Dernière semaine Patrick et moi avons dîné à MG Road, un restaurant qui est situé dans mon quartier, au coin de rue Saint Martin et rue du Bourg l’abbé. Je passe à côté du restaurant tout le temps et toujours c’est très occupé. Quand Patrick et moi avons dîné il y a quelques mois à Desi Road dans son quartier (le 6ème arrondisemment), nous avons appris de MG Road, parce que le propriétaire des deux restaurants est le même.
Last week Patrick and I had dinner at MG Road, a restaurant located in my neighborhood on the corner of rue Saint Martin and rue du Bourg l’abbé. I walk past this restaurant all the time and it’s always very busy. I had no idea what kind of cuisine was served but it was obviously good because rarely did I see an empty table. A few months ago Patrick and I had dinner at Desi Road, a restaurant in his neighborhood (the 6th) and learned then that MG Road was its sister restaurant. So last week when Patrick said he wanted to go back to Desi Road, I suggested we try MG Road….we were not disappointed!
Selon le site web, à la fin du 19ème siècle, fleurissaient dans Bombay des cafés ouverts et tenus par des immigrants Perses. Ces cafés dits « Irani » étaient des lieux essentiels à la vie sociale Bombayite et sont devenus mythiques. On y mangeait bien, vite, toutes sortes de petits plats traditionnels, dans un décor de bistrot où miroirs et photos de familles couleur sépia ornaient les murs dans une ambiance Art Deco tout droit sortie de la gare Victoria.
According to the restaurant’s website, at the end of the 19th century in Bombay, cafés opened and staffed by Persian immigrants flourished. These Iranian cafés were a mainstay of social life in Bombay and attained a mythical status. The food was good, quickly-prepared small plates of essentially traditional “street” food. The décor was bistro-like with mirrors and sepia family photos creating an Art Deco feel right out of London’s Victoria station.
Waiting for a table
À Paris, la décoration de MG Road est directement inspirée de ces cafés: chaises en bois tourné venues de Bombay, tables couvertes de marbre blanc d’Agra, quelques tableaux typiques de ces restaurants.
In Paris, the MG Road decor is directly inspired by these cafés: wood chairs from Bombay, table tops of white marble from Agra and paintings typical of the 19th century cafés.
Avec MG Road, le propiétaire, Stéphanie de Saint Simon, réunit ses deux passions : la cuisine et l’Inde. Elle a voyagé en Inde de nombreuses fois. Elle a pensé qu’il manquait à Paris une cuisine indienne plus dans l’air du temps comme savent bien faire les anglais. Donc, c’est un chef venu de Londres qui propose une cuisine d’auteur, interprétant la grande diversité de patrimoine culinaire indien avec modernité. Une expérience très différente des restaurants indiens traditionnels vous attend.
With MG Road, the owner Stephanie de Saint Simon, combined her two passions : food and India. In her opinion, Paris lacked the type of Indian cuisine that has been perfected by the English. So she hired a chef from London who has created a signature cuisine that interprets the great diversity of traditional Indian cuisine with a modern flare. This is not your typical Indian restaurant!
On left, kulcha stuffed with mushrooms & truffle oil (fabulous!), center chicken tikka
Hands down, the best dish Patrick and I have had is something called « pink golgapas », another word for panipuri which, according to the Oxford Dictionary, “is a common street snack in several regions of the Indian subcontinent. It consists of a round, hollow puri, fried crisp and filled with a mixture of flavored water (commonly known as imli pani), tamarind chutney, chili, chaat masala, potato, onion or chickpeas.” The MG Road menu describes their golgapas as (loosely translated): “fried wheat puff, filled with spices, beet raita and mint and coriander chutney.” All I can say is that these crispy puri are packed with flavor that explodes in your mouth…divine!
Flavor-packed pink golgapas, Patrick's and my favorite dish!
Patrick and his pistachio ice cream....never seen stacked ice cream before...
Le nom MG Road, vient de Mahatma Ghandi Road (souvent MG Road), un des noms pour routes les plus utilisés dans India. On y trouvera Mahatma Grandi Road dans plus que 20 villes indiennes.
BTW, the name MG Road comes from Mahatma Ghandi Road (often abbreviated as MG Road), one of the most frequently used names for roads in India. You will find a Mahatma Ghandi Road in more than 20 Indian cities.
