Brett W.
Yelp
astonished that we could enjoy a michelin-starred restaurant meal at a prix- fixe price of 35 euros (plus another 10 for wine pairing), wakako u. and i high-tailed it over to rue de sèze prepared for a true lyonnaise gastronomic adventure. and that is what we got. the quality of the food was undeniable, but our palates may not have been fine-tuned for the nature of lyonnaise cuisine. this is, after all, a city in which tripe, pig's feet, liver, blood sausage, head cheese and donkey snout have starring roles in the culinary show. a show, i must add for the uninitiated, which is considered the best in france, if not the entire world.
and so it was that in the lyonnaise spirit, we were fearless in our selections. there were breaded pigs' feet (croustillants de pieds de couchon) to start out with, artfully prepared, followed by rabbit with a black olive tapenade and tomato and parmesan cannelloni. a delightful trio of delicious desserts capped it all off. our second meal (we shared) consisted of a vegetable nicoise with minced salmon crudo in a delicate tart-- lovely-- followed by a pungent hake that was easier on the tongue than it was on the nose. a cheese plate, with the emphasis on goat cheeses, finished everything off nicely.
but the true highlight of our dining experience here was the attentive and friendly service. alain, our maitre de and waiter, was a true gem. not only did he put up with my butchery of the menu with my poor french skills, he also gave us two guidebooks on local restaurants and recommendations for dinner. we got to meet chef bernard mariller as well, a friendly fellow who took a genuine interest in our enjoyment of his kitchen creations. alain assured us that dinner here is even better than lunch, and i suspect the only reason i'm giving this place 4 stars instead of 5 has everything to do with the fact that we ordered a 35 euro prix-fixe menu and nothing to do with any lack of culinary mastery on the part of chef mariller. perhaps we will be luck enough to return to lovely lyon and this restaurant one day to find out.