Les Parisiens, generous bourgeois cuisine with no false notes by Thibault Sombardier

To understand the origin of the name of the Pavillon Faubourg Saint-Germain's new restaurant , Les Parisiens, we have to go back to the early 20th century, when the Irish novelist James Joyce, author of the book Dubliners, stayed there. The hotel's restaurant was named in homage to this work, a godsend for chef Thibault Sombardier, who is free to express his vision of Parisian cuisine, with its bourgeois and gastronomic tendencies.

Carefully decorated with large mirrors reflecting the outside world, leather and velvet banquettes, quartzite tables encircled with brass wire, and a pretty floor resembling the Milky Way, the neo-brasserie knows how to welcome guests in a warm, chic atmosphere. Following on from Antoine, which was awarded a Michelin star before closing its doors, and Mensae and Sellae, chef Thibault Sombardier now turns his hand to French haute cuisine, designing the menu for Les Parisiens.

Fine langoustine quenelles, cauliflower velouté with hazelnut butter

Let's face it: this new address is a success, and succeeds in modernizing a cuisine that is sometimes shackled by the weight of tradition. And it does so by paying particular attention to local and French produce, with fruit and vegetables from the Ile-de-France region, meat from animal welfare-friendly farms, and wild fish from the French coast.

To enhance these recipes, Thibault Sombardier has placed a man he trusts behind the stove, chef Matthieu Pirola, whom he met in Yannick Alléno 's kitchens at Le Meurice and who was formerly executive chef toAkrame Benallal. And it's all on the plate, from the à la carte menu to the lunch menus - €34 starter/main course or main course/dessert, €39 starter/main course/dessert.

Pan-fried sweetbreads, plancha mushrooms and Bigorre bacon

Langoustine (20€), in quenelles, swims in a creamy cauliflower velouté with hazelnut butter, while Meunière-style frogs' legs (20€) waddle in a garlicky butter, topped with a delicate herb sabayon veil. It's like jumping into the great French tradition with both feet.

And the pleasure doesn't stop at the plate, with a fine selection of keels, some of them biodynamic, that are the perfect accompaniment to the rest of the lunch: on the one hand, a puff pastry of Loire pigeon & foie gras, green cabbage, offal jus (42€), and on the other, a sautéed golden veal sweetbread, ceps a la plancha and Bigorre black bacon (58€) to die for.

Floating island to share, caramelized hazelnuts

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Lunch closes with a masterly dessert, as much for the eyes as for the taste buds: the most grandiose, naughty and generousfloating island (22€) we've ever seen, topped with handfuls of caramelized hazelnuts, to be shared among guests... or not!