One of my last discoveries during my latest trip to Paris was Aux Plumes – a neighborhood little (literally little) restaurant in the 14th arrondissement, where you can taste the touch of the Japanese chef and sous-chef.
The talented Chef Kazuhiro Fujieda worked previously with chef Alain Passard at L’Arpège, a three-Michelin starred restaurant, where he learned the delicateness of the French gastronomy. With more than 6000 traditional restaurants, not counting all the brasseries, fast foods, fast casuals, and cafés, Paris is no doubt a tough place to open up a successful restaurant. It didn’t seem to bother Chef Kazuhiro Fujieda, who does everything faultlessly to turn Aux Plumes into a successful business.
I ordered the agrodolce (sweet and sour Italian sauce) of smoked tuna, powder of cuttlefish ink, followed by the roasted guinea fowl, the foam of sweet potato with coffee, and for dessert, I chose the poached white peach, verbena blancmange with its sorbet – such a wonderful dinner for only €38! Each dish is beautifully presented, and you could taste the freshness of the products.
Agrodolce of smoked tuna, powder of cuttlefish ink
The menu is succinct, with four dishes to choose from each category: Appetizer, main, and dessert. It might look simple but each dish is carefully chosen, the ingredients are meticulously balanced, and nothing is left to chance. Ask the waiter to help you with the wine; he knows his cellar perfectly well.
Roasted Guinea fowl with the thigh, foam of sweet potato with coffee
The décor is very simple: raw wood on the floor, wood bistro chairs, white walls, wood and metal tables, and an open kitchen at the back where you can see the chef and his sous-chef preparing delicious dishes. The restaurant is very small and quite narrow; each little square is used with efficiency. There’s not a lot of space for extra coats or bags, the tables are very close to each other, but it doesn’t diminish the charm of the restaurant, it actually makes it cozier.
Poached white peach, verbena blancmange with its sorbet
Below are pictures of some of the dishes we tried. We were a party of five, so we were lucky enough to taste them all.
It all started with a little cheese-based amuse-bouche, a signature of the house.
Yellow peach gazpacho with yuzu, scampi, and fresh goat cheese.
Cold poached girolle mushrooms, apricot, and Iberico chorizo.
My style octopus a la Galicia.
Fish of the day with the garnish of the day.
White chocolate mousse, kiwi, and cucumber soup.
Cherry hall shower, rhubarb, and Brittany shortbread biscuit.
Kazuhiro Fujieda preparing the dishes in his little open kitchen in the back of Aux Plumes, a restaurant worth 100 times the detour and a trip to the 14th arrondissement.
Aux Plumes
45, rue Boulard, 75014 Paris
📞+33 01 53 90 76 22
Price: $$$
Three-course menu: lunch €18 – dinner €38
Six-course tasting menu: €50
Closed Sunday and Monday
