Hélène Darroze is a very well known name, and if the majority of the French know her as jury of the famous Top Chef, gastronomers know her every step from birth. Born in a historic family of cooks, she graduated in management, and it was while managing the restaurant Louis XV of Alain Ducasse, that the famous chef incentivated her to turn to the stoves, and gladly he did, she went from Ducasse’s kitchen to win her first Michelin star in the “old” family restaurant, to her arrival in Paris, where she achieved the two Michelin stars, to arriving in London where nowadays has also two stars, and of course, to the award of best female chef in the world in 2015.
Hélène, as a celebrety should, decided to take her cuisine to a larger public, and democratize bistronomie, installing herself in the 8th neighborhood of Paris with the Jòia, a space far from the gastronomic line, where the goal is clearly taking to her guests a type of cuisine you usually cook at home for friends and family.
If the cuisine gets inspiration from Hélène’s origins, of Southwest France and the Basque country, the image of the restaurant gets the influence of the years passed in England. On the ground floor, the spotlight goes to the tall tables and the kitchen, on the upper floor it all changes. An elegant cocktail bar and a room filled with sofas, books and warm colors making us feel at home!
Already installed, there’s no way around the signature cocktails, an extensive menu carefully prepared and where the highlight goes to this Gioia with vodka Grey Goose, Martini Ambrato, bergamot, absinthe Larusée, grapefruit and soda. Very good!
Terrine with Sicilian pistachio
The beginning couldn’t be more of an indicator of what we came here to taste and share. Nicely prepared terrine, good size, texture and flavor. Very well accompanied with good quality bread and pickles.
Landes Foie Gras, timut pepper
Another product from her region worked with excellence, here with a great quality mi-cuit, both in texture and in flavor, and very well paired with the delicious chutney.
Egg and truffle
Light, unctuous, and familiar, are three adjectives that very much describe this dish, with the perfectly cooked egg, the black truffle, the leaves, and the crunchy toast.
Landes chicken, Brioche and foie
The majority of the dishes is prepared for two people, and this one was no exception and couldn’t have been more “homy”! Perfectly cooked meat, benefiting from the brioche and the foie used under the skin to enhance the flavor. To go with we chose a leaf salad and crispy potatoes with brébis cheese, that fulfilled their purposes well!
Matcha mille fuille, yuzu cream
The most famous and “instagrammable” dessert of the restaurant, that lives of its looks, but the the lightness of the layers, with the creamy and rich mascarpone and yuzu cream, are a winning surprise.
Chocolate tart, buckwheat ice cream
By far one of the best chocolate tarts I ever tasted… Perfect technique, thin dough, creamy filling, sweet enough, good quality chocolate. The unusual choice of buckwheat for pairing the chocolate was also very well-accomplished. A round of applause to the baker, please!
During this lunch, we drank a nice Chardonnay, Burgundy 2016, from Domaine de Béru. The wine list has the singularity of containing wines produced by women only, like the case of our Filipa Pato.
The service went accordingly to the expected, very diligent, quite effective and with the right combination of niceness and accuracy only the French can do.
Final Remarks
With this Jòia, Hélène Darroze decided to play outside her usual game, bringing to the table her comfort food and memories, executed with rigor and products of great quality and, of course, the right prices for those. Jòia is one of those spaces that’ll live despite the name, and where we can find those enchanted with the tv star, the foodies and people who simply want to eat and enjoy the nice cocktail list. A cozy space where you want to stay and enjoy the small things of life, worked with mastery.
Ps: the lunch menu with options at 24€ and 29€ is usually a success!
Jòia par Hélène Darroze
Prices from 60€ (without wines)
39 rue des Jeuneurs – Paris
+33 (0) 1 40 20 06 06
reservation@joiahelenedarroze.com
Photos: Flavors & Senses
