The owner, who is also one of the servers, moved to Toulouse from Paris, tired of the hustle and bustle of the capital. He was a renowned owner there, having received oenological medals etc for serving some of the best wine in Paris.
So first of all, let me say that the food was gigantically excellent. To the point where you eat small/medium-size dises but feel stuffed afterwards, the food being so good that you actually take time to chew and enjoy it => which satisfies your satiety center.
I had an aïoli de raie (ray fish with garlic mmmmh), then some mouth-drooling and utterly delicious fish with broccoli ... along with the finest wine in the region (probably).
And this was all rather cheap (maybe 40 euros a head).
So what was the problem? The owner.
This guy comes and engages in conversation ... about food. About how people just don't enjoy food these days, about how people order salmon when they could be tasting infinitely better fish, salmon which he wouldn't even feed his dog with but that he has to serve or else he'd be ruined, salmon which he'd like to throw at those customers' face. And people add salt to a perfectly salted dish, and they all drink cheap whiskey, and god what the hell is wrong with people and blablabla. And not of the "I serve excellent food and I am sad that people like McDonald's these days" type ... but of the "I serve excellent food and I am going to beat the shit out of anyone who eats even moderately good food".
At one point his wife came over and smuggled some ketchup to the kids at our table, telling them to hide it.
Do you see what I mean?
I was just thinking earlier today about how impressed my boss (a Francophile) was with the very highest class restaurant in Colorado Springs: The Blue Star (http://thebluestar.net/Default.htm).
You can get out of there for about $50 per head, but it's not considered "cheap" by any means...
The food itself would have been maybe 20-25 euros, I think.
When I say rather cheap anyhow I do mean for food of such quality.
And I disagree that good food has to be expensive. I suppose it depends on where you live, but I don't see a significant correlation between cost and food quality. I've had many fine meals for under $20, and some real dissapointments at high end places. In fact, I think there is a suspension of disbelief that is required to eat at many chic places. (Not to mention that if you cook at home, it is usually cheaper AND better.) Those who can make you believe absurdities can make you commit atrocities. -Voltaire
It is interesting, because I guess we don't have a lot of brasserie type places, exactly. There are bars, where you go primarily to imbibe, and you can get a burger or fish and chips if you get hungry, cafes, where you go for a coffee, tea and a snack or light meal, and restaurants, where you go to eat. You'd never bring your own bottle to a bar. But you'd rarely go to a bar to eat a fine meal either... The exceptions to this rule, in my area, are the French bistros and the Belgian beer place... Those who can make you believe absurdities can make you commit atrocities. -Voltaire
