Brash and belly-filling, a meal at l’Ami Jean can be coma-inducing. Reserve in advance, and plan on walking home.
Practical information
Address: 27 rue Malar, 75007
Nearest transport: La Tour Maubourg (8)
Hours: Closed Sunday, Closed Monday
Reservations: Book a week or two in advance
Telephone: 01 47 05 86 89
Website
View a map of all of our restaurants here.
Average price for lunch: 20-34€
Average price for dinner: 35-49€
Style of cuisine: Regional: Basque
Special attributes: prix-fixe, market-based cooking, prestige ingredients, nose to tail eating, renowned chef, no-choice menu
Type of crowd: suits, foodies, neighborhood locals
Interior: charming and traditional
Atmosphere: bustling
Reviews of interest
- Meg Zimbeck (2012) “The base product is impeccable. But the real joy comes from watching/eating what the chef does with these ingredients. Jego’s tweaking of classic bistro flavors doesn’t feel, as is so often the case, haphazard or goofy. Those three great dishes each conveyed a feeling of comfort while also sharing – and this is difficult – something new.”
- Gilles Pudlowski (2011) “C’était un bistrot basque, simple et de quartier. C’est devenu, sous la houlette de Stéphane Jego…« the » bistrot à prendre d’assaut.”
- Barbra Austin (2010) “The rosy crawfish soup that kicked things off was straightforward enough, with sweet green peas and tiny croutons floating around in the current. After that…a dish of cod with foie gras, the white fish turned green by a bright parsley sauce… A few favas played around the plate, and a strip of chorizo laid across everything, a colorful garnish, yes, but not superfluous…”
- Barbra Austin (2009) “…a seven course marathon of more-or-less Basque dishes that somehow managed to be elegant and creative, unpretentious, and generous down to the last round, a large bowl of riz-au-lait with a wooden spoon sticking out of it.”
- François Simon (2009) “Il faut être dans une forme olympique, s’enduire de testostérone et manger du cheval. C’est comme ça, sinon vous sortez la tête en avant en faisant des holalala. Nourritures d’enfer donc, d’une générosité et d’une percussion rare…”
- Figaroscope (2009) “le menu carte blanche… avec une cuisine à la fois solide et subtile, où la terre côtoie la mer, le saumon, le pop-corn et le ris de veau, la citronnelle. Autre option, l’exploration de la carte XXL…”
- Food Snob (2009) “…the food, the atmosphere, the buzz – it was just a lot of fun.”
- John Talbott (2007) “Should you go? I think this is an ideal place to send 1st time visitors; good chow, authentic surroundings and nice staff…”
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3 Responses to Chez L’Ami Jean
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Usually the idea of an open kitchen is a good one. It allows the clientele to see what’s going on, feel that the cooking and eating are a symbiotic relationship. Not at l’ami jean. Worst idea ever. As the chef has to scream to be happy, it makes the whole meal stressful. I know I’m the minority but I can’t stand l’Ami Jean – the service is atrocious (nasty waiters please apply), you are seated on top of your neighbors and the food is okay but frankly not that special – and not worth the price. It used to be a nice Basque neighborhood place, now it has become chic and frankly not a pleasant experience. To be skipped until the “renowed chef” calms down.
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We truly loved the place. The service was…erratic, but the servers were cool. None of it had a truly negative impact, they were still fun and interesting, good recommendations and a great experience.
But all of that matters pretty little to us. The food was great, excellent throughout. The sullen “renowed chef” seemed to have earned his spot to us. Every dish was ranging from great to amazing. It was a true delight.