Paris in February 2006 - 1st vs 5th Arrond?

[therese]

Monday was our first real day in Paris, and touring was in order. We headed over to Ile de la Cite to check out Sainte Chapelle and Notre Dame. We stopped for lunch at Le Flore en l'Ile. Food way better than expected, given the amazing view of the back of Notre Dame: salade perigourdine for me, quiche for my daughter, roast chicken for my son. Ice cream for the children for dessert, fancy coupes that were their least favorite part of the meal, as they're not fans of whipped cream or too much in the way of sauce.

I had a nice fruit salad:

We spent the afternoon walking along the river. We'd planned to visit the Tour Eiffel, but the weather turned gray and we decided to wait.

Dinner at home.

[therese]

Tuesday cold and rainy, and the children slept in. We finally got going in time for lunch, at La Crepe Dentelle, 10 rue Leopold Bellan (so very close to the Montorgueil market). We arrived at about 1:00 to a very nearly full restaurant, but were cheerfully seated at the last table, right in front of the kitchen. Or rather what passes for a kitchen, as it's basically one guy (family-run operation, I think---one woman serving, one woman in the back doing dishes) whipping out galettes and crepes as fast as his arms will move.

I started with chouchen, an aperitif made with honey (so presumably a bit like mead, except that I've never had mead), and then drank cidre with my galette, a complete (egg, ham, cheese) with tomato. Son had a complete, and daughter had a salad (because she was feeling contrary). For dessert son had a crepe with nutella, daughter had the contrarian's choice of passion fruit and cassis glace, and I had a crepe with bananas, flambeed with rum. When I ordered my son asked if they'd actually flambe it tableside, and I answered surely not, given the very tight quarters. But sure enough, the server managed it.

Everything excellent, and service quick and friendly. Towards the end of the meal our water carafe had gone empty and the crepe maker noticed, and ran out with another carafe in between orders.

We spent the afternoon at Cite des Sciences et de l'Industrie. Dinner at home.

[therese]

Wednesday better weather, though still cold. My old friend (my exchange partner from Deauville) and her 11 year old daughter arrived mid-morning via train from Deauville. A cup of tea later we headed out for the Louvre.

Very cool, crowded but not too. I ran into somebody that I'd met at Le Train Bleu earlier in the week, working as a tour guide. We stopped for lunch at Cafe Richelieu, a nice quiet break with decent croque monsieur, etc. I had a cold seafood plate that featured smoked salmon and blini and shrimp.

Late afternoon we took the children on an hour cruise of the Seine, again running into the guy I'd met at Le Train Bleu. It's a very small world.

For dinner I'd wanted to book somewhere interesting, but my friend is not particularly in to food, so we ended up at one of the places in rue Montpensier, a Thai place called Baan Boran. I eat a lot Thai at home, and so am a bit pickier about it than I'm likely to be about French: very good tom yam soup, "laab" that wasn't, actually, but pleasant enough, and a dessert described as bananas with coconut milk which was actually bananas and small tapioca pearls in coconut cream, so a good deal heavier and sweeter than I expected (but of course still consumed in its entirety).

Nice atmosphere, service sweet but not particularly efficient.

[Lori in PA]

Therese,

I've been reading your posts here over the past couple of days but haven't taken time to tell you how much I'm enjoying them. I spent 1 week in Paris in 2002 and your journal is helping me relive some good memories. Thanks!

[therese]

Therese,

I've been reading your posts here over the past couple of days but haven't taken time to tell you how much I'm enjoying them.  I spent 1 week in Paris in 2002 and your journal is helping me relive some good memories.  Thanks!

←

Glad you're enjoying them, Lori. I've still got a few more days (and meals) to post, but need to get some work done first.

[docsconz]

Therese, I too am enjoying your posts as they bring back memories of my recent trip to Paris with my family. I take it that your friend from Deauville is French. The American stereotype of the French is that they are all very much into food or at least moreso than the average American. Your description appears that she is an exception to that.

[John Talbott]

Therese, I too am enjoying your posts as they bring back memories of my recent trip to Paris with my family. I take it that your friend from Deauville is French. The American stereotype of the French is that they are all very much into food or at least moreso than the average American. Your description appears that she is an exception to that.

←

Interesting point John.

My "old" French friends, in both senses of the word, who date back to my "Experiment in Int'l Living" days know less and care less about food than any American Joe or Jill eating a Sabrett's on the sidewalk.

But my "new" French friends, acquired largely via eGullet, are as nuts and interested as I am.

[therese]

Therese, I too am enjoying your posts as they bring back memories of my recent trip to Paris with my family. I take it that your friend from Deauville is French. The American stereotype of the French is that they are all very much into food or at least moreso than the average American. Your description appears that she is an exception to that.

←

Like all stereotypes, the one that describes all French people as being interested in food or even having particularly good taste when it comes to food is, in my experience, just so much hooey. Her grandmother was an excellent cook, and had actually operated a charcuterie/traiteur at some point in the remote past, but in fact was not quite as good a cook as my U.S. born and bred mother. The rest of the family (parents, younger brother, aunt, uncle, cousins) were all variously interested or uninterested in food. There was no between-meal snacking, so there was generally a stampede for the dining room when "A table" was announced, but that wasn't necessarily because we knew that there was something amazing waiting for us.

The only person that I knew back at the lycee that was really into food was my first boyfriend (who was actually at university in Caen, but never mind), whose brother was training to be a chef.

[therese]

Thursday morning I got up earlier than the rest of the household (which now includes my exchange partner from Deauville and her daugher, sleeping in the other bedroom, my daugher sharing my bed, and my son on a couch in the living room) to run out and get breakfast from the closest boulanger, Banette. I have to admit that I am not incredibly impressed by Banette, but it was hot and right around the corner from our flat on this snowy morning, so that was good enough.

After laying out breakfast (everybody still asleep) I ventured back outside, this time to meet a train at Gare Montparnasse, arriving from Montfort. Said train carried an ex-pat friend from high school (so an American) and her husband (a Frenchman, whom she'd met while teaching him English and later married). We were originally supposed to have spent Wednesday with her family (three children) at their home in Conde sur Vesgres in the Yvelines, but couldn't manage to fit it all in, so she dropped her kids at school and accompanied her husband into town on the train.

So I managed to connect with her (whom I'd not seen in at least 15 years) and her husband (whom I'd never met) at Montparnasse, and another of their friends (godfather of one of their children) who'd recently moved to the country from Paris. We'd planned on having a coffee, but he'd scheduled an early meeting, so we accompanied to godfather/friend on the Metro to Pyramides, his usual stop, and then walked back to the flat where everybody was up and breakfasted and dressed. Incredibly.

So, more tea all around, as exchange friend and ex-pat friend had met when exchange friend was living with me in the U.S. Very interesting to see how each of us had changed. Or not.

For lunch we all six went back to La Crepe Dentelle, as both of my children had enjoyed it and exchange friend was headed that direction anyway to pick up a ski bib for her daughter from a friend.

I started with chouchen (again) and then cidre (ex-pat friend horrified at my heavy drinking). My galette was something I can't recall at the moment: seems like mushrooms, onions, and tomato, but I'm not sure. For dessert I had a frangipane crepe. Both lovely, but the frangipane actually exceptional. I've been dreaming of frangipane since, and will need to try and reproduce it very soon.

After lunch exchange friend left to pick up the ski bib and return via train to Deauville. Ex-pat friend returned to the flat with us for a bit and then returned home via train about 3:00, leaving us all alone.

But not for long...

[therese]

Confused yet? Because we're about to get another visitor, and this one's very much into food. And shoes, but that's beside the point.

She arrived at Gare du Nord at about 4:00, making it to the flat at about 4:30 (just barely giving me time to change the sheets on her bed). I'd met her through eGullet on the WW thread, and had met up with her for dinner in London last April. And weird as it sounds, felt perfectly comfortable inviting her over to spend the evening with us in Paris. She can out herself here if she'd like.

We'd decided on L'Ourcine for dinner on the basis of numerous recommendations here on eG as well as mentions from other credible sources. Reservation for 8:00, which was honored with a smile. Staff attentive, young, very friendly.

We each started with a glass of champagne (not a flute, weirdly enough, but never mind). I started with a terrine of beef tongue and foie gras, followed by scallops with endives, and finishing with blanc manger with pineapple. eG friend started with a cream soup made with some sort of game bird (I think) and little cubes of foie gras, followed by gigot d'agneau with potatoes, followed by a shortbread cookie with apples.

All of it excellent, and all of it (except for dessert, which was manageable) absolutely enormous servings. Given that it's difficult for me to send something as nice as tongue and foie gras terrine back the kitchen only half eaten, I did my best, but it was rough going.

The amount of cigarette smoke was also a bit overwhelming, frankly. I'm generally fine with some cigarette smoking, but this evening was excessive: I could have actually been smoking myself and not inhaled any more.

Anyway, back out into the cold night air (still flurrying) and home to our cozy flat, where we stayed up late chatting (son having been banished to the floor of my bedroom).

[docsconz]

Therese, this continues to be a fascinating account. Please continue.

[Hest88]

Therese, great account. I'm taking notes for our Oct trip. Can't wait for the next installment.

[curlywurlyfi]

She can out herself here if she'd like.

Hello therese! *waves across the Atlantic*

Well, here I am, back in London after my Parisian mini-break.

The restaurant was charming and very good, which was a huge relief, since we had chosen it largely on the strength of me once writing an essay on a compilation of fairy tales called Les Contes de la Rue Broca - not really the traditional way to pick a restaurant.

My soup was crème de sauveton, croutons et ciboulette. I had to ask what sauveton was - crushed game bird carcases, apparently. Add about a pint of warm cream, some chopped chives for the all-important vegetable component and some unadvertised but naturally extremely welcome cubes of foie gras, and this was the most delicious, savoury, perfumed, slightly frothy soup. (My only sadness was that it was very similar to our amuse - a shot glass of slightly frothy cream of rockfish soup with croutons et ciboulette. Hmmm.)

therese's pressé de langue de boeuf et foie gras was absolutely delicious; fantastic contrast between the cold smooth buttery foie + the shreds of tender beef tongue. And as she has said, it was gigantic. And came with three scraps of lettuce, to keep your arteries open, presumably.

I tested one of therese's coquilles St Jacques persillées with endives meunière. Lordy lord, dripping with butter. Nice enough, but for me lacked zing - the sweetness of the (four large) scallops needed a lift. The endives were wonderful - bitter and limp (which doesn't *sound* like a good thing, but trust me - great.) I had (for an EUR8 supplement), the milk-fed lamb. I had totally forgotten there were potatoes too! A colossal plateful of probably just slightly too rare (for me) lamb (the thing I love about lamb is the contrast of the scrackly savoury brown caramelly outside, and the pink middle. This was red to the edges + the fat went cold + hard too quickly for me). But the flavour was superb, and so tender.

therese's vanilla blancmange with fresh pineapple + toasted almonds was definitely menu winner; my sablé was a little solid (though I did eat quite a lot of it in the interests of making sure).

I'm not much of a one for gushing, but really, this is what makes eGullet great - someone I met online invites me for dinner in Paris? And to stay overnight, and meet her children? I was really touched - and delighted. Plus, we laughed HEAPS. And I got to try on some fantastic yellow shoes.

And now, it's back to dry crusts and gruel. Thank you very much for having me!

[therese]

Thank you very much for having me!

←

Our pleasure. More in an hour, when I return from my massage (heh heh, yes, my 6:00 massage).

[therese]

Awake the next AM by the not too grim hour of 8:00 to find curlywurlyfi up and dressed. Our cab for the airport arrives at 10:30 and Fi asks if there's something she can do to help and I say, "Well, you could run around the corner and pick up croissants and a baguette for breakfast." And she bundles right up and runs out into the coldest morning yet in Paris while I drag my poor children out of bed.

When I tell my son that he needs to get moving, that the taxi was coming at 10:30, he responded, "Taxi? Where are we going in a taxi?"

Me: "The airport. We're going home today."

Him: "Home? We're going home? When did that happen?"

Me: "Just now. It came to me a in a dream."

Him: "Um, what?"

Sister: "Get up, it's Friday and we're going home today. Yeesh."

So we all managed to get up and get dressed and Fi made us lovely sandwiches with ham and butter (and tomato for me) to eat at the airport before we boarded (along with Orangina for my daughter and cidre for me) while I packed our bags and the apartment management arrived to bid us adieu and the taxi arrived exactly two minutes early and Fi left for shopping paradise and we left for our pleasant Delta flight home.

Upon arrival in Atlanta my son remarked that everybody would be speaking English. Except for our francophone taxi driver, born in Orleans.

[Lori in PA]

Sigh. Nice, very nice. I think I especially liked that you posted these a bit at a time, but regularly. It was a mini-treat every time I opened this thread. I guess that's it?

[Daniel]

Therese,

Sounds like a wonderful time. I really enjoyed your post.. Thank you for sharing..

[therese]

Sigh.  Nice, very nice.  I think I especially liked that you posted these a bit at a time, but regularly.  It was a mini-treat every time I opened this thread.  I guess that's it?

←

Actually, that's not quite it, as there are some dining vignettes along the way that merit sharing. But more work to deal with at the moment---I'd have posted more last evening at home, but had to dine out for work (and very nice it was).

[Carlsbad]

Thanks for the posts- they brought back memories of last summer. Glad you liked the apartment.

[therese]

Thanks for the posts- they brought back memories of last summer.  Glad you liked the apartment.

←

Absolutely loved the apartment, and your detailed list (PM'd) of markets and restaurants in the area came in very handy.

[therese]

So, a vignette...

It's Thursday lunch, and we are all six (me, 15-year-old son, 12-year-old daughter, exchange friend, exchange friend's 11-year-old daughter, and ex-pat friend) at La Crepe Dentelle for lunch. Ex-pat friend has remarked on my ordering an aperitif of chouchen before the meal, exclaiming over the deleterious effects of too much alcohol. I reassure her that it's not distilled spirits, and exchange friend (who doesn't drink much herself, as she's subject to migraines) backs me up. I offer her a taste, which she accepts, and she declares it much too sweet, really not very nice at all.

I order a bottle of cidre sec with lunch, having ascertained that both friends will partake. While pouring herself a bowl, ex-pat friend offers some to my daughter, who politely declines, and then to my son, who also politely declines, pointing out that he only drinks water or milk, ever. She returns to my daugther, urging her to try some. She explains that it's not very alcoholic, that children in France routinely have a bit of cidre (but cidre doux, of course, because they are children and all children prefer sweet things), that it's important to cultivate her palate, that it's important for her to grow accustomed to consuming alcoholic beverages with meals. Again, my daughter declines, and again, ex-pat friend starts to expound on the virtues of broadening ones palate, at which point I interrupt her.

Me: "Um, she knows what it is. We drink it at home."

Ex-Pat: "You drink it at home?"

Me: "Yes. So she's tasted it more than once. She likes it. She likes wine and beer as well.

Ex-Pat: "Oh. Well. How very international of you."

Me: smiling grimly, I refrain from pointing out that hard cider is widely available in the U.S., from a variety of producers, and is sold at Kroger and Publix, right next to the Budweiser and Miller Lite.

Ex-Pat (brightening a bit): "Oh, but that must be cidre doux."

Me: "No, I buy cidre sec."

Ex-Pat: "Why?"

Me: "Because I don't like cidre doux."

[therese]

Okay, enough snarkiness on my part. Ex-pat friend would be the same no matter where she lived. I won't relate the conversation about the idiotic book "French Women Don't Get Fat."

For those of you who are considering renting apartments for upcoming trips to Paris (or anywhere else in Europe), here's my take on what makes them great:

1. Breakfast in your jammies. Or naked, if you don't taking the risk with hot beverages.

2. Ditto late night snacks.

3. Ditto aperitifs before heading out for the evening. Well, you're likely dressed at this point, but if nobody objects to your taking off your shoes.

4. A lot more flexibility in your diet. Restaurant meals are often much higher calorie and fat than most people are used to eating routinely, and also much lower in fiber. Great for the occasional splurge, but more than one big meal a day leaves me very much out of sorts.

5. Economical. This was not a a cheap place to rent, but because the children never ate out in the evening (not something we'd planned, just how it happened) and I only ate out when I was with friends, our big meal of the day was at lunch. Dinner was soup or salad or bread and cheese, with fruit and a couple of cookies (for the kids) afterwards. So I realized savings that I'd not anticipated.

A traditional French approach to meals, by the way.

6. Weight loss/maintenance. Vide supra.

7. Clean laundry in spite of packing light. We each had a rolling carry-on for the flight over, as well as my daughter's day pack (basically empty on the way over) and a small duffle bag for toiletries. Paris is, like all big cities, pretty dirty, and it was great having fresh clean clothes, even jeans, every day.

8. Sanity. Rooms with doors mean that you can get away from other members of your party. Yes, yes, you love them dearly, but that doesn't mean you want to be with them every minute of every day.

9. No housekeeping. This may sound strange, as who doesn't want a housekeeper/chamber maid to come by and tidy up every day? Well, me, particularly if it means I need to drag everybody out of the room at a time when it may or may not be convenient to me. And because there's more room in the apartment it's actually already tidy: closets big enough to store all your clothes, suitcases stowed, etc.

So, hope this info is of help. Feel free to ask for any details I've not supplied.

[John Talbott]

our big meal of the day was at lunch. Dinner was soup or salad or bread and cheese, with fruit and a couple of cookies (for the kids) afterwards.

A traditional French approach to meals, by the way.

←

I couldn't agree more and it's the way we eat; long languid lunches followed by much walking; it's healthier and much more fun.

However, as has been pointed out to me several times:

1. Americans are used to evening meals, esp out and

2. If you're in Paris for only 3-5 days, you're trying to do it all: jamming museums, sights and strolls into the daytime, leaving only the evenings for leisurely dining.

[therese]

1. Americans are used to evening meals, esp out and

2. If you're in Paris for only 3-5 days, you're trying to do it all: jamming museums, sights and strolls into the daytime, leaving only the evenings for leisurely dining.

←

So, my secret is out: I'm the world's worst tourist.

My ideal touring day is a half day of sights (so, 9:00 AM to 1:00 PM), nice long lunch, post-prandial stroll, nap, light dinner (at home or out), concert/dancing/show, drink/snack afterwards, home to bed.

I think that part of the reason Americans are wed to the idea of big meals in the evening, even on vacation, is that they feel somehow guilty indulging themselves during daylight hours. Clearly not an issue for me.

[follonica2]

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.