Papillon
GO HERE: to see what happens when a young husband and wife leave the three-Michelin-star Ducasse bubble to open a neighborhood place. (Answer: They get a star within months.) From the room to the food, it feels like a 21st-century bistro: lighter, prettier, but with serious technique, like wearing an Hermès belt with Levi’s.
ORDER THE: smoked sardine with celery and wasabi; fried eggs with bacon and truffle; duck with potatoes Anna; chocolate cake with spiced cream.
THE VIBE IS: soft power. Lunch brings execs and politicians from the elegant residential ’hood of the 17th; dinner is over-30 professionals on dates and in friend catch-up groups. Everyone’s here for the food, which is its own form of soft power.
PRACTICAL STUFF: Open for lunch and dinner Monday through Friday from 12 to 2:30 p.m. and 7 to 10:30 p.m. Reserve online, especially for lunch. On your way out, buy prepared food, charcuterie, and other carefully sourced specialty products for the larder at the adjoining take-out shop.
