Guy Savoy

Soup Worth a Detour

4.5 of 5

Guy Savoy has a restaurant inside the Monnaie de Paris, the old mint on Quai de Conti, and he has a soup. The soup is artichoke, black truffle, with a layered truffled mushroom brioche on the side. It is the dish people mention first, and it deserves the attention because it tastes like what the whole kitchen is doing: take something humble, add something rare, leave the fuss out.

The restaurant has been ranked best in the world on La Liste for nine years running. I treat rankings like quarterly forecasts, interesting and never gospel. This one has lasted long enough to count as a pattern. Service runs Wednesday to Saturday, lunch and dinner. The tasting menu costs 760 euros, drinks extra. The lunch menu, Ne cherchez pas midi à 14h00, runs from 295 to 410 depending on the wine.

Online reservations ask for a deposit, 300 euros a head at lunch and 400 at dinner, refundable up to 72 hours ahead. That is steep. It is also the price of a room that treats every table as the only table. If you are going to plan a trip around one meal in Paris, this is a sane candidate. Order the soup. Do not share it.

Order this: The artichoke soup with black truffle and truffled mushroom brioche, The tasting menu, Couleurs, Textures et Saveurs, The lunch menu, if your wallet needs a hand
The damage: $$$$
Go: A Wednesday to Saturday lunch
Find it: 11 Quai de Conti, 75006 Paris
Website: guysavoy.com