Just a short walk from the Notre Dame Cathedral lies L’Ile Saint Louis. Prior to the 17th century the island was used for livestock and owned by Notre Dame. Until 1660 when a brilliant architect had the idea to turn it into a chic area filled with the biggest and best mansions in Paris. Now the island is easily one of the most romantic places in Paris to take a stroll with your loved one.
On the rue Saint Louis, you will find La Taverne de Sergent Recruteur. This restaurant has a very interesting history that dates back hundreds of years. I arrived here with a friend of mine and her family. We were greeted warmly by the staff and taken to our table straight away. They have a fixed menu dinner here, and it is in your best interest to come hungry. It has a very gothic feel to it, but still houses a delectable atmosphere for you and your friends to settle into a leisurely French dining experience.
Your meal starts off with a Kir Royale for everyone at the table. You have a choice of a red, white or rosé which is unlimited and included in the price of your meal. Trust me, it is tradition for the wine to flow freely – you do not have to wait for an eternity for a new bottle to be opened. To start you are given a basket of vegetables, soup of the day, bread, a plate of many different types of sausages, and pâté – all of which are unlimited. You get to choose your main dish and there is no shortage of options! They have salmon, duck confit, roast chicken, burgundy beef stew – they all sound wonderful, so be sure to budget in extra time for you and your party to make up your mind because it’s difficult to settle on one option.
After my main course I was very full and that was when our waiter came up to the table, cleared my plate, looked me in the eye and said, “Cheese time.“ After your dinner course you get an assortment of cheeses and, of course, your choice of desserts. You will not leave this place with an empty stomach. All for 40.50€ per person and 20€ for children.
Named for the activities that occurred within its walls, this was a place where the Sergeants for Napoleon’s army would come and get men extremely intoxicated (or “bourré” en français) then have them sign up for the Army. The restaurant continues this tradition today. At the end of my meal, our marvelous waiter, Andre, came to the table with a certificate and a pen and had me sign my name on the line. He took the certificate and had it certified and Voila! I, like legions of French men before me, was now a part of the army, and given a special souvenir to prove it to others.
La Taverne de Sergent Recruteur is open everyday beginning at 18h, and you can make reservations on their website, where you can also find out more information about their menu. Reservations are recommended for larger parties, especially during weekends and during the summer months.
Information:
Address: 41 rue Saint Louis en l’Ile, 75004
Metro: Pont Marie or Cité
Tel: 01 43 54 75 42
Hours: Everyday 6:00pm
Website: www.lesergentrecruteur.com
7 Comments
I had dinner at this restaurant last week. First, the food was mediocre at best. All I really thought good was the cheese plate. The pate served was very hard and the cassoulet was just OK.
I happened by the place and saw new friends dining there so I joined them. They poured me a glass of their wine. After that, one of the women gave me the rest of glass of wine saying she had already had too much. The waiter charged me for 2 glasses of wine and would not be swayed to do otherwise. I stupidly should just not have paid it but didn’t think to do that at the time. This, to me, is a reflection of this establishment will to do anything to make a buck. It was unbelievable to me. I got in touch with the manager but she seems to be ignoring me. So much for that. I would never eat there again anyway because of the mediocre food, but this was reprehensible.
I lived in Paris and enjoyed many meals in this wonderful place. The food may not be five star but come on, it’s a fun place, good food, I always had wonderful waiters and got to know the staff very well. If you go, notice the cutting board for the bread. It’s got a groove in it from cutting millions of loaves of bread over the years and it’s very beautiful in it’s simplicity and history.
It’s a good, fun place. There are others with better food but not with better history and atmosphere.
Enjoyed the food, service and attitude of fun. Will go again taking mygrandchildren!
Rating: 4/5
PLEASE NOTE: La Taverne du Sergent Recruteur has now been replaced by LE SERGENT RECRUTEUR.
The restaurant has been completely redesigned, restyled and rennovated- I cannot convey enough how fantastic the new restaurant is and what a VAST improvement on its predecessor!! The chef, Antonin Bonnet, is a master of fantastic cuisine and all the products are fresh and locally sourced.
This is REAL Parisian food, in wonderful settings- a TRUE gastronomic delight!
My husband made reservations for tonight at 8 p.m. He asked if there was a dress code. He was told not to come in shorts. OK! It is about 32 degrees, so obviously we didn’t. We were told to come dressed nice. We did. When we arrived, we were offered 2 seats available at the bar – on the right as you walk thru the door or 2 seats on the left next to two people who obviously needed to find a room – if you get my drift….. We ordered an appetizer and a couple of glasses of wine. As we were eating, a large group of people in jeans and tennis shoes came in and were escorted into the restaurant. We decided that we didn’t much care for the menu or the service and asked for our ticket. We told one of the two english speaking people that the restaurant was not at all what we expected. We were expecting a very nice place for a Saturday night dinner and were extremely disappointed. We found a nice place on the way back to our apartment – bought a couple of desserts and a bottle of wine. VOILA! Very nice night despite the snobbish treatment we received here. We won’t be back. Merci beaucoup!
Note that the website is:
http://www.lesergentrecruteur.fr/
not “dot com”.
It appears that the only thing that is the same about this restaurant is the location. No doubt it will be a very good restaurant for fine food, but those of us who had a raucous good time in the old “Taverne du Sergent Recruteur” will mourn it’s passing. It was a place where you could step back into the Paris of the past, if only in your imagination. Nonetheless, I will scout it out on my upcoming visit to make sure my impressions are correct.
Best of luck to the new owner. But I think he will have a hard time loosing the old tourist clientele, some of whom do expect that they can show up in shorts.