Our time in Paris was winding down. We had two more evenings left. The Missus had enjoyed dining at a Boullion on the last night of our previous stay, so we thought we'd do that again. So, on the second to the last night, I thought we'd go with a fancier meal. I mentioned having made reservations at the Michelin Star Automne in an earlier post and then having it cancelled. On the bright side, we ended up having dinner at Les Enfants Rouge that evening, which has become a favorite of ours. I did still want to dine at Automne and on this visit I made a reservation for this evening. The restaurant is in the 11th Arrondissement, about a kilometer and a half from our apartment. We had a nice stroll on over. Like many of our preferred fine dining restaurants in Paris, the restaurant was helmed by a Japanese Chef.
We we greeted upon arrival and escorted to a nice quiet corner table. For dinner we selected the 7 course tasting menu and shared a wine tasting.
The pacing was relaxed, very low keyed. Of course things started with the amuse bouche.
Which I recall being delicious, but I got seriously distracted.
By what, you might say. Well, we had one of those wonderful "Paris moments". You know us and pooches. We saw the cutest furry pooch walking down the street. He looked like he was smiling and there was something about he and his owner that caught my eye. I brought out my camera to take a photo and wouldn't you know it. The woman saw me pointing the camera their way. Now, if you would believe those Paris stereotypes, you'd think that we'd be in store for some rudeness. But, like what has happened to us many times before, we had a moment. The woman smiled and waved and brought the pooch over to take their photo.
It was such a sweet moment! When I went and downloaded the photos I realized what had caught my attention. You know that folks say people start looking like their dogs……. What do you think? It's one of those unforgettable moments. The Missus and I talk about this encounter more often than we chat about the Louvre!
Anyway, on with the meal.
First up was a terrine with Smoked Eel and Foie Gras.
I wasn't sure about this dish at first glance; but it was quite good, the rich foie gras paired nicely with the smoked-savory-eel. The balsamic glaze and beets added sweetness to really help balance things out. The radish was slightly pungent which helped to reset the palate between bites.
The Scallops with Osetra Caviar was quite decadent.
I thought the scallops could be seared a bit more, but it was perfect rare, sweet-oceany, the caviar adding an interesting layer of flavor that was almost like intense walnut? The shavings of hazelnut added another layer of earthy-nuttiness to the dish.
The next dish featured, black truffle, wild game bisque, and a salsifis timbale.
The bisque was a bit too much and overpowered the dish. But of course, we could minimize the exposure and enjoy the truffle and salsifis. This also had really earthy and savory pied blue mushrooms.
The line caught sea bass was cooked to perfection.
Crispy skin, moist and flaky, the sauces, broccoli, rapini, and one that seemed like a mild foam with hints of lime all added a different dimension to the dish.
The Roasted Venison was cooked to a perfect doneness for me.
Nice mild gaminess, the one item that was amazing in this dish were the mushrooms. I was told it's called Trompette de la Mort "trumpets of death"! Also known as black chanterelles. My goodness, the sweet-nutty-earthiness was amazing.
The Poached Pear with Cocoa Tuile was not overly sweet.
And all in all, this was a fine meal.
One of many that we've had in Paris over the years!
Automne
11 Rue Richard Lenoir
75011 Paris, France
Man, I forgot how much mul kimchi is provided. These weren't as sweet as I recalled and provided and was a good foil for the sweetness in the wings.
As for the wings; well it's a personal preference; I prefer crisp over highly battered and too crunchy. I enjoy smaller wings with a good skin to meat ratio, rather than jumbo, meaty, and often dry wings. This is why I had enjoyed getting the wings from Bonchon. So, how did these fare? Well, it seemed to be more "sauced" than I recall, though it was evenly coated. The sauce seemed a bit sweeter as well, I would have enjoyed a bit more pungency. The coating was crisp, but I'm glad I had this onsite since I don't think it would have stood up as takeout. The wings were moist, the meat tender, though I did see some black spotting, which can lead to off flavors, but this was fine. And for some reason, it brought back memories of our "KFC" visits to places like 
The interior is bright, rather spartan, and almost "fast-foodish". And to keep up with the times, you can order via menu or order and pay via QR code. The young lady, who was quite friendly also told me that there were special promotions for "online ordering" which was also reflected on the bottom of the menu.
The shrimp was served with a "Thousand Isle-ish" dressing. The shrimp was overcooked and dry; the potato strings while mildly crisp lacked seasoning. A fairly bland dish overall.
Well, let's just say, this reminded me 
The chashu had been marinated and charred. The flavor was not bad, but it was on the tough side.
This was an interesting dish. The tonkatsu was nicely breaded, quite crisp, the pork itself was moist, but mushy, and lacking in flavor. The texture was kind of strange and the taste was definitely in the "other white meat" category.
Well, this is about the same as Phuong Nga. The bread is very crusty which I like, though a bit more chewy than I prefer. These days, many banh mi shops don't even include cucumber in their sandwiches; but it's present here. The jalapeno was pretty mellow on this sandwich. Of course, one of my pet peeves; the cilantro was mostly stems….I already floss daily; I don't need to have my sandwich doing it as well. The proteins are sliced on the thicker side and there are less pickled veggies than before. What I really liked about this sandwich was the amount of pate. Upon biting, the pate basically oozed out…a funky, earthy, creamy, savory "puss" of the most delicious sort.
