L'Enoteca Italian Restaurant - Paris, France: Located off the beaten path in Marais district, between the Seine and St. Paul Village, L'Enoteca Restaurant, is just a short taxi ride from the center of Paris. We got there at 8PM on a Saturday evening and found it in a quiet and almost desolate neighborhood.

Normally, I steer clear of Italian restaurants when in Paris but our plans for dinner that night fell through; we were in a bind and had no dinner reservations. Luckily, the concierge at Le' Grand Hotel recommended L'Enoteca and was able to snag us a table at the last minute.

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From the outside, the building looked as if it had seen much better days and I wondered to myself what could possibly be on the inside. We walked in to find a fully packed restaurant. The place was small and looked like a small Italian Trattoria. The tables were arranged closely together (as they always seem to be in Paris) and there was only a small and awkward space where we waited while our table was being prepared. Soon enough we were seated, almost in front of the door, smashed between the coat check and the wall. Nevertheless, I was relieved that we had at least gotten a table.

The menu changes frequently to keep up with what is fresh and in season. The selection is not large but the quality of the food, the portion size and the relatively low cost more than made up for it. The wine list, on the other hand, is extensive with an enormous selection of Italian wines. Enoteca, after all, means a wine repository run by local or regional wine grower in Italy.

We started our dinner with a shared portion of spaghetti with prawns and baby octopus, perfumed with tarragon and lightly spiced. For our main courses I had "Rollatine," veal stuffed with Parma ham and parmesan cheese, served over mashed rutabaga and spinach, and Prosecco sauce. My partner had Sliced beef simmered with onion fondue, cloves, cinnamon and Marsala, on polenta and green cabbage. Everything tasted fresh and absolutely delicious. The food was at par with the ones I had in Italy. For desert we shared the Italian classic, tiramisu; and once again, L’ Enoteca did not fail to impress! Service throughout dinner was equally amazing for such a casual restaurant.

L'Enoteca is definitely a must visit if you are in Paris and you love Italian food. Theirs is authentic and home-cooked with love and warmth. You do need to get reservations as they are full nearly every day of the week. L'Enoteca is simply one of the best Italian restaurants in Paris. L'Enoteca gets a solid Bombastic rating.

What I liked: Everything

What I didn’t like: Our tables location, but I felt lucky we even got a table.

Rating: Bombastic

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