So far, the Paris edition of our Good People, Good Places series has taken us from our friends & stockists Royalcheese, to Enseignes Brillo sign shop, and then onto the Bisous Bisous tattoo parlour. If all this ambling around has worked up an appetite then you’re in luck: the fourth and final stop on our tour is Double Dragon, a cracking eatery fusing the best of French and Filipino cooking. We had a chat with Double Dragon’s co-owners, sisters Tatiana and Katia Levha, about sibling dynamics and home cooking.
Katia (left) wears, Bakers Chore Jacket In Olive Tech Silk Fabrica, Models own tee, Hi Water Trouser In Navy Twill
Tatiana (right) wears, Military Liner Jacket In Sand Summer Canvas, Road Shirt In Cumin Dot Cotton, Track Trouser In Indigo Herringbone Denim
For most of us, the thought of running a restaurant with a sibling is probably enough to bring on a stress migraine. The thought of running two restaurants could even result in palpitations, but not so for the Levha sisters, who describe the experience as “an absolute honour,” and even, “a luxury.” Tatiana and Katia Levha opened their first restaurant, Le Servan, in Paris’ 11th arrondissement in 2014 – a French bistro with a subtle dash of Filipino cooking that impressed the city’s notoriously hard to impress gourmands.
Le Servan’s success allowed the sisters to open a sister restaurant, Double Dragon, just four years later. Double Dragon retains the French bistro theme, but sprinkles in a bit more of the Filipino flavours that played a big part in Katia and Tatiana’s upbringing.
“The project was very personal for us, since we wanted to open a bistro that told our story. Tatiana and I are half French, half Filipina, and we grew up around Asia. Our first restaurant is a classic French bistro, so we waited for the opportunity to open something which was more like how we eat at home, with a lot of Filipino influences, sharing plates, chili, rice, and natural wines,” Katia tells us. Tatiana – the chef of the pair – trained at the ultra-fancy L'Arpège before leaving to work at the also-ultra-fancy L'Astrance, both of which have three Michelin stars. Katia, meanwhile, went to hotel school in Glion, Switzerland, before moving to London to work at the Mandarin Oriental.
All of which is to say, the Levha sisters have some fairly serious credentials, and it’s no wonder their restaurants have enjoyed so much well-deserved buzz. That being said, it’s not all been plain sailing. Katia tells us about one ill-advised attempt to temporarily turn the restaurant into a takeaway service. While their culinary credentials might be top notch, it turns out they weren’t quite as skilled when it came to logistics. “On the eve of Chinese New Year 2020, during the pandemic and in the middle of winter, we transformed our restaurant into a food delivery service with a tasting menu for one day only. At 7pm we realised I hadn't booked a delivery service for the meals, and so we had one hour to get 100 orders all over Paris.
“We got changed, enlisted a load of friends, borrowed all the vehicles we could, and I sent everyone out into the deep cold while I stayed at the restaurant to manage things there and apologizing to customers. I remember my sister calling me from the other side of the city with an order in hand and asking in a shivering voice: what's the door code? I felt so guilty, but how we laugh about it now those times are over!”
Sounds like Deliveroo might still have the edge when it comes to home delivery, but with Double Dragon’s unique menu and warm, friendly atmosphere, the Levha sisters have created a dining experience like no other.
Good People Good Places - Royal Cheese. Paris.
