Paris - Just Back
Jun 7th, 2012 | 03:52 PM
#41
Joined: Nov 2006
Posts: 1,209
Likes: 0
Hi annhig,
Thanks for the restaurant recommendation & other tips!
Also, I checked out la fourchette. What a great website! Here it is for others who may want to search Paris restaurants:
www.lafourchette.com
Thanks for the restaurant recommendation & other tips!
Also, I checked out la fourchette. What a great website! Here it is for others who may want to search Paris restaurants:
www.lafourchette.com
Jun 9th, 2012 | 12:45 AM
#42
Joined: Feb 2006
Posts: 57,091
Likes: 5
kwoo - I agree with kerouac that you don't normally need to reserve, unless you are wanting a high-end meal/one that is very popular/are targeting a particular restaurant/are in a group.
this obsessive reserving of tables is, dare I say it, a american thing.
[donning protective headgear and retiring to the bunker!]
this obsessive reserving of tables is, dare I say it, a american thing.
[donning protective headgear and retiring to the bunker!]
Jun 9th, 2012 | 01:09 AM
#43
Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 10,328
Likes: 0
Great report!
I hate to say but we always make reservations now if there is somewhere we specifically want to eat. I hate wandering around trying to find something when we are hungry! Plus, being big foodies, I love researching restaurants haha!
Looking forward to me!
I hate to say but we always make reservations now if there is somewhere we specifically want to eat. I hate wandering around trying to find something when we are hungry! Plus, being big foodies, I love researching restaurants haha!
Looking forward to me!
Jun 9th, 2012 | 03:31 AM
#45
Joined: Nov 2010
Posts: 527
Likes: 0
I do sometimes make reservations in a restaurant I would particularly want to try, (I also like researching on good yet affordable restaurants in a particular place I would be visiting) but then you are restricted to go there on that particular day and time. Even though you might not be charged for a cancellation, it is still embarrasing and in my opinion inethical to cancel or even worse not turn up - unless of course that cancellation was inevitable.
On leisurely days it would be fine, but on some days when you have certain sites etc planned you have to be sure you would be able to make it, example you can never know exactly how long it would take to go up the Eiffel tower, so booking for lunch at a particular restaurant on the same day prove to be a bit risky.
I loved reading your very interesting report, thank you. Paris is lovely and you are bring back some lovely memories.
On leisurely days it would be fine, but on some days when you have certain sites etc planned you have to be sure you would be able to make it, example you can never know exactly how long it would take to go up the Eiffel tower, so booking for lunch at a particular restaurant on the same day prove to be a bit risky.
I loved reading your very interesting report, thank you. Paris is lovely and you are bring back some lovely memories.
Jun 11th, 2012 | 10:59 AM
#46
Original Poster
Joined: May 2007
Posts: 151
Likes: 0
This trip report has actually taken longer to get to than the trip report!
So, Monday arrived with grey skies & rain. We slept in, then I ran out to the grocer around the corner to stock up on yogurt, cream for coffee and juice. We decided to venture out to the sewers (which my husband has wanted to do for years) - umbrella in hand. We took the metro to Alma-Marceau and walk across the bridge to the left bank & the sewers. Even in the rain, Paris is beautiful and we got a couple great photos of the Eiffel Tower half obscured by fog.
Upon arriving at the sewers, we find out that parts of the sewer museum are blocked off, because of the heavy rain. Fine with me! The sewers are for the most part not as stinky as expected - there's only one area where my scarf comes in handy as I hold it over my nose. It's pretty interesting to learn the history and with all the rain, the storm sewers are really flowing at full blast!
After the sewers, we decided to head over to the Orangerie. (Seemed to be an appropriate balance with all the dark of the sewers!) We had never made it here before, as it had been closed. The water lilies are beautiful and the filtered light from the skylights provides a nice setting. The crowds weren't too oppressive, though folks were a bit crabby due to the weather. The rest of the collection was interesting as well, with a nice selection of other impressionist works, from Cezanne to Gauguin and beyond.
I can't recall what we did for lunch this day, but for dinner, we headed out to a place near the Sorbonne we'd been before. The restaurant is Corsican, called Le Cosi. The ambiance is lovely, with art deco lights and dark red walls. We had a tasty Corsican red wine recommended by the server, and started with the tarte aux tomates confites avec confitures des onions. The tarte is so good, and I think I could eat just that! My husband had the stifatu agneau - Corsican lamb stew, and I had the monkfish medallion wrapped in Corsican bacon. For dessert we had the pain perdu made from brioche with carmelized pears. The highlights were definitely the tarte & the dessert; the service was excellent throughout. The server brought us a complimentary digestif - liquor de myrte - a Corsican after dinner drink made from myrtle berries. It reminded me a little of Campari, but so much better! I have to see if I can find some now that I'm back home.
Fortunately, the rain had mostly abated by dinner time, so our walk back to the metro and then our apartment was relaxed and enjoyable. Again we stay up late (my husband is now hooked reading the Hunger Games!) On deck for Tuesday, museums, crepes & dinner at L'Hedoniste!
So, Monday arrived with grey skies & rain. We slept in, then I ran out to the grocer around the corner to stock up on yogurt, cream for coffee and juice. We decided to venture out to the sewers (which my husband has wanted to do for years) - umbrella in hand. We took the metro to Alma-Marceau and walk across the bridge to the left bank & the sewers. Even in the rain, Paris is beautiful and we got a couple great photos of the Eiffel Tower half obscured by fog.
Upon arriving at the sewers, we find out that parts of the sewer museum are blocked off, because of the heavy rain. Fine with me! The sewers are for the most part not as stinky as expected - there's only one area where my scarf comes in handy as I hold it over my nose. It's pretty interesting to learn the history and with all the rain, the storm sewers are really flowing at full blast!
After the sewers, we decided to head over to the Orangerie. (Seemed to be an appropriate balance with all the dark of the sewers!) We had never made it here before, as it had been closed. The water lilies are beautiful and the filtered light from the skylights provides a nice setting. The crowds weren't too oppressive, though folks were a bit crabby due to the weather. The rest of the collection was interesting as well, with a nice selection of other impressionist works, from Cezanne to Gauguin and beyond.
I can't recall what we did for lunch this day, but for dinner, we headed out to a place near the Sorbonne we'd been before. The restaurant is Corsican, called Le Cosi. The ambiance is lovely, with art deco lights and dark red walls. We had a tasty Corsican red wine recommended by the server, and started with the tarte aux tomates confites avec confitures des onions. The tarte is so good, and I think I could eat just that! My husband had the stifatu agneau - Corsican lamb stew, and I had the monkfish medallion wrapped in Corsican bacon. For dessert we had the pain perdu made from brioche with carmelized pears. The highlights were definitely the tarte & the dessert; the service was excellent throughout. The server brought us a complimentary digestif - liquor de myrte - a Corsican after dinner drink made from myrtle berries. It reminded me a little of Campari, but so much better! I have to see if I can find some now that I'm back home.
Fortunately, the rain had mostly abated by dinner time, so our walk back to the metro and then our apartment was relaxed and enjoyable. Again we stay up late (my husband is now hooked reading the Hunger Games!) On deck for Tuesday, museums, crepes & dinner at L'Hedoniste!
Jun 11th, 2012 | 01:06 PM
#49
Original Poster
Joined: May 2007
Posts: 151
Likes: 0
Thankfully Tuesday is no where near as rainy as Monday. We take our umbrella just in case, but it was mostly unnecessary for much of the day. We decide to head to the 14th and 15th arrondissements for some off-the-beaten track museums today.
First up is the Musée Jean Moulin, a museum about the resistance fighter in WWII. The museum is right near the Gare Montparnesse, tucked away at the back of a small park. The museum is small, but filled with many details and items. There's narrated movie loop upstairs that helps hightlight the history. While the topic was interesting, this museum really could be so much more. (There was almost too much detail, that became overwhelming, and could have done with a better big-picture overview.) In any case, we were glad to make our way there.
Since we were in the neighborhood, and hadn't made it to Cafe Breizh earlier in the trip, we decided to try Ty Breizh for crepes for lunch. The decor is homey in what is I'm sure traditional Breton (or what I imagine it to be in any case.) Happily we got a table right away. We shared a savory crepe with ham, egg & mushroom, and then shared an apple-filled crepe for dessert. A little cider and we're ready to tackle the afternoon!
For the afternoon, we went to the Henri Cartier-Bresson Foundation. There was a fantastic photography exhibit on display, by a Japanese photographer whose name I now can't remember. While I was actually thinking there would be some Cartier-Bresson on display (there wasn't), it was a nice diversion.
Walking around these less familiar neighborhoods reminds me that Paris isn't all about the 1st - 7th, not just the Arc de Triomphe, etc. It's a little gritty, a city going about its business, but helpful to remember it's not just about the fairy tale.
For dinner, we head out to L'Hedoniste, near rue Montorgeuill. We have 8:30 reservations. We walk over, and enjoy what is now nice weather again in Paris. For dinner, my husband had the duck with sea salt, eggplant puree & fava beans. I had the fish (lieu jaune, I believe) with black rice, chorizo & basil. Both are very good. The dessert was cherries confites, with whipped cream and sablee breton (a kind of butter cookie.) The dessert was fantastic. It all went nicely with a Fleurie, which played well with both the fish & the duck. The service was attentive and professional, and the atmosphere was modern and calming. About half way through our dinner, a large table of what had to be a group of business folks came in for dinner. Most were French, judging by their accents, but at least one was English. In any case, that restaurant became known as the one with the captains of industry.
On the agenda for Wednesday: the Promenade Plantee!
First up is the Musée Jean Moulin, a museum about the resistance fighter in WWII. The museum is right near the Gare Montparnesse, tucked away at the back of a small park. The museum is small, but filled with many details and items. There's narrated movie loop upstairs that helps hightlight the history. While the topic was interesting, this museum really could be so much more. (There was almost too much detail, that became overwhelming, and could have done with a better big-picture overview.) In any case, we were glad to make our way there.
Since we were in the neighborhood, and hadn't made it to Cafe Breizh earlier in the trip, we decided to try Ty Breizh for crepes for lunch. The decor is homey in what is I'm sure traditional Breton (or what I imagine it to be in any case.) Happily we got a table right away. We shared a savory crepe with ham, egg & mushroom, and then shared an apple-filled crepe for dessert. A little cider and we're ready to tackle the afternoon!
For the afternoon, we went to the Henri Cartier-Bresson Foundation. There was a fantastic photography exhibit on display, by a Japanese photographer whose name I now can't remember. While I was actually thinking there would be some Cartier-Bresson on display (there wasn't), it was a nice diversion.
Walking around these less familiar neighborhoods reminds me that Paris isn't all about the 1st - 7th, not just the Arc de Triomphe, etc. It's a little gritty, a city going about its business, but helpful to remember it's not just about the fairy tale.
For dinner, we head out to L'Hedoniste, near rue Montorgeuill. We have 8:30 reservations. We walk over, and enjoy what is now nice weather again in Paris. For dinner, my husband had the duck with sea salt, eggplant puree & fava beans. I had the fish (lieu jaune, I believe) with black rice, chorizo & basil. Both are very good. The dessert was cherries confites, with whipped cream and sablee breton (a kind of butter cookie.) The dessert was fantastic. It all went nicely with a Fleurie, which played well with both the fish & the duck. The service was attentive and professional, and the atmosphere was modern and calming. About half way through our dinner, a large table of what had to be a group of business folks came in for dinner. Most were French, judging by their accents, but at least one was English. In any case, that restaurant became known as the one with the captains of industry.
On the agenda for Wednesday: the Promenade Plantee!
