Percy's Place is small and probably seats no more than 30 people. The restaurant has a really warm and inviting feel to it. I felt like Percy had invited us over to his house for dinner. He greeted us at the door and seated us at a table with six other guests.

Percy was born and raised in the U.S. in Norfolk, Virginia. He has studied at culinary schools and practiced his craft all over the world. He now lives in Paris where he operates his restaurant. Percy combines down-home, southern U.S. cooking with exotic flavors and techniques from all over the world.

Our meal was very good. I had seasoned wings as an appetizer, barbequed spare ribs, and mashed potatoes as my main course, and an exotic key lime pie for dessert. I also had an interesting soft drink with my meal - cactus juice. It was green, tasted citrisy, and a little bitter. I would drink it again but probably would not go out of my way to order it.

We enjoyed our meals but what truly made our evening so special were the nice people we met at Percy's Place. We met the couple seated beside us, Kim and Philipe. Kim was from the U.S. Her career in dance had taken her from Chicago to New York, London, and, finally Paris, where she has been living for over 20 years. Her husband, Philipe is a native Parisian who works in the film industry. We enjoyed listening to their experiences of living in Paris.

We were entertained by a wonderful singer named Stacy and an outstanding keyboard player whose name I've unfortunately forgotten. Stacy sang in English and in French. Audience participation was encouraged. There were two talented women at the end of our table who each sang songs in French and English. There was also French male model sitting at the end of our table. Not only did he have a nice voice, but someone had a copy of an advertisement he had posed for. This guy was definitely a hit with the ladies. Eventually, Percy came out and sang a song. He had everyone dancing and clapping their hands.

By the end of the evening, I ended up playing a tune on the keyboard. Afterwards, I accompanied Percy as he sang a blues song. I guess you could call it my first international performance :).

Percy also asked me to accompany him on a gospel song but it was after midnight and I knew that the metro was going to stop running soon. We said goodbye to Percy and all the other wonderful people we met. Kim and Philipe offered to drive us back to our hotel but I thanked them and declined since we had already paid for an aller retour (round-trip) metro ticket. We all exchanged email information. Percy's Place turned out to be a great way to spend our first evening in Paris.

Percy’s is located in the 16 Arr; the area is very nice and quite interesting to visit. There is a Monoprix along the way that is worth a visit. There is also a very good one hour photo across the street from Percy’s. The owner does not speak English, but he still was able to develop 2 rolls of film for me.

We arrived for lunch at Percy's at 12:05. The restaurant was supposed to open at 12:00. Percy himself came to the door and said he would be open in 10 minutes. We walked down the block into a clothing store and returned; the restaurant was still not open. We walked around the corner to the church and took some pictures. We stopped at a shoe store and paused at the butcher's to guess if the bird with its feet and feathers still attached was a pheasant or a turkey. We finally sat down in the restaurant around 12:35.

Percy’s is a beautiful restaurant, small but very inviting and cozy. There are signed pictures of celebrities on the walls, including Will Smith and Sharon Stone.

Percy’s Souse Chef waited on us; she is from Chicago. She was very kind and personable and inviting. The menu is on laminated cards in CD’s, very clever. The wine list is pretty interesting and includes wines from South Africa. Appetizers were not on the lunch menu but she made some just for us. She made crab balls, chicken wings and jambalaya. I do not like crab but the crab balls she made have changed my opinion of crab; they were phenomenal, melt in your mouth delicious. The chicken wings were marinated and delicious; a dipping sauce was served with them but not necessary. I have never quite tasted anything like them nor seen them presented in the manner they were here. The jambalaya was delicious also. My friend ordered the chicken and crab balls, but I was only able to wrestle one from her. Percy came out the check on us and he asked how everything was and I raved about the crab balls and that I only got one and he had the Chef make more: a man after my own heart. The Jambalaya I had was equally as excellent and presented in a clever manner. We had Percy’s fried chicken for lunch which is 2 fried, boneless, skinless chicken breasts, mashed potatoes and cole slaw. The chicken was very well spiced, an interesting blend of seasonings.

The service was excellent and they were very attentive. Percy came to say goodbye to us and requested a hug from each of us. He is very striking so I didn’t mind hugging him at all. We wanted to make reservations for dinner but they were full for dinner. They also have a live Jazz band at dinner.

Metro: Michel-Ange d’Auteuil, street level go to your right 2 blocks. Percy’s is on the right in the 2nd block.

Can't climb the stairs of another museum without a real down home meal sticking to your ribs? Percy's Place is the place to be. Described as southern cooking with a 'haute' twist, the chef and owner Percy throws down, offering a huge selection of southern classics in traditional French brasserie setting. Gumbo, fried chicken, barbeque, you name it, he's got it. Percy can also cater your big bash in the City of Lights.

M°: Eglise d'Auteil -