Christine P.
Yelp
My husband and I went to this restaurant a few years ago and thought the duck and escargot were amazing! Our waiter was funny, efficient and informative. Of course, we ordered wine, but we also ordered a big bottle of water. I loved the bottle so I decided to take it home with me. It had pink writing on it and I like pink. When I walked out the door, the Maitre D' stopped me on the sidewalk and asked what I had in my bag. I said the duck I could not eat and my water bottle. He told me that the water bottle was theirs and I couldn't have it. I gave it back, but I thought it a little bizarre.
This year, we returned to Paris and were remembering this fabulous meal when we wanted to celebrate my husband's birthday. We both love duck, and we thought, why not go back? This time we would remember that it was "interdict" to take the bottle our water came in after the waiter opened it and we finished it.
We were able to secure reservation, but a few days before the date of our dinner, I received an email from the restaurant stating that if we each did not have the French "pass sanitaire" app showing that we had been vaccinated for Covid-19, they could not allow us to eat there. I called the restaurant and stated that we each had our vaccination cards issued by the CDC in the U.S. and that we had used these cards for the last 3 weeks to go to any restaurant we had wanted to go to, as well as go through immigration at the Charles de Gaulle Airport. The woman taking my call raised her voice and said that they were not the police and they did not know if they were valid, and they would only accept the app. She said that you can easily get it at any drugstore.
To make a long story short, suffice it to say that after going to five pharmacies, none of them could give us the French "pass sanitaire." Each told us to go to a different place to get it. When I went to the French government website which states the requirements for admission to restaurants and other public places, it clearly states that an official paper document from another country showing Covid-19 vaccination is sufficient. FYI, my husband and I have each had 3 Pfizer vaccinations.
Nevertheless, we tried to get the app, and it required the submission of 3 photos of documents: (1.) your passport; (2.) CDC vaccination card; and (3.) a copy of your plane ticket. Since we had already been in the country for 3 1/2 weeks, we no longer had our tickets on our phone. All we had on-line was our receipt for our tickets showing date, flight number, and seat assignment. The app would not accept the receipt.
So, if you want to eat in THIS this restaurant, I hope that you read this review first, because although I think you can probably eat in all the other restaurants in Paris, you can't eat in THIS one, unless you comply with the drill sergeant maitre D's edicts, which are separate from the government's. Yes, I am a former trial lawyer, but also a gourmand, and I really appreciated this food. My husband said a few days ago he had no desire to go anymore because of their attitude, but I had a picture of my husband's smiling face on my phone at this restaurant as my wallpaper for the past 3 years, and I just couldn't let it go. When our daughter called today to wish my husband a happy birthday, she said "Don't go, Mom, they will probably spit in your food. I used to work in a restaurant."
In the end, I fixed duck confit, mashed potatoes, a green salad and provided an exquisite bottle of burgundy, and my husband I are both very happy.