M and I are always on the lookout for good BYO places. We know what wines we like, we have many bottles of them and we like to enjoy them with restaurant quality food. Not having to wash up afterwards is a bonus!
We recently headed out for a not-too-formal, but not-too-casual, dinner at Paris Go. If you’ve read enough entries on my blog, you would know that I love most things French. M had suggested going to Paris Go quite a few times before we finally made our first visit a couple of years ago. It was BYO and in the Entertainment Book, so on paper, M gave it a big tick. I was more reluctant – going to a place called ‘Paris Go’ didn’t really appeal to me. As I’ve said before, I do (shamefully) judge a restaurant by its name…
Oysters three ways - au naturel, with garlic butter and mornay.
Paris Go does crowd-pleasing French bistrot fare – the food is unadventurous, but solid, and the service is charmingly French. We started with the oysters done three ways. M didn’t used to be a fan of these slippery molluscs, but he’s finally come around. The Paris Go oysters were standard, but delicious.
For entrees, we ordered the mixed platter and the French onion soup. The platter was generously sized and the French onion soup was exactly the way it should be – creamy, caramelised onions in a rich, slightly salty, soup topped with a large crouton and grilled greyere cheese. Calorific, but very tasty.
Mixed entree platter - duck terrine, chicken liver pate, cured ocean trout.
French onion soup.
For our mains, M went with the duck and I ordered a second entree of the King George whiting dumplings. Our wine for the night was a Cape Mentelle Walcliffe Shiraz 2004. I really enjoy lighter style shirazes that don’t punch me in my mouth and that are more friendly with food than the big, bold, Barossa shirazes. What a shame Cape Mentelle doesn’t do the Walcliffe anymore!
Duck.
King George whiting dumplings in a prawn sauce.
To finish off, M and I shared the apple pie, which was simply a layer of puff pastry topped with slices of baked apple and vanilla ice cream.
Apple pie.
I feel like I don’t have much to say about this meal, not because I didn’t enjoy our dinner, but more because everything was just so solid (which, in this case, is a good thing). While it may not have been the most exciting or inventive food, the dishes were all well prepared and met expectations. I mean, I don’t go to a little French bistrot expecting to be dazzled by the modern flavour combinations or fancy culinary tricks. All I want are the standard French classics – all that lovely comfort food that leaves me feeling warm and satisfied. And on that, Paris Go certainly delivered.
