The Epicurean's Atlas: La Tour d’Argent

T he name translates as the Silver Tower: suitably mythical for an establishment that is not so much a restaurant as a legend. Located in Paris’ 5th arrondissement with a spectacular view of the River Seine and Notre Dame Cathedral, it is said to be one of the oldest eateries in Paris: an inn stood here from at least 1582, and France’s King Henri III was supposedly introduced to the latest technology here: a three-pronged eating implement known as a fork. Whether or not this story is true (and Henry’s queen came from Italy, where forks were already in use), it fits well with La Tour d’Argent’s reputation as a place at the forefront of gastronomic innovation. The duck press created by 19thcentury owner Frédéric Delair, along with the elaborate ritual of carving it by the table, implements flashing and the bird never touching the plate, was so successful that the dish is still on the menu. In an inspiration that may have been even cleverer than the press itself, Delair numbered every duck. Edward, Prince of Wales ordered number 328 in 1890; his great-granddaughter ate the dish in 1948 on her first official trip abroad after her wedding, four years before ascending the throne as Queen Elizabeth II. (She also tasted an 1848 port that was said to have crossed the equator five times). President Roosevelt ate number 112,151; Marlene Dietrich 203,728. The restaurant celebrated its millionth duck in 2003.

There have been other firsts: when the Michelin Guide introduced the third star to Paris in 1933, La Tour d’Argent was among the few to be honoured and held the accolade for more than half a century. Even the dining room broke the mould: owner Claude Terrail decided to build a sixth floor so his restaurant could take full advantage of its superb location, but Paris buildings were not permitted to be over five stores in 1936: Terrail had to take his case all the way to the Assemblée Nationale. His son André, owner since his father’s death in 2006, remains aspirational in every sense: in April 2022, the restaurant closed for renovations, reopening in June 2023 with, among other improvements, a brand-new seventh floor.

Today, the only sight more impressive than the majestic view may be the cellar that Englishman David Ridgway oversaw for more than 40 years, which contains upwards of 300,000 bottles. Ridgway and his successor Victor González are continuing a proud tradition: by 1867, a guide to the pleasures of Paris was noting that, at La Tour d’Argent, “one eats very well, especially if one takes the trouble to order a leg of lamb ‘à la Gasconne’ and a flask or several of Volnay or Coulanges.” Nothing has been allowed to harm this magnificent collection, not even the German invasion in 1940. Before going off to fight, Claude Terrail carefully disguised his cellar. The senior Nazi who commandeered the building never discovered its secret and the hidden wines stayed safe until the liberation.

The cellar is no longer bricked up, though its walls are reinforced with battleship-grade steel. The array of bottles includes multiple vintages of Domaine de la Romanée-Conti (“They imbue you with a unique feeling of wellbeing; they transport you to a higher plain,” Ridgway has said of these worldfamous Burgundies). Nonetheless, the Head Sommelier has an annual buying budget of €1 million to top up supplies of wine and other beverages. Ridgway’s decades in the job meant many vignerons were the grandchildren of the proprietors he first met. It will be for González to continue those relationships and ensure that the allocations of the world’s finest and rarest wines continue to flow into the cellar by the Seine.

Whether diners choose one of La Tour d’Argent’s traditional dishes or a more modern interpretation by Yannick Franques, who has overseen the kitchen since 2019, they will be guided to the part of the wine list that gives them the most pleasure. This goes both for style and for size: the cellar features an impressive number of half-bottles, much kinder to the wine than any serving by the glass, since bottles left open can’t help but come into contact with more oxygen.

Perfection is the aim: in the décor, the menu, the staff whose quiet efficiency doesn’t prevent them from chatting or joking with customers. Nothing disturbs the calm of the dining room, unless it’s a flamboyant tableside performance, such as the deboning of that famous duck or the Left: The entrance to the building of La Tour d’Argent, located on Quai de la Tournelle, Paris. Above: A sommelier chooses from more than 300,000 bottles in the restaurant’s cellar expert flambéing of Crêpes Mademoiselle. The menu no longer features heron pâté, as it did in the 16th century, or the entire cow that the Duke of Richelieu arranged for King Louis XIV and his courtiers in the 17th century. Today’s guests are more likely to be tempted by langoustine in a yuzu bisque with smoked milk tartare, or duckling sausage with truffle juice. Nonetheless, the delicate equilibrium between tradition and innovation is maintained. The numbered duck is a fixture. There is caviar – how could there not be? – and cheeses from La Tour d’Argent’s own farm. The new roof features a Champagne bar, in accordance with Claude Terrail’s stated belief that “there is no party without Champagne.”

Dining at this restaurant, which is the pinnacle of French cuisine, may be a serious matter, but nobody at La Tour d’Argent has forgotten that eating out is also meant to be fun. After all, as Claude liked to say: “There is nothing so serious as pleasure.”

Photos by Lionel Bonaventure/AFP via Getty Images, Martin Bureau/AFP via Getty Images, Alamy/HJBC

The Epicurean's Atlas