Margaret Pilgrim

Call me a romantic, but regardless of the venue, I look for joy! I want the front of house manager and service people to act as if they really enjoyed their jobs. I want my waitperson to be excited with my choices and pleased with the empty plates I leave. I would like the perfectly prepared food to reflect the place and the chef. In the best of all worlds, I wouldn't be able to understand the conversation at the next table. I would like the room to exude a sense of enjoyment and pleasure. I would like to leave content and happy. It would be nice if the meal were not too expensive, but I am willing to pay for the kind of experience I have described.

Im interested in the fact that not a single review of Maze, Gordon Ramsey's latest , has mentioned the oppressive pop music sound levels--except my own.. ← I was refering to the noise level where you are not even aware that there is music being played!

Since my husband and I have been married for some 700 years, one might think that it would be a blessing to go to a restaurant where conversation was not necessary. But just the opposite is true. We do find that restaurants in France are almost universally much quieter than the same genre in the United States. My husband often muses about this, wondering what in our national phsyche demands noise levels to be so high in many facets of our society: movies, personal as well as public sound systems, restaurants. So after food and service, a civilized ambiance is what will draw us back time and again. That said, impossible noise will keep from returning even when food and service have been superlative. (A little jazz or classical in the background is a nice touch. )

Indeed. Not a few of those listed on the Jeune Cuisins Francaise thread have qualified for this designation. How long did it used to take to get into La Regalade?

A thread on its own?

A current thread caused me to think about destination restaurants. Do you prefer to or usually patronize destination restaurants? Why? When? Do you encounter large percentages of locals and regulars or more first timers and once in a lifetimers? What is the biggest draw: the food, luxe surround/service, finding out what the buzz is about or the general expectation of quality? Do you support the destination restaurants in your city? When and how often? Do you find the number of tourists in destination restaurants a negative factor? Do you find the number of Americans in destination restaurants abroad a negative factor? Thoughts?

Do you suppose you would have dined better had you had more choices? Or is is just as well that you had less array and a more controllable quality? Or to phrase it differently, were your expectations thwarted by the short menu?

Okay, come up! The closest ethnic truck to the Phyly airport? (United has stopped food service on cross country flights, and I refuse to buy the catered boxes!)

Wow! Many thanks for this address. We'll give it a try very soon.

If he has reopened from August vacation... He has been closed mid to late August.

I would guess that this kind of beverage might have its place. My husband and I frequently seek out simple artisanal raisin petillantes in the summer. These hover around or under 9%, although I think I remember finding one that was in the 6% range. These are mildly sweet, sparkling and quite refreshing in the afternoon, a far cry from the god-awful American alcohol-free 'wines'. I wonder why it is necessary to chemically compound these beverages when winemakers have been producing that genre for years. Cheaper? Volume?

I can only reply to my 'hood. On our walks, I noticed that Laduree (Bonaparte) was open, but their small chocolate storefront next door was closed for vacation. Dalloyou on Vaugirard, across from Luxembourg Gardens, appeared to be open. Pierre Herme was closed at all times of day and on all days we passed. Small help. Perhaps others can add so as to complete your list.

Getting one's way in this kind of situation, i.e., a salad as a meal when the establishment has an albeit illegal policy against it, begs the question, "Do I really want to eat the salad should they finally allow me to order it?

It's my sense that L'Occitane came within the last several years. Be that as it may, some good news for you may be that Hédiard has closed that location. From all appearances, it does not look like a normal summer closure. As I remember, it was emply when we were there in the spring. We can always hope.

I believe that I have already spoken from this soapbox, but I do want to warn again that from visit to visit we notice Yuppification of this once unspoiled market street. Near the bottom, L'Occitane and O&Co have replaced two of the original shops, Androuet has joined the old-time cheese shops and this trip I noticed that a decent chocolate shop is now a Marianaud scent store. If you want to walk a village street in Paris, do Muffetard before it is too late. I remember when this happened to the remaining Les Halles shops on Montorgueil. "My" little hole-in-the-wall that sold tarbais beans out of burlap sacks at the lowest price in Paris is now a fashion boutique.

John et al, I have been unable to buy Gault Millau magazine either at my excellent international magazine shop in San Francisco nor at any of the good shops I tried in Paris, as well as every Ralay I passed in major gares. Are they having trouble again? Word?

Since park names were being dropped in docsconz's 'Upcoming Paris Trip' thread, I thought it might be useful to compile a list of favorite picnic and 'let the children run and play for a bit' places. I'll start with Bux's Parc André Citroen, and hope he'll add a few more words. One of my favorite's is Parc de Bercy, with its water, little bridges, flowers, lawns and sitting areas. It is a block off the #24 busline or a half-block from the Cour St. Emilion Metro station. Where would you choose to have your picnic? Do you envision "Sunday in the park with George" with children of all ages or a "déjeuner sur l'herbe"?

Au Petit Tonneau is a brilliant choice for a meal with children. Like visiting grandparents! And Boyer's andouillette was among the best I have ever been served. In addition, she came to our table to make sure that it was alright, so afraid that an American had misordered. FWIW, I love Le Villeret, but don't think of it as a particularly interesting restaurant for a child. However they would indeed love the Sunday sing-a-longs at Mouffetard that Marlena wrote about.

I'll get on my favorite hobby horse one more time. Many of the new bistrots are in out of the way areas, and most are easily reachable by bus. Chez Michel, for instance, is served by bus numbers 43, 26, 42, 48 on rue Lafayette, by numbers 54, 56, 31, 30 on Blvd. Magenta. By served, I mean that these buses will bring you with a couple of blocks the restaurant on rue de Belzunce. Note that many fewer buses run after 9pm, but that any restaurant will call a cab for you if you ask when paying the check. Ask any metro ticket seller for a #2 grand plan lignes et rues which will guide you perfectly. I know many people who have, sadly, visited Paris dozens of times but still haven't a clue what knits the city together between metro stops, or what lies beyond their adventures on foot. Besides, buses are much less scuzzy than the metro!

Once you are as far east as Lyon, I have to urge you to investigate a visit to Bernard Antony who is arguably one of France's most important affineurs. His business is supplying France's finest cheese purveyors as well as not a few 3 star restaurants. At least worth your investigation, check him out. He holds forth weekends at reservation-only degustations. I wish I were in your suitcase. Bernard Antony 17 rue de la Montagne Vieux-Ferrette (south of Strasbourg) 03.89.40.42.22

Although I visit Paris several times a year and consume many liters of wine at home and away, the only thing I am sure about either restaurants or wine is that an enormous amount of the pleasure quotient depends on the moment. I really wouldn't encourage you to try to find the restaurant you were so taken with some 10 years ago, but rather to follow your intuition and that of your wife and book a wonderful week of new discoveries. With your enthusiasm and with everything being new to her, you will undoubtedly have a superlative time. And...read everything on this forum. Enjoy!

John, can you help us out with the coordinates of l’Estrapade? I haven't the book and am having no luck Googling it. Many thanks. And, as always, thanks for your much anticipated weekly updates.

Is this the right thread to start a movement to outlaw bongos on the Seine and its bridges? Our hotel is adjacent, and I love to keep the windows open in warm weather but may resort to mayhem at some point after several hours of repetitive rhythms...

Listen up, frequent flyers. I just booked a ticket from SFO to Philly and was told that meals would be available on a 'for sale' basis from now on. No longer will you get 'mystery seagull' for free. So copy out these good addresses. Many thanks, everyone who posted here.

Quite right. As in, when a couple of years ago some of us tried to avoid beef in France due to MadCow. How, one would have to rationally ask, does one totally avoid cow products in France, where everything, vegetable, fish or meat, has an infusion of veal fond?