Not content with already owning Racines, which has received rave reviews over the years, and Le Bon Saint Pourçain, to our own high praise, David Lanher opened a new restaurant, Cèna, just a stone's throw from Parc Monceau and Boulevard Haussmann, in 2021.
From this haughty name, worthy of a Greek tragedy, David Lanher unfolds a story that is far from a farce. It's the story of a confidential place, staged by the Magalie Varcourt studio. Divided in two by a long, confusing central island, the space is enlarged by a large mirror on the back wall and bathed in natural light.
David Lanher is at the helm of this gourmet restaurant, which boasts a beautiful long terrace that invites you to sunbathe as soon as the sun comes out. He has opted for youth and freshness, with a trio of leaders under the age of thirty: Matthieu Morvant in the dining room, who has worked at the Plaza Athénée, Substance, the bistrot Flaubert and Racines des Prés; backed up by Lucas Hubert in the sommelier's office, who has created a menu of great classics and natural bowling.
And in the kitchen, Hideki Nakamura, a discreet figure of this young Japanese generation, guides his team with wisdom and restraint. Formerly head chef of the Michelin-starred restaurant La Table du 53, the Japanese chef is the embodiment of a personal, seasonal and generous menu that contains real treasures.
On the score, three preambles, three starters, two iodized notes that respond to the two meaty notes, a farandole of cheeses and two sweet conclusions; to be discovered à la carte or by letting yourself be guided through a tasting menu that follows the chef's mood - €75 for the starter, fish, meat and dessert menu at lunchtime.
It's hard not to fall under the spell of the preambles that follow one another - sardines, onion confit, fromage blanc and buttered then toasted farmhouse bread (10€); mussels, herb mayonnaise and the same farmhouse bread (8€), little delights of comfort and delicacy.
Artichokes in tempura, spring onions, broad beans and cockles (18€) fare very well, as does trout, endives, trout roe and kumquat-grapefruit vinaigrette (20€), butgreen asparagus in tempura, herb mayonnaise and lovage cream (24€) seems a little lonely at the center of its plate.
But the two meat dishes make us forget everything, with guinea fowl (40€) revealing thigh and fillet, white asparagus, morels and smoked egg yolk, a condiment in its own right, a true masterpiece; and this tender veal chop and sweetbreads (42€), contrasted with shoulder croquettes. Moving and stirring, chef Hideki Nakamura 's cuisine hits the spot.
To end on a sweet note, the newly-arrived pastry chef unveils a dessert based on chocolate and tonka bean (14€), full of textures - a tuile, a ganache, a streusel, an ice cream, supported by a whisky custard with a big character ; and a dessert inherited from the former pastry chef, less unforgettable, with poached rhubarb (13€), rhubarb siphon, almond sponge cake and rhubarb and elderflower marmalade.
A table d'auteur incarnate, an elegant breath of fresh air in the 8th arrondissement.
This test was conducted as part of a professional invitation. If your experience differs from ours, please mention it in the comments.
Location
Cèna
23 Rue Treilhard
75008 Paris 8
Official website
www.cena.restaurant
Booking
www.cena.restaurant
