Yam'Tcha, Paris, France

I was quite happy to secure a table for lunch at Yam'Tcha, since I had been longing to go and eat at this small French/Chinese eatery for one year. Yam'Tcha was, along with Passage 53, on my to-eat-in-Paris list, and my patience was seriously tested as I could find every other day a new article on the fine cooking of Adeline Grattard.

Therefore, on a sunny Sunday, we adventured in the Halles area towards rue Sauval to discover this culinary temple.

Yamtcha is a charming place, and the best table to book is probably the one on the bar counter where two lucky diners can literally eat in the semi-open kitchen.

Surprisingly there was no A la Carte menu, or maybe we had to specifically ask for it? We went anyway for the surprise 6-course tasting menu and ordered the pairing teas, meticulously prepared by Adeline Grattard's Chinese husband Chiwah Chan.

Sweet potato noodles and crunchy vegetables

Flat beans salad with ventrèche

 

Prawn wontons

 Steamed mackerel with black rice and girolles

 Roasted Challans duck and sautéed aubergines 

with Sichuan pepper and coriander

 

 A little bit of tea to wash down the food...(I obviously do not

remember the names of the six different teas)

Gorgonzola cheese with soy sauce and honey

 More tea to get ready for dessert

 

 Raspberry and white peach pavlova with ginger ice cream

Contrary to what I had read, the service at Yam'Tcha was not that slow, even if the tea serving was not always perfectly timed.

We liked every dish, with a special mention going to the roasted duck with sautéed aubergines which were  nicely peppery and melting in the mouth. The sweet potato noodles appetizer and the flat beans salad were reminiscent of the local Chinese flavours. I was slightly disappointed by the wontons as I prefer them with less filling. The mackerel was light and perfectly cooked, but we were not excited by the black rice it was served with. 

When we were served with a simple piece of Gorgonzola, we were not enthusiastic at first, but we must admit that the combination with honey and soy sauce is excellent. And to finish, the dessert was brillant: a deconstructed pavlova, made of a crispy and melting light meringue, served with fragrant white peaches and a delicious ginger ice-cream.

Yam'Tcha is clearly at the top end of the Chinese food offer in Paris (which is rather poor) but I would not say the food was mind-blowing. Apart from the Chinese/French "fusion" twist, the cooking was not particularly innovative. But maybe Adeline Grattard is not seeking originality but simply wants to offer to the Parisian dining scene some very well-done Chinese food, in which she indeed excels.

Cost: 6-course tasting menu: 65 EUR

Pairing teas and/or wines: 20-40 EUR