La Maison des Bois - Plaisir

I know, it seems a little far from Paris ! But. Not only the location is beautiful, with an old house and a gorgeous garden, but the food is great. A lot of restaurant call themselves Gastronomic, but few are really one. People mix quantity and quality. Not here. The chef is creative, with beautiful products, a perfect cook. You won't regret for coming !!

We were in the area on an errand and hit the GPS rather haphazardly looking for a restaurant but what a chance to come across La Maison des Bois. Beautiful decor with wonderful old Faience plates dating from the start of the Lavergne family's ownership in 1926 and a perfect terrace overlooking the garden.Perfect service from Jenny Lavergne and her crew and spectacular food from her husband Laurent. A wonderful lobster salad, and sautéed langoustines to start. Hot foie Gras and a navarin of lobster to follow and then the house speciality dessert. Great wine list with reasonable prices.Definitely worth the detour.

We had a wonderful celebration meal yesterday. Everything was perfect – from the moment we approached the door, it was opened and we were made welcome, to the moment we left and the Chef Laurent Lavergne came out to enquire about our experience and say goodbye – and of course more importantly everything in between. We were very happy to have found this excellent restaurant in the area – there are so many mediocre (or downright bad) ones in the St Quentin en Yvelines area that going a bit further afield was worth it. But of course this high level of quality comes with a price, so save your money for a special occasion (our tab for three at lunch was 294 euros).The restaurant room itself is kind of “rustic chic” with a nice fire in the fireplace that gave it a very warm atmosphere. The dining room was not full when we were there and it was a bit quiet at first, so the only thing I think could be improved would be to have some very soft classical music playing in the background; but that is a very minor detail. I really like the very classy and effective service – Madame Lavergne really has her eye on everything and does not let one detail go unnoticed. Even though the service it ‘classy’, it is not at all stuffy. I would say that it was perfect.And the cuisine – well my son and I started with foie gras – much more superior than what I have had in a long time. My wife had langoustines in a kind of crusty outside with a subtly spiced dipping sauce. My son had a ‘cut like butter’ piece de boeuf (I tasted it too) and my wife and I had a perfectly cooked wild fish. Dessert was chocolate for me and my son and the house specialty for my wife La Tarte Feuilletée (see the photo).They have a good selection of wines by the glass. I had an excellent St Veran Vieilles Vignes 2012.In all, the perfect choice to celebrate our January birthdays!

We enjoyed lunch outside surrounded by a beautiful garden. Food was superb, well prépared well cooked and well presented. Wine was a must and desert just perfect. I had the strawberry souffle and my husband the chocolate cake.