[Allard?]

You are right. The other couple is wrong.

For one night, your group can dine separately, no? Then everyone's happy.

[Two Days in Paris]

"One set of friends showed up hot and sweaty after a day of sightseeing and were treated like eccentric millionaires (they're not. Not millionaires, anyway), so dress code isn't demanding either."

Thanx for this info. Am not sure how many of us are eager to dine next to non-dresscode-conscious sweaty people, so it's very good to know.

[Paris Bistros in 5th and 6th]

Dumonet is wonderful.

Other nice meat&potato-style bistros are Severo and Les Papilles.

[Best market in Barcelona]

I agree with weinoo.

What is best? How can we guess at your concept of the best?

For the overwhelm factor, nothing beats the Boqueria.

In terms of quality and compactness, Santa Caterina is certainly my favorite.

You see, I find it much easier - and less NYT-style-self-congratulatory - to use the word favorite instead of best.

But I would let someone who has visited all, I mean all, the markets of Barcelona to try to answer this question...

[Northern Spain Trip Report]

Was in San Sebastian last weekend. There was no smoking at all in all the pintxos bars in the Parte Vieja.

[Restaurants In Nice - Anything Nice?]

Nice?

Had a great - and inexpensive - lunch at Flaveur, which just got its first Michelin star.

[If you go to Paris ...]

We refer to the individual sellers in the covered market when we say stalls. We hadn't thought of it as confusing but will avoid the word in our marketing.

Now I see.

And the reason why I became confused is because not all markets have stalls. Only weekly markets do.

Montmartre does not have markets with stalls like Richard Lenoir or Maubert or Raspail that I can think of (except the far north rue des Poteaux market which I remember has a market everyday but stalls only Sunday morning).

The rue Lepic market has permanent food shops. One (very good) butcher has one stall outside.

The place d'Anvers has stalls only, because it is a weekly, hence non-permanent, market.

And when I say a market is the kind that opens everyday, I mean the conventional times, which means everyday except Sunday afternoon and Monday, as you must know and will excuse my radoter-ing.

Lastly I find the weekly markets' food in general to be better, fresher and cheaper, with real maraîchers.

[If you go to Paris ...]

"The tour will include tastings at several of the stalls and also include a neighborhood wine shop, patisserie and fromagerie."

Could you explain what you mean by stalls in Montmartre.

Montmartre.

My fave markets are:

- Rue Lepic

- place d'Anvers (actually in the 9th but on the endge of Montmartre), a weekly market in Fridayd afternoon.

Boulangerie: Grenier à pain on rue des Abbesses. Got the Meilleure Baguette prize last year, which means it is the current purveyor of Sarko and Carla.

Fromagerie. The one next to the Grenier à pain is quite good, but better yet are the Ferme Saint Hubert on 36 Rue Rochechouart, and the gentleman on a wheelchair manning a small stall on the place d'Anvers market, The Ultimate Cheese Guy mentioned in this article:

http://www.paris-update.com/fr/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=435&Itemid=127

Pastries: down the hill at Landemaine on rue des Martyrs. or Aurore Capucine, nearer to Ferme St Hubert.

Wine shop:

- the caviste on rue d'Orsel near rue des Martyrs, or

- the caviste on rue des Abbesses (n°43?) witha humongous ginger tabby sleeping on one motorbike or another in front

The Anvers market and The Ultimate Cheese Guy are the things that I would miss when I am away from Paris for too long.

[Going to Spain in May]

If you are going to be based in San Sé, why not rent an apartment?

This way it is not only less expensive, but you also get a kitchen and can use the faaaaabulous markets there.

Last but not least, even for a food-obsessed city like San Sé, eating out for all the meals becomes tiring sooner or later. The best is to use the markets and get acquainted with local ingredients and cook simple meals, then go out to have better quality meals, eliminating the kind of "do" meals - in the sense of this'll-do.

And the second you have a kitchen and frequent the market, you suddenly find yourself truly entering the lifestyle and are no longer a tourist.

[Vegetarian fine dining in Paris]

"There will be four of us and only one is a veggie so it doesnt need to be a veggie restaurant just somehwere with a couple of choices for each course."

Why didn't you say so?

In that case all the good restos can accommodate the vegetarian. However as I mentioned above, can't guarantee that the veg is not cooked in a meat-based broth, which you probably know is a very French way of cooking.

[Vegetarian fine dining in Paris]

In Paris there is fine dining, there is vegetarian dining. Sorriest I have nevere seen the 3 words together.

There are two quite good vegetarian restos, neither of which serves French food or could be described as fine dining: Krishna Bhravan and Tiein Hiang.

Nearly all of the carnivorous restaurants serve tasty vegetables, which may or may not involve a meat broth in the preparation.

[Empty tables at 3-star restaurants]

"Or could someone have theoretically have shown up at, say, 9:00pm or so and gotten seated without a res?"

Does this mean you had left by 9pm?

One explanation could be just as you had guessed.

You know in that stratosphere, a table is reserved for one party for the entire evening. Diners can arrive at 8pm or at 10pm, but not much later since the kitchen probably closes around 10:30 or 11pm.

A few years ago I saw a conspicuously empty table at Guy Savoy, which was filled near 11pm by an ultra celeb who promptly grossed out all the other diners by lighting up a fat cigar.

[Osterie & Locande ... de France?]

Could you explain more?

Are you familiar with the ferme-auberges?

And how would you compare them?

[Are the Spanish eating their vegetables?]

"View PostParigi, on 12 January 2011 - 07:32 PM, said:

This perceived absence of vegetable is a big mystery to me.

But that's what I'm saying...it wasn't perceived."

But cher Weinoo, everything is perceived.

I do not say this with any irritation or negative feeling. I am mystified and amused. It's as though we had gone to two Barcelonas in two universes.

But I was not hallucinating when the faaaab asparagus - a daily specialty in season - at El Quim in the Boqueria market screamed: bite me, bite me, bite me. I had to, just had to. (OK maybe I was hullucinating slightly...)

Ditto the shishitos that Pep forced down my throat at Cal Pep...

I wish there were a drooling emoticon.

The only cultural confusion that I can think of is that in many cities in north America, a salad is an obligatory sidedish. In Spain it is not obligatory. You have to order it separately.

[Are the Spanish eating their vegetables?]

Living in Paris, we eat a lot of fresh vegetables although we are not vegetarian. In our frequent travels to Barcelona, we never noticed a lack of vegetables in restaurants. The salads seem to be mainly a simple salad for clearing the palate, which is fine with me. I personally like cooked (not overcooked) vegetables.

In the Barcelona markets, vegetables are plenty and fabulous. Shopping in markets then cooking at home is a delight.

This perceived absence of vegetable is a big mystery to me.

[Day Trips Out of Paris]

Dijon excellent choice.

Beaune too.

And Rouen.

All beautiful towns with great food. Easy transport with Paris.

[Le Chateaubriand vs. La Regalade]

Great report, great pics.

I have been to La Régalade and have, I believe, read that attack on it on another website.

Re the terrine without plates:

The terrine is for the bread, a little bonus for the wait before the 1st course arrives.

It is a wonderful generous small touch.

Everyone who comes often to France knows that in bistros, one is expected to put the bread on the table. In smaller starred places like Frenchie, there are no bread plates either.

I know I know, it took me a long time to get used to this, mais bon…

The terrine is not a starter, is not an official pre-first course or whatever.

It is like butter for the bread.

I had never felt the sore need of a bread plate.

To complain about it is really to show an embarrassingly narrow comfort zone.

[Post Xmas on the way to San Sebastian]

"We're finding a lot of the good places - Relais de la Poste & Michel Guerard are frustratingly closed during that time. "

Unfortunately many other restaurants will be closed then.

My fave restos in the French Basque country - on or near the coast between Bordeaux and San Sé - are:

1. Kaiku in Saint Jean de Luz,

2. Hotel Arraya in the village of Sare

3. Olhabidea right outside Sare

4. Chez Margot in lovely Socoa in the seaside village of Ciboure, next to St Jean de Luz.

2 and 3 are owned and run by the chef-hotelier Fagoaga family.

3 is one of my fave restos in France. It is a beautiful restaurant-b&b with only abot 3 rooms. Locals reserve months in advance.

2 being a hotel - a beautiful hotel in a beautiful village - has more of a chance of keeping its resto open for that period.

4 is a more casual resto serving good food in a beautiful spot by the sea, also popular with locals, unlike the other, more tourist-oriented seaside bistros in Socoa.

I do not know their opening days/hours for that period.

Lastly, are you sure you want to drive all the way to San Sé?

The city has excellent public transport and horrible traffic. Often we see cars inching along - and I mean inching - in a ring around public parking lots, waiting for a spot. Besides car rental with a dropoff in a differnet country from your originating country is prohibitive. What I did was to rent a car for the French side, then we turned it in in Hendaye and take the direct, efficient, short train-ride (Euskotren) to San Sé.

[Best Barcelona Neighborhood]

The very hip Born neighborhood has the wonderful Mercat Santa Caterina and is also a 2O-minute walk to the Boqueria. It is in the old town where most streetse are pedestrian. The hotel Banys Orientals where my friends always stay - and where I always rent from across the small pedestrian street - is not only right above the restaurant Senyor Parellada but is in an area that is the tapas epicenter of Barcelona. Btw, my rental from BCNGotic is excellently soundproof, and we are talking about one of the most animated streets in one of the most animated neighborhoods. I never hear a thing at night in the apartment. But remember to choose the larger apartments or the one 1-bedroom apartment with terrace. The other apartments are small and, with 3 bedrooms, are quite cramped.

Casa Camper, recommended above, is also a great place to stay in a very hip and very central area. If you stay there, don't forget to have an horchata for breakfast at the funky old Granja Viader near the hotel.

LOL, I also share the same impatience with those long blocks in Eixample and Gracia. Because they are all perfectly perpendicular to each other, they are sooooooo boring to walk. In the day time it's better, there are shops open, and all the animation that goes with them. At night, walking back from the great tapas joint Paco Meralgo located in the middle of nowhere in those grid avenues, I think I have been hypnotized into walking the same block for eternity, you know, like "Groundhog Day".

[Mon. night - my favorite is closed - HELP]

La Régalade St Honoré

[What Tea Are You Drinking Today? (Part 2)]

Had Anqi TieGuanYin 安嵠鐵觀音 last night after a big rich meal. Brewed for 3 minutes.

Am having XiHu Longjing 西湖龍井 after light lunch. Brewed for 90 seconds over not boiling hot water.

[Dordogne: Seeking Advice for Ferme Auberge & Marché Nocturne]

I agree with Carlux. Where did you get this 65 euro figure?

The biggest pigout we did at the Taulado came to 25 euro per, wine included. That was a couple of weeks ago.

[Dordogne: Seeking Advice for Ferme Auberge & Marché Nocturne]

My fave ferme-auberge around there is le Taulado in the tiny village of Sireuil outside Les Eyzies, very near the prehistoric cave Font de Gaumes. My fave dishes there are foie gras mi cuit, salades aux gésiers, aiguillettes, pommes salardaises, omelettes with in-season mushrooms, or in-season truffles. Must book ahead.

Le Taulado, Sireuil La Genèbre

24620 EYZIES DE TAYAC (LES)

Tél. : 0553296763 - Fax : 0553596442

Another excellent ferme-auberge, a little further away but maybe better, is the Ferme Calvel in Bougayrou in Lacave, in northern Lot not far from Souillac. It has a menu starting with soupe de campagne, then a choice of duck or lamb (both great), pommes salardaises (different from the Taulado preparation and may be even better), etc. LE BOUGAYROU 46200 LACAVE Tel: 05 6537 8720.

Forgive me for being repetitive. Every time I go to the Ferme Calvel - and with such great pleasure, - the place is full full full. Don't forget that for these farms, the resto part is a side busyness. You must book ahead.

We were just there 2 weeks ago, in the middle of the flooding. It was great revenge to pig out while the river Dordogne rose.

"late summer"? The marchés nocturnes are mostly a July-August thing.The last Saturday of August, Monpazier has a marché nocturne. I have been to Monpazier but not to the MN; sounds like great fun.

Plus every Tuesday night at Eymet in the summer. Best to check with the towns'/villages' mairie.

[Is this trip UN-REASONABLE?]

Parigi, I am checking out Arles and the hotel option you mentioned. Have you been to the restaurant "Cilantro"?

Yes, delicious.

I know you think we're crazy but we are also young and I hope that a trip like this opens our eyes to what is out there in the world so we know where we can visit again one day soon.

Unfortunately you miss all the two dozen listed most beautiful villages of France, - by two dozene I am bearing in mind only those listed villages near the freeway, - which you won't get a glimpse of from the the freeway. Since you asked if we think your trip is unreasable, - unless your question is a rhetorical one, - I'd say it is self-defeatingly unreasonable. If you want your eyes open to what is out there, you need to get out there and not stay on anonymous freeways.

[Is this trip UN-REASONABLE?]

"# June 17 arrive in Paris. I've been a few times but my wife hasn't. We will be staying with family in Paris. We'd like to do as much as possible in the short time that we have. I'd like to go to a good restaurant on June 17th. We're willing to spend up to 200 Euro for the meal but would rather spend less. We'd like something French. Wine, great food, cheese, etc. but homey and friendly."

On the day you arrive? Remember you will be jetlagged. Nodding off on your plate is not the same thing as enjoying it. I would suggest you make the major meal your lunch. Then have a very light dinner and turn in.

"# June 19 leave Paris for Cannes with a rental car. We love driving and don't mind it at all - we even think it is more convenient than trains, etc. The drive from Paris to Cannes is about 900 km which should take about 8 hours."

Accent on the "should". In my experience it is about 2 hours longer.

"We would like to split this trip with a stop somewhere beautiful between Paris and Cannes where we can get a great meal (1 Michelin Star is plenty) and stay at a nice, small hotel or B&B."

Arles is a good stop. Beautiful town with lots of Roman ruins, near the freeway and has lots of good eateries, including starred temples like Rabanel, but many lowkey good bistros too. Hotel du musée is in a great building in the old town where you can walk everywhere.

In general I find your short trip has way too much driving. If you like to drive and see this trip as mainly the pleasure of driving, then great. It does not seem to be a trip for any actual visiting or enjoying. After all, freeways in France or Germany don't look or feel much different from freeways in other countries.