Lesar: Tasty Neighborhood Restaurant in the 5th

Sometimes the best discoveries are by accident. Looking for a place to eat dinner between Les Gobelins and rue Mouffetard in the 5th arrondissement, we stumbled upon this neighborhood eatery opened by two young chefs from Ferrandi Paris (the renowned professional training school). We snagged the last seats at the bar in front of the open kitchen- it was a full house and subsequent passersby had to be turned away.

The concept is small plates, prepared with seasonal ingredients, meant to be shared. A few examples: open ravioli with ricotta, hazelnuts and balsamic butter; sea bass tartare in a yuzu bouillon with radish and spring onion; perfectly roasted duck breast with candied cherries. They’re each priced between 12-16 euros, which we found to be a great value.

Seated at the bar is its own entertainment. The chefs deftly handled the orders, and all the dish washing. (Remarkably, only three people are working the restaurant at a time- the two chefs and a server, who kindly let us sample wines before choosing a glass.) The crowd was mostly local- couples, groups of friends- appreciating good food and friendly service. We recommend making a reservation online in advance.

Pictured at top: a crumble-topped roasted fig extravaganza, one of two delightful desserts that we sampled.

DETAILS
Lesar
4 rue du Petit Moine, 5th arrondissement
Tel: +33 (0)1 82 83 19 94
Metro: Censier-Daubenton (line 7)
Open for lunch on Thursday and Friday from 12 noon to 2 pm.
Open for dinner on Tuesday-Saturday from 7 pm to 11 pm.
Plates from 12 euros.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Lesar Restaurant (@lesar_paris)