Au Petit Paris
This entry was posted on 2/3/2008 10:08 AM and is filed under Hidden Gems, french.
We fell down on the job, earning a foodie demerit for not having heard about this new Houston restaurant, which opened in late November. We first read about it in Allison Cook's end of the year list of the best new restaurants in 2007. Apparently, so did the rest of Houston as the place has been hopping ever since. Reservations are definitely advisable and appear necessary on the weekends.
We love French food, so any addition of this genre to the Houston restaurant scene is a cause celebre. Located in a house on a residential street near Shepherd and Richmond, the place is cozy and charming. We were warmly greeted with "bon soir" by one of the chef-owner's wifes who serves as hostess. She was gracious and accommodating when we asked for a different table. The restaurant has two small dining rooms, and a very small bar area.
The menu is somewhat limited and has a fair sprinkling of the classics, such as goat cheese salad, french onion soup, rack of lamb, and duck confit. As a small operation, be forewarned that they run out of items or certain dishes may be unavailable if the chef doesn't like the quality of the ingredients at market that day. Neither the skate wing entree or crab appetizer was available the evening we were there, and the snapper went quickly after we arrived. We heard our waiter telling a nearby table that the chefs are quite particular about what they serve, shopping daily for just what's needed each evening. Judging by the size of the toque on one of the chefs making the rounds in the dining room, he's also quite particular about his headgear. But that's a French chef thing.
No escargots appeared on the menu, but that was fine with us. We shared the foie gras terrine appetizer, which was delicious although perhaps a little skimpy given the $19 price tag. We moved on to the sautéed snapper with green apple sauce and the chicken fricassee on wild mushroom risotto. The snapper was nicely flavored, and the chicken dish was great comfort food for a cool Houston evening. We ran into friends who were also there for the first time. They dined on the "signature" seared scallop entrée and the duck confit; they reported that both dishes were very good, but the scallops were better than the duck. They did remark that the dollop of cauliflower puree served with the scallops was tasty enough for them to want a big scoop.
The service was fine. Our bread basket (only two slices were served initially) could have been refilled, but it was probably better for us that the water glasses were regularly refilled. The wine list is limited and reasonably priced, and we appreciated that our waiter had some knowledge about it. And, unlike many French restaurants, they offered both French and non-French wines.
We remain big fans of Cafe Rabelais and Max & Julie's, but Au Petit Paris deserves a try. It's nice to see that the Houston restaurant scene has room for new places that are small and intimate as well as big and trendy like Reef and The Grove.
2048 Colquitt
713/524-7070
http://www.aupetitparisrestaurant.com/
