Paris Insights - The Restaurant Review

Chocho

posted October 28, 2024

54 rue de Paradis

75010 Paris

Metro Station: Poissonnière (Line 7)

Type of cuisine: French, Spanish, and American fusion

Days & hours of operation: Mon to Fri noon - 2:00 p.m. and 7:00 p.m. - 10:00 p.m. Sat to Sun noon - 2:30 p.m. and 7:00 p.m. - 10:00 p.m.

Credit card: Visa, MasterCard, American Express

Chocho is located in an off-the-beaten-path quarter of Paris, not far from the Gare du Nord and the Gare de l'Est train stations.

The menu
The restaurant offers a five-course vegetarian menu for 62€ and a five-course omnivore menu for 74€.

Its carte lists four starters from 12€ to 19€ (including a Plat à saucer), three main dishes from 24€ to 26€, and three desserts (including a cheese plate) from 13€ to 16€. 

The Plat à saucer is a plate containing puréed vegetables and cooking juices for sopping with bread.

We ordered à la carte.

The starter
For the starter, we decided to share a Plat à saucer, as well as order a separate starter for each of us.

Inspired by an Italian dish called sofrito, the Plat à saucer consisted of a dish containing purée of carrot and tomato, “carrot butter,” dollops of a thick purée of celery, and bone marrow with meat juices and gravy.  We sopped the preparation with slices of focaccia (served alongside) and enjoyed!

For my starter, I ordered Maïs doux à la “Bellevilloise”, moules de Galice & lard fumé.  The waiter brought a shallow bowl containing kernels of yellow corn cooked firm to the bite and resting in a frothy emulsion with smoked bacon bits and Galician mussels.  Delicious!

My partner opted for Fricassé de panais au beurre noisette, Ossau Iraty, rancio sec & cresson de fontaine.  She received a dish containing cooked shredded parsnips smothered in a sauce of rancio wine, hazelnut-flavored butter, Ossau Iraty cheese, and puréed watercress.  A crumble of hazelnut sprinkled over the top gave this delectable dish special appeal.

The main course
For the main course, I requested Cabillalud gratiné à l’aioli fumé, legumes d’autome, sauce Pilpil, a disk-shaped portion of cod cooked with diced potato resting on a nest of cooked spinach and creamy pil-pil sauce.  (The sauce consisted of an emulsion of garlic, fish eggs, and olive oil.)  It was a wonderfully appetizing dish.

My partner selected Joue de porc braise à la pomme, tofu fouetté, endive et condiment coing-moutarde.  The waiter served a plate containing four slices of ultra-tender pork cheek flavored with a slightly-sweet mustard-and-quince sauce resting in a slightly sweet, dark brown sauce.  A large dollop of whipped tofu and half a grilled endive accompanied this dish. The preparation was exquisite – my partner gave it a 10/10!

The bread
Thick-sliced fresh crusty country bread was served alongside in a breadbasket. 

The beverage
For the beverage accompaniment, I ordered a bottle of Deck & Donohue IPA, a blond, slightly bitter-tasting beer that held its frothy head well when poured into a glass. 

My partner preferred a glass of Be Api from the Emilien Jean winery in the Nouvelle Aquitaine region of France.  With a deep red-purple robe, it had an elusive red fruit nose with a spicy after-kick.  Tannic with a medium finish, it accompanied both the starter and the main course well.

The dessert
I ordered a Poire, rose, granité yuzu, madeleine & mousse de marron for dessert.  The waiter presented a bowl containing very thin slices of cooked pear overlaying a madeleine cake and a pear sorbet.  Topped with granita flavored with yuzu and rose, the dessert was a heavenly treat.

My partner requested Cheesecake basque, Manchego & orgeat, a serving of cheesecake made from sheep’s cheese topped with a gelatin sheet flavored with orgeat. Alongside, a small bowl of orgeat ice cream was served in a cream made from Manchego cheese.  She found this to be an innovative dessert, but said the flavor of the Manchego was too prominent for her taste.  She quite enjoyed the ice cream.

The bill
The bill for two, including a bottle of filtered, sparkling water, one bottle of beer, two glasses of wine, three starters, two main courses, and two desserts, came to 147.50€.

The service
The service was friendly, helpful, and efficient.

The ambience
The dining room is an informal space illuminated by industrial lamps hanging from the ceiling. 

At the far end of the large dining room stands an open kitchen, above which the name of the restaurant is displayed in pink LED lighting.  Part of the ceiling is illuminated in green, giving the room an almost garish neon-lit effect. 

To the left of the entrance is a counter where diners sit on highchairs facing large mirrors.  Down the middle of the dining space are two large tables d’hôte for family-style dining, and along the right-hand side and flanking the entrance are individual dining tables.  Knowing the dining arrangement in advance, we called the restaurant to request an individual table, as we had no desire to sit on a highchair or at a family-style table with other diners.

When we entered, a mild form of rap music played softly over the sound system.  The music was soon drowned out by the loud conversation of customers.

The menu is in French and English.  The waitstaff speaks English.

The waiter told us that the restaurant can accommodate customers in wheelchairs.  The WC is large enough to accommodate a wheelchair.

Travelers to Paris who seek innovative and delicious fusion fare will enjoy coming to Chocho to dine.