Cristal Room Baccarat :

My husband and I have had a pied a terre on the left bank in Paris for twenty eight years. I fancy myself a Paris cognoscenti, but somehow I missed Baccarat’s Museum and headquarters in the sixteenth on the Rue des Etats Unis until my recent fall trip for the fashion shows. 

Haute Couture Window Shop On Your Way To The Cristal Room
I accepted an invitation to dine in early October at Baccarat’s Cristal Room which I  assumed to be in the same building as Baccarat’s sumptuous store on  the Place Madeline. As one of the pure pleasures in Paris is walking, I gave myself enough time to walk from my apartment in Saint Germaine across the Seine through the Louvre down the Rue Saint Honore to the Faubourg Saint Honore to the Place Madeline: a forty minute walk if you do not linger lusting at  the Haute Couture windows along the way. When I arrived to a closed store, I checked my invitation and found that the Cristal Room was in the sixteenth on the Rue des Etats Unis. I quickly hopped a cab which  whisked me there through the Paris traffic in fifteen minutes when I explained my “faute.”

The Mansion of Marie-Laure de Noailles
I arrived to a magnificent patrician street with an island of trees in the middle. The driver pulled up to a formidable mansion. Entering the building I was greeted by a beautiful young Parisian woman who was seated at an antique desk in a recessed alcove off the massive marble staircase. The feeling is of being invited to an urban castle by French royalty rather than a restaurant open to the public. As you walk up the grandiose staircase you know instantly that something special awaits you. The restaurant is located in the former dinning room of Marie-Laure de Noailles. It’s been magically transformed by Philippe Starck who is world famous for his architecture and furniture designs. The interior space is very intimate and romantic. 

Over The Top Service 
My dinner companion having looked up the address was waiting for me in a regal room lit with baccarat chandeliers. She was enjoying rose champagne which the waiter offered as soon as she sat down. I happily joined her. The wood paneled dining room is in its original place in the mansion. It is small enough to continue the feeling of being in a private home yet tables are comfortably placed so you can enjoy your privacy.  The ever attentive staff appeared with amuse bouches offered by the chef to whet our appetite for the culinary delights that awaited us. There is an a la carte menu but it is more interesting and fun to have the tasting menu which is comprised of seven courses each paired with a wine of the chef’s selection. The portions are perfectly sized for a seven course presentation. In addition to being scrumptious they are beautifully placed on the porcelain plates making the meal a sensory as well as a culinary delight.  

The Menu
We experienced such delights as foie gras sauteed with pear, infused oysters, roasted lamb in a pastry case, red mullet with saffron, tender leeks and fig mousse. A hungry smile comes to my face when I recollect this amazing meal.

We capped the experience with a tray of small sweets while we sipped espresso and enjoyed a cognac: the perfect cap to a “reve” of a meal. The entire setting and experience were so enjoyable it was hard to leave so a second cognac was in order.

The Baccarat Museum
After dinner we were invited to tour the Baccarat Museum which is housed in adjoining rooms which also maintain the feeling of a private home. The entire experience is like no other I have had in a public restaurant, even in Paris.  If you are looking for a special intimate evening in a unique setting the Cristal Room is “parfait “as the French say.

A la carte the prices are approximately 90 Euros per person. Champagne bottle service starts at 100 Euros.

BACCARAT CRISTAL ROOM
11, place des Etats-Unis - 75116 Paris
Tel : +33 1 40 22 11 10
Fax: + 33 1 40 22 11 99
E-mail: resa@cristalroom.fr

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