Lunch with Lynn/Under 20 Eats: Glou

As much variety Paris has to offer in terms of restaurants and cuisines, it's not always easy to find clean, simple food. Sometimes I crave dishes like grilled tuna with nice roasted vegetables which used to be on almost every menu in New York when I lived there, but don't find it as readily available in Paris.
This month Meredith Mullins, who contributes beautiful photos every month, was my guest lunch companion and we went to Glou in the Marais, which makes the kind of clean food I miss. They offer a two-course formule for 15 euros, appetizer and plat, or plat and dessert.

The starter of guacamole with toast and red pepper coulis looked great on the plate but taste wise was underwhelming and a bit bland. It basically was a puree of avocado with very little or non-existent spices and 2 pieces of peasant bread toast. They could have had at least served it with some interesting chips, breadsticks, or another type of bread. Simple doesn't have to be boring. I fared much better with the plat which was a appetizing piece of daurade fish with the skin charred and crispy, surrounded by a healthy portion of stir fried julienne of vegetables that were well spiced. Dessert was a light, delicious and ever so satisfying strawberry trifle with Marscapone and crumbled biscuits which gave it crunch. Our spoons were fighting one another to taste every last bite, since we were sharing it.

I liked the casual, neighborhood feel to the restaurant and the staff was relaxed and friendly. We spoke with the very good looking owner Herve, who Meredith dubbed as the French equivalent to Patrick "Dr. Mcdreamy" Dempsey from Grey's Anatomy. He told us he was a food writer and editor for many years before he opened the restaurant with two partners.
The front and back of the restaurant has community high tables and we sat in the one in the back by the open kitchen. Shiny red enamel lanterns and a red enamel brick wall gave the neutral, calming interior a bit of dash.
Some of the food is organic and is prepared with ingredients from local or nearby growers, fishermen, and artesianal food companies. For instance the beef for the hamburger and steak tartare is prepared with meat from the Aubrac region of France and is freshly ground when you order it. Vegetarians, who are sadly neglected in most French restaurants, will rejoice with the hearty seasonal vegetable plate which currently is a purée of eggplant and fig, tomato confit, and squash. A refreshing Moscato, a dessert wine from Italy has star quality to it- it's provided by ex-Bond girl, the super chic Carole Bouquet, a neighborhood regular of the restaurant.
So if you are craving something besides foie gras and smelly, rich cheeses, Glou is the place to get back to solid, well executed basics.

101 rue Vieille du Temple, 3d arr.
Metro: St. Paul, Saint Sebastien-Froissart
Tel. 01 42 74 44 32.
http://www.glou-resto.com
Open 7 days for lunch and dinner

Herve, the French Mcdreamy

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