The patch of Westheimer between Sage and Fondren isn’t exactly known for its variety of boutique coffeeshops, cafes and bakeries, unlike the busy street’s east end in Montrose. But last summer Flo Paris French Bakery-Cafe quietly opened, and now the area just west of The Galleria has an oasis for ladies who lunch – and gentlemen who are in need of a jolt of coffee.
So why open a French spot in this area? According to Flo’s website, “Florelle and Rabih Salibi, a French and Lebanese couple along with their business partner Sam Baaklini, wanted to provide the same exquisite tastes they were accustomed to while savoring authentic Parisian cuisine around the world.”
The kitchen has had input from Houston’s well-known “French Cowboy” chef, Philippe Schmit, and the bakery and cafe’s retail side includes market shelves showcasing French pantry staples such as imported jams and specialty European waters.
As for the restaurant itself, guests order at the counter and can sit inside the small dining area, which is sleek and modern with a large (muted) TV broadcasting CNN, or outdoors on the patio at very small – and very French – cafe tables. You’re not sitting on the streets of Paris watching stylish women in stilettos maneuver cobblestone streets and well coiffed dogs wearing leashes that cost more than your briefcase pass by, of course, but you’re in a cozy corner — and the erotic-goods store at the end of the strip center isn’t in your line of vision. Just a few yards away is Lebanese restaurant Cafe Lili. If the weather’s nice and you’re enjoying a quiet moment alone or catching up with a friend, who cares where the patio is? Throw on those oversized Chloe sunglasses and enjoy it for what it is.
But back to the brilliant idea of opening a quaint French market and cafe in the busy Galleria area where corporate coffee and chain restaurants typically rule: Earlier this month we shared a snapshot of La Table, which was previously called Table on Post Oak, until they did a concept and physical re-design. Before it was Table on Post Oak, the restaurant was known as Philippe with a menu overseen by, you guessed it, Philippe Schmit, until his departure in 2013.
So what gives? Is something fishy going on with the opening of quaint French bakeries, markets and cafes in the Galleria area? (Remember, too, that French Riviera Bakery is just a few blocks away on Chimney Rock near Richmond.) Is there a French take-over going on, a coup on American cuisine in the 77057? Or is someone a copycat?
We don’t think so. Each restaurant stands on its own. While Flo and La Table are both French and both execute their visions well, they’re very different. At Flo, you enter the little mod-designed restaurant and order at the counter after perusing a menu of items such as sweet and savory crepes (photo above), sandwiches made on fresh breads served with chips (we had the surprisingly rich and satisfying salmon tandoori on poppyseed baguette, photo below), a few breakfast items and many coffee options. It’s a true cafe, a place for an easy bite and coffee during your lunch break, or a plain (but tres chic) fruit salad for breakfast, followed by one of pastry chef Dani Srour’s eclairs.
In contrast, La Table is a multi-restaurant, multi-level zone structure that includes casual dining (Marche), fine dining (Chateau) and a coffee bar and bakery – not to mention their in-house Assouline bookstore. Given the Galleria traffic between the two, it could take anywhere from five to 20 minutes to drive between the two different locations. It is doubtful that they’re infringing on each other, we’d like to think there is a “peace de distance” between the eateries.
Not to be greedy, but the My Table team would welcome a French bakery and coffeeshop near our office in Montrose. And, as luck would have it, the rumor is that Flo Paris will soon open a location at 4411 Montrose where Anya Tish and Barbara Davis both operate art galleries. That would be fantastique!
Flo Paris French Bakery-Cafe, 5757 Westheimer just west of Bering, floparisbakery.com