Coin Coin, write more
Coin Coin is one of those places I like to come back to. Not just for what’s on the plate. Or even for what’s in the glass. No. It’s something else. I love the bar. I love its little tables. I love its terrace when the fine weather returns. I like its corner arcade from which you can observe the neighborhood with discretion. I like its parquet floor and that atmosphere that’s hard to describe but immediately recognizable as soon as you walk through the door.
In its place
Everything you need to have a good time. To linger. To order the last drink of the evening. To forget the passing of time. Coin Coin lives up to our expectations. But places have memories and old memories don’t fade.
Valentin Pouzet’s departure left behind more than just a menu: a personality and gastronomic moments. Today, a new story begins. Arriving from Paris, Victoria Crozet leads the dining room with elegance and naturalness, while Gaspard Dufour has taken over the kitchens. A young team, driven by the desire to write its own story.
Light and conversation
For once, I’m not going to start the story with the contents of the plate. I’ll just pick out a few details… that deserve to be dealt with. For example, the darkened, ghostly-looking mezzanine, which accentuates the impression of emptiness despite a few occupied tables below. Light is sorely lacking in this part of the restaurant, which seems to be waiting to be brought back to life.
Then the music. Surprisingly loud, fast-paced music for a Wednesday evening. Too present, too nervous perhaps. As if it unconsciously invited us to step up the pace, when the place was calling us to slow down. To take shelter. To let time do its work.
Mischievous smile
Fortunately, the soul of a venue is also built by the people who run it. And in this respect, a young waitress did her bit to brighten up the evening. With professionalism, of course, but above all with a lightness that can’t be taught. A mischievous smile, a few whispered words, the obvious pleasure of talking about the dishes rather than simply announcing them. A sincere presence that immediately makes you feel expected.
Then comes the menu. A menu that catches the eye even before it seduces the palate. The titles are appealing. They tell the story of a contemporary, precise cuisine, nourished by gentle products, but also of an already rich career for a chef who is still young. Influences, memories, encounters and the desire to offer a personal cuisine are all evident.
Seized by torchlight
It doesn’t take long for the first plates to live up to their titles. On one side, mackerel seared with a torch, accompanied by a beurre blanc smoked with tarragon and olive oil. On the other, a beef carpaccio, topped with a tonnato sauce and enhanced with tasty caper leaves. Then cuttlefish, accompanied by ajoblanco, Spain’s emblematic white almond soup, refreshed by a cucumber granita.
The sequel confirms this desire to travel without ever losing the thread. The eggplant, melting to perfection, is dressed in a cream of feta, black olives, pine nuts, Parmesan and a basil pesto with hints of wild garlic. The porchetta, with its coriander nam jim sauce, thyme pig jus and hints of red cabbage, is more gourmet.
New identity
At this point, it’s hard not to see the movement at work. Coin Coin is slowly turning one page and beginning to write another. A few adjustments remain, but the essential is elsewhere: in this desire to make the place evolve without denying what has made it so endearing. A transition, yes. But above all, the beginning of a new story.
