Making a clean sweep of the past, the Dersou restaurant is writing a new page in its history with American-born chef Alexander Southward, steeped in a love of beauty and good produce. Alexander South ward has arrived in France to take over the restaurant that has long been a favorite of Parisian foodistos, and has succeeded brilliantly in restoring it to its former glory.
It's one thing to ignore the past, but it's another to keep one of the address's pillars, Amaury Guyot, also behind the Sherry Butt bar in the Marais and the Chinaski restaurant. Trained as a mixologist, he carries on his shoulders one of the two facets of Dersou: cocktails.
For Dersou is the successful, consummate marriage of food and cocktails, with competitive pairings that underscore gourmet tasting menus in 4-course (65€, 95€ with pairings), 6-course (95€, 135€ with pairings) and 7-course (110€, 155€ with pairings).
These choice dishes are enjoyed in the restaurant's unfinished décor, with concrete floors, decrepit walls, industrial decor, subdued lighting in the evening and a view down into the open kitchen behind the long counter. And always that little rock vibe in the mismatched glasses and plates.
On the plate and in the glass, bistronomic - gastronomic, even - recipes to die for. Discover the full menu below.
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Tartelette girolles, sweet and sour shallots, smoked walnuts
Camargue oyster, snacked wagyu rib steak, dill oil
Matured sea bass, seaweed beurre blanc
Akuavit cocktail, umeshu, white grapes
Roasted beet with fir vinegar, smoked haddock cream, turnip and daikon salad, bay leaf oil
Cocktail gin, bell pepper, beer, fino sherry
Wagyu beef entrecôte, spicy wagyu beef broth, crunchy seasonal vegetables, chestnut oil
Calvados cocktail, coconut, thyme, verjuice and Greek yogurt
Barbecued cuttlefish, béarnaise sauce, butter-roasted pine morels, "xo" cuttlefish tentacle condiment, radicchio
Royale of pine morels, mushroom jus, roasted garlic emulsion
Shochu cocktail, sake, orange, sesame oil
Steamed sea bass, lovage purée, flat beans, roasted lemon condiment, fish stock sauce, fennel flower
Cocktail vodka, Madeira, tomato, coriander/pimento syrup
Barbecued wagyu beef tenderloin, celeriac velouté, vinegared red cabbage, horseradish emulsion, peppered beef jus
Scotch, orange, port and vermouth cocktail
As for dessert, a quince compote, poached quince with lemon balm, whipped ricotta, tuile and puffed buckwheat; accompanied by mandarin ice cream, mandarin nage and olive oil, you'll have to imagine it, just like the last cocktail, based on rum, pineau des Charentes, peach, Jamaican berries and peanut, we simply forgot to take a photo of them, so enticed were we.
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Dersou is back more than ever.
Location
Dersou
21 Rue Saint-Nicolas
75012 Paris 12
Official website
www.dersouparis.com
