Le Servan
Add: 32 Rue Saint-Maur, 75011 Paris
Tel: 01 55 28 51 82
Hours: [lunch] 12-2:30pm [dinner] 7:30-10:30pm (closed on Sat & Sun)
Price: [lunch] €25/three courses [dinner] €40~50 a la carte
Visited: Mar 2015
Le Servan is a bright little bistro in the 11th arrondissement, opened about 6 months ago by the Levha sisters. Inside the kitchen is Tatiana, a young chef previously trained at Michelin three stars L’Arpège and L’Astrance, while her sister Katia manages front of the house. The cuisine is modern French with Asian touches (the Levha sisters are half French half Filipino) and is directed by whatever is fresh in the market. Prices are reasonable especially during lunch time – €25 for three expertly executed dishes, in the company of friendly service and a beautiful space. Definitely somewhere to come back to.
For lunch, a few small appetizers (called zakouskis on the menu) are available in addition the three-course set. We tried “wonton de boudin noir frits” (€8), fried blood sausage wonton served with sweet chili sauce, which was quite nice. The table next to us had a bowl of “coques, piment, basilic thai”, shells sauteed with chili pepper and Thai basil, which looked pretty amazing as well.
Among the four entree options in the lunch menu, we first tried “maquereau cru, endives, orange, cacahuetes”, raw mackerel with endive, orange, and peanuts. A refreshing start, though the fishy taste was slightly strong.
“Langue de veau, poireaux, sauce piquante”, veal tongue with leek and spicy sauce.
We had both options for the main course, the first being “merlu, beurre de pistaches, légumes verts”, hake with pistachio butter and greens.
The second, “échine de cochon rôtie, chou tombé, sésame noir”, roasted pork loin with cabbage and black sesame.
Dessert option one is “gâteau aux pommes caramélisé”, caramelized apple cake with yogurt sorbet and Chantilly cream.
The second is “tarte au bergamote”, a bergamote tart with meringue. Cheese is also an option for those who don’t want desserts (what?!).
Except the slightly too strong fishy taste in the mackerel appetizer, I enjoyed everything at lunch at Le Servan. This place really does serve very good food at affordable prices, with extra points in service and ambience. On another note, the Levha sisters must be the sweetest-looking chef/restauranteur pair I’ve seen in a while. See below photo to judge for yourself – Tatiana on the left (changed out of her chef clothes after service) and Katia on the right.
Great display of French food. A restaurant sweetly run by sisters is rare, and the love and affection they have for each other show in their food as well as in the ambiance of the restaurant. The gâteau aux pommes caramélisé is served so simply yet with such finesse, it’s a shame to eat it, but no one can deny the cravings of a hungry palate. Thanks for sharing!