follonica2

Two alternatives to the Mouffetard market, in the same general part of town, are Place Maubert (Tu, Th, Sa) and Monge (Mo,We,Fr).

It depends. Goumard Prunier used to include wine, bottled water and coffee in their "menu." And here I thought it was Chateau Delanoye. ← Gee & I thought it was d'eau robinet. Or just plain robinet for short. ← Une carafe d'eau works for me.

Forest, Did you happen to note if Manhattans were on the menu there? I'm going over next month with a friend who is a first time visitor to the city. He's a Manhattan drinker. My guess is that, despite my exhortations of " eat and drink what the locals eat and drink", some time during the week there, he's going to want one.

No question that it went downhill. I was there once under the old regime and liked it but wasn't impressed this last visit.

That's odd. I was there for dinner in June and there were several salads on the ardoise. Two in my party had them.

Schlepping her own tofu to a French Christmas dinner? Had I been the host(ess), I would have been tempted to toss her butt onto le trottoir. I'd like to see, too, the facial expressions on the cafe waiters resulting from the soymilk request. Sorry, it's one of those mornings.

re: lack of half bottles at Les Papilles. I lunched there solo last month and had a half bottle of Morgon. Don't remember the label but it was NOT Georges Duboeuf.

ROTFLMAO!! Brilliant.

You might be my doppelganger! I hate the yolk, but don't mind the white so much. I do like mayonnaise, though. ←

Nope, you're not the only one. I also detest hard-boiled eggs, well, the whites, anyway. Mayonnaise doesn't cross the threshold of my house, much less my mouth.

Sometime last year, I encountered Dutch salt licorice. The medium salt version. Much spitting, hacking, and rinsing of mouth(s) ensued. What is it with that stuff, anyway?

The egg was hurled in an anti-Sarkhozy demonstration, maybe?

Ooooh, thanks for the WineKaddy link. One of those things I didn't know I needed until I saw it. One of these trips, the ole wine-bottles-wrapped-in-dirty- laundry-inside-the-checked-bag trick is gonna fail.

Well, sometimes I skip the half day of sightseeing in favor of a few hours in a cafe. Or two. ← I stick to the morning to "do" museums, sites,etc. I've learned the two-dish tango for eating out in Paris. Either an entree/plat or plat/dessert, with wine, of course. That way I can do two nice meals a day without "hitting the wall". Afternoons are more free form. However, I have discovered splitting a bottle of champagne after that post-prandial walk does tend to wreck the rest of the afternoon .

World's worst tourist? Not hardly, or if so, you have company. Your day sounds like my ideal day in Paris, with a few minor differences.

If you're ever wandering the Latin Quarter, the Cremerie des Carmes on the Place Maubert does vacuum sealing/packing, as well: Crémerie des Carmes Address: 47 ter, boulevard St-Germain, 75005 Paris. Phone: 01-43-54-50-93 Hours: 6:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m. and 3:00 - 7:30 p.m.; closed Sunday afternoons & Mondays. Proprietor: David Ferreira. Maubert-Mutualité (line 10).

For markets check this post that has a great list of all the markets. Either area is safe (indeed no one worries about walking alone late at night anywhere central; it's outside the center and in the suburbs that there's a problem) and both are very near a big street market (Richard Lenoir/Bastille to the Place des Vosges; Place Monge to the Place de la Contrascarpe). I'd make the decision more on the furnishings in the apts and the feeling you're looking for outside - the Place des Vosges is charming and full of tourists; the Place de la Contrascarpe less touristy/more studenty. ← The market at Maubert-Mutualite is an option/alternative for the days when the Place Monge market isn't operating.

Far be it from me to nitpick , but you have the addresses for Jacques Melac and the Clown Bar mixed up. Melac is on r. Leon Frot and the Clown bar on r. Amelot

At the risk of sounding impudent , why not just reserve an entire restaurant? There are plenty 30-seaters in the city, I'd imagine.

I agree with the choice of Le Sancerre. If memory serves, you can purchase bottles of various Loire wines to take with you back to your apartment. Might come in handy if the sherpas get restless and you need the calming influence of the grape

Last year, we discovered the rue des Francs Bourgeois, the border between the 3rd and 4th. There are many small shops on and just off that street. Worth a morning's meander and so is lunch at Camille at #24.

And it actually looks like there's a fair amount of nightlife on this street as well. Not that the idea of looking down onto tourist hell from the comfort of our 4th floor, nicely-appointed dining room isn't appealing... Will the market at Maubert smack of tourist hell as well? ← Okay, time to de-lurk and chime in. The rue de la Huchette/rue de la Harpe section IS a tourist hell. Greasy spoons, barkers in out front of many restos trying to lure you in, noisy and crowded. I stay in the 5th and always give it a wide berth. However, the market at Place Maubert is fine.

My money is on Les Fontaines.

Menton1, I heartily agree with your respectful disagreement.

and then there is http://www.breakfast-in-america.com/ I've directed some traveling companions to it, those who just cannot start the day without protein. I've heard it's good but since my time in the land of croissants, breakfast tartines, and pain chocolate is usually limited, I see no reason to try it.