Cafe Degas

Huge fan of this French bistro in Faubourg St. John. A short menu, tightly packed tables, and a kitchen the size of a walk-in closet all are qualities which remind me of a special place: the restaurant on Île Saint-Louis where my family ate Christmas dinner one year. I remember marveling at the quality food which came forth from a kitchen barely big enough to allow the two cooks to pass plates between each other.

Parmesan crusted veal with lemon caper beurre blanc. This is so good that I order every time. The accompanying broccoli florets would be best left off the plate, in my opinion.

This is the Australian rack of lamb which was tender, mildly gamey, and cooked to a perfect medium-rare. Unlike the broccoli above, the baby carrots were a great asset to the dish. That pile of fresh cut fries was an additional $4.

This was dessert. Actually, it was my appetizer AND dessert. This Tomme de Chevre was so good as a starter that I ordered another round to finish off the meal. It's just a high quality goat cheese rolled in an ash of dried herbs, but very worthy of being eaten as two courses.

The prices are higher than what you would expect from such a no frills restaurant, but the quality of the raw ingredients shines through. Great place for a low key dinner.

Cafe Degas - Birdie.