Two Italian journalists who live in Paris told me recently that their favorite Italian restaurant in the city was Chez Marius, so it was rather disconcerting to arrive there for dinner only to discover that the bistro in question, located in the 10th arrondissement, is owned by a Frenchman, not an Italian. When I learned that he was the former owner of a great bistro, Chez Casimir, that set my mind at ease.
Chez Marius’s interior is reminiscent of Casimir’s, with its red-checked tablecloths, red banquettes, plants, books and framed black-and-white photos and illustrations. The wine list is handwritten on a big chalkboard on the wall and the day’s menu on a blackboard perched on a chair.
The owner, Yannick Aubrée, whose manner was rather abrupt and condescending at the outset, explained that the dishes were shareable and that if we were really hungry, we should order three. So we did.
When I asked him to bring the dishes one by one rather than all at the same time as he had proposed, he protested, saying that the concept of the restaurant was to serve everything at once. That’s a practice I really dislike – while you are eating one dish, the others get cold – not to mention that the table was far too small to hold three dishes at once. He finally agreed, but only because the restaurant was not busy on that August evening.
All was forgiven once we dived into the first dish: plump, juicy mussels from Locquémeau in Brittany alla tarantina, i.e., cooked in a wine sauce with fresh datterino tomatoes and red and spring onions, liberally sprinkled with fresh parsley and dill. It was exquisite. If it’s available, I highly recommend ordering it. Don’t forget to spoon up all of that superb sauce.
Next up was a smallish pizza with buzzonaglia, a flavorful cut of Sicilian red tuna, with red onions and intense, melt-in-the-mouth olives. The crust, soaked in good olive oil, was somehow still crunchy and a pleasure to eat. I’m still craving it.
That was followed by barbecued casserons (cuttlefish) with pesto sauce, served with a simple (no chili) cabbage kimchi and perfectly cooked potatoes. The unusual combination of pesto sauce and tender cuttlefish with a slightly grilled flavor was another winner.
As full as we were from all that, we just had to share a dessert, expecting it to be up to the same high standards. It was. We had the excellent mascarpone cream with fresh strawberries,
Like the best of Italian cuisine, these dishes, cooked up by an Italian cheffe (one of the restaurant’s two alternating chefs), were fairly simple but made of exceptional ingredients at the peak of their goodness. They go straight to the heart and even helped us warm up to the owner. We’ll be back, often.
See our Favorite Restaurants by Arrondissement page to find a good restaurant in the neighborhood where you want to eat.
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