All good things, I suppose, must come to an end. The area around the Eiffel Tower has changed a lot since I last lived there, with barricades surrounding the square beneath the Iron Lady – once so accessible to all –and my stalwart favorite dining optiond in the area changing hands, as Chef Christian Constant, at 71 years of age, finally retired from his post as the long-standing mayor of rue Saint-Dominique. Once at the helm of not one, not two, but three restaurants on the stretch of street just a stone’s throw from Paris’ most prominent landmark, Constant had already quietly let go of both les Cocottes and le Violon d’Ingres before passing the torch of his eponymous Café Constant last year. Waiting in the wings: France’s answer to Jamie Oliver, the very tall, very Southern Cyril Lignac. And he’s made over what was once my favorite neighborhood spot in more ways than one.
Let me dispense early on with my one disappointment: Part of the reason I so loved recommending Café Constant to visitors was the fact that it was one of only a handful of even half-decent places to serve an actual meal in that ghost-time between 2:30pm and 7pm. Constant served better than half-decent (that is to say, very good) food at reasonable prices all afternoon long and seven days a week. It was a diamond in the rough for this very reason, and Lignac has opted not to continue in the same vein. Instead the chef, who is above all a pâtissier, closes the kitchen doors between lunch and dinner in favor of transitioning to more of a tea salon, serving hot drinks and cakes from his eponymous pastry shop all afternoon long. It’s still nice, but I’ll miss having Constant’s mid-afternoon lunch service to recommend to hungry tourists who lingered a bit too long at the Tower and are now relegated to stale, soggy sandwiches.
But I digress. Lignac has also made some lovely changes, including restoring white tablecloths to the dining room and offering a few new menu items I can totally get behind.
Toying with classics is all the rage these days, so it’s no wonder that Lignac’s oeuf-mimosa (aka deviled egg) is a bit more modern than most, seasoned with fresh herbs and topped with olive oil-packed tuna. It’s at once lighter and more generous than more stalwart iterations of the bistro staple, and I wholeheartedly enjoyed it.
For a slightly more upscale option, meanwhile, these scallops served on the half-shell with a jumble of citrus and a sprinkling of hazelnut and chive are a lovely, light addition to the menu.
That still-same goal of offering a lighter play on a classic is more than realized by this version of Alsatian stuffed cabbage leaves, boasting a filling made, not with veal and pork, but with scallops and smoked pike roe.
Of course, not every classic wants or needs updating. Lignac has maintained Constant’s cassoulet – the down-home bean stew of the South, served with both sausage and duck confit. Present, too, is a beef tenderloin with foie gras and Darphin potatoes, as well as slow cooked beef chuck, croque monsieur, escargots, and an olive-and-lemon scented roast chicken.
Black pudding, meanwhile, is served atop a silky potato purée with a generous spoonful of apple compote on top. Rich and luxurious, it’s now up there as one of my favorites in the city.
Come dessert time, you can skew one of two ways: Opt either for a plated dessert made in-house, like this ultra-generous tarte Tatin served with a spoonful of raw cream, or for one of Lignac’s pastries, familiar to anyone who has graced his pastry shop. Either way, those with a sweet tooth will surely end their visit on a high note.
Caf̩ Lignac Р139, rue Saint-Dominique, 75007