Pierre Gagnaire – The Meal that Kept Going…and Going

It’s hard for me to write about my dinner at Pierre Gagnaire after experiencing the best meal of my life (so far) at Alain Ducasse au Plaza Athénée the night after. The food and service at Pierre Gagnaire were good, but didn’t inspire me – which was surprising since Pierre Gagnaire is hailed as a master of modern French cuisine (3 Michelin stars and ranked a Top 10 World’s Best by Restaurant magazine).

I was intrigued by the first few courses, but then got weighed down by the monotony of the heavy sauces from the following courses – it made the 4 hour meal go by so slowly. They should have included an intermezzo to wake up my taste buds between the savory courses or at least had more contrasting flavor profiles to keep the dinner exciting. I felt like I was eating forever! I literally had to step outside twice during the dinner for fresh air to help me make it through the 14 courses – the first time I’ve ever had to take a break from a chef’s tasting menu.

Artistic array of amuse bouches
Blue Fin Tuna & Conch in Garden Chervil Bisque - the plating was exquisite! The chervil bisque heightened the wonderful flavors of the tuna and conch.
Vegetable 'Crepe' Filled with Crab in Coriander Cream
Fish and Parmesan Crisp in Pea Soup with Cider
Turkish Morels, Squid Carpaccio, & Radishes in Creamy Wine Reduction - the morels were delicious, but they didn’t go well with the other components…the combination of textures was strange. The squid carpaccio had no taste and confused the dish.
Oven-roasted Baby Red Snapper over Pressed Seaweed – the fish was beautifully cooked. The pressed seaweed looked nice on the plate, but its flavor was off.
Onion Gratin with Pistachio, Spinach, & Foie Gras – an extremely rich dish, the foie gras was amazing. I also enjoyed the crunchy texture of the pistachios. However, I started to feel quite overwhelmed by all the heavy, brown sauces at this point. The portions were also too big (never thought I’d say that at nice meal!) – I couldn’t believe I was just halfway through dinner…
Blue Lobster and Bresse Chicken in Burgundy Sauce - one of my favorite courses. The Bresse chicken was so moist and had a wonderfully light and clean flavor…a rare instance were chicken actually outshines lobster!
Roquefort Cheese & Lemon Peel Terrine in Citrus Foam – finally an exciting dish with some pizzazz! I loved the interplay of the rich, pungent blue cheese with the tart lemon peel – a perfectly balanced dish. This was my other favorite course of the evening…I could literally eat it every day.
Gold Leaf Encrusted Sauterne Gelée accompanied by the most delightful Petit Fours – the Sauterne gelée was bright, yet complex and each of the petit fours had deliciously unique and distinctive flavors (I wish the entire dinner would have been executed in this manner).
Passion Fruit Cream & Black Sesame Wafer - the tartness of the passion fruit overpowered this dessert
Banana and Chocolate Cake
Dark Chocolate Cake with Vanilla Ice Cream, Raspberry Parfait, and ? – these 3 desserts were brought out at the same time and I can’t remember what was in the small cup…most likely a coffee/espresso based dessert with ice cream. Needless to say, it was unmemorable. The other 2 desserts were also just ok.


Overall, I enjoyed my experience at Pierre Gagnaire. The atmosphere was relaxed and comfortable for a fine dining establishment, a contributing factor being the slightly dated décor. There were some incredible high notes, although I found myself bored by the food at times. I think if a menu consists of so many courses, it must have a wide and diverse range of flavors and textures in order to keep diners interested - this is the main reason I would not come back here…plus there are so many other great restaurants in Paris.

BITE METER: Pierre Gagnaire – 3.5 bites (out of 5.0)