John Talbott

Update - I subsequently went twice and my comments are here.

and fleur de sel ← A caution, not all Monoprix's are equal. My local one often doesn't carry all the good stuff mentioned above so I get it at the one near Galeries L on Caumartin. And add me to the BHV fans, indeed I love the basement hustle-bustle and the garagy cafe (OT but the Willy Ronis show across the street at the HV has long lines so go early or late).

I have and it has everything. As is the story of my culinary life, I found it inconsistent.

Wow too bad, as I noted on October 13th Recall also that Chez les Anges at least in October.

I did some searching and indeed there are a fair number of threads on the subject including ones on: picnics awards and more the first of eight posts in eight days in 2004 reported by Comeundone a 2002 account

No - it's the same place to sit whether at lunch or dinner; the food, however, is completely different. In summer the "terrace" is nice but in winter, I dunno.

merged topics

If you do a search you'll find lots of members have posted on it.

It's great and there are actually two run by the same bunch: Chez les Anges 54, Bvd de La Tour-Maubourg, 7th (Metro : La Tour-Maubourg) T : 01 47 05 89 86 Closed Saturday lunch and Sundays A la carte about 45-50 €. Au Bon Accueil nearer the Tour 14, rue de Monttessuy, 7th (Metro : Ecole Militaire or RER : Alma) T : 01 47 05 46 11 Closed Saturdays and Sunday less expensive with lunch menu

Why do you prefer those to Emile Henry's?

There are several in the area just west and north of Les Halles: best known for copper, etc is E. Dehillerin, 18-20 Rue Coquilliere in the 1st but a block away there are nice plates, etc at A. Simon, 48 rue Montmartre, in the 2nd. And there was a recent thread on pastry equipment. Edited by John Talbott to add last suggestion.

Correct and the unions fear it is forever; when I went by 10 days ago or so it did not appear that any renovation to correct the 'safety problems' was underway.

A gentle reminder; let's stick to our mission as a food site; so far so good but we might tilt off into a general shopping site if not careful. That said, last week I found a terrific shop besides Kodo, 29, rue du Bourg-Tibourg in the 4th, with wonderful products (everything from oil to caramels) from Provence and elsewhere in stunning packaging/tins/boxes/etc.

The Week of November 21st, 2005 In Figaro’s Gout section, there was an article by Franck Picard on the best steak-frites on Paris that listed the following: La Bourse ou la Vie, Severo + Meating 14 (out of 20) Le Voltaire + Le Bistrot Paul Bert 13.5 (the latter also judged possessing the best quality/prix ratio) Relais de Venise 13 La Boucherie Roulière 12.5 Le Petit Vendôme + Chez Georges 12 La Mascotte, Le Gourmet des Ternes + Titi Parisien 11.5 Ascot 11 Devez, La Rotonde, Le Boeuf couronné + Le Boeuf sur le toit 10.5 Steak & Lobster + L'Opportun 10 Louchebem 9.5 Le Galvacher + La Maison de l'Aubrac 8.5 Hippopotamus 8 Buffalo Grill 7 Monday, A Nous Paris (courtesy of Felice) reviewed chocolate places, as follows: 4/5 – To drink Angelina’s 3/5 – To suck Jean-Paul Hevin 3/5 – To snack Fauchon 3/5 – To crunch more and more Pierre Marcolini 2/5 – To crunch La Maison du Chocolat Wednesday in Figaroscope, Emmanuel Rubin’s “C’est nouveau” reviewed its usual five places. It gave the blurb, photo and 2 hearts to Ralph Lauren’s Anglo-saxonish, cool “Friday-wear” place Steak & Lobster, 26, rue Jean-Mermoz in the 8th, 01.53.53.98.00, closed Sundays, where, in the ex-Ailleurs space, they serve a half-lobster a la plancha, entrecote and fried potatoes that are very, very good, for 40-70 E, lunch formula = 24 E. He also gave two hearts to the new proprietared Les Gourmands, 101, rue de l’Ouest in the 14th, 01.45.41.40.70, closed Sundays and Mondays, lunch menu = 17.5, and 25 and 32 E, for foie gras, daurade and profiteroles as well as two hearts to a “radical” Chinese place Les Delices du Shandong in the 8th. Finally one heart each went to a neo-brasserie in the ex-Tante Jeanne (B. Loiseau) space, called the Café Seraphin, 116, bvd Periere in the 17th, 01.43.80.86.68, closed Sunday lunch and Mondays where for 40 E one has a mozzarella tart, chicken breast and moelleux of chocolate and the “couscous-tajine” place Al-Nour in the 3rd. Figaroscope’s “Dossier” concerned itself with Business Breakfast places that included in the following areas: Louvre, Palais Royal Café Marly, Fumoir + Le Nemours Opera-Vendome Park Hyatt Paris-Vendome, Hotel Costes, Le Westminster + Grand Hotel Intercontinental Elysees-Concorde Bristol, Crillon, Daloyau, Toraya + Fauchon Georges-V Fouquet’s, Laduree, George-V + Pershing Hall Auteuil-Passy Zebra Square, Hotel Sezz, Le Murat + Le Safran Etoile Le Vernet, Raphael + Rue Balzac Republique-Bastille-Gare de Lyon Le Murano, Train Bleu, Café Ké Sofitel Bercy + La Gazzetta Montparnasse Hotel Lutecia, la Closerie des Lilas, La Coupole + La Rotonde Montparnase Saint-Germain, Odeon Les Deux Magots, Café de Flore, Hotel Montalembert + Les Editeurs In that same spirit, Francois Simon’s ”Hache Menu” covers l’Aventure, 4, avenue Victor-Hugo in the 16th, 01.45.00.45.11, open everyday, where he dissects the menu from the amuse-bouche to the pumpkin soup (12 E) to the entire roast chicken (60 E) to the dessert. As usual he asks; must one go, yes, with a Figaro colleague; but for a meal worth 70 E, it was 140 E; therefore, the moral of the experience – choose your dining friends carefully. Sebastien Demorand of Zurban, did his major review this Wednesday of Benoit, 20, rue Saint-Martin in the 4th, 01.42.72.25.76, lunch menu = 38, a la carte count on 60-70€. Despite its revival under the wing of Ducasse et al, he found it over-priced (155 € for two without wine, 6 € for a coffee) for food that was banal at best and nul at worst. The other French resto he reviewed was the not-as-bad Le Gorille Blanc, 11 bis rue Chomel in the 7th, 01.45.49.04.54, closed Saturday and Sundays, lunch formula = 19 €, a la carte about 35 € where he liked the simple but good food such as a tarte of snails, perdreau, cheese and wines. (For my take on both the above, see here.) He also liked some parts of Luc Bessson’s (Taxi, Transporter, Danny the Dog, etc) Italian “cantine” located in his company open to the public called – Ante Prima, 137, rue du Faubourg Saint-Honoré in the 8th, 01.45.63.43.43, a la carte 21 € for lunch and 36 € for dinner. However, he was negative about the Japanese-neo-fusion place Wa in the 1st. Last Thursday in l’Express, there was an article/interview/book advance entitled “Beyond the stars” {surely a double if not triple entendre} by Guillaume Crouzet of and about the 80 year old, triple heart bypass chef - Paul Bocuse tied to the publication December 6th of a bio-confessional, Le feu sacré , by Eve-Marie Zizza {who has known him since age 8 as the daughter of one of his 30-year companions.} You can find out about his three long-term relationships, three families, many angry explosions, audacity and, by the way, his cooking career, by plunking down 45 E for the éditions Glénat book. Thursday, Jean-Claude Ribaut wrote about game with light sauces, mentioning about 20 French, American and Spanish chefs but singling out only three for coordinates: Gerard Besson, La Table de Joel Robuchon + Benoit for their sauces for plumed birds, venison, and civet for the first and hare for the second. In Friday’s Les Echos Jean-Louis Galesne has a piece on the niceness of pot-au-feu {it was better in the French} and singles out the following places to go to for this “emblematic dish:” Le Meurice for a classic 4-service recipe of Dodin Bouffant’s, costing 300 Euros for two persons with wine {that looks and sounds terrific}, Chez la Vieille, for 23 Euros, the Café du Commerce for 15.80, Thursday to Sunday and l’Avant-Gout for a piggy pot-au-feu on the menu-carte of 32 E. Saturday/Sunday, in Bonjour Paris, Margaret Kemp features the well-known brasserie Mollard and there is also a piece by John Talbott on “Pushing the Envelope (Just a Bit Too Far).” In addition, Dan Heching suggests we rush off to a resto that may soon close that serves regular food weekday lunch for less than 10 E but is closed at night for private events, including a “Queer Food evening” the third Friday of the month – La Rotisserie, 4, rue Sainte Marthe in the 10th, 01.40.03.08.30. December’s Gourmet features places people are talking about and reserving at in various cities; in Paris it’s Gaya par Pierre Gagnaire + Senderens. In addition, they announce the existence of the year-old Ecole de Cuisine d’Alain Ducasse, where classes are offered at $130/hour, with translators available at $180/person/class. The December Conde Nast Traveler had two pieces of interest; the first heralded new wine bars in Paris, including: La Muse Vin, Le Cercle Rouge, Chapeau Melon + Taverne Henry IV. The second, accompanying a regular article on Nice, listed Nice dining opportunities considered good by Alexander Lobrano: Le Chantecler, Jouni, Sapore, Le Padouk, Kei’s Passion, La Meranda, La Petite Maison, l’Univers de Christian Plumail, Grand Café du Turin + Parcours, the latter in Falicon. Also listed are Chez Therese + Lou Pilha Leva for socca and Fennochio for ice cream. The Fall Gastronomica, featured a book review by Jason Sholl of two tomes dedicated to “feasts;” not all of which occurred in France, specifically Charlemagne’s Tablecloth: A Piquant History of Feasting by Nichola Fletcher, London, Weidenfeld & Nicolson, 2004 and Feast: A History of Grand Eating by Roy Strong, London, Jonathan Cape, 2002. December’s Paris Notes had a review in “Paris Bites” by Rosa Jackson of Senderens where she was less than thrilled by the modern décor, “incompatible mix of alcohols” with the dishes served and “thin” gazpacho and lack of “pizzazz to her main, albeit “fun” desserts. She was much more enthusiastic about the 24 E two course or 28 E three course bistro, rotisserie menu at l’Atelier Maitre Albert where, while she had to send back the veal kidneys for further cooking, she liked the carrot soup and skate very much. Amber Garrison, in Postcards from Paris mentions places in which to host 15 people: she suggests Les Portes, 15, rue de Charonne in the 11th, 01.40.21.70.61, about 20-30 E without wine, open everyday and the Chalet des Iles in the middle of a lake in the Bois de Boulogne in the 16th, 01.42.88.04.69, open every day. Edited by John Talbott to correct error in Figaroscope Dossier subject - it was not business lunch places but business breakfast ones. Please post comments here and not in the Digest thread. Edited by John Talbott to add prix/quality notation and correct source of steak-frites article.

December’s Gourmet has a blurb on the year-old Ecole de Cuisine d’Alain Ducasse, where classes are offered at $130/hour, with translators available at $180/person/class.

While I posted this news in this week’s Digest, I think it is of sufficient interest when arguably the world’s greatest living chef publishes a “tell-all” confessional bio to repeat it here. December 6th, éditions Glénat will release a book Le feu sacré. by Eve-Marie Zizza {who has known Paul Bocuse since age 8 as the daughter of one of his 30-year-long companions,} that, according to an article/interview/book advance entitled “Beyond the stars”{surely a double if not triple entendre} by Guillaume Crouzet reveals not only the sensational parts of his life (three families, three households, much anger) but his culinary career, all intended originally as a photo bio. For those who can’t see paying 45 E or waiting until next week, the interview, etc. in l’Express, of this 80 year old living legend who just had a triple bypass this summer, will probably suffice.

Not at all. As someone elsewhere or upthread noted, most visitors aren't staying in apartments and don't buy too much food because they don't want to schlep it back. My visits to the Maubert market have been visitor-free.

Personally, I would prefer the Palais Royal quietude at night vs the tourist-clogged rue de la Huchette. But if you choose it, you do have the Maubert market and several nice restos within an easy walk: le Pre Verre, Louis Vins, Reminet, Chez Rene for coq au vin only, Atlas, Le Comptoir, La Cremerie, etc.

Oh I conveyed the wrong message. I think that's a fine location, very central, quiet street at night, great stuff right nearby; don't cancel. It's just that if you only want to walk to markets and dinner in the PM you won't find them just outside your door but myself I wouldn't want to stay on the Rue de Buci or the Place Monge anyway. The Marche St-Honore itself (I mentioned all the places I like to eat at there) but the market itself is open Wednesday afternoon and Saturday and is really only 300-400 meters away and if you shop at the Galleries Lafayette (see thread a bit down) it's maybe 500-600 meters. Plus as I keep saying, what's 4 stops on the metro, maybe 10 minutes; you've got two sherpas, you're fine. Sorry, no grimness intended. Perfect location. Go for it.

I swear we went through the market search just a while back but I cannot locate it. There's really no open air market nearby; the closest are the Marché Montorgeuil, Rue Montorgeuil in the 2nd, open Tuesday and Sunday the Enfants-Rouge, 39 Rue de Bretagne in the 3rd, open Tuesday to Saturday As to reasonable down to earth places nearby, tough too; except oysters at Depardieu's l'Ecaille de la Fontaine and Rouge Tomate, Le Point Bar, l'Ecume St-Honore + Au Petit Theatre in the Marche St-Honore and farther west, l'Ardoise, and a place I like but is pricier - Pinxo.

Alain Senderens giving up 3 stars and 300 bucks a meal.

Correct, indeed, I think in making my way to bathrooms either up or downstairs I frequently see such space(s) but I rarely make note of them. One great room that is perfect now (eg in game season) is the second floor room seating 6-10 persons at Le Petit Colombier.

To add to the discussion, here are ratings of various ways of having chocolate that appeared Monday in A Nous Paris (courtesy of Felice): 4/5 – To drink Angelina’s 3/5 – To suck Jean-Paul Hevin 3/5 – To snack Fauchon 3/5 – To crunch more and more Pierre Marcolini 2/5 – To crunch La Maison du Chocolat

Amber Garrison, in this week's Postcards from Paris mentions places in which to host 15 people, thus, I thought I'd add them to this thread - she suggests Les Portes, 15, rue de Charonne in the 11th, 01.40.21.70.61, about 20-30 E without wine, open everyday and the Chalet des Iles in the middle of a lake in the Bois de Boulogne in the 16th, 01.42.88.04.69, open every day. I have eaten at neither so I'm just passing this on.

Absolutely there; absolutely OK for products; with a new, improved, bigger cave. I happen to like the boutiquey (Petrossian, Bellota-Bellota, etc) things. A new feature they have which I have seen products from but not yet gone to is a rayon for pouring olive oil, vinegar, grappa, calva, etc into cool bottles on demand. As to size, I think Bon Marche's Grande Epicerie is bigger but you'll not suffer at GL.