HOT SPOT #3 IBAJI
ibaji opened 3 weeks ago, and I've seen a lot of photos on Instagram of their already famous black sesame waffles. Last week, I had a business lunch and for the occasion, I wanted to try out the address. So here I am with my two lenses, juggling everything to take a photo. I discovered a place, not very large, where every square metre was intelligently used. I look around me, not recognizing anyone, but I can see that people are scribbling in notebooks, copying menus and taking photos of everything with their cell phones. The journalists are out, and so am I, apparently.
I'd called the day before to make a reservation, but I was told that the restaurant didn't take reservations, so I went ahead to the lunch just to be sure. Unluckily, when 1 p.m. arrived, my seats were stolen by the millionaire gastronome Cédric Naudon, the man behind the ambitious project that is " la jeune rue ". At the same time, I can't fight, I don't have millions. Indeed, Ibaji is the first address in this crazy project.
What is La jeune rue?
If you've missed all the press on this subject, I'll give you a quick refresher course...
It's the project of a gentleman called Cédric Naudon, a virtuous, cultural, delicious and slightly crazy project, to open in the center of Paris, places where you can consume products from French agriculture, to reduce as much as possible the intermediaries between the producer and the consumer, to taste fresh and delicious products at fair prices. But la jeune rue is also a kind of cosmopolitan plate, where Japanese, Korean and Italian restaurants will rub shoulders, and all these cuisines will originate from raw French produce, from hand-picked producers who all comply with the ethical charter drawn up by the la jeune rue committee.
It's all happening in Paris, on rue Vertbois, and in the surrounding area, where a few addresses have already opened. I'll let you discover what's going to happen over the next few months on their website. And as you'll see, it won't just be food shops, but also French designers and artisans, so we'll keep you posted...
I finally manage to find some room, and even though I'm here, I decide to eat a starter, main course and dessert. We take our seats on the large central marble table (I'll let you discover the details of how it's cut on the spot). The hostilities begin and it's sublime. Divine tartare, cleverly spiced, wonderful burgers, and I succumb to the bibimap, a Korean speciality... In short, this is a magnificent address to try out with your loved ones. No takeaway, but the little bonus is that they serve all day long... So, if you forget to eat lunch because you've got a file to hand in, I recommend the address at 3pm, which is perfect and much more practical.
Ibaji: 13 rue Vertbois, 75003 Paris, no reservations but open from 12pm to 11pm. Count around 20 euros for a starter, main course and a drink for lunch...
The kitchen and dining room are staffed by genuine Korean women, and the decor is by the brilliant Italian designer Paola Navone. A little girl power never hurts...