFFREN -- Restaurant Review

 

For information, menu, directions and scheduled opening times, check their FB page https://www.facebook.com/brasserielesuffren/?locale=fr_FR

Rating Standards: 5-Stars = Extraordinary; 4-Stars = Excellent; 3-Stars = Average; 2-Stars = Fair; 1-Star = Poor 

€ = Inexpensive: 30€ and under; €€ = Moderate: 31€-49€; €€€ = Expensive: €50 -75; €€€€ = Very Expensive: more than €76 (prices based on minimum 2-courses)

1-Bell = Pleasantly quiet (less than 65 decibels); 2-Bells = Can talk easily (65-70); 3-Bells = Talking normally gets difficult (70-80); 4-Bells = Can talk only in raised voices (75-90); BOMB = Too noisy for normal conversation (90+)

4 - Star........................................€€€................................... 3 - Bells

Interestingly, this restaurant is on the other side of our arrondissement of the 15eme. We go by this restaurant often on the bus, but I've never had a desire to eat there, since I assumed it was a tourist restaurant, hence, wanted to avoid it. 

Friends who go there often suggested we go there for oysters. We got there about 7:30 pm and surprisingly we were able to get in with no problem, even though we didn't have reservations. 

There was a nice mix of french people as well as some tourists. 

The menu had a nice variety. The restaurant focuses on "Fruit de Mer" (fruit from the sea) and traditional french cuisine.

The restaurant also had some specials and some of us did have the chicken which was roasted with balsamic and they loved it. 

One thing off the bat, their fries must be one of the best fries I've ever had in Paris. It was addicting. They were definitely double fried and they never got soggy.

NOTE: I am only going to review the dishes that had.

OYSTERS. As I mentioned they are known for their fresh seafood. We ordered oysters, and it's the end of the season, but they were still excellent. What else can I say except they were fresh and succulent. 

CHOUCROUTE. This is a very, very traditional french dish. Choucroute means sauerkraut, or "garnished sauerkraut". It  originated from the Alsace region of France, which borders Germany. Which explains the heartiness of this dish.

I would never order this dish in the summer, but since it has been quite cold lately, (52F 11C high) I decided to order it .

The sauerkraut was perfect, not sour. There was a big hunk of ham hock, ham, 2-different types of sausages. A braised pork belly and potatoes.

Needless to say, this is not only a big dish, but also rich and heavy. It was very good. The restaurant captured its original essence of the dish. But to be honest, I could only eat a third of it, and I asked for a doggie bag. 

 WINES 

The SAN MICHELI estate is one of the oldest in the “Sartène” appellation. Owned by the family since the 18th century, the estate was taken over in 1974 by Jean-Paul and Bénédicte Phélip. The vineyard today extends over 22 hectares planted with traditional grape varieties from the “Sartène Vin de Corse” appellation and is managed in a reasoned and traditional way: autumn and spring plowing, weeding and hoeing in summer. A lot of work still remains manual, more particularly the harvest, in order to prioritize the quality of the harvested berries.

CHARACTERISTICS:  

**Its dress is pale gold in color.

**Its nose presents aromas of lime, peppermint and wild fennel.

**On the palate, a lively and fresh wine, allowing you to imagine the granite terroir of the estate through its mineral character which is fully expressed.

**You will enjoy this wine with discreet and original flavors: like sushi or guacamole with crab and curry.

(Wine description by L'avis de Jean-Luc, Maître-Sommelier)

SUMMARY 

I'm glad we went. I thought the food was very traditionally French and from different regions of France. You had dishes from Alsace, seafood from the south, all very good and well executed considering how crowded it can get. We got there at 7:30 pm with reservations, by 9 pm it was packed. So, if you wanna go without reservations, go earlier. The service was good.

It seemed the quintessential tourist restaurant, but turned out to be quite good with many locals, pleasant staff who also speak english and well prepared food. So, would we go back, ABSOLUTELY. 

With 1-glass of red wine, 2-bottles of white, appetizers of oysters and clams and 3-mains our bill came 307.30€ for 5, or 61.46€ per person.

Would we go back, absolutely. But as the weather starts to get warmer, I'll with lighter dishes. 

NOTE: This is a seafood chain restaurant connected to the Vin et Maree chain.