Andrew F. Gulli, the Strand’s managing editor, said that in his search for stories to publish, he hired a researcher who sifted through manuscripts at the Harry Ransom Center, a rare books and manuscripts collection at the University of Texas at Austin.

“I read this one and I was like, ‘Oh my god,’” Mr. Gulli said of “The Amiable Fleas.” “From the perspective of a short story editor, this one really interested me. There was something universal about it with the gourmet, the cat, the family conflict and the tension.”

In the story, a fictional restaurant called The Amiable Fleas is situated not far from the Place de la Concorde, a plaza along the Seine. (The restaurant could be a nod to Les Deux Magots, a cafe known as a famous gathering place for writers and artists that still exists.) It is run by a chef named Mr. Amité, who has received one Michelin star and is eager to earn another.

“He’s very, very flustered about everything,” Mr. Gulli said. “He relies on his cat to taste the food and nod his approval or disapproval. The cat is a very magnificent cat named Apollo.”

If you’d like to read the 1,500-word story for yourself, the rest of this paragraph could spoil your appetite: On the day the Michelin inspector is expected to dine, there is a series of mishaps, and Mr. Amité steps on Apollo’s tail. Then he kicks the cat, which stalks off to an alley in apparent anger. With Apollo gone, the meal is a disaster. But then comes a plot twist, a second chance and a revelation about a secret ingredient.