mmm-yoso!!!

Paris - Snack Shopping at Le Comptoir de Mathilde, À la Mère de Famille, and Jacques Genin. Cheese Tasting at Le Cheese Geek.

After our lunch at Maison de la Truffe the Missus had planned on picking up some "treats" for Her friends and coworkers. Of course, She had already purchased a few items from La Grande Epicerie, but wanted to stop at a few more places. I had done a bit of research the previous night; lookin at options fairly close to where we were staying. So, we headed back to the 3rd and onto Rue Rambuteau for our first stop - Le Comptoir de Mathilde.

Part of a chain of shops and franchises across the country.

By this time; the Missus was focused on caramels and chocolates. 

Quite chain like and commercial....but fun to stroll thru.

Le Comptoir de Mathilde
42 rue Rambuteau
75003 Paris France

Less than a block away we were now in the 4th, was another popular chain; this one based in Paris named À la Mère de Famille.

 The woman working was so nice and friendly that we bought a couple of boxes of chocolates.

À la Mère de Famille
23 Rue Rambuteau
75004 Paris, France

The shop I saved for last was Jacques Genin also in the Marais. You can read more about the Chef and his shop on David Lebovitz's post. Anyway, just looking at the place tells you quite a bit.

I just hung back and let the Missus do Her thing.

She put together quite a lovely (and expensive - but of course you can tell that, right?) box for Herself.

Jacques Genin
133 Rue de Turenne
75003 Paris, France

After which we headed back to our accommodations.

For our last evening in Paris I wanted to do something fun. I had read about Le Cheese Geek on a wonderful post from Madame Fromage and ended up booking a cheese tasting.

Our tasting took place at Fromagerie Saisons which was pretty close to  where we were staying. Everything about our booking was easy. We ended up at the cheese shop a few minutes before our tasting and were quickly welcomed in. The tasting took place in the "cave" below the shop....but first; we had to pass all the tempting cheese for sale.

Our guide thru this tasting was Fabrice; who was engaging and had a great sense of humor. Our group of ten was diverse; from "curd nerds" to their friend who just came along for the ride.

Typical question - "is it ok to eat the rind?"

Fabrice - "yes, of course..." and he went on to to explain.

My remark - "just don't do that with the babybel, ok....unless you like rubber...."

We had a nice selection with a nice pairing.

   First up was a farmer's cheese made from raw goat's milk in ash named Le Roumé. This was so very light, with a mild acidity, with a nice clean finish.

It was a nice start.

This was paired with a very nice and clean Sauvignon.

Next up was a wonderful Brebis.

   This amazing Brebis d’Estive from the mountains of the Aspe Valley is from the farm of Maxime Bajas whose entire herd consists of 100 sheep! It was so wonderfully savory and nutty to my palate, with a mildly rich finish.

This was served with Candied Piment d’Espelette and was served with a nice Gamay.

   

This was an amazing duo of Comté, a Comté Jeune aged 8 months and a Vieux Comté aged from 36 - 42 months. Both from Montmorot. This was nice example of a difference in taste and texture of aged chesses.

   Next up was my favorite duo of a wonderful Camembert de Normandie, so deeply savory and earthy, made from a maker whose entire herd consists of 80 cows; paired appropriately with a nice apple cider. And the Munster, very ripe and "footy" from Alsace.

   The last cheese was a wonderful Roquefort, made by a small producer Maison Carles which works with mold from the local rye bread. This was served with a Tawny Port....something I hadn't tried before this tasting, but has now become part of my routine with Roquefort.

Our tasting with Fabrice and  Le Cheese Geek was delicious, educational, and most of all a lit of fun. Since our visit, Le Cheese Geek now has a permanent location in the 10th Arrondissement. As with most of these type of events, things are currently paused due to Covid; but by all means give them a try once we're over this pandemic.

Le Cheese Geek
31 Rue Sainte-Marthe
75010 Paris, France

   This being the end of May (2019), it was still quite bright outside as we walked back to our accommodations. And though we had initially thought that perhaps we'd grab a small bite to eat on the way back, we were pretty full.

As is kind of my tradition on my last night in a locale, I purchased a beer on the way back to the apartment.

Where we just packed up, caught on emails and messages, then relaxed.

I'm always so thankful that we're able to travel and have these wonderful meals and experiences. And even more thankful to be able to share them with you.

Yes, we may still be stuck at home right now; but one day, hopefully soon, we'll be able to travel again. And we'll make the best of it.

Thanks for stopping by!

Paris - Boulangerie Régis Colin and Maison de la Truffe (Since closed) in La Grande Epicerie de Paris

We slept well after our wonderful dinner at Pertinence. Though the Missus got me up at 630am......because, well, She needed you know what. Yes, this was the Paris moment I mentioned in my Gala Chicken/Zion Market post. Sigh.......well, I needed to head on out. I showered and got dressed, then headed out to find a Pharmacy.

Things were pretty quiet on Rue Montorgueil at 7 in the morning. Mostly just delivery trucks and such. I headed down, then back up the avenue checking out the Pharmacies; all of them closed. I later learned that most Pharmacies in Paris open between 800 - 900 in the morning. I passed Pharmacy after Pharmacy, all closed. Man, I was having a longer hitless streak than Chris Davis! Finally, in the Marais, I came across an open Pharmacy and walked in. I headed to the Fem Hygiene aisle.....and was kinda stumped; so I started taking photos and sending them via text message to the Missus. Soon enough, I heard a loud clearing of the throat behind me.....yes, I was busted by the Pharmacist.....a fairly serious looking woman.....with one eyebrow raised, checking out the Asian guy with a maxi-pad obsession. 

"Monsieur, what are you doing???"

"Ummmm, I need to buy pads for my wife."

"Hmmmm.....but why the photos Monsieur?" Yeah, like she really believed me.

Right then the Missus replied to my text instructing me on what to purchase. Relieved, I showed the woman the text, grabbed the package and we walked over to the register to pay. After ringing me up, she looked at me, warmly smiled, and said:

"Monsieur, you are a good man!" And handed me my package. Ah yes, more souvenirs from Paris.

On the way back to the apartment I decided to reward myself and grab a croissant. I'd seen a place on Rue Montmartre, which runs parallel to Rue Montorgueil that I wanted to try. By this time of the morning; folks were starting to get out and about.

The Boulangerie I was interested in was Régis Colin as I had seen the le Prix du Croissant sign near the doorway earlier.

So, I went in and got a croissant aux beurre. The system was interesting, you tell the nice saleswoman what you want; she bags it and enters it into the register; you then pay via a machine....so the staff never touches currency.....a hygiene thing I guess.

The croissant was delicious; nice balance of butter to salt; flakey, light and airy, moist........a definite winner!

Boulangerie Régis Colin
53 Rue Montmartre
75002 Paris, France
Hours:
Monday - Friday 630am - 8pm

After finishing up the croissant we headed out, but not very far for our morning "pick-up" at Café Montorgueil and people watched for a bit.

After getting our caffeine fix, we headed off......with not much in mind.

I had wanted to check out La Grande Epicerie de Paris, a fairly high-end ("haute") food/grocery store so we headed off to the 6th and 7th. I've stated that there always seems to be something interesting to see; no matter how many times you've been down a street. This time around, I noticed this impressive building on Rue du Renard.

Apparently, this is the Syndicat De L'épicerie Française, originally built in 1901, which used to (I believe they still have an office in the building) the grocer's union.

And off course a little more than a block away is the Hotel de Ville - that would be City Hall to us American folks.

Crossing over to Île de la Cité.

It was a beautiful day in Paris. Of course, we took another look at Notre Dame (this visit was at the end of May 2019). The tragic fire had just occurred about 6 weeks earlier.

It was such a sad sight to see.......

Crossing over the Seine to the Left Bank, down Rue Saint-Jacques, then taking a right turn on Boulevard Saint-Germain we came across a street market which kept us occupied for a bit.

From here we strolled down the street, then turned on Rue de Sèvres.....

Stopped for a short; ahem, break at the Hermes store.....luckily, the Missus didn't find anything She was interested in and my credit card lived to see another day. Finally, across the street from Le Bon Marche we got to the La Grande Epicerie de Paris. I probably should have taken more photos in the huge store; but was just plain distracted.

After all this walking....well, I was feeling a bit hungry. And just at that moment I saw Maison de la Truffe.......I looked at the menu...foie gras and truffle? Croque-Monsieur with truffle......smoked salmon with truffle? Are you kidding me? We decided to grab a "light" lunch here. 

Sadly, as I was getting some general info on Maison de la Truffe, I read that the place has closed.......so I'm just going to mainly post photos.

I will note that the young man waiting on us was a joy and the food was surprisingly good.....of course with things like truffle oil, truffle chips, and truffle salt.....

And the Croque-Monsieur with Truffled White Ham and Gouda.....and a few nice, fragrant shaved truffles for the heck of it.

   It's too bad this shop closed as we really enjoyed our shared meal. There are other locations around Paris and I hope to be able to check them out one day. On our second trip to Paris in 2019 we'd visit another similar shop in BHV Department Store which wasn't nearly as good as this one.

Oh well........I'm glad I got to try them out.

And also buy some fairly pricy food gifts for friends.

La Grande Epicerie de Paris
38 Rue de Sèvres
75007 Paris, France

Paris - Boulangerie Collet, Dinner at Pertinence, and the View She Never Tires Of

It had been a fun day so far and after taking a short break at the apartment; the Missus wanted to head on out again. So, off we went to the Marais, and resumed our "lèche-vitrine". We eventually came across a wonderful green space; Paris is full of these little parks. This one had a lovely garden, benches (of course), and wonderful waterfalls. I came to find out that this was Square du Temple.

It was a lovely little oasis.

On the way back to the apartment, the Missus said She was feeling a bit "peckish" and I mentioned checking out another Boulangerie right around the corner from the apartment, Maison Collet.

And we got ourselves a croissant aux beurre to share. This was a bit overdone, hard, dry, and lacking in the amount of butter I enjoy.

Well, it was good to try. Another one for the books.

Boulangerie Collet
100 Rue Montorgueil
75002 Paris, France

We managed to get in a short nap, then got ready for dinner. We had reservations at a restaurant in the 7th Arrondissement, Pertinence, which held a Michelin star. As has been our habit in recent years, this one was helmed by a Japanese Chef, Ryunosuke Naito from Japan and Kwen Liew from Malaysia. The little restaurant serves only 14 covers a night!

The sun was still shining rather brightly as we finished our walk to the restaurant. It was the end of May (2019) and the sun doesn't set until past 930pm during this time of the year.

It's a clean, spartan dining room and the only folks working were the two chefs!

There is what looks like some kind of sleek manhole cover in the middle of the dining area, which turned out to be a hatch to the cave below. During our meal, the Chef had to run down to grab a bottle, the fellow eating at the other table went "ooooh" and looked at me humming the tune of Mission Impossible. I answered with "Monsieur James Bond"! And he cracked up....who said the French don't have a sense of humor?

Speaking of wine; we took the 6 course tasting menu (105/€). The Missus got the wine pairing, which cost a supplement of 70/€ and was enough for the both of us to share.....as for me; I got the caviar supplement at 30/€ which was worth every last bit of money.

After the wonderful and warm bread bites, the amuse was brought out; a Green Pea Foam, light as a feather, with a slight sweetness and tart from the kiwi jelly.

And then the first dish......the Langostein which came with a Konbu Sauce and a Miso Sauce. Check out that caviar; which really complemented the plump, sweet-briney langostein.

I preferred the konbu sauce with this as it heightened the nice seafood flavor. Also loved that nothing was over-seasoned.

The Missus loved this bottle of wine the best.

Man, look at the size of that Foie Gras.......

And yet, it was the thin slices of pickled daikon that really impressed me. It also was a nice foil to the rich-livery foie gras. Not a big fan of the Amaretto sauce though.

When the Red Mullet came out; I really didn't know what to think as it looked like a solid piece of fish; but it was amazing and my favorite dish of the meal.

The skin was light, yet very crisp, it was a treat indeed. The flesh was perfectly moist and mild in flavor....cue in the caviar. The grilled lettuce had a nice sweetness to it; but it was the celery micro greens that were really amazing, packing quite a punch of flavor!

Next up, the pork neck, which was done medium rare - yes medium rare.....I trust places like Pertinence. And this was very tender, considering it was pork neck, and had a touch of anise lingering on the tongue.

Man, I was pretty full after this......I usually leave dessert totally up to the Missus; but this time it was Roquefort with Umeboshi Caramel Camambert. How could I resist???

This was a fine and enjoyable meal. Service was excellent and relaxed, the dishes well paced, quite impressive with the restaurant staffed with only the two chefs. It was well worth the price!

Pertinence
29 Rue de l'Exposition
75007 Paris, France

Since we like to eat rather early; our timing was perfect as we left the restaurant and headed up to Rue Saint-Dominique and then up Avenue de la Bourdonnais crossing the Seine on Pont d'Iéna to see the sight the Missus never tires of.

And then we headed back to the apartment......

And then off to sleep. Where I'm sure the Missus was dreaming of the "City of Lights".

Thanks for stopping by!

Paris - Jefrey's Cocktail Bar, Stohrer, Sainte-Chapelle, and Café Montorgueil

**** Sorry, not much food in this one, but if you like amazing stained glass.....

Our train from Stuttgart arrived right on time to Paris 'Est. We then caught the metro to Les Halles to the apartment where we'd be staying. On our last visit to the Missus's favorite city, we found that we really enjoyed staying on the Right Bank and I found an apartment close to a street we loved on a prevous visit. After getting the keys to our flat and freshening up for a minutes....well, you know the Missus, She wanted to get out and about. I had a route in mind and we headed East on Rue Grenata and then took a quick turn on the corner. The Missus was wondering why I seemed to be going around in a circle when we came to my first destination....to which I replied to Her "voila!"

This is Passage du Grand-Cerf, a shopping arcade if you will. Created in the 19th century, these glass ceiling shopping arcades once numbered over a 150....but most are now gone. There are a few left; the most well known....at least to me is Galerie Vivienne. There is such charm in places like this....it transports you to a different time. The window shopping....or as the French call it "lèche-vitrine" which literally means "window licking" is fun. I'm guessing those folks with their faces right up to the windows....steaming it up with their breath do look like they are licking it. We've all seen (or done) that, right?

From here we headed down to the Seine, taking Rue Sainte-Denis until we came upon this square right in back of Les Halles.

The rather lovely looking square has quite a grisly history. It is now called Les Fontaine des Innocents and was once the site of a cemetery. I had read that the cemetery had become so full that the bodies were pushed into the cellars of nearby residents. Eventually orders came down from Louis XVI to move cemeteries out of the city for sanitary reasons.

And so the residents of Holy Innocents' Cemetery were moved. But it doesn't quite end there. Apparently, all the intact skeletons were moved to what is now the tourist draw, the Catacombs of Paris.

And it's not only large squares and fountains. Right on the corner of Rue de la Reynie and Rue Saint-Denis I saw this.

Which for some reason grabbed my attention. After doing a bit of searching...luckily the inscription on the monument is readable; I came to find out that this is a monument to Eugene Scribe a popular Playwright and Author.

That's the Tour Saint-Jacques ('Saint James's Tower'), which is all that remains from a church, Church of Saint-Jacques-de-la-Boucherie ('Saint James of the Butchers') which was sponsored by the butchers at the nearby Les Halles. The church itself was destroyed at the end of the French Revolution. But by contract the tower was saved. There's something around every corner in Paris it seems.

Our last trip to Paris had been in November of 2018 (this was the end of May 2019) before the horrible fire at Notre Dame in April of 2019. We were horrified watching it on the television. We took a walk past....the fire had just occurred the month before and we were wondering what we'd see.

We were happy to see that Notre Dame was still standing; but saddened at the damage.

We crossed over to the Left Bank on he Petit Pont and strolled around for a bit...this is the lovely Square René-Viviani.

Then passing the super crowded (with tourists) Shakespeare and Co.

And then decided to go turn around and head back.....and grab a café allongé on one of the cafe's near to where we'd be staying.

And so, we ended up at Café du Centre on Rue Montorgueil a half block from where we were staying.

There's something about this mostly pedestrian market street that we enjoyed.

It was lively. And yes, there are tourists. But there seemed to be the hustle and bustle of everyday like as well.

I'm wondering how much Covid-19 has affected the café culture in Paris. There's something wonderful about sitting outside with our café allonge....you can spent 10 minutes or 3 hours with your coffee if desired....you can read a book, a paper, socialize, or just be like us and watch the world go by. It just seemed so therapeutic.

Losing this would be tragic.

Café du Centre
57 Rue Montorgueil
75002 Paris, France

After spending a good amount of time just chilling, we headed back to the apartment.

The evening we had reservations at a place I posted on earlier. Before dinner, I wanted to grab a cocktail from a nearby Cocktail Bar I had read about named Jefrey's. It was just one street down from where we were staying.

It's a cozy little place with both upstairs and downstairs seating. We had two of the four seats at the bar. We loved the service here; the folks working were so friendly.

While working through a round of the standards....you know, an Old Fashioned for me, etc. We chatted with the bartender who was so knowledgeable and friendly.

After mentioning that I enjoy smoky flavor profiles he recommended that I try the "Smokey Monkey" made by, well, Monkey Shoulder. It was really wonderful. Sorry to say, I was told that while Monkey Shoulder is available in the U.S.; Smokey Monkey is not.

We were happy to have found a place to grab a cocktail in the neighborhood and would revisit on later trips.

Jefrey's
14 Rue Saint Sauveur
75002 Paris France

Sadly our dinner at Le Pont de Sichuan didn't live up to the first visit. But that was ok......

The next morning I got up and did a couple of things online; then it was time to grab a croissant.

I decided to head to the oldest Patisserie in Paris, Stohrer which has quite a history, dating back to 1730 and just happens to be on Rue Montorgueil.

Another claim to fame that Stohrer brought the Rhum Baba to France. It is claimed that the modern version of this cake was in this spot sometime around 1835.

I stood in line and ordered a croissant au beurre, which looked lovely, nicely lacquered, crackly, but on the dry side and not quite to our taste in terms of the butter flavor.

It was not bad....perhaps I should have gotten a rhum baba as well, but it seemed to early in the day.

Stohrer
51 Rue Montorgueil
75002 Paris, France

After having the croissant, we headed out. I had purchased advance tickets for Sainte-Chapelle and the Conciergerie. We got to the location right before opening and were quickly allowed entrance.

The very gothic exterior of Sainte-Chapelle is somewhat obscured by the surrounding buildings. And you really don't get the full scope of the chapel.

And then you enter and are simply awestruck at the beautiful stained glass.

There are over 1,000 biblical scenes depicted in the stained glass of the upper chapel in the photo below!

And the lower chapel!

Originally built over the period of ten (!) years - 1238-1248 as a Royal Chapel by Louis IX to house relics including the supposed Crown of Thorns. 

The chapel was damaged during the French Revolution, but restored in he 19th century.

Amazing!

Sainte Chapel resides in a large complex of structures originally called Palais de la Cité, now called the Palais de Justice.

Right next to the Palais de Justice is a place with a grim and dark past; once a palace, the Conciergerie became a place of detention after the French Revolution. It is where the Revolutionary Tribunal tried "enemies of the Revolution". During a two year period (a year of which is called "The Reign of Terror") almost 2800 people were executed by guillotine.

Entering the barren and haunting halls is quite an experience if you know just a bit of French history.

And even in the most somewhat innocuous places, the reality strikes you. The lovely courtyard looks so peaceful.....

Until you look up and notice the scary looking spikes; still in place, to keep prisoners confined.

There's a memorial room in La Conciergerie that lists out the 2,780 names of those condemned to death, with some very familiar names.

Whew....we needed a break.

So, we headed back to the apartment and decided to stop for another caffeine break. This time at the place next door to Café du Centre, Café Montorgueil. We actually found that we enjoyed this café quite a bit....it had more of a relaxed local vibe and was actually cheaper than the place next door, go figure?

We enjoyed our Café Allonge; while watching time and people slowly pass......

Café Montorgueil
55 Rue Montorgueil
75002 Paris, France

Before we knew it, an hour had gone by. We decided to head back to the apartment for a short break......

Before heading back out to do more exploring, shopping, and then of course; dinner!

For those that took the time to read this rather long and rambling post, I thank you! And I'd especially like to thank both Kerri and LaurieH who both mentioned missing our travel posts....thanks so much for the kind words!

Paris - Doing the Flâneur Thing, Aperitif at Juveniles, Dinner at Zebulon

On our last day in Paris, we got up a bit early, and had breakfast at the hotel.

What we had would be enough to hold us until dinner.

For our last full day; we decided to do what brings us such pleasure in the city; something I mentioned before, you know, the Flâneur thing...."to wander with no purpose".

Our hotel, the very pleasant Hotel Malte was located on Rue de Richelieu and just one block away was the Palais-Royal and the interesting courtyard with some "interesting" art installations; like the Colonnes de Buren, basically black striped columns of various height, which as many of what folks call "modern art", is somewhat controversial due partly to the historic location it was installed on in 1986.

Same with the, ahem, "balls of steel"....the La Fontaine des Spheres.

I guess folks were looking for something a bit more grand and traditional....perhaps like this Statue of Joan of Arc on Place des Pyramides?

We crossed over to the Left Bank on Pont Neuf and onward to the 6th Arrondissment. 

And eventually found ourselves at the University of Medicine, where we noticed some interesting stone reliefs...….you know medical things like reducing a fracture.

Or exorcism???? You know, standard medical stuffs.....

From here we walked over to Hermes, where the Missus did a bit of shopping. And in case Hermes didn't suck your wallet clean and you have an extra grand (or two); the historic Hotel Lutetia is ready for you....

We weren't ready for a break just yet, so we sauntered over to Le Bon Marché, where it was Black Friday.

It was interesting to see what folks were purchasing.

From here we headed back and crossed on Pont Neuf yet again.

That the Equestrian Statue of Henry IV on Pont Neuf.

We walked up Quai du Marché Neuf to take a peek at one of the symbols of Paris.....as this was November of 2018, this was Notre Dame pre-fire.

It's a reminder of how lively and lovely the Cathedral was.

We decided to wander some of the side streets around the Cathedral, which seemed to be rather peaceful and quiet compared to Rue de la Cité and other surrounding busy streets.

In Paris, you may notice iron structures like this.....

These are called "Empeche-pipi"...aka "pee preventer". The metal pieces would make urine splash back onto the offender...….

There's quite a bit of history packed into this small area. During one of our visits to Pere Lachaise we came upon the tomb of Héloïse and Abelard; it's quite love story - tragedy. Well, even though the house where they resided is gone; the structure built on the site in 1844 is highly decorated and has carved heads representing the couple at 9 Quai aux Fleurs.

From here we walked to the Marais and the Missus found a cute bracelet. We then took a short break at Place des Vosges; which looks wonderful, even in winter.

Before heading back to the hotel for a break before dinner.

As this was our last night in Paris, I wanted to have dinner and made reservations for a place that was quite popular. But first we decided to get an aperitif. Right down the street was the well regarded Wine Bar and Bistro, Juveniles. The food is well regarded, but we just decided to drop by for a glass of wine before dinner.

We enjoyed both the atmosphere; friendly and unfussy, and our wine.

I think we'll return for a meal on one of our trips.

Juveniles
47 Rue de Richelieu
75001 Paris, France

As for dinner; I had made reservations at another place right down the street. This one was what I'd call a medium priced, modern French, manned by yet another Japanese Chef - Takashi Aoki, named Zebulon.

The interior of the restaurant is simple, but comfortable, and stylish. Both the Missus and I went with the "Menu Zebulon", three courses.

The Amuse Bouche was a simple gravlax with quinoa, nice, clean flavors.

The Sea Bream Tartare was fresh....fairly tangy from the calamansi used in the vinaigrette.

The watercress leaves really helped to cut all the sour tones and add a nice pepperiness to things. The fish was toothsome but not tough, though there was perhaps a bit too much ginger used for the fish.

The Butternut Veloute was smooth and comforting.

Creamy but not overly sweet......the coffee added on the side was kind of a strange addition.

The Cod was perfectly cooked and seasoned; so moist and tender.

The spinach added a nice mildly bitter-chlorophyllic note to the dish; but we both thought the coconut-lemongrass foam kind of took the dish is a totally different direction....almost Thai...but not quite. 

The Lamb Two Ways was a mixed bag.

The confit lamb was so silken, rich, gamey, just plain delici-yoso. The roast was a bit too chewy, tough, and salty. Loved the slices of beets which added a nice mild sweetness, which the roasted lamb needed.

I got the Cheese course....which was served at a perfect temperature.

And the Missus enjoyed Her dessert; telling me it wasn't overly sweet.....

Overall, we enjoyed the meal, and while it wasn't earth-shattering, it was priced right at around 120 Euroes for two including wine.

Service was excellent and we enjoyed the atmosphere. As of this writing Chef Aoki has moved on and Benjamin Andreux is the new chef de cuisine at Zebulon.

Zebulon
10 Rue de Richelieu
75001 Paris, France

As is one of my rituals, I ended the night with a beer back at the room.

I did feel like I earned it....don't you think?

And the next morning after a quick breakfast we were headed home. Another trip to Paris in the books.

Thanks for stopping by!

Versailles and a Late Lunch at Canard Street (Paris)

By November of 2018, we were on our third trip to Paris (can you believe it's now up to five?). And even though one could fill a lifetime exploring, and enjoying the city, the Missus thought we should start exploring places around the city. Starting with the Palace of Versailles. So, I got purchased advance tickets online and we headed out on the RER "C" line making it to Versailles-Rive Gauche in 40 minutes or so. From there it was a short walk to the Palace.

It was a misty - foggy day in Versailles.

But there's no denying the grandness of the Chateau.

It is indeed quite impressive and opulent. Hard to believe that this was once a "small country hunting lodge and residence" built by Louis XIII. Eventually, under Louis XIV, the property underwent four "campaigns", huge renovations. The King actually made Versailles his permanent residence and the center of political power, until the French Revolution. It has quite a history and a lot of rooms (over 2,000) and even had zoo (the "Menagerie"). Marie Antoinette had a "farm" ("Hameau de la Reine") created on the property, where she could escape....and where she could have a "faux country life".....milking cows and sheep; which were carefully cleaned and groomed. The book Marie Antoinette: The Portrait of an Average Woman; has this quote:

"Sheep were led to pasture by ribbons of blue silk tied round their necks"

All this decadence, all that taxpayer money, all the social inequality...….just a few of a the many factors that lead to the French Revolution.

It's all on display in the various rooms in the Chateau.

Don't forget to look up at the ceilings!

The most well known room in the Chateau is probably the Hall of Mirrors.

Which is where the Treaty of Versailles was signed, which ended World War I.

We walked out onto the gardens......still quite grand; even on a misty day like this was.

And of course; all the fountains.

From here we decided to check out the Grand Trianon.

Which Louis XIV built as his escape from the Chateau.

We also explored the Petit Trianon as well.

By this time; the Missus and I were "palaced-out" and we decided to head back to Paris.

The lines were growing ever longer as we left. We caught the train back to Paris and the Missus decided to do (even more) shopping. We made a return trip to Repetto (which I've posted on before).

Sadly....at least for the Missus; She discovered that She had all the styles and colors that She wanted.

We decided to head back to the hotel for a break, but decided to grab lunch. We wanted something quick and decided to head back to Canard Street. We got the Demi Magret and the Sandwich de Foie Gras.

The duck breast was surprisingly good....especially for what I consider "fast-casual" food. It was just a tad over-cooked, but still juicy, tender, and full of flavor.

We didn't care for the baguette used for the sandwich; it was dry and much too hard and chewy. Hardly any foie gras torchon as well.

Still, this came out to around 20 Euroes which ain't bad for duck breast and foie gras, right?

Canard Street Paris
16 rue des Petits Champs
75002 Paris, France

We had a well deserved nap; then took an early evening stroll. We then headed off in the direction of dinner. This was to be our first visit to Le Pont de Sichuan, you can read that post here. We were still a bit too early for dinner and noticed this spot right around the corner of our destination.

And stopped for an aperitif.

It seemed like a popular after work destination.....lot's of folks having whatever the version of happy hour is in Paris.

And we had a seat at the bar and had a couple of Kir before dinner.

Le Trader's
3 Rue de la Bourse
75002 Paris, France

A nice little aperitif!

Thanks for stopping by!

Paris - Le Pont de Sichuan times two

In my previous post, I mentioned the reservations I have and the realities of doing a post when just doing a single visit to a restaurant. But, when travelling, the reality is, you may only have one meal at a place......often a meal you were looking forward to, had planned on having, and when, like that visit to Le Comptoir de la Gastronomie does not work out, well things are magnified. And then there are times when you have a second opportunity to revisit a place. Le Pont de Sichuan was such a place.

My apologies about doing this a bit out of order.

It was Thanksgiving of 2018 and we were staying in the 2nd Arrondissment, as I mentioned in my previous post. We had visited Versailles (coming up in a future post) during the morning and now wanted some "comfort food" (it's all relative, no?) for dinner.

Right up the street was a place I had on my "list"; Le Pont de Sichuan. I had read some positive things about the place....taking note of the ahem, "authentic Sichuan" tag thrown about. Even though I'm not one to use "authentic" in my descriptions; because cuisine is not like a signed Picasso; it is not a static picture, it changes, is dynamic....ok, enough of that.

We decided to check out Le Pont de Sichuan as our Thanksgiving meal.

We were the first customers in the place. The service was also quite nice in terms of Chinese restaurants; it definitely had a French touch to it. I'd done a bit of research and had pretty much decided on two of the dishes beforehand.

One of them was the Crispy Lamb with Cumin.

The lamb had obviously been braised first, then deep fried making the exterior parts quite crisp. Nice and gamey and tempered with soy sauce and cumin. Not overly salty, crisp and then tender....while, in my opinion it could have used more cumin, this was a very nice dish.

We needed a vegetable, so we got the dry cooked green beans which were ok.

A bit too greasy and salty and lacking in savory tones.

The other dish I'd been wanting to try was the Marmite de Champignons; basically sautéed mushrooms....but not quite what your mind pictures as sautéed mushrooms.

We loved the earthy, toothsome variety of mushrooms, all the different subtle flavors, different textures. A slight spice, the pleasant savory-saltiness of soy sauce, a slight bit of sour-acidity, some mild heat....and most of all....a good dose of Sichuan peppercorns. The slices of pork was well seasoned and tender. This was so good.

We really enjoyed our meal here.

And so, during our last visit to Paris, at the end of our 2019 Budapest - Vienna - Salzburg - Munich - Stuttgart trip, we were excited to be back in the Missus's favorite city and wanted to have another nice dinner at Le Pont de Sichuan. I even made reservations.

This time, we thought we'd try some more traditional Sichuan dishes along with that amazing Mushroom dish we'd had on the previous visit.

We started with one of my favorites; the Ko Shui Ji (Mouthwatering Chicken).

First off, his was served warm. Second, the chicken was really dry. Third, other than being drenched in chili oil, it really had no other flavors going for it.

The next dish we ordered is another Sichuan favorite of ours, Shui Zhu Niu Rou (water boiled beef).

Think of this as being really dry, hot pot style top round dumped into a one-dimensional chili-oil based sauce....it lacked the complexity of a good Doubian Jian, though at least in this case, there was a sprinkling of ground Sichuan Peppercorn. No garlic tones; no mild hint of sweet, no complex spicy-savory flavors.

It's ok we thought. If that mushroom dish was a good as on our previous visit it would really balance things out. After all, it was the dish we really came for. Alas, it was not.

As you can tell, the color is a lot lighter, some of the mushrooms were really crisp and over-cooked, some were really tough and under-cooked. The Sichuan Peppercorn flavor was MIA....maybe they forgot? The pork was dry and tough. Uneven stir fry technique. Even though the chilies were present, this wasn't particularly spicy.

Overall, it was quite a disappointing meal, which I'm sure was amplified by the fact that we were really looking forward to eating here.

Sad.....I'm not sure what the norm here is? Was it the 'B' team, or was our first visit just a lightning strike?

There are other places we've revisited in Paris over the years that have been quite consistent. This was not one of them. And while I'm tempted to try them again, our time in Paris is always limited, it's costly, we're on holiday, and want to enjoy our meals. I don't think the Missus would want to roll the dice and take a chance that it's "visit B". Life is too short.

Le Pont de Sichuan
86 rue de Richelieu
75002 Paris, France

Paris - Le Comptoir de La Gastronomie

While we had enjoyed our time visiting Champagne, Alsace, and Lyon, the Missus was so excited to be back in Paris. After quickly getting settled into our room at Hotel Malte. The Missus had enjoyed visiting the 2nd Arrondisement and while I like the 7th, I thought it would be nice staying somewhere other than the 7th or the Latin Quarter. It would turn out that the Missus really enjoyed the 2nd. Anyway, with no plans, other than perhaps to do some shopping and do what we love doing in Paris; wander and enjoy. Until recently, I didn't even know there was a French term for what we do in Paris; it's called Flâneur or flânerie a term I first heard on that wonderful podcast, The Earful Tower.

And so we headed out, taking a quick walk through the Jardin du Palais Royal a half block away from the hotel. Framed by arcades on three sides, this was an oasis of peace from the hustle and bustle of Paris on a Wednesday afternoon.

From here it was short stroll to one of the Missus's shopping stops; the Louis Vuitton Vendome location which had just completed setting up for Christmas.

Sadly, the Missus couldn't find anything She wanted to spend Her hard earned money on....so She did the next best thing; She bought something for me.....more on that later in the post.

But heck, we were in the Place Vendome area, known for all the luxury shops in the area.

From here, the Missus indicated She wanted to see the Christmas Window displays and tree at Galeries Lafayette, so we just wandered on over. On our way we strolled through this interesting square and this Statue.

Apparently, this is Place Edouard VII. So, a square in honor of the King of the United Kingdom in Paris, eh? Apparently, "Bertie" as he was called, a man of great um...appetites, loved Paris......though I don't think the square is named in his honor because of his excesses or his, ahem....taste in furniture. Perhaps it's because of his role in getting the Entente Cordial completed.

Anyway, in Paris, every corner, every block, and every square has a story. You can find an interesting blog post on the square here.

Soon enough we arrived at Galeries Lafayette. There's something about the window displays and the Christmas Tree inside the department store that brings out the inner child in me. Perhaps because I spent much of my childhood as a Jehovah's Witness and we didn't celebrate Christmas and this just has me imagining that this is what the holiday season should be like. Maybe not, because the Missus just loves this as well.

We slowly worked our way back to the hotel, took a break, and then headed out to dinner.

I spent a good deal of time trying to figure out what we'd have for this dinner. And naturally, after reading all those blog (and you know....those other sites) posts on Le Comptoir de la Gastronomie….and oh, my, all that foie gras. Sold! So, we made our way the few blocks over to rue Montmatre  (funny thing as I'm a trip behind on my Paris posts; this is currently our favorite area of the city) and the restaurant, which is half deli/restaurant. We had reservations, which was good thing since the place filled up really fast.

Man, was there a queue lining up! And remember me mentioning that all the Korean tourists had vanished from Les Cocottes on our last visit? Well, I think this is their hot spot right now as two-thirds of the customers were either Korean or Chinese tourists.

One of the reasons I picked "Le Comptoir" were all the duck and foie gras dishes. So, we started with a very nice bottle of wine that the friendly, but over-worked Server helped the Missus select.

And the first dish up was the "Pan Seared Foie Gras with Gingerbread and Mixed Salad" (20€ - about $22/US).

We enjoyed the greens; the dressing had a nice acidity. The gingerbread toast was interesting. Of course, I didn't order this for the greens or the toast. The foie gras was terrible, over-cooked, mealy, with sinewy strings in it. It had that texture we call "dog food". Because it was burned on one end, it was quite bitter.

The Foie Gras Ravioli with Truffle Sauce (21€ - about $23.25/US) was better, if having a bit of a greasy texture to it.

The truffle cream sauce overwhelmed the foie gras in the pasta; which was over-cooked as well. You couldn't make out the rich-earthy sweetness of the foie. Too much of a good thing with regards to truffle oil dumped on a typical cream sauce here.

The last dish of the evening was the Cassoulet "Gratine" (18€ - about $20/US).  I enjoy a good cassoulet and even make a version at home; so this was my pick for the meal. Unfortunately, well......this time around, the photo says it all.

The duck was over-cooked (seems to be the theme), hard, and dry. Everything else was so bland and not hot either.

We've had a couple of mediocre meals in Paris before; but nothing that was this bad. You know, it's tough.....if this were San Diego, I'd have made a couple more visits to see if it was an off night, or just not do a post at all. But, when one goes on vacation, spending $$$ to get to a place....working on selecting something ahead of time, well...… I will say this; TripAdvisor and Yelp loves this place....which is why....you know....

Le Comptoir de la Gastronomie
34 rue Montmartre
75001 Paris, France

Well, there was some good (I think) news. The Missus just couldn't find anything She wanted at Louis Vuitton, so She decided I needed a new messenger bag (She hated the one I used to use). Knowing little about the LV brand other than the rather distinctive patterns and logos, I figured that I could get out of this by telling Her that "I don't want loud patterns or a logo on my bag"....hah, that would end things right there....but no, with the help of the wonderful (these sales people are amazing) young lady.....they found me my current bag.....I'm not going to say how much it cost; because I get the heebies when I think of it. So yes, I take an LV bag to work everyday and folks, unless I tell them, can't even tell.

 

Lyon - La Cave Café Terroir and Café Terroir

While I really would have loved to hit up another Bouchon on our last night in Lyon; I thought we should try something different, especially after our rather hefty lunch. As it would turn out; dinner would be just as substantial as lunch....but heck, we were in Lyon after all.

We headed out from the apartment, taking our time, doing some window shopping along the way. We eventually got to the area around Théâtre des Célestins, a place we hadn't explored earlier. There were tons of shops in the area and the Missus enjoyed Herself.

I had a place in mind for dinner; but wasn't able to get reservations. But, I had another strategy; the restaurant I had in mind, Café Terrior started service at 7pm. Café Terrior also had a wine bar a few meters up the street, which opened at 6pm....and I'd read somewhere that the really nice bartenders at La Cave Café Terroir would sometimes make reservations at the restaurant for you. So, we decided to test this out.

We enjoyed the small, rustic, with modern touches of the Wine Bar. The bartenders were indeed quite friendly. The Missus enjoyed a glass of red and I got a Kir. We were given some olives with mustard.

When I ordered our second round, I broached the question. Apparently, this is quite a common practice as the really nice young lady took our names and walked over to the Café....when she got back, she smiled and told us, "voila!" And we had reservation for dinner for the first seating.

You gotta love this place!

La Cave Café Terroir
05 Rue Montcharmont
69002 Lyon, France

When Café Terrior opened, we strolled over and were given a nice corner table. The Missus ordered some wine for us and we were given some charcuterie.

A couple of tables away was a father and young daughter who both were having a wonderful time......chatting and savoring their meal. Kids start young here!

We started with a dish I'd seen in a couple of posts. "Oeuf a la Coque Fermier Mouillettes de Beaufort 24 mois" (9€ - about $10/US). Whew, that's a mouthful! This was basically soft boiled eggs, served with Beaufort, an Alpine Cheese, aged 24 months.

You basically dunk the slightly sharp, nutty, very fragrant cheese in the gooey egg yolk and have yourself a delici-yoso time! Rich, buttery, sharp-milky-savory......this was lovely. The salad helped give your palate a short break between bites.

For Her main, the Missus ordered the "Parmentier de Canette de la Dombes " (18€ about $20/US). This was basically almost like a shepherd's pie of sorts.....

If the potatoes hid rich and gamey duck confit! The rich-gamey-earthy flavor of the duck was excellent and there was a ton of duck hidden below those tasty potatoes, but the duck was a tad on the dry side.

Still, the flavors were wonderful!

I decided to go "hog wild"....even though I'd had pork knuckle just a few days before in Colmar; I hadn't had my fill. I ordered the  Jarret de Cochon (18€ about $20/US). 

This was wonderful; from the tender, porky meat, to the wonderful gelatinous parts, to even the skin, which had absorbed some wonderful flavors. The Missus loves lentils and these puy lentils were very nice; tender, yet still holding shape; whatever herbs were used in the bouquet garni for this was perfect.

While the meal seemed quite hearty, we finished everything! Though we had no room left for dessert. We enjoyed the rustic, yet modern food at Café Terrior. We'd gladly eat here again.

Café Terroir
14 Rue d'Amboise
69002 Lyon, France

We rolled back to the apartment. I'd had a great time in Lyon and could have stayed another day or two. I could tell, though, that the Missus was ready to head back to Paris. We had a wonderful, blissful night of sleep.

And the next morning; following the instructions we'd received earlier, we followed Louis XIV's "bout du cheval" and made our way to Gare de Lyon-Perrache. We were on our way back to Paris......and more shopping for the Missus!

Thanks for stopping by!

Lyon - Les Halles de Lyon Paul Bocuse and Lunch at Chez les Gones

We were really enjoying our short time in Lyon, from the Silk Festival and Vieux Lyon, to the Basilica and an amazing dinner at Takao Takano. We'd seen a lot during that long first day, but there was another place I just needed to visit.

But first, we decided to take a nice morning walk.

Down to Place Bellecour it's such a vast square right in the middle of Presqu'ile.

There's the Equestrian Statue of Louis XIV, which was an important landmark for us.

We had to catch our train back to Paris from Gare de Lyon-Perrache not our arrival station Lyon Part-Dieu. We had asked for some directions earlier and was basically told to follow Louis's "bout du cheval"...the "horse's butt" straight, ahem, down Rue Victor Hugo. Which were very accurate directions.

We headed toward the Saône and just ambled along......

Right past the Passerelle du Palais de Justice we found a outdoor market.....not very crowded on this rather chilly morning. This is the Marché Alimentaire Saint-Antoine Célestins which runs Tuesdays to Sundays from 6am to 1pm.

The market is located on Quai Saint-Antoine between Passerelle du Palais de Justice  and Pont Maréchal Juin.

Being right at Rue Grenette meant it would basically be a straight shot to our next destination which La Part-Dieu neighborhood.

I mentioned Paul Bocuse in my first Lyon post, much revered, especially in his home of Lyon.....a man who was called the "Culinary Pope"; for those who are Anthony Bourdain fans, just look at this picture. 'Nuff said.

I wanted to visit the marketplace that bore his name; Les Halles de Lyon Paul Bocuse.

Plus, I love these market halls......I always get a better understanding of the cuisine of a city, when I get to walk around the marketplaces.

And there were indeed some top notch products for sale.

Visiting made me wish we had more time....as it was, we had meals planned out.

We were getting a bit hungry, so we searched among the seemingly endless stands that wind their way thru the gleaming market hall.

And settled for one that served some traditional Bouchon fare and one dish I had been waiting to try as well.

We were seated at one of the small tables and the Missus ordered some sparkling water and a glass of wine for Herself.

I ordered the food...…..which took a while.....actually a good sign to us.

The Missus had enjoyed Her Andouillette so much at Bouchon des Filles that She ordered it here.

Which was served with some mushy vegetables and pretty tasty, but super buttered Gratin Dauphinoise (Scalloped Potatoes).

Like the previous version, this basically exploded upon being touched by a knife. This one was pretty funky and really chewy, the mustard sauce did it no favors.

I ordered the Tablier de Sapeur (The Sapper's Apron).

The tripe was nicely breaded and fried; layers of different textures; the crunchy breading, the chewy layer of tripe, and some additional meaty crunchiness of the rumen. It was very mild in flavor and the sauce gribiche helped things along.

Like with the Missus's dish; I didn't care for the vegetables or potatoes much.

This was an interesting meal; much more rustic than what we'd had two nights before at the Bouchon. Still, it was fairly inexpensive...and I got to have dish I'd been wanting to try.

Chez les Gones - In Les Halles de Lyon Paul Bocuse
102 cours la Fayette
69003 Lyon, France

After the meal the Missus had Her eye on dessert.

And we took our sweet time getting back to the apartment.

Stopping to do some shopping along the way.

By the time we got back it was mid-afternoon.

It was time for a nap.....and then....well, dinner of course!

Thanks for stopping by!