Paris may be a relatively small city, but it is also a city of neighborhoods, not all of which can be judged on the same scale when it comes to food. While the Left Bank has historically been a favorite of bohemians, it’s no match for the culinary revolution taking place to the north. As someone who lives so far to the south I’m almost not in Paris anymore, I’m constantly on the lookout for great spots a bit closer to home.
I had very high hopes for Sellae, a modern bistro from Chef Thibault Sombardier. I’ve tried two of his other restaurant’s – Belleville’s Mensae and Michelin-starred Antoine – and so I was eager to see what the Chef was bringing to the 13th.
I visited at lunchtime, when a very reasonable prix fixe (19 for two courses or 22 for three) was on offer; we ended up ordering both the prix fixe and a few items from the à la carte menu.
The appetizer of the day – roasted broccoli and cauliflower with an anchovy topping – unfortunately fell a bit flat. While the seasoning was great (and the pickled onions were stellar), the broccoli and cauliflower lacked the caramelized sear that roasting usually imparts on these vegetables.
For the à la carte appetizer, I opted for a seasonal combo of mollusks, butternut squash, and croutons with hard-boiled egg topping. A celery root soup was poured over the other ingredients tableside. It was quite a bit larger than the prix fixe appetizer (which was to be expected, given the steeper price of 16 euro).
I wanted so much to love this. Again, the flavors were spot-on, but this time, it was the serving temperature that was a bit off.
The mound of roasted squash and seafood was served cold, and while the hot soup poured over the top warmed it up slightly (and while I’m not opposed to temperature contrasts in some dishes – more on that in a moment), I would have preferred that the whole dish be served warm. The cold roasted squash, especially, just kind of threw me and kept me from enjoying this as much as I wanted to.
The main on the prix fixe was braised lamb belly with seasonal veggies. This was a bit under-seasoned for my taste but otherwise well executed and tender, and the sauce was spot-on.
Given that Sellae Chef Matteo Vianello is Italian, I opted for the pasta from the à la carte menu: strozzapreti with speck and chanterelle mushrooms. This was excellent: the seasoning was perfect, and the sauce was obviously made with excellent ingredients; I could taste the quality of the butter base. My only complaint here is that, at 20 euro, I would have preferred this be made with fresh pasta, or at least bronze-extruded dry pasta.
The prix fixe dessert of the day was tiramisu: no surprises, but quite tasty.
We went out with a bang thanks to the house special dessert: a sweet-and-savory, hot-and-cold chocolate mousse that I had already had the pleasure of sampling at Mensae. It was just as wonderful here.
The unevenness of this spot is unfortunate, but it’s not a deal breaker. The prix fixe is too good a deal to pass up, and the flavors here are on-point. I’ll definitely return, especially when I’m looking for somewhere not too far from home.
Oh, and the bread – as in all of Sombardier’s restaurants – is incredible.
Sellae -Â 18 Rue des Wallons, 75013