One rainy February night we decided to go to eat at Pouic Pouic. The restaurant is opposite the Saint-Germain market which is nearing the end of its reconstruction (in a few months time, it should have the Left Bank’s first Apple Store, a Marks & Spencer food, Uniqlo and Nespresso shop).

For the moment the area is a little calm, but the shopping centre will be open soon, the warm weather is on the way, the terraces will liven things up and as the area is so close to our hotels, you really should explore it! And don’t just walk past Pouic Pouic, which is opposite the market – although the restaurant seems discreet and tiny, the food is worth checking out.

Here’s our review.

In Saint-Germain-des-Prés there are so many restaurants that it’s often difficult to choose. Pouic Pouic calls itself ‘bistronomique‘  – sort of gastronomic bistro food – but the word is so often misused that we we just a little wary before arriving, a feeling that soon disappeared once we arrived.

The restaurant is simply and prettily decorated with old travel posters, nice concrete tiles and nothing chintzy. More importantly, we were warmly greeted with such generosity and sincerity that we felt immediately at home. It really makes all the difference! (something we know very well).
It’s a small, warm space with an open kitchen at the back, which is always good for making sure that the chef isn’t just heating up pre-prepared dishes. Even the chef and his assistant seemed to be in good spirits!
The menu is short and built around the produce from the market that day. Everything is seasonal.

We decided to skip the first course and get stuck in with a main dish each, one dish of scallops, macaroni and truffles, and a vegetarian dish which was not on the menu but that they were happy to make for us.

Well presented and rapidly served, the two dishes were tasty and generously-served, with a real taste of truffle and creamy sauce for one, and a creamy foam coating the crisp vegetables. Obviously made with love.
Of course, the advantage of not having a first course is having enough space for a good dessert! We chose a vanilla millefeuille with caramel and salted butter sauce, and “calisson from Aix with madeleine and orange flower”.

The descriptions had us salivating already and we weren’t disappointed – the millefeuille was light, super crunchy and almost impossible to eat without getting it everywhere (like all the best millefeuilles, right? 😉 ) and the calisson was a large scoop of ice cream with bits of calisson spread around it. Such a simple idea but extremely clever and effective. Great!
So a lot went very right, but what could have been better?

Well, in the heart of Saint-Germain you can’t expect food to be cheap, and Pouic Pouic is indeed a tiny more expensive than some restaurant, with main dishes costing around 30€-35€. For two people eating two courses with wine, you’ll probably finish off with a bill exceeding 100€. In their defence, everything is cooked under your eyes, and our dishes were delicious, so you get what you pay for.

Next, the restaurant has an online booking service that’s incredibly handy if you don’t speak French, but although we got one e-mail saying they had received our booking request, we never got the final confirmation that was supposed to arrive afterwards. No-one mentioned our online booking when we arrived either. Luckily there was plenty of room… lots and lots and lots of room.

Which brings us to our last point – the evening we ate there were only two tables occupied (including ours), meaning that the place was extremely calm. The chef went home before 10pm. His assistant left before we’d finished dessert. Perhaps it was because of the rain? We were told that the place is often packed, so perhaps this was bad luck, but you might like to keep it in mind.

Apart from these points, we really has a lovely meal at Pouic Pouic and look forward to going again in the spring. And the summer. And probably autumn… 🙂

Pouic Pouic (here) is open for dinner every night of the week (no lunch)

Website: www.pouicpouicstgermain.fr

Facebook: here

Twitter: twitter.com/PouicPouic75006

Online booking: www.pouicpouicstgermain.fr/reservations

To check out all our photos of Pouic Pouic, click here.