Vive la Vive!

October 21, 2022 Emily Buchanan

Food and shellfish lovers will be happy to note chef Stephanie Le Quellec and her husband, David, have transformed the former Brasserie Rech into Vive, an ultra-modern, bright, sometimes funky restaurant on avenue des Ternes in the 17th arrondissement. She already has the Michelin two-star restaurant, La Scène in the 8th, and the épicerie MAM, in the 17th.

I have rarely seen a seafood menu that excited me more, both in terms of the amazing variety, detail, and originality of the dishes. Almost everything I ate had me wanting to head straight to my kitchen to try to recreate it. A favorite, for sure is their ultra-fresh raw red tuna, thickly sliced and super-tasty, topped with a bright and brilliant pesto of coriander and mint. A little salad side of tender spinach leaves topped with a vinaigrette of ponzu (a Japanese sauce of soy, citrus, and vinegar) and showered with paper-thin slices of bonite (dried and smoked tuna) was a brilliant and perfectly executed idea. A dish of freshly cooked crab topped with a cream made from the crab coral again had made me wanting to return to my kitchen.

One dish just did not deliver what I had imagined, though it had some reason for applause. A trio of langoustines cooked in a court-bouillon not only seemed skimpy but also a tad under-cooked. But the homemade mayonnaise with lime zest that accompanied it helped to redeem it.

The wine list offers a great variety of wines, including a favorite white, the Austrian Gruner Veltliner.

The two-floor totally updated, mostly white-walled restaurant is bright and airy, offset with mustard velvet chairs and banquettes and a carpeted floor in vibrant autumn colors. The décor with its gorgeous fish plates that decorate the walls and a splash of kitsch is at once amazingly beautiful and at times a bit much. The staff however were consistently attentive, warm and friendly and I will be sure to return, again and again. Vive la Vive!