Restaurant: Chez Georges, Paris

On a recent trip to Paris I had the pleasure of eating at three restaurants.

The first night we ate at Chez Georges in the 2nd arrondisement. Beware that there are other restaurants called Chez Georges - this is the one on Rue du Mail.

This is one of those restaurants in a quiet street that you could easily walk by and not realise that behind some very ordinary looking doors lurks a hive of activity.

Chez Georges is a classic turn-of-the-century bistro that exudes warmth and coziness. Tables are close together but this just adds to the bonhomie of the place. Service was friendly and efficient even though the restaurant was full.

The menu is full of traditional bistro classics such as chicken-liver terrine, curly endive salad with bacon and a poached egg, steak with béarnaise etc.

For starters I had "harengs avec pommes à l’huile" (herrings dressed with potatoes in oil). Other starters at our table included herrings with a vinaigrette, mushrooms a la grecque and escargots. These were accompanied by some delicious breads including slices of Poilane bread.

The starter portions are huge. We could easily have ordered two starters for four of us and we would still have had plenty to eat. A definite tip here is to share starters.

With the exception of the mushrooms, which were tasty without being exceptional, we all rated our starters as exceptional.

For the main course two of us (myself included) ordered the "Sole Georges". This is a sole filet with a sauce made from Pouilly wine and crème fraîche. Absolutely delicious.

To accompany the sole we ordered some frites. The frites were quite possibly the best frites I've ever eaten. They were thin and crispy with no oiliness whatsoever.

Other mains included Rognons de Veau (veal kidneys) and grilled turbut with bearnaise sauce both rated as excellent.

All of the above was washed down with a number of bottles of wine including the house red, a Cote de Brouilly, and a bottle of Sancerre.

This is comfort food at its best. It's the sort of food that you could eat every night unlike some of the Michelin-starred food served in other restaurants.

It's not cheap here. Four of us paid €330 euros before we added service. However euro-for-euro I would prefer to eat here than in some of the Michelin-starred places.

This is a place that I will visit again and again.