I ate at Spring on Friday night, along with two other writers who have already published accounts of the very same meal. I’ll spare you the repetition and simply direct you to these reviews by Barbra Austin and Adrian Moore. You might also like to read the review by Mr. Lung from the following night, which Daniel Rose told me was the “most sensitive review” that he had seen in a long time.
For my part, I wrote a story that was published by BlackBook today, detailing the hype that surrounds this opening. I’ve excerpted a bit below and you can head over there to read the whole thing.
With Expectations High, Spring Restaurant Reopens in Paris
…“I’m terrified of being seen like Itinéraires,” says Rose, referring to the disdain that greeted Sylvain Sendra’s new venture after he sold Le Temps au Temps. Some of the things that diners loved about Sendra’s cramped little bistro didn’t seem to work at the new restaurant.
Rose faces a similar challenge, moving from an undecorated shoebox in a far-out neighborhood to a flashier space in central Paris. Like Sendra, he added staff and raised prices in order to pay for them. These aren’t the only changes, however. Nearly all of the hooks that comprised Rose’s story have changed within the last three years. The underdog who cooked alone and undercharged for every plate has grown into the Hot Chef who manages a team and sometimes speaks in terms of “branding.”
Such changes have done nothing to slow the rush for reservations at the new Spring. The sense of urgency surrounding this second coming is reflected in the jittery title of a discussion thread on Chowhound: “Report on New Spring? Someone? Please?”
Rose wishes it weren’t this way. “A restaurant is just part of the decoration of life,” he said. “It isn’t life itself. I want Spring to be a normal restaurant.”
Whatever the chef may wish, Spring was far from normal on the first Friday of opening week. With the exception of one small family and two neighbors from the building, the restaurant was filled with industry folk. Rival bloggers sat shoulder to shoulder in one corner while Masson and Rubin nuzzled at the bar. Everyone watched the open kitchen as if it were a stage….
> Continue reading at BlackBook
> Read other trusted reviews of Spring Restaurant at Paris by Mouth
4 Responses to Spring Restaurant reopens in Paris
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Great Opening dude….me too moving to Paris…!!! MOVING TO PARIS
I’ll definitely have to try out this version after missing out on the old one. Perhaps you’ll be able to help those struggling to make reservations!
Good evening,
Would you please excuse my english…..I am trying to do my best. I just would like to know if you ever came at our restaurant “Itinéraires” before you wrote your article? We all know that opening a new place is a challenge and the starting period is “experimentation”. But did you try us till then? just to make the point : we are 17people working hard for a 39€ diner meal…..raising 5euros from the first 2 owner place!
Anyway, we were just a bit shocked reading your article tying to get information concerning the new Spring because we think he is a great chef…….we are more excited than never waiting to eat the 64€ menu!
Dear Sarah (Sendra),
When Daniel Rose said he didn’t want to seen like Itinéraires, he wasn’t talking about the food. I think he was talking about the negative reaction that some clients have when a favorite chef moves from a small, intimate space into a bigger, more polished restaurant with additional staff (something that the new Spring and Itinéraires have in common).
Whether or not it is justified, it is true that *some* critics and diners complained that their meals at Itinéraires did not have the same level of quality or charm when compared to your previous restaurant le Temps au Temps. Of course, not all critics or diners felt this way and Itinéraires has received many positive reviews. I myself have tried Itinéraires only once (after visiting le Temps au Temps twice) and had a very pleasant experience. The veal tongue in particular remains a delicious memory.
If I am honest, I would say that I personally preferred the more intimate experience at le Temps au Temps, but I recognize that this was a special time and that you were undercharging us for such wonderful cuisine. The same is true with the “old” Spring (and Frenchie now). As diners, we are extremely lucky when a talented chef decides to work like a slave for 2-3 years and charge a very low price while building his or her name. However, when the same chef opens a new space, hires additional staff and raise the prices to pay them, we still carry the memory of the golden old place and this provides a (perhaps unfair) comparison.