StCirq will respond that she never uses aliases. <BR> <BR>Unfortunately, we all know you are responsible for a lot of the anti LSKahn flames (among others) because you and your alias buddies want to push everyone around and dominate every France board on the internet. <BR> <BR>Why don't you and your alias "friends" grow up and cut it out? We all know you are doing it; you have never given up your running vendetta against LSKahn because she told you off years ago on AOL. <BR> <BR>It sounds to me, StCirq, that you are more than a tad bit jealous over LSKahn's lunch at the Pre Catalan. It just goes to show you that it pays to be polite. It does seem that that is a lesson you have yet to learn.

You know what? I don't care who is whom. Just STOP IT!!! Both parties are valued contributors --- let's call this one a non-thread before it starts.

Oh, I just cannot wait for StCirq to see this and deny she uses aliases. Then her "troops" of aliases will show up to defend her. Funny, isn't it? <BR> <BR>Bunch of cowards who need to learn some manners. And, it does indeed look like there is jealousy at work here StCirq. I guess Mellon had to pay for her own lunch.

I once copied the following into my Paris file, in addition to the good advice above, maybe it will be of help if you're not used to ordering wine. <BR> <BR>Instant wine education, adapted from Bon Appetit Magazine May 2001-true wine connoisseurs will find the following to be simple-minded, so if you are one, please skip. <BR>Wine lists at French restaurants are almost always organized geographically. American wines tend to to be labled by the variety of grape (Cabernet Sauvignon, Pinot Noir, etc), but French wines are lableled by the region (appellation) where the wine is made. The most common appellations are Bordeaux, Burgundy, the Loire Valley, Alsace, the Rhone, and Champagne. Most regions only use certain varieties of grapes. For example, all white Burgundy wines are made from Chardonnay grapes, while most Burgundy reds are made from the Pinot Noir grape. Beaujolais uses the Gamay grape. Beaujolais is a subset within Burgundy. Beaujolais is a very popular wine for the French to order with a bistro meal that includes meat, chicken, lamb, steak frites, cheeses. It can be a very fine wine, but because it uses the Gamay grape it is usually not considered quite at the same exalted level as the top Burgundies, and so is comparatively medium-priced. Beaujolais is easy to like. There are 10 vineyard areas (crus) that produce Beaujolais (even this can't be too simple) and each cru has its fans. Don't confuse true Beaujolais with the "Beaujolais Nouveau" that your local wine store advertises every November-That's primarily a marketing ploy aiming a usually thin, too-young wine at the American consumer. <BR> <BR>If at home you prefer Chardonnays, look through the list of white Burgundy wines. If you like Pinot Noirs, look at the red Burgundies. If you prefer Cabernet or Merlot, then look at the red Bordeaux; most red Bordeaux wines are blends of these two grapes, along with some other grapes in smaller proportions. The Syrah grape, so prized in Australia as the Shiraz, is used in Rhone wines. Then of course there are the other wine regions… <BR> <BR>If you are confused, or if you don't want a whole bottle or even a half-bottle of wine, just ask your waiter for advice, or ask to talk to the sommelier (wine steward) if the restaurant has one. The word is pronounced, approximately, "sum mel yay". Most wine bars, bistros and even formal restaurants have available a choice of wines by the glass, and these by the glass wines can be excellent. Very casual places might have available red wine by the "pichet" (a small pitcher) and this house wine is sometimes served as a part of a price-fixed dinner. Un pichet du vin rouge (an pee-chay doo van rooj) is a very common thing to order with a casual lunch. <BR>

topping

topping for Dan

I didn't realise it was different doing it in Paris than anyplace else. Is it?