Winter Vacation '08 - Paris - The Eating, Part IV (Sourire de Saigon)

We found Sourire de Saigon on our last trip to Paris in 2006. It was total chance that we found it, as it was directly across the street from the apartment we rented. And we loved it.

So it was a given that we would be eating here again on this trip, even though we had to hoof it a good bit further this time.


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Map of the walk from 7 Villa Guelma, our rental apartment, to Sourire de Saigon @ 54 Rue Mont de Cenis

What you don't necessarily get in that map visual is that you're dealing with a couple sets of serious stairs in the middle of it. For us this meant a return trip uphill with bellies full of Vietnamese food.


Imposing staircase, Montmartre

But on the way down you get to spot the restaurant's lights like a beacon of deliciousness.


View of Sourire de Saigon from above

We arrived a few minutes early for our reservation, so we walked downhill a bit more, getting a view from the other direction.


This angle illustrates just how in the middle of nowhere this restaurant is

We still had a couple of minutes before our table was ready, so they set us up with two glasses of champagne while we waited.



There is something about the red / violet light motif they have going one here that I really like.



It's chic, but soothing.



We ate here twice during this trip and both times the food and service were fantastic.


View of the bar, which is a tiny, one-man operation

One slight drawback of the low light ambiance is that the pictures I tried to grab with my BlackBerry were just too dark to be useful. And while I'm willing to risk being something of a conspicuous dork to get photos, I wasn't willing to put the flash on here. So there is no photographic evidence of our main courses. But I did get some shots of the side dish that fascinated us in 2006 and continues to fascinate us now: Riz Gluant (aka, 'sticky rice').


Riz Gluant - aka, the best damn rice I've ever had

They bring it out to you in these wooden cylinders and peel it open for you in a banana peeling / corn husking kind of fashion (it's far more elegant than it sounds, though, as it's performed in almost a ritualistic fashion by deft waitresses outfitted in colorful, traditional Vietnamese dresses).


A sad attempt to capture the flambe in action

There was one mild disappointment, though, which was the flaming dessert we ordered. It sounded much better than it tasted, as it was some kind of pineapple croquette soaked in a liqueur. Had the makings of something tasty, but just really didn't work for either of us.


The disappointing croquettes

Nonetheless, if we ever make it back to Paris I am sure we'll look this place up again. The atmosphere is cool, the food is amazing and we highly recommend it.

More shots from inside Sourire de Saigon


Buddha statue near the bar


French / European notables featured in the menu, none of which I recognized, exposing my cultural ignorance. But I'm glad they went with the pictures in the menu approach rather than the pictures all over the wall approach.

Even the bathroom is cool


Interior door of the bathroom


Not sure what the symbolism is of having the Chairman supervising your business in here


Good to see they keep the sink tidy


And apparently they are fans of Tintin