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La Mère Brazier was founded in 1921 by Eugénie Brazier, the first woman ever to receive three Michelin stars. In 2008, Mathieu Viannay became the new executive chef and proprietor with hopes of bringing the restaurant back to its heyday.

Under the new chef, the restaurant has been recognized with two Michelin stars. Upon entering the restaurant, we knew we were in good hands. The service was excellent from start to finish – exactly what you’d expect from a restaurant of this caliber.

La Mère Brazier

While the restaurant seats 70 people, the space is divided into several small dining rooms for a more intimate experience. Our room only had five tables and would make for a perfect special occasion restaurant.

The interior

The restaurant is open Monday to Friday for lunch (noon to 1:30pm) and dinner (7:45pm to 9:30pm). Reservations can easily be made online through their website. If you want to try a Michelin star restaurant without breaking the bank, lunch is always a great option.

At La Mère Brazier, they feature a two-course lunch menu for 47€ (a starter and main or a main and dessert) or three courses for 50€. Their menus change with the seasons and the dishes have a nice modern touch. The prix-fixe consists of two choices for each course so between the two of us, we tried everything.

Our setting

We opted for the three-courses. What’s another 3€ right? And as you’ll see, it was a lot more than just three dishes. They give you a lot of extra’s too. It reminded me a lot of my experience at Jean Georges in NYC.

Shortly after ordering, we were given some delicious Herb Cheese Bread.

Herb Cheese Bread

After eating the cheese bread, we were brought some more bread! If I can recall correctly, it was of the sourdough variety and had a wonderful crust.

Bread

Along with the bread, we were provided with two types of butter – regular and spiced.

Butter

Next up was the Amuse Bouche which they called a velouté coco pigeon. The creamy soup was a nice little bite and also contained a small pigeon leg in the centre. Not a bad way to start off the meal!

Amuse Bouche

For my starter, I chose the Rillette de Saumon aux Herbes – soupe Glacée de Petits Pois. The taste of the salmon rillette reminded of an elevated salmon salad. It was very light tasting with bits of crunch from the celery. Its light preparation really allowed the flavours of the salmon to shine.

Rillette de Saumon aux Herbes

The dish also came with a chilled pea soup which was presented in such a playful manner – in a mini glass bottle with a straw. I felt so strange slurping soup from a straw in such an intimate dining room!

Pea Soup

Mike went with the other starter, the Asperges Sauce Mousseline – copeaux de Parmesan et “Palette Iberique.” After our disastrous experience with white asparagus at Vince’Stub in Strasbourg, I was a little afraid of what to expect here.

Thankfully this was a completely difference experience. The asapargus was cooked perfectly and still had a nice crunch to them. The mousseline sauce, which is similar to a lemony hollandaise was delicious and the combination of it with the asparagus, parmesan shavings, cured meat and crumbled egg was perfection.

Asperges Sauce Mousseline

For my main course, I ordered the Rable de Lepain Farci aux Fruits Secs, Confit de Cuisse – copeaux de Légumes à l’huile de noisette which translates to rabbit saddle and confit rabbit leg.

The rabbit saddle was tender and moist, as was the confit leg which just melted in my mouth. The hazelnut flavour worked wonderfully and the bits of nuts gave it a nice crunch. A delicious main course!

Rable de Lepain et Confit de Cuisse

Mike’s main course was the Risotto aux Herbes Fraiches – seiches et coquillages, emulsion au thym (aka seafood risotto). The squid and mussels in the risotto were well-cooked but we weren’t fans of the texture. It was just too soupy for our liking. Taste-wise, it was solid but nothing memorable.

Risotto aux Herbes Fraiches

Before our desserts came, we were served a small bowl of Fromage Blanc Ice Cream which tasted like tart frozen yogurt. It’s too bad all ice cream shops don’t have this flavour. I just loved how refreshing it was after a large meal.

The ice cream came with a Madeleine, which was easily one of the best I’ve ever eaten. What made it stand out was its crisp and caramelized exterior. Not traditional by any means but it was So. Damn. Good.

Fromage Blanc Ice Cream

We had yet another treat before our desserts were served, a plate of Petit Fours which included a chocolate truffle, praline pie, pistachio cake and cassis macaron. I can honestly say I enjoyed each component but if I had to choose, the cassis macaron was my favourite. It just had such an intense flavour and left me wanting more.

Petit Fours

At last, our desserts arrived. Mine was the Croustillant au Sésame et Fruits Rouges – mousse légère à la vanille et sorbet framboise. This dessert consisted of small scoops of light vanilla mousse and raspberry sorbet sandwiched between sesame crisps. Light, refreshing and just what I wanted!

Croustillant au Sésame et Fruits Rouges

Mike’s dessert was the BlancManger à la Fève de Tonka – Ananas Victoria, sorbet à l’anis vert. Looks can be deceiving – it looked like a heavy dessert but was surprisingly light. The pineapple sorbet was particularly enjoyable.

Blanc-Manger à la Fève de Tonka

The chefs have definitely put some thought into their desserts as both choices were quite light and didn’t leave us feeling 10 pounds heavier.

Just as we thought our meal had finally come to an end, a server brought over a cart of Marshmallow, Salted Caramels & Nougat. Just pick and choose what you want! I had a few of the salted caramels and nougat, both of which were incredible.

Marshmallow, Salted Caramels & Nougat

Like I said earlier, 50€ for lunch goes a long way at La Mère Brazier. Sure, you could feed two people for the same price elsewhere but you can’t beat the quality of food and service here. If your budget is a little tight but you still want to check out a Michelin star restaurant, don’t miss La Mère Brazier’s 50€ three-course lunch!

Salted Caramels & Nougat

At a glance:
• Mathieu Viannay, executive chef/proprietor since 2008
• 2 Michelin stars
• Open Monday to Friday for lunch (noon to 1:30pm) and dinner from 7:45pm
• Seats 70 but the restaurant is divided into several small dining rooms for an intimate experience
• Dropped by for their 3-course lunch menu for 50€ (but you also get an amuse, 2 bread dishes, petit fours, etc)
• Expect a long meal – lunch was 2 ½ hours long
• Fantastic service and great wine selection

Ratings (out of 5):
• Food: 4 stars
• Service: 5 stars
• Atmosphere: 4 stars



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