Meg Zimbeck

I ate at Spring Restaurant on Friday night, along with two other writers who have already published accounts of the same meal. I’ll spare you the repetition and simply direct you to these reviews by Barbra Austin and Adrian Moore. You might also like to read the review by Mr. Lung from the following night, which Daniel Rose told me was the “most sensitive review” that he had seen in a long time.

For my part, I wrote a story that was published by BlackBook today, detailing the hype that surrounds this opening. I’ve excerpted a bit below and you can head over there to read the whole thing.

With Expectations High, Spring Restaurant Reopens in Paris

…“I’m terrified of being seen like Itinéraires,” says Rose, referring to the disdain that greeted Sylvain Sendra’s new venture after he sold Le Temps au Temps. Some of the things that diners loved about Sendra’s cramped little bistro didn’t seem to work at the new restaurant.

Rose faces a similar challenge, moving from an undecorated shoebox in a far-out neighborhood to a flashier space in central Paris. Like Sendra, he added staff and raised prices in order to pay for them. These aren’t the only changes, however. Nearly all of the hooks that comprised Rose’s story have changed within the last three years. The underdog who cooked alone and undercharged for every plate has grown into the Hot Chef who manages a team and sometimes speaks in terms of “branding.”

> Continue reading at BlackBook