Boudoir Brasserie

This name, "Boudoir" is used a lot in Parisian dining establishments lately, but is not to be confused with Le First Boudoir restaurant in the Westin Hotel mentioned in the Naughty Paris Guide, nor Le Boudoir at Hélène Darroze's eponymous restaurant. It newly opened over the summer of 2008 on a small street just off the Champs Elysées.

On the ground floor is a wine bar (with many good wines by the glass) and restaurant seating in leather club chairs. Up the stairs are three more spaces: a Marie-Antoinette inspired dining room in pink, a more neutral-toned dining room next door, both overlooking the street. They could make more space between the tables, but this is Paris, alas.

FInally, through an almost hidden set of double doors, you'll find the Fumoir.

"But isn't smoking illegal now?" you ask. Yes it is. But restaurants and bars can build special fumoirs, completely enclosed, ventillated, and separate from the areas that the wait staff have to enter. So there's no way anyone but the smokers will get contaminated. Most places can't afford these fumoirs (the only other one I know of is at the Chacha Club), but since Boudoir is new, thet were able to build it in.

 The fumoir has cozy club chairs, lockers for your cigars, and even a call box for ordering drinks from the bar. If you're going to be a bad girl and smoke, this is the place to do it. I was there with a group of women one night for wine before going out, and amazingly the ventilation worked so well we didn't even smell like smoke afterwards.

As for the restaurant, I had lunch there with two lady friends. I had the quail cooked with grapes. There was more bone on the quail than meat (such a tiny little bird!) and the seeds were not removed from the grapes before cooking, which seemed a little odd. But all was forgiven immediatly when I got my dessert.

For once, I did not go for the chocolate dessert. I ordered the Panna Cotta made with Bourbon Vanilla, passion fruit coulis, a scoop of mango ice cream, and a side of crumbled cookie to put on top. Heaven! I could eat twenty of them, lactose intolerance be damned!

In sum, a great place to come for wine, dessert, and an illicit cigarello in the fumoir.

Menus €21 and €27, à la carte around €50. Wines from €4/glass. Closed Saturday at lunch and on Sundays.

Le Boudoir
25 rue du Colisée, 8th
M° Franklin Roosevelt
Tel 01 43 59 25 29

The second upstairs dining room.


The ground floor dining room. 

Read l'Internaute review in French here.