Paris February Weekend Trip Report
Feb 9th, 2006, 02:14 PM
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Paris February Weekend Trip Report
So last April I went to Paris for the first time, for four or five nights, and loved it--so beautiful, perfect weather, everything green and blossoming. But my boyfriend was struggling with a cold and was not quite his usual energetic and engaged self while we were there, and then his luck got worse and as the apparent result of a salad nicoise (at the Royal Turenne near the Place de Vosges if you want to make a note to avoid), he got food poisoning, which undid our plans for the last day and night of our trip. (Luckily his illness, while violent, only lasted 24 hours or so.) As a result of all this, which admittedly was far worse for him than for me, I felt a lack of closure--we didn't quite manage to have the trip we had planned to have. And I also felt that this was a city I loved and wanted to know better. So this weekend I carried out the resolution I formed then to come back as soon as possible and "finish" our April trip. We took advantage of wonderfully cheap February airfare and left Thursday night from New York for a long weekend, coming back Monday afternoon. It was an excellent idea.
HOTEL
We stayed at the Hotel Saint Louis Marais. I loved this choice. The room itself, while small, was charming, with timbered walls and ceilings, decorated in warm, welcoming colors. The bathroom was beautifully renovated and while tiny, was actually larger than my New York City bathroom. And the room was amazingly quiet. I think the Rue Charles V gets no traffic at all. And the staff spoke excellent English and were extremely pleasant and helpful. Finally, at 115 euros a night, it seems to me a good value. (I know some report that they have failed to honor confirmed reservations; I decided it was unlikely that this would happen in the low season so reserved here this time; it is only these reports that make me hesitate in concluding that I will stay here on all future trips to Paris.)
I also very much liked staying in the Marais. Last time we were right on the Blvd St Michel in the 5th--an area that has a bit too much in the way of neon and touristy cafes and Quality Burgers for my taste, though it is wonderfully convenient. Our corner of the Marais was far quieter and far less obviously devoted to tourism, while still (I thought) an easy walk to the Ile de St Louis, Notre Dame, and even the Louvre. We liked having breakfast at the Cafe Petite St Paul on the Rue de St Paul, a warm little place where all the clientele seemed to know each other and greeted each other with kisses and warm welcomes. When we ordered croissant, the proprietor would run out across the street to get us some from the boulangerie. And we loved drinking wine at a scruffy little bar full of locals smoking and playing chess and cards on Rue Beautrellis, also just around the corner. And we loved strolling and window shopping and actually shopping on the Rue de Francs Bourgeouis and the surroundings. Had we stayed longer, we would have investigated local wine bars l'Enoteca and La Rouge Gorge for more wine drinking, and cheese eating, and would have browsed in the English bookstore the Red Wheelbarrow, etc. In short, I would love to go back.
RESTAURANTS
One of my primary goals for this trip was to eat well, so I did extensive restaurant research and compiled a wishlist more suited for a monthlong visit than a weekend. But chance favors a prepared mind, and the planning paid off. We did not have a single disappointing meal.
C'Amelot
Our first sleepy day off the plane we decided that a big, French lunch, while perhaps not what we needed to wake us up, was exactly what we felt up to. C'Amelot, near the Bastille, was on my long wishlist, though frankly I had not expected to make it there, as I had mentally categorized it as a dinner option than lunch and my dinner choices had already been made. But on a chilly, snowy Friday afternoon when we wanted to feel that we had truly arrived in Paris it seemed like
just the place to go--not too far from our hotel, reasonably priced, very French. And so it was. The friendly waiter helped us decipher the chalkboard menu. (I had forgotten to bring my menu translator, much to my chagrin.) The room was simple and cozy. We were the only English speakers there. My boyfriend had an absolutely delicious (and huge) entree of Jerusalem artichoke soup that I could not stop tasting--so creamy and smoky and rich. I had an equally huge starter of marinated sea snails with herbs; very fresh and good, until about three-quarters through when suddenly I could no longer eat snails and remembered that after all it was 7 a.m. as far as my body clark was concerned and a strange time of day to plow through this particular course. For my plat, I had something that the waiter had translated as "fricasee of bird," a very nice foul of some sort or other in a rich wine sauce with extremely yummy mashed potatoes and my boyfriend had cod. I think it was about 22 euros each. We wisely passed on dessert, but did stop by Paul later in the afternoon, where I sampled my first chocolate macaron, and my boyfriend had a sugar tart that knocked his socks off.
Le Pamphlet
That evening after a nap, we ventured out ready to eat again. I had read wonderful things about Le Pamphlet (in the Marais) and was not disappointed. Well, at first I was minorly disappointed that we were put in a small side room, where about half the tables were speaking English, rather than the main room where everyone was speaking French, but I have concluded that this was because almost all the tables for two were in the little room--it makes sense that tourists would tend to arrive in couples while locals were more likely to be in the groups of five and six seated in the large room. The restaurant was charming (more beamed ceilings, which I am quite the sucker for) and casual (many of the French patrons were in jeans--it reminded me of my favorite restaurants in Brooklyn) and friendly (our waitresses were all very warm and went out of their way to make us feel at ease) and reasonable (32 euros for three courses plus some extras, though I ordered a couple things with supplemental prices) and delicious. I am not an expert on the different regional versions of French food, but I believe Le Pamphlet is Basque. Notable parts of the meal included the little plate of cured sausage they brought us to start and the delicious little lentil soup, my wonderful appetizer of scallops with chorizo and braised endive, the root vegetable of some delicious sort (still no menu translator) served with my sea bass, and the molten chocolate cake that I ordered more or less accidentally when called upon to order dessert before I had focused on translating any portion of that menu. Since I inevitable order molten chocolate cake when I know it is one of the choices, this seemed to me to be fate. We had a nice bottle of St Emilion and after dinner my boyfriend tried his first armagnac and declared himself a devotee. I had a glass of Poire William, which I have previously discovered I like very much. This is an excellent, warm, welcoming place.
Flora
This is the place that we were unable to go to because of the April food poisoning, so we tried again in order to exorcise old demons. Flora is in the 8th, off the Champs Elysee. This was the first time I had been in that neighborhood and I enjoyed my first reasonably close-up view of the Arc de Triomphe. First the things about Flora that were not so good: we didn't get the best service. We were deserted at our table for long periods of time, particularly in the beginning of the evening when it took us maybe 15 minutes to get menus another ten minutes to get something to drink. We took to pouring our own wine as otherwise again there would have been long periods of thirst. And my boyfriend's main course could have been warmer. Finally, and this is less of a big deal, the decorating is kind of odd--a sort of traditional midtown Manhattan kind of room that has had pink butterflies applied all over it. Second, the things that were good: the food was absolutely amazing--one of the best meals I have had in memory (and I like restaurants and seek out a lot of good meals). All the dishes were modern and very creative--full of interesting spices and flavors and vegetables, not too heavy, every dish completely unique--cumin, rosewater, coconut milk, green tea, and orangeblossom were among the flavors at work in my meal. It all worked beautifully. And the price for the menu, again about 35 euros each, was quite reasonable (though you can spend a great deal more if you go ala carte). Despite the service problems, I have to strongly recommend this place.
L'as du Falafel
Everyone knows about this already, but they are right, it is very good falafel and fun to take part in the chaos of lining up for lunch in the street.
Au Coin des Gourmets
By Sunday night, we were ready for a change of pace from more classically French food and sought out Zagat's favorite Vietnamese place, in the 5th. Just an ordinary little bustling room. Also, this was the only place we went with English menus. But again, quite excellent. Very interesting, well balanced citrusy salads, very well flavored, fresh main courses. We both had sea food and were very pleased with our shrimp and scallops. Not a cream sauce in sight. This is definitely worth keeping in mind for a change of pace. And after dinner we wandered over to the Pantheon to wait for the Eiffel Tower to sparkle.
OTHER ODDS AND ENDS
I enjoyed discovering vin chaud on this trip--warm spiced wine is just the thing to pass the time in a cafe on a cold February day.
I think that the secret to avoiding the lines at the Louvre is going the day before the Saturday before the first Sunday of the month when it is free. We showed up at 11:30 or so on the day-before-free-day and walked right in with no line at all. Definitely worth the price of admission to find it so relatively empty. Even in front of the Mona Lisa, the crowd was not overwhelming. On the free day we went to the Picasso Museum, which was crowded, but no problem with lines there.
I loved that all my obsessive research led to me recognizing random things as I walked down the streets--oh, there's Bofinger, there's Allard, there's the Hotel Jeanne D'Arc, there's the ice rink in front of the Hotel de Ville, there's the exterminator shop on Les Halles with all the stuffed pests in the window, there's Berthilion. It makes me feel so at home in the city to recognize places I have never been. So thanks all, for helping me in this obsessive fact collection with all your collected wisdom.
HOTEL
We stayed at the Hotel Saint Louis Marais. I loved this choice. The room itself, while small, was charming, with timbered walls and ceilings, decorated in warm, welcoming colors. The bathroom was beautifully renovated and while tiny, was actually larger than my New York City bathroom. And the room was amazingly quiet. I think the Rue Charles V gets no traffic at all. And the staff spoke excellent English and were extremely pleasant and helpful. Finally, at 115 euros a night, it seems to me a good value. (I know some report that they have failed to honor confirmed reservations; I decided it was unlikely that this would happen in the low season so reserved here this time; it is only these reports that make me hesitate in concluding that I will stay here on all future trips to Paris.)
I also very much liked staying in the Marais. Last time we were right on the Blvd St Michel in the 5th--an area that has a bit too much in the way of neon and touristy cafes and Quality Burgers for my taste, though it is wonderfully convenient. Our corner of the Marais was far quieter and far less obviously devoted to tourism, while still (I thought) an easy walk to the Ile de St Louis, Notre Dame, and even the Louvre. We liked having breakfast at the Cafe Petite St Paul on the Rue de St Paul, a warm little place where all the clientele seemed to know each other and greeted each other with kisses and warm welcomes. When we ordered croissant, the proprietor would run out across the street to get us some from the boulangerie. And we loved drinking wine at a scruffy little bar full of locals smoking and playing chess and cards on Rue Beautrellis, also just around the corner. And we loved strolling and window shopping and actually shopping on the Rue de Francs Bourgeouis and the surroundings. Had we stayed longer, we would have investigated local wine bars l'Enoteca and La Rouge Gorge for more wine drinking, and cheese eating, and would have browsed in the English bookstore the Red Wheelbarrow, etc. In short, I would love to go back.
RESTAURANTS
One of my primary goals for this trip was to eat well, so I did extensive restaurant research and compiled a wishlist more suited for a monthlong visit than a weekend. But chance favors a prepared mind, and the planning paid off. We did not have a single disappointing meal.
C'Amelot
Our first sleepy day off the plane we decided that a big, French lunch, while perhaps not what we needed to wake us up, was exactly what we felt up to. C'Amelot, near the Bastille, was on my long wishlist, though frankly I had not expected to make it there, as I had mentally categorized it as a dinner option than lunch and my dinner choices had already been made. But on a chilly, snowy Friday afternoon when we wanted to feel that we had truly arrived in Paris it seemed like
just the place to go--not too far from our hotel, reasonably priced, very French. And so it was. The friendly waiter helped us decipher the chalkboard menu. (I had forgotten to bring my menu translator, much to my chagrin.) The room was simple and cozy. We were the only English speakers there. My boyfriend had an absolutely delicious (and huge) entree of Jerusalem artichoke soup that I could not stop tasting--so creamy and smoky and rich. I had an equally huge starter of marinated sea snails with herbs; very fresh and good, until about three-quarters through when suddenly I could no longer eat snails and remembered that after all it was 7 a.m. as far as my body clark was concerned and a strange time of day to plow through this particular course. For my plat, I had something that the waiter had translated as "fricasee of bird," a very nice foul of some sort or other in a rich wine sauce with extremely yummy mashed potatoes and my boyfriend had cod. I think it was about 22 euros each. We wisely passed on dessert, but did stop by Paul later in the afternoon, where I sampled my first chocolate macaron, and my boyfriend had a sugar tart that knocked his socks off.
Le Pamphlet
That evening after a nap, we ventured out ready to eat again. I had read wonderful things about Le Pamphlet (in the Marais) and was not disappointed. Well, at first I was minorly disappointed that we were put in a small side room, where about half the tables were speaking English, rather than the main room where everyone was speaking French, but I have concluded that this was because almost all the tables for two were in the little room--it makes sense that tourists would tend to arrive in couples while locals were more likely to be in the groups of five and six seated in the large room. The restaurant was charming (more beamed ceilings, which I am quite the sucker for) and casual (many of the French patrons were in jeans--it reminded me of my favorite restaurants in Brooklyn) and friendly (our waitresses were all very warm and went out of their way to make us feel at ease) and reasonable (32 euros for three courses plus some extras, though I ordered a couple things with supplemental prices) and delicious. I am not an expert on the different regional versions of French food, but I believe Le Pamphlet is Basque. Notable parts of the meal included the little plate of cured sausage they brought us to start and the delicious little lentil soup, my wonderful appetizer of scallops with chorizo and braised endive, the root vegetable of some delicious sort (still no menu translator) served with my sea bass, and the molten chocolate cake that I ordered more or less accidentally when called upon to order dessert before I had focused on translating any portion of that menu. Since I inevitable order molten chocolate cake when I know it is one of the choices, this seemed to me to be fate. We had a nice bottle of St Emilion and after dinner my boyfriend tried his first armagnac and declared himself a devotee. I had a glass of Poire William, which I have previously discovered I like very much. This is an excellent, warm, welcoming place.
Flora
This is the place that we were unable to go to because of the April food poisoning, so we tried again in order to exorcise old demons. Flora is in the 8th, off the Champs Elysee. This was the first time I had been in that neighborhood and I enjoyed my first reasonably close-up view of the Arc de Triomphe. First the things about Flora that were not so good: we didn't get the best service. We were deserted at our table for long periods of time, particularly in the beginning of the evening when it took us maybe 15 minutes to get menus another ten minutes to get something to drink. We took to pouring our own wine as otherwise again there would have been long periods of thirst. And my boyfriend's main course could have been warmer. Finally, and this is less of a big deal, the decorating is kind of odd--a sort of traditional midtown Manhattan kind of room that has had pink butterflies applied all over it. Second, the things that were good: the food was absolutely amazing--one of the best meals I have had in memory (and I like restaurants and seek out a lot of good meals). All the dishes were modern and very creative--full of interesting spices and flavors and vegetables, not too heavy, every dish completely unique--cumin, rosewater, coconut milk, green tea, and orangeblossom were among the flavors at work in my meal. It all worked beautifully. And the price for the menu, again about 35 euros each, was quite reasonable (though you can spend a great deal more if you go ala carte). Despite the service problems, I have to strongly recommend this place.
L'as du Falafel
Everyone knows about this already, but they are right, it is very good falafel and fun to take part in the chaos of lining up for lunch in the street.
Au Coin des Gourmets
By Sunday night, we were ready for a change of pace from more classically French food and sought out Zagat's favorite Vietnamese place, in the 5th. Just an ordinary little bustling room. Also, this was the only place we went with English menus. But again, quite excellent. Very interesting, well balanced citrusy salads, very well flavored, fresh main courses. We both had sea food and were very pleased with our shrimp and scallops. Not a cream sauce in sight. This is definitely worth keeping in mind for a change of pace. And after dinner we wandered over to the Pantheon to wait for the Eiffel Tower to sparkle.
OTHER ODDS AND ENDS
I enjoyed discovering vin chaud on this trip--warm spiced wine is just the thing to pass the time in a cafe on a cold February day.
I think that the secret to avoiding the lines at the Louvre is going the day before the Saturday before the first Sunday of the month when it is free. We showed up at 11:30 or so on the day-before-free-day and walked right in with no line at all. Definitely worth the price of admission to find it so relatively empty. Even in front of the Mona Lisa, the crowd was not overwhelming. On the free day we went to the Picasso Museum, which was crowded, but no problem with lines there.
I loved that all my obsessive research led to me recognizing random things as I walked down the streets--oh, there's Bofinger, there's Allard, there's the Hotel Jeanne D'Arc, there's the ice rink in front of the Hotel de Ville, there's the exterminator shop on Les Halles with all the stuffed pests in the window, there's Berthilion. It makes me feel so at home in the city to recognize places I have never been. So thanks all, for helping me in this obsessive fact collection with all your collected wisdom.
Feb 9th, 2006, 03:18 PM
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I skimmed the report, but I'm glad that you liked Flora (service issues aside). I was there in January last year and I liked it.
This was where the food bloggers Pim and Clotilde had dinner one evening. I think they also complained about the service, and I was surprised to read that they were not too awed by the food either.
This was where the food bloggers Pim and Clotilde had dinner one evening. I think they also complained about the service, and I was surprised to read that they were not too awed by the food either.
Feb 9th, 2006, 03:34 PM
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emnyc, I loved your report!
I just read some of it aloud to my husband, who is nodding and agreeing with you about the mulled wine on a cold day
Did you mean "stuffed pests" or "pets" ? lol is that Deyrolle ?
I just read some of it aloud to my husband, who is nodding and agreeing with you about the mulled wine on a cold day
Did you mean "stuffed pests" or "pets" ? lol is that Deyrolle ?
Feb 9th, 2006, 03:40 PM
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Actually I did mean pests--the window is full of taxidermied rats, weasels, mice, etc., in traps, like so many notches on the exterminator's belt. (I suppose they could be pets as well or instead, but then it is very sad that their little necks are all caught in traps.) Very odd, but I had read about it in some posting here and was surprised and (weirdly) pleased to stumble across it.
Feb 9th, 2006, 04:48 PM
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Thanks emnyc - I am collecting restaurant suggestions right now for our "April in Paris" and praying for a little better health!
I loved your descriptions of the spots you chose and definately think I might have similar tastes in restaurant types.
I wonder if you could share some of the places that were high on your list that you did NOT get to? I might want to try them out!
I loved your descriptions of the spots you chose and definately think I might have similar tastes in restaurant types.
I wonder if you could share some of the places that were high on your list that you did NOT get to? I might want to try them out!
Feb 9th, 2006, 05:06 PM
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Don't mind if I do, with the caveat that I have never actually, you know, been to any of these places. Though one caveat re taking my food advice--I had a wonderful dining time as you can tell but this time it was my fragile constitution that began to give out by the end of the trip. Late Sunday night I had a terrible attack of heartburn--really overwhelming and the only time in my life I have ever felt like that. Were I a little older I might have suspected I was having a heart attack. Anyway, it was a sign for me to go home and knock off the gluttony. Lucky this was only a short trip.
Ze Kitchen Galerie (6th)
4 rue des Grands-Augustins
Tel: +33 (0)1 44.32.00.32
This sounds like a very good, somewhat trendy ambitious fusion place. It was probably my top choice place that we didn't go.
Mon Viel Ami (Ile St. Louis)
69 rue St. Louis
01.40.46.01.35
A well reviewed place on the island, and open Sunday, which is nice. It supposedly has a communal table, minimalist décor, market driven menu. The food (Alsatian I think) sounds fairly traditional. I did walk by here and it looked attractive.
L’Epi Dupin (6th arrondissement)
11 rue Dupin
Tel: +33 (0)1 42.22.64.56
This place gets some wonderful reviews and apparently is very popular and stylish, but it also has some vociferous critics, saying that it now rests on its laurels, has gotten too crowded as more tables are forced into the space, and simply is not as good as it used to be.
Le Pré Verre (Latin Quarter)
8 rue Thénard, Paris, France
Phone: 01-43-54-59-47
Interesting spices, jazz décor, fairly affordable, I’ve read only good things (though haven’t found as much as about some places).
Les Bouquinistes (6th)
53 quai des Grands-Augustins
01.43.25.45.94
Another place described as inventive, market driven, and very good, with an occasional dissenter.
Fish (6th)
La Boisonnerie, 69, Rue du Seine,
Telephone: 01 43 54 34 69.
Open Sunday; a very popular wine bar/seafood place with reasonably priced simple meals that sounds friendly.
L'Ambassade d'Auvergne (Marais).
22 rue du Grenier St-Lazare.
North of the Pompidou. Good, rustic regional food, with a lot of pork. Open Sunday, notably.
L'Enoteca (Marais, 4th)
Italian Wine Bar
25, rue Charles V
Phone 01.42 78 91 44
Open Sunday. Good wine, yummy Italian food, and just a few doors down from where we were staying. If the place hadn't been empty at 7 on a Sunday, we would have stopped by for some wine and cheese before dinner.
This isn't actually all, but this is a good start.
Ze Kitchen Galerie (6th)
4 rue des Grands-Augustins
Tel: +33 (0)1 44.32.00.32
This sounds like a very good, somewhat trendy ambitious fusion place. It was probably my top choice place that we didn't go.
Mon Viel Ami (Ile St. Louis)
69 rue St. Louis
01.40.46.01.35
A well reviewed place on the island, and open Sunday, which is nice. It supposedly has a communal table, minimalist décor, market driven menu. The food (Alsatian I think) sounds fairly traditional. I did walk by here and it looked attractive.
L’Epi Dupin (6th arrondissement)
11 rue Dupin
Tel: +33 (0)1 42.22.64.56
This place gets some wonderful reviews and apparently is very popular and stylish, but it also has some vociferous critics, saying that it now rests on its laurels, has gotten too crowded as more tables are forced into the space, and simply is not as good as it used to be.
Le Pré Verre (Latin Quarter)
8 rue Thénard, Paris, France
Phone: 01-43-54-59-47
Interesting spices, jazz décor, fairly affordable, I’ve read only good things (though haven’t found as much as about some places).
Les Bouquinistes (6th)
53 quai des Grands-Augustins
01.43.25.45.94
Another place described as inventive, market driven, and very good, with an occasional dissenter.
Fish (6th)
La Boisonnerie, 69, Rue du Seine,
Telephone: 01 43 54 34 69.
Open Sunday; a very popular wine bar/seafood place with reasonably priced simple meals that sounds friendly.
L'Ambassade d'Auvergne (Marais).
22 rue du Grenier St-Lazare.
North of the Pompidou. Good, rustic regional food, with a lot of pork. Open Sunday, notably.
L'Enoteca (Marais, 4th)
Italian Wine Bar
25, rue Charles V
Phone 01.42 78 91 44
Open Sunday. Good wine, yummy Italian food, and just a few doors down from where we were staying. If the place hadn't been empty at 7 on a Sunday, we would have stopped by for some wine and cheese before dinner.
This isn't actually all, but this is a good start.
Feb 9th, 2006, 05:07 PM
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And L'as du Falafel is on the Rue de Rosiers in the Marais. Around the corner is Chez Marianne, another falafel/Middle Eastern place that people like. Definitely good for a vegetarian to check out.
Feb 9th, 2006, 05:15 PM
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It's interesting that of the eight places you list (that you've not been to), I've been to three (I went to two a few weeks ago), and I've heard about two of the remaining five. Ambassade d'Auvergne is one of the few that's open every day. It's supposed to offer quite hearty food and is supposed to be good, but that also turns me off, so I still haven't made it.
It makes me curious about your list for restaurants in Brooklyn (but that's a little off-topic). Still, it'd be interesting to hear. I think that Saul on Smith Street actually has one Michelin star (?), but I'm embarrassed to say that I've not been there. Actually I've not really tried the Brooklyn restaurants -- and I'm probably the only one who thinks al di la is quite ordinary.
It makes me curious about your list for restaurants in Brooklyn (but that's a little off-topic). Still, it'd be interesting to hear. I think that Saul on Smith Street actually has one Michelin star (?), but I'm embarrassed to say that I've not been there. Actually I've not really tried the Brooklyn restaurants -- and I'm probably the only one who thinks al di la is quite ordinary.
Feb 9th, 2006, 05:35 PM
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I was somewhat focused on restaurants open on Sunday when working on that list; that and the proximity to our hotel is probably why d'Auvergne was there, as I too am a little intimidated by heavy French food. On the other hand, I do like pork, and I don't let myself eat it very often, so that is likely another reason. As for Brooklyn, my favorite Smith Street place is Chestnut. I like Saul, but I feel much more proprietary about Chestnut. (Though I wish it would vary its menu more often.) It doesn't have a Michelin star, but I think it did get a Michelin recommendation. I also really like Frankie's 457 (I am never sure of the number, but I think that's it) on Court Street in Carroll Gardens. And I have only been to Crave on Henry Street in Carroll Gardens once, but thought it was very good on that single visit. As for Park Slope, I like al di la, but as much for the atmosphere as anything else. Or perhaps it's the cognitive dissonance created by waiting so long for a table. I want to try Applewood (that's what it's called, right?) but haven't made it yet.
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