Le Dome, Paris – still famous after all these years?
It’s on one of the sweeping boulevards in Paris and frequented by some of the greatest artists of the 20th century. Le Dome Montparnasse, in all its Art Deco splendour, is undoubtedly a tourist trap but for a lazy, sunny Saturday lunch, it was a wonderful spoil for Greedy Girl, gluttonous husband and their dear friend Pucci Girl, she having treated herself to a fabulous new dress on sale at Au Bon Marche. What else would one do in Paris?
This is a large, imposing and refined restaurant. Shown to a table in the conservatory, we perused the menu. Given that Pucci Girl is not an enormous fan of fish this was a challenge to be overcome – Le Dome has served up seafood to the likes of Ernest Hemingway and Pablo Picasso. Who were we to ask for a steak frites instead.
With a delightful bottle of champagne cooling in the ice bucket, we discovered to no small delight that free wi-fi was available. No doubt Monsieur Hemingway would utter a gruff American-accented zut alors (or perhaps something more, ahem, earthy) so we three Australians could check the football scores over lunch. Was there a more perfect place to consume lunch?
And so to the food. An amuse bouche was offered of a delightful gazpacho and we tucked in. It was just the prelude to some rather gigantic plates.
The girls (Greedy and Pucci) chose langoustines with fresh egg noodles, tomato and basil. This was substantial yet light. The langoustines had been grilled (with that distinctive flavour) but still remained slightly undercooked and very moist. The noodles were al dente and the dots of fresh tomato as well as the slightly heavier sauce were delicious. It was a very good dish.
Langoustines with fresh egg noodles
Pan-seared John Dory
Greedy Girl, unusually for her, took the tarte au citron. This was a slightly different take and more like ‘lemon meringue pie’ with a crunchy biscuit base and the soft meringue piped on top. It was very tart and very sweet. Greedy Girl gobbled up the berries on the plate to try to soothe the all-out assault on her teeth enamel.
Tarte au citron
Chocolate … mmmm …
Ducking downstairs to the restrooms, Greedy Girl hoped to see some signs of the illustrious dining forebears – a quick sketch on the back of the toilet door by chance with the words ‘Picasso was here’ scrawled underneath. No such luck.
We were quietly finishing off our champagne and an excellent coffee when the street in front of us filled with police vans and gendarmes in full riot gear. We asked the waiter whether there was a protest march. Not exactly, was the reply.
It was, in fact, the gay pride march. Sydney’s Mardi Gras it wasn’t, but it was kind of the restaurant staff to organise such a cabaret for us to round out a memorable lunch.
Le Dome is not for everyone. Non fish eaters would struggle here (although there is a sprinkling of other dishes available). It’s certainly not cheap and, depending on the review you read, the service can be, well, difficult. We experienced none of the downsides and enjoyed our moment in history.
Le Dome
108 Boulevard du Montparnasse, Paris
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