Le Chateaubriand / Le Dauphin
GO HERE: to plug into the city’s most exciting, experimental food. Chef Inaki Aizpitarte’s menu changes daily, but raw seafood, aged meat, and a crazy dessert course of candied egg yolks are reliable favorites. Next door, Le Dauphin is a casual wine bar designed by a serious architect, Rem Koolhaas, with lots of other fascinating contradictions to be found within, from the bobo-to-bougie crowd to the menu that runs from 3 to 35 euros for killer “tapas.”
ORDER THE: tasting menu (70 euros) at Le Chateaubriand, with some bottles of wine suggested by the somm. (Love that obscure pick? You can probably pick it up in their scruffy wine shop next door.) At Le Dauphin, the squid-ink risotto, fried Pecorino, and buttermilk-olive oil ice cream are always on the menu—for good reason.
THE VIBE IS: about as French as it gets. Jeans and boots—and tousled hair—are de rigueur at both places.
PRACTICAL STUFF: Le Chateaubriand takes reservations online for the 7 and 11 p.m. seatings. If you don’t have a table, show up at 9:30, put your name in, and start drinking at Le Dauphin. The latter is open for lunch from 12:30 to 3, except Tuesday, and stays open until 2 a.m. Closed Sunday and Monday.
