Sometimes, you don't need hours of soliloquy to express your feelings. Let's just say it straight out: Fugue is one of our finest culinary discoveries of the year. Recently opened a stone's throw from Gare de l'Est, in place of Marrow, this absolutely vibrant new restaurant is the joint work of Victor Baraton-Dorat and Hitoshi Minatani.
The pair met while both were working on rue de Seine - the former at Semilla, the latter at Freddy's under the direction of MOF Éric Trochon. Respectively dining room manager and head chef, they imagined Fugue as a convivial address which, behind its airs of neighborhood bistro, clearly has a lot going for it.
Passionate about French gastronomy, Japanese chef Hitoshi Minatani - who arrived in France less than 10 years ago - offers a bistronomic cuisine that verges on the heights of fine dining, combined here and there with techniques and dishes from his native land.
Seasonal and locavore, Fugue can be discovered with your eyes closed, choosing from the à la carte menu and a 5-course tasting menu (70€) that allows you to dissect the wonders of the à la carte menu. At lunchtime, the experience is more affordable, with a starter/main course or main course/dessert lunch menu at €25, and a starter/main course/dessert menu at €30.
While the restaurant's decor is uncluttered - concrete floor, stone walls, exposed beams, a charming Mado buffet inherited from the former owners and a counter where you can dine, facing the kitchen - on the plate, the chef's imagination seems to know no bounds. Take, for example, the quail stuffed with pork (which unhesitatingly joins our top 10 dishes eaten this year; €32), advertised as such but in fact completely boned before being stuffed and then reconstituted identically, as if nothing had happened.
Ingenious in his pairings, demanding in his dressings, Chef Hitoshi Minatani also demonstrates immense mastery of sauces and juices, great generosity and true technical skill in his way of paying homage to French cuisine - through the products used, the recipes applied - in his own way.
The same care is given to the cellar, currently boasting 80 references, and to Victor's very attentive service, who speaks of the dishes with warmth and passion. Discover the tasting menu in pictures below.
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Grilled sardines with blue poppy, leek tartar, artichoke cream
Candied ginger, persimmon pickles, shiso, ponzu
Poultry confit ravioli, poultry thighs
Celeriac purée, fresh truffle sauce
Red mullet, grilled broccoli and gnocchi, broccoli and dill purée
Yuzu white butter, bouillabaisse sauce, green apple
Quail stuffed with pork, carrot purée
Grilled pumpkin, walnuts, strong juice
Citrus crumble, lemon cream
Yogurt ice cream, tarragon syrup
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As beautiful as it is good, Fugue is likely to become a must-visit address in the neighborhood, and richly deservedly so. The kind of address that the Michelin guide could reward, if it allowed itself to go off the beaten track a little.
Location
Fugue
128 Rue du Faubourg Saint-Martin
75010 Paris 10
Official website
fugueparis.fr
