Farago- Pintxoclub

Hidden off the noisy Rue du Faubourg Saint-Denis you'll find the Petites Ecuries ('little stables') courtyard, which has hosted Farago since the beginning of 2014. Here, queues form outside the black frontage with its big windows, with people lining up to get a taste of Michelin-starred chef Fernando Canales's pintxos (pronounced, and also sometimes spelled, 'pinchos'), a Barcelona bar snack that is capturing the enthusiasm of Parisians with their taste for high-end fast food.

We came at cocktail hour (naturally) and perched on modernist stools while slightly nervous waiters scurried around and we watched the food being put together on the other side of a glass screen (a bit like watching 'Masterchef', but better). The extensive drinks list covers beer, cocktails and wine for most tastes – we had a light, fruity Spanish red for €5 a glass.

The parade of dishes began with 'roulés de saumon' (salmon, fromage frais and caramelised apples, €5 for two) – a fresh, simple beginning soon followed by the 'oeuf incroyable' (slow-cooked egg with truffle oil, €5 each), the powerful truffle working splendidly with the rich egg. Then pan-fried scallops with cauliflower purée, nori seaweed and a crunchy curry topping (€7) and 'bikinis de canard' (duck confit with toasted tramezzino crustless bread, €7). Though we would have liked to change plates between the servings, we loved the big-dish flavours that went into these little mouthfuls.

Everything here is very much dernier cri, including the clientele, and the 40 seats are packed out every night. Bu the food is worth it, with precise and imaginative cooking lifting us far beyond tapas and into a world of serious high-end cooking.