Le Rubis

In the well-heeled area where high fashion and style rule in the 1st arrondissement area of Paris, one can still find an old-school 1930s dining and drinking establishment to absorb oneself in the yesteryears of old Paris. Amidst the swanky designer stores and their beautiful merchandise along rue Saint-Honoré, just off this street is Le Rubis that does not feel outshined by its neighbors and it does not have to. Parisians come here on a workday or after shopping in the area. 

We walk into the small and charming wine bar. On the first floor is a standing-only bar with no more than 5 small tables. Men dressed in suits are standing at the bar with a glass of wine and a plate of cheese, perfect for a lunch break on a weekday. The owner who is working behind the bar greets us, we say to him "Deux personnes, s'il vous plaît", to which he opens a very narrow white door next to the bar, ushers us through and say, "Allons-y." We walk up the narrow stairs that lead us into an even smaller dining room with tables huddled close together. A group of 6 and another couple are in the room, almost finished with lunch.

No English is spoken here and perhaps that's a good thing because I get to put into practice my French 101 and 102 back from college. C'est la vie. A friendly female server takes care of the dining room upstairs and she comes over to tell us their three specials of the day. The menu at Le Rubis is written on a blackboard and hung on the wall for guests to read.

As we have been doing at each meal in Paris, we order wine to go with lunch. We get une carafe de vin rouge and at Le Rubis, a carafe of house wine is served in a full-sized bottle, but half filled.

Probably one of the most classic French items, we order the oeufs mayonnaise. Two eggs, each of them halved, and then covered with mustard sauce that tastes a little tart. Who would have thought hard boiled eggs could be this comforting? Another traditional French item the filets de hareng (herring fish fillets) is cured and served with boiled potatoes and pickled carrots. I don't recall eating as much lentils as I did in the last year as when the plate of saucisse lentilles are brought to our table. I'm not very much a lentil person but Le Rubis' lentilles are really kind of good in a comforting way. The saucisse (sausage) is cooked in wine and the fragrance from the wine is evident in the sausage.

Oeufs mayonnaise

Filets de hareng

Saucisse lentilles

After we are finished, the server comes over and asks if we want cheese. Non, merci, we are full. She offers us tarte aux poires (pear tart) for dessert to which I can't say no to. A slice of the tart, nothing fancy, and just served as it is on a plate. It's homemade and that's all that counts.

Tarte aux poires

Hot meals are only served during lunchtime. At other times, Le Rubis serves wine, charcuterie, and cheese only. 

Credit cards are accepted here but their machine reader had problems reading our US non-chip credit cards which lead us to believe that they are not equipped with upgraded software to process non-chip credit cards. Cash is of course accepted. If anyone wants a true experience of what old school is, end your visit with a trip to the toilet. It's clean and it's tiny. The fun part is figuring out the toilet flush and faucet at the sink.

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Le Rubis

10 rue Marché Saint-Honoré

75001 Paris