Our review of Café les Deux Gares

Off the beaten (train) track, a modern bistro near Gare de l'Est

May 31

More than a decade ago, the New York Times writer Mark Bittman came to town and reviewed some Paris restaurants. The resulting article, Four Paris Restaurants Worth a Metro Ride, was aimed at an audience of travelers who, he presumed, had to be coaxed out of Saint-Germain. He wrote about a trip to the popular Canal area as if it were a no-go zone, reassuring readers that people actually live there:

While I was in Paris, I told a native I was off to Philou, in the 10th. “Who goes to the 10th?” she demanded, with a bit more vulgarity than that.
At least enough people to fill Philou every night. (Some folks might even live around there; it seemed fine.)

We all thought this was hilarious.

Fast forward to 2022 and here I am, on the heels of publishing about Saint-Germain, wanting to reassure our audience of travelers that a restaurant in the 10th is totally fine. And so it is.

The aptly named Café les Deux Gares sits between two train stations, north and east. It is reached from the Gare de l’Est by climbing an impressive stone staircase and crossing an airy esplanade that looks out over the train tracks - a wide slice of open sky in the most densely populated city in Europe.

I had actually never been to this corner before, despite having lived for the better part of two decades on the north/east sides of Paris. I personally don’t mind the train tracks and the sort of people you find milling around them:

The iconic train bridge scene from Jules et Jim

Venturing here has several advantages. First, you’ll be surrounded by locals - the sort who sprung into action when Le Fooding first wrote about this place two years ago. Second, you’ll enjoy the contrast between the grey metal outside and the explosively colorful interiors by designer Luke Edward Hall.

Interiors by Luke Edward Hall at Café Deux Gares restaurant in Paris | Paris by Mouth — The interior at Café Deux Gares (all photos by Meg Zimbeck)

Third, and most important: it’s delicious. Our meal at Café les Deux Gares began with goose rillettes (7€) and a plate of Cantabrian anchovies swimming in bright green olive oil (10€).

Rillettes and anchovies at Café Deux Gares restaurant in Paris | Paris by Mouth — Goose rillettes and Cantabrian anchovies

Soon after came our favorite dish of the night: white asparagus drizzled with vin jaune sauce and sprinkled with crispy buckwheat (14€). The sauce, made with an oxidized Jura wine that has some sherry notes, was a more interesting riff on the hollandaise sauce often served with white asparagus.

White asparagus with sauce vin jaune at Café Deux Gares restaurant in Paris | Paris by Mouth — White asparagus with vin jaune sauce and buckwheat

Also stunning was a dish of smoked sea scallops with raw cream, kiwi, and a dusting of bear’s garlic - an herb similar to ramps (18€). I was suspicious, after a decade of being assaulted by too many raspberry + scallop dishes, but this was fantastic. The kiwi added bright acidity while also mirroring the lush slippery texture of the scallop. The latter’s smokiness played beautifully off the cream.

Sea scallops at Café Deux Gares restaurant in Paris | Paris by Mouth — Smoked sea scallops with raw cream, kiwi, and bear’s garlic

Our two mains might have been more at home on an autumn menu, but they were delicious: pollack (lieu jaune) ikejime with endive, cauliflower puree, and mandarine jus (27€), followed by pork (secreto de cochon) with carrot, apple and coriander (26€).

Café Deux Gares in Paris — Pollack with endive and cauliflower, pork with apple and carrot

For a final bite of sweetness, we ordered a dish I rarely see on Paris menus anymore: crème brûlée. Their version doubles down on texture by showering the burnt sugar surface with crushed hazelnuts (10€).

Crème brûlée at Café Deux Gares restaurant in Paris | Paris by Mouth — Crème brûlée with hazelnuts

In short: This is affordable and really well-executed modern bistro fare, based on exceptional seasonal ingredients. Café les Deux Gares may be off the beaten track but, as Mark Bittman might say, it’s worth a metro ride. Especially on a Monday night.