Review: An artful lunch in between Picasso and Rodin

Tavolino was a great midday find as my brother and I were between museums with our 2-day "museum pass" in Paris (Oct. 25, 2018). The pressure was on to get to as many museums as we could in our allotted two days! The previous day, we had clocked more than six miles, walking around Paris without taking a coffee or lunch break, and I was hangry by the time we got back to our AirBnB; with careful consideration, that would not happen again! So after plotting our trajectory for the following day, I searched online for a restaurant that would be a perfect layover, with the morning spent at the Picasso 

exhibit at the Musée d'Orsay and after lunch, the Musée Rodin and les Invalides.  

We were warmly welcomed at this small, cozy restaurant. I enjoyed linguini with scallops in a delightfully light, yet creamy, sauce with halved cherry tomatoes (please see photo below). My brother had the truffle ravioli which was flavorful but could have been warmer when served. The Italian rosé was perfect with our meals and with the still warm temperatures of this October. For dessert, my bro raved about the limoncello-soaked babas, and I had the café gourmand which included a biscotti, a tiny tiramisu (but not THAT tiny!), and a panna cotta topped with salt caramel that was incredible (see photo)! I requested a café allongé which was perfect with the gourmandises. My one critique is that the biscotti was wrapped in plastic rather than home-made; however, this ended up being convenient in that it was easy to save for later!
 

The food was tasty and satisfying and the service was welcoming, friendly, and attentive in a professional manner (ie, neither aloof nor overbearing). Although our reservation was for 1:30, we were not at all rushed to finish up and thoroughly savored our time there until about 3 pm. This was the perfect place, right around the corner from our next museum, to have a delicious and relaxing lunch. We were ready for Rodin’s jardin!

 

Update, May 2023: Tavolino closed during the pandemic, much to my disappointment. I had been looking forward to returning this most recent trip to Paris.