“ Recommend by our friend in Boston, we are from Austin and Toronto and went to experience the magic of Le Plomb! We were told the potatoes were a MUST have and this is so very very true. Truly a French experience across the board from the decor, to food, to vibe! Ask for Stephen, he was lovely and took great care of us!!! Excellent server. Even tho they were crazy busy and every restaurant on the street seemed busy they got us a fabulous table right away! Very French and romantic! Also recommend the rib eye for two and the ham and cheese omelette and fries, just don't forget the garlic mashed potatoes (add a little salt). It's an experience! ”

“ Every restaurant that served Aligot was nearly closed on Sundays. I was pretty bummed but I found this place while searching the net. I knew it was our only shot at trying this dish before we left Paris. We definitely chose a good one and turned out one of the best places we ate at in Paris. First off, this restaurant is like a underground cave or tavern with dim lighting. The seating is all wood with quality utensils on the tables. We started with Pate which was just out of this world. We had two baskets of mini baguette pieces to spread this flavorful-buttery textured pate on. They gave us a block of this pate with fresh mini pickles on the side to balance out the flavors. This was the best appetizer I've had in a long time. It's a must order for starters. For our main dish we ordered their Sausage and Aligot which knocked us off our seats. The garlic cheese flavor from the mashed potatoes were unique. It was basically melted cheesy garlic bread all in the mashed potatoes. The sausage was super delicious! It had a nice pan sear to it which gave it a nice fried texture while the inside was tender and had flavors of chorizo and linguisa. I totally recommend this restaurant in particular for their freshly made Aligot! ”

“ I loved this place. The atmosphere, the food, the simplicity. They have basic meats and sides to go together of your choosing. Basically each menu section is the same meat with an exchange of sides. The pate was a huge chunk and we thought it was way too big but we devoured it. The cheesy mashed potatoes were delicious and the duck was an absolute must in my opinion. If you're able to sit outside, that's definitely what I would recommend. ”

“ When Le Relais de l'Entrecôte was exceptionally closed in its Montparnasse and St. Germain locations, my dining party and I didn't know where to turn. We were a large group, it was a Friday night, and we wanted steak frites but didn't have a reservation, and didn't feel like schlepping across Paris. My friend B suggested Le Plomb du Cantal next to Gaîté, which turned out to be the ticket for the evening. The concept is simple: you choose your meat (duck confit, duck breast, steak in various forms, sausage, tripe...) and your accompaniment (aligot, truffade, homemade fries, or salad). While I was tempted by the truffade, which has nothing to do with truffles despite its name, I decided to go with the good old aligot. The two are made up of the same ingredients--potato, cheese, and garlic--but the texture is different. Aligot is when it's creamed all together in a smooth, chewy, almost sticky mass; truffade is chunky. Then, to satisfy my inner green goddess (or maybe I was satisfying my near-constant craving for salad dressing), I got a side salad. You do have the option of ordering a salad as a meal here. And by "salad," I mean a large plate layered with lettuce and cheese and meat and egg and other forms of protein. The servings were massive. On my plate sat an enormous 300g duck magret surrounded by thick layers of fat, then the waiter heaped aligot on the side, scooping it up from a copper pot until I yelled "Stop!" On the table, next to my thick white plate of meat and potatoes (with a single lettuce leaf tucked underneath for good measure), he placed a sizeable bowl of frisée with vinaigrette. Except for the skin, I ate the whole darn thing. And I got to sample my fiancé's truffade to boot. The whole experience was made more enjoyable by bottles of Beaujolais (excellent choice, B). And okay, so none of us actually ordered the fries, but garlicky-cheesy potatoes worked just fine. Our waiter, a pleasant fellow who liked to throw occasional jokes at the table to see how they'd land, seemed disappointed when we said we were too full for (a no doubt copious) dessert. Instead, we opted to polish it all off with cones from Amorino down the street, which we enjoyed while ambling back home. ”

“ Steak frites. A must in Paris right? We were looking for somewhere close enough to our hotel for dinner on our last night in the beautiful city. We stopped by Le Plomb du Cantal and looked at their menu and decided on dining in. They specialize in Auvergne cuisine, which is heavily focused on meats and cheeses. I wasn't too hungry, so I asked if we could share an entree, and our waitress let us. We shared a 330g steak with fries. Their menu is fairly extensive with items ranging from steaks, duck confit, sausages served with different sides and garnishes, and omelettes as well. One of their well known sides is aligot which is a mashed potato with melted cheese. They served a ton of fries in a a pot, they were perfectly fried and crisped. The steak was juicy and had enough fat to give it flavor. Honestly, what my coworker said was true, I don't think European steaks can compare to back home in the States, but beef always hits the spot when we've been having too much pork in Europe. Service was fine. This restaurant is big, but the tables are put very closely together. They also didn't charge for water or service. 3.5ish rounded up. ”