The French word “borné” means “narrow-minded” or “blinkered,” but let’s give it a kinder translation: “having a one-track mind,” in this case, focusing on good food. It doesn’t really matter, however, since this new restaurant’s name is just a jokey pun on the name of a parallel street, Rue des Trois Bornes.
The three people in question, a mother and her two sons, have created an attractive bistro with stone and brick walls, banquettes, high and low wooden tables and a cozy nook in the back furnished with a sofa and coffee table.
The surprising thing about Les Trois Bornés is the size of the servings in a place that bills itself as bistronomic, to the point where my companion and I both had to ask for doggy bags (don’t forget: Paris restaurants are now required to provide them on request) because we were too full to finish our main courses.
Even the appetizer was hearty: a pretty little bowl containing suckling pig with Jerusalem artichoke cream.
For the first course, I had the œuf croustillant, a soft-boiled egg wrapped up in a frilly filo-pastry package with “smoked-milk.” It was perfectly prepared, with a runny yolk and crispy pastry, but it was bland enough that I had to ask for salt and pepper, a rare occurrence.
My friend’s starter was excellent fried foie gras, rather strangely served with “November vegetables” in a stock with an unappealing flavor.
I thought my main course was rather fine: a large helping of super-tender chicken, both light and dark meat, sitting atop a paste of chestnuts and ceps, with Albufera sauce (made with foie gras) and fried ceps. It also tasted great the next day straight out of the doggy bag.
My friend didn’t seem as happy with his stuffed pork belly with fall vegetables (the stuffing wasn’t very present), but it tasted fine to me.
For dessert, we shared a lovely flower-shaped apple tart served with cinnamon ice cream.
This is a great place to go when you have a big appetite, secure in the knowledge that you will be getting freshly made seasonal dishes and cheerful, motherly attention from the female bornée.
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