Let me begin by saying, the brunch at Fontaine de Belleville is excellent, and frankly, I’m unsurprised. This Parisian café run by the same folks behind the Belleville Brulerie does exactly what I think should be the next coffee revolution in Paris: Revisiting the classic Parisian café with excellent-quality products, ranging from Sain viennoiseries to, of course, the top-notch coffee they roast in Paris’ 19th arrondissement.
With a beautiful blue façade and a sidewalk terrace that extends into the little square across the street, it’s welcoming, warm, and marries the quality-driven, artisanal mindset of most modern coffee shops in Paris with the classic allure the city’s stalwart cafés are known for.
It is also home to a consequential brunch.
Brunch appears to be my new soapbox, now that I’ve talked your ears off extensively about the death of the bistro. Basically, my issue with brunch in Paris comes down, not to its quality, but rather to its size. Most Parisian brunch offerings come in the form of a formule, which, for me, pushes brunch too far into the lunch category for (digestive) comfort. Instead of one massive plate of say, pancakes, brunch in Paris comes in courses, and by the time I reach dessert, I’m often far too full to do anything but go back to bed.
(Which I get is sometimes the point of brunch. But still, I rouspète. Oh, look, I have become French.)
Things nevertheless begin reasonably enough: with a buttery croissant from Sain bakery (my fave in Paris), just up the road. Made with sourdough, these croissants are heftier and denser than most, but they have a lovely flavor and delightful butteriness that just doesn’t compare. A small verrine of fromage blanc with granola and a choice of hot beverage and juice rounds out this first course.
Next up is the main: a plate with a panoply of seasonal choices, including a quenelle of ratatouille, house-made cole slaw, salad, a “blini” (which felt, to me, like something between a crumpet and a fat pancake and was absolutely delicious), and a ramekin of scrambled eggs.
Diners have a choice of one of three final additions to this assortment: We went for one gravlax and one goat cheese feuilleté, wrapped in crispy brick pastry.
Both were delicious, but the salmon had the edge for me, buttery and rich and just salty enough.
The final course was a cheesecake that led me to chuckle at the memory of one of my favorite Kitchen Nightmares moments, when Gordon Ramsay positively lambasts a restaurant owner for serving half of an individual chocolate cake for dessert. I was happy to see the half-portion of cheesecake, with its fruit crumble, caramel drizzle, and speculoos base, especially seeing as I’d hacked the brunch formula to ensure I didn’t need to go right back to bed after breakfast: While it’s not listed as an option, we asked if we could share just one formule, ordering the second plate à la carte.
While ordering off-menu in France is usually frowned upon, in this case, they were more than happy to oblige, which just goes to show: Even in France, it never hurts to ask.
Fontaine de Belleville – 31-33 Rue Juliette Dodu, 75010