Arpege (Paris, 3 stars)

Final “fine dining” review from a recent visit to Paris is from a lunch at Arpege. From reading this sub and reviews more generally, Arpege is clearly a restaurant that inspires strong opinions and sharp debates. People either seem to think it is generationally exceptional and visionary or a total joke for a 3-star establishment. My experience did not reach either extreme, but definitely was favorable. For me, to summarize the restaurant and experience, you must understand what you are there to taste and experience, and, if you properly understand that and level-set expectations accordingly, you can appreciate what makes the restaurant exceptional and not feel offended by the things that it lacks (compared to other 3-star restaurants).

What I mean is this: The restaurant is clearly about showcasing ingredients over technique. You are there to taste the freshest veggies, fruits, and herbs, and their absolute pinnacle in freshness, ripeness, and seasonality. Chef Passard owns all his gardens, so he is his own supply chain, which gives me total control over growing, harvesting, picking, etc. From there, the menu changes daily. In fact, even in our own dining room experience, the sheer number of different dishes going to different tables was impressive. Passard supposedly does not write down recipes anymore, preferring to largely be inspired by what comes in that day and however he decides to prepare those ingredients in the moment. This story feels a bit like lore more than literal truth, as one of the menu options is built around signature dishes (still subject to seasonality and daily availability), so there are clearly some dishes and recipes that more of a staple than others. But regardless, there is no doubt that menu is hyper-season and changes in large part every single day. And ultimately, all of this is very much what you are tasting and paying to experience—the best and freshest harvest, cooked at Chef’s whims of the day. You are sacrificing a lot of modern gastronomy and technique, and certainly sacrificing perfection and consistency, in exchange for pinnacle of fruits, veggies, and herbs, and the creativity of Chef Passard and his team.

Understanding the restaurant through this framework is what allowed us to appreciate it for what it was and fully enjoy a genuine 3-star experience (even if a very different experience from many other fine dining establishments).

A few quick words on the dining space. Dining room is small. Given his success over 30+ years, I’m surprised he’s never moved to a bigger spot. Though, he did renovate the basement and expand downstairs. We sat in the main dining room. It’s adorned by a mural that is a mixture of painted artistry accented by embroidery. It was awesome. If it had been slightly more childish, it would have been cheesy, and any more realistic/impressionism it would have lost the whimsical nature that made it work. But for the theme of Arpege, it was perfect. We loved it.

Turning to the food itself, we did not get an English menu and had some trouble fully understanding the staff, so this review probably not as detailed as my others. They offer several different menu options, and we did what seemed like a signature tasting menu, which was a mix of famous dishes and dishes of the day, and the menu included meat and fish.

First plate was a fresh daily harvest place, all served raw, and lightly salted. I don’t believe there were any other sauces or oil on the plate. While simple, the plate was delicious. I think it was as close as I’ll ever get to tasting these particular fruits and veggies in their absolutely best state and peak ripeness. (Table by Bruno Verjus, which also emphasizes seasonality and the quality of its suppliers, had a very similar first plate. I found Arpege’s plate of better quality.)

Next up was gazpacho with a basil sorbet. This dish was exceptional. tons of fresh flavors, and the additional of the herb sorbet made a great additional texture. Very tasty.

We then had a tomato “carpaccio” style dish, with very thinly sliced fresh tomatoes and topped with caviar. Simple dish for sure, but excellent.

Next dish was a miss for me. It was 3 cherry tomatoes in a tomato broth. The broth was a very mild, subtle flavor. And while the actual tomatoes had great flavor, we’d just had 2 dishes that incorporated tomatoes much better. And given the tiny 3 bites of tomato in this dish, it was mostly just the mildly flavored broth. This dish missed the mark.

Regrettably, I do not recall the details of the next dish, other than it was a mix of veggies over melon. It was neither a standout or lackluster dish.

Next was a mussels dish that drew divided opinions at our table. I found the green sauce not rich enough to stand up next to the strong taste of mussels, and I found their flavor overpowered the dish. My companion loved the dish and thought it was some of the best cooked mussels.

Next was another signature dish and probably one of the better plates I’ve eaten. Onions gratin with parmesan cheese and topped with candied melon. The onions are paper thin and incredibly fine, and they are cooked to a super sweet taste but without becoming overly caramelized either. They remain delicate in their taste and sweetness. Parmesan is the perfect nutty, salty compliment to the sweet onion flavor, and the candied melon added a nice, delicate touch as well. We would have eaten as many bowls of this as they would have served us. Truly a standout dish.

Next was fish of the day. I believe we had turbot but I’m not 100% certain. It had a red sauce and a lemon foam, which worked well together and along with the fish. I liked this more than my companion. Both the sauce and foam were very flavorful even if simple.

Another signature dish came next: tartare dish with the fake egg. My companion loved the dish (despite not being a huge fan of beets more generally). I liked it but didn’t love it. It came with a thin slice of Parmesan cheese, and I thought when you got a bit of cheese with the full dish, it was stellar because it added the right amount of salt and fat, but without the cheese (which ran out long before the rest of the plate) the balance was a bit off. But that was just me.

The pigeon was a cool dish. They bring it out after cooking but before carving, and you see it with its stuffed cavity full of fresh herbs. Then the carved presentation was beautiful and the sauce very rich. Super simple roasted bird. No high fancy technique. Just very well done food.

Dessert started with fresh fruit in a tart sauce, served with another sorbet (I believe melon but not positive). As a fruit dessert lover, this was great for me. Next was an ice cream sandwich of sorts with a rosemary ice cream. This was brilliant. Rosemary is the perfect herb for a cold treat like ice cream, and it is a very strong flavor, so it held up well on its own. If I could purchase rosemary ice cream at a store, I absolutely would buy a pint. Finally, we received the famous apple pie/flower, which was crispy, tart, sweet, and absolutely wonderful.

Overall, we really enjoyed the full experience, even if not every dish was a knockout. I also fully agree with this restaurant having 3 stars. It does not closely resemble many other 3-star spots, but make no mistake that what Arpege is doing is absolutely brilliant in its own unique way. Perhaps unsurprisingly, we thought the fruit and vegetable dishes were the stars here, with the mussels, fish, and pigeon being good but not at all what was memorable from the meal. I believe the current menu we did was €520/pp (which was around €100/pp more than Kei and Alleno, our other 3-star dinners in Paris). While I enjoyed Arpege and would not discourage someone from visiting, I would add three caveats. First, go with the right mindset. Understand why you are going and that it is not the highest techniques of modern gastronomy. Second, for €100 less, I enjoyed two other 3-star meals more than Arpege. Not a knock on Arpege; just a cost-to-quality ratio comment. Third, the proteins are not the standout dishes. So, if you’re curious to try what makes Arpege exceptional but wary of the top menu’s price tag, maybe go for lunch and try the €185 garden lunch menu, or just order a la carte (which they offer) and skip the proteins.