Oops. Gotta backtrack because I missed a day! This is what happens when I don't keep notes while on vacation! We did not go to Le Cinq the day after the music museum. We had originally planned to do that as it was a Sunday and restaurant choices are somewhat slim on Sundays but we decided somewhat last minute to see if we could change our reservation to Monday because the weather report said Sunday would be sunny and warm and Monday rainy and cold. We didn't want to spend the one lovely day indoors over a 4 hour lunch (most of this trip was over cast with intermittent drizzle) and were lucky enough to call Le Cinq on Friday night and move our lunch from Sunday to Monday.

So Sunday morning, with no restaurant reservations anywhere for the day, we decided we would snack our way through the day and once again have dinner at home. The day did indeed dawn sunny and warm and after coffee in the apartment we set out for the Lenior market to enjoy the scene and to buy provisions for a picnic lunch and simple supper. We bought pain au chocolate at the market and munched as we scoped out what we wanted to eat for the picnic. Eventually we settled on a slab of pate campagne, a piece of Beaufort cheese, a seeded baguette, and a fondant au chocolate along with some more girolles for supper.

We decided to picnic near Les Halles because I was craving a millefeulle from Boulangerie/Patisserie Julien. Unfortunately, they were closed but the chocolate fondant was a decent second for dessert. We sat in a lovely park next to the St. Eustache church and after lunch we went inside and marveled at the stained glass windows being hit directly by the afternoon sun.

After the church, we set out to see if we could check out some of the passages in the 2nd eme, but found, of course, that being Sunday they were closed. Oh well. Nothing to do but stop for a coffee at a lovely sidewalk café and watch the world go by. Eventually, we decided to head over to Lauduree to buy some after dinner treats before moving on to our next adventure, a fantastic concert of classical piano.

We always seek out music when we’re in Paris and this time we had discovered that there would be a concert at the American Church at 5:00 PM by a world renowned pianist who would be playing Debussy, Chopin, and Scriabin, favorite composers of both me and DH. What a fantastic treat it was to listen to this performance with the amazing acoustics in the chapel of the church. After the concert we took the long way home and I cooked a simple but delicious dinner of soft scrambled eggs with buttery sautéed girolles. Toasted baguette and some of our aged comte cheese made this a perfect Sunday night supper and the macarons and tart citron from Lauduree brought a sublimely sweet end to another great meal in Paris. Another walk around the lively Montparnasse area and a decafe at a local café ended the evening perfectly. So this was the night we went to bed looking forward to that fabulous lunch at Le Cinq!

plafield,
You have had a good trip this time..not with the problems of the last trip. You were due a great one!

Enjoying your dining..have been to all, or most myself.

I have recently made some reservations for my upcoming trip and plan on adding some new trys, too. I have different people coming and going while there so have some more than once must dos..Like Spring, with 3 dinner reservations while there and l'Obe (Crillon)on Sundays and all the Constants are regulars for me, anyway.

Enjoy the rest of your trip..I will be following shortly and will be doing usual running trip report and pics for those who usually like to follow along..

a bientot...

Joan

I absolutely love all of your food photos and I've taken many notes for our next trip to Paris.

I have to agree about Amorino. That wonderful gelato made in the shape of a flower was a treat we craved over and over again.

Tha final installment and last big feast coming up!

Plafield...

To your point about music, and specifically the church concert, where did you find this information? That sounds like something my boyfriend would fall all over himself to do while we're there in two weeks, so I'd love to know where to look. Many thanks for this amazing report!

Thank you plafield! Missing Paris.
P

Kyliebaby: We saw a flier at the church while we were there for a spearate event. We've always found that the best classical concerts do happen in churches and many of them are free. The American Church has concerts every Sunday at 5:00. http://www.acparis.org/concerts.html

Here's another wensite that lists small church concerts in Paris: http://www.ampconcerts.com/concerts/index.php

There is also a concert (not free) at Notre dame most Tuesday evenings. Many of them are wonderful. The ones at St. Chappelle tend to be very tourist focused (student musicians playing Vivaldi) and not worth it.

Now, we’re back on track and it’s Tuesday, our last full day in Paris. We have plans to meet up with 9 other serious foodies for dinner where Stephanie Jego, the genius chef at Chez L’ami Jean (27 Rue Malar 75007 tel 01 47 05 86 89) would be cooking a special meal just for us. We wanted to have a full appetite for this meal so we had to choose judiciously what and when we’d eat during the day!

After coffee, toasted baguette and cheese in the apartment, we set off to visit the Jacquemart-André Museum (158 bd Haussmann 75008), a jewel of a museum that I’ve wanted to check out but hadn’t yet gotten to. This is a lovely small museum with great furniture, paintings, and sculpture. During this time there was also a special exhibit of Rubens, Poussin, and 17th century artists. We took our time listening to all the great information on the headsets and thoroughly enjoyed the museum. There’s also a lovely café in the museum but we decided to skip that and tide ourselves over until dinner with a visit to Le Chocolaterie-Jaques Genin. (133 Rue de Turenne, 75003)

This place is worth a visit for the décor alone, but if you are looking for top notch chocolates or caramels to bring home, this is the place. And if you are a pastry fan, particularly millefuelle, you must come here. Each millefuelle is made to order and you can have classic vanilla, chocolate mousse, or caramel. The pastry is, indeed, a thousand layers of shatteringly crisp buttery goodness filled with rich cream. They also have beautiful éclairs, opera cakes, and many other fine pastries.

There are lovely tables to sit at with gorgeous orchid arrangement where you can relax and enjoy your pastry and if you don’t mind paying an arm and a leg, you can have coffee with your pastry! Unheard of in most Parisian establishments. I’ve also been told (and I’m sure it’s true given that Genin is a chocolatier) that the hot chocolate here is to die for.

We ordered a chocolate and a vanilla millefuelle and skipped the coffee, simply asking for glasses of water, choosing to focus on the pastry and have coffee elsewhere afterwards. Absolutely sublime!

After this treat, we wandered down through Le Marais, eventually choosing a busy sidewalk café to enjoy a coffee and then home to begin packing (boo-hoo) and for a rest before the big feast at Chez L’ami Jean.

The dinner at CLJ was organized by my friend Julien who is a Paris food guru, writing a well read blog and offering his services for many food related activities in Paris and surrounding areas. He has close relationships with many of the chefs in Paris, including Jego, and also with many of the other Paris food bloggers and foodies who post on Chowhound and E-gullet. DH and I gave up a coveted reservation at Frenchie, a restaurant that is the current hottest spot in town (5 rue du Nil 75002 tel: 01 40 39 96 19 reservations needed at least a month in avance!) in order to meet up with this group of friends and partake of the big chow cooked especially for us

Chez L’ami Jean is a tightly packed bistro turning out top notch Basque influenced food. We had lunch here with Julien last time we were in Paris and I have to admit, I was not totally impressed. The frenetic atmosphere, elbow to elbow dining, and perfunctory service was somewhat balanced by the quality of the food, but we had a few misses in the meal so would probably not have returned on our own. But we couldn’t resist a party and hoped that a special meal cooked just for live up to the level that so many folks kept touting CLJ could reach. Fortunately, we were not disappointed.

As the crew gathered outside the restaurant (the place is too small and tightly packed to wait inside) they set up a table on the sidewalk and put out a fantastic spread of chacruterie. 3 or 4 different kinds of sausage, thinly slice Basque ham with Bordier butter, game terrine, pate campagne, and a fresh cheese spread with baskets of country bread. A feast in itself.

They carried the treats inside once we had all arrived and we settled in at a long table with a view of the open kitchen where we could watch while Jego made his magic. What fun! Drink orders were taken and we continued to munch and chat while we waited for the parade of food to continue.

First out was a fantastic cream of parmesan soup poured over sliced chestnuts, lardon, finely chopped scallion, and crispy croutons. Absolutely delicious! Next came wild boar and foie gras over a winter squash and carrot puree with carrot foam. Complex and wonderful. Then we were wowed by the appearance of a whole roasted sea bass. The fish was deboned an served tableside with a sauce of rich veal stock and little cubes of calves foot. The single best piece of fish I’ve ever eaten. So moist and flavorful!

Finally, the main course! A gorgeous, huge roast of Basque pig. They brought out the whole roast for us to see, glistening and crispy on he outside. Then it went back to the kitchen where Jego carefully cut it into pieces and it reappeared in a large copper pan, swimming in its own juices. It was served with a fantastic sauté of cepes and girolles, along with the creamiest mashed potatoes you could ever wish for. What a meal.

The main dessert was his famous rice pudding with caramel sauce. The pudding had been folded with whipped cream, making this dense, rich dessert seem light while the salted caramel sauce added the extra level of complexity to raise this dessert above and beyond. Nuts were also available for those who wanted the crunchy texture but I chose to eat mine smooth and creamy.

Finally, there was another dessert course that was the only part of the meal that I did not rave about. They placed two dishes in front of each of us and instructed us to mix them together. One contained an anise mousse and the other a lemony pudding with a caramelized zambuca sauce. Not being a licorice fan, this dessert was totally unappealing to me DH enjoyed it, as did many others at the table.

What a feast! At 60E per person (plus beverages) this meal was an incredible value. As for recommending the restaurant, I do but you have to know what you’re getting. It’s a loud, packed, fun place and Jego’s specialties are big pieces of meat: Cote de veau, cote de beof, whole roast duck for 2, flaming foie gras for 2. He does offer a 3 course menu for 33E but it’s not going to be the best food. He also has a tasting menu for 60E but there are no choices, you eat what he cooks for you. This will likely be delicious though. Otherwise, it’s the carte where you can’t go wrong with the big pieces of protein. Not cheap but totally excellent. You must reserve well in advance and if you want a reservation before 9:00-9:30, they will expect to turn your table so I would recommend a later dinner or a late lunch so you can sit and relax and not be rushed.

After saying goodbye to the gang around midnight, we hopped a bus home and finished packing up. Hard to believe we were leaving the next day and we wanted to be organized so we could make the most of our last hours before saying goodbye to Paris.

On our final day, we set the alarm for 7:00 AM and were surprised to find it still pitch black outside! We’ve always been in Paris in late May when it’s light early and late. We were treated to a gorgeous sunrise out our apartment windows as we sipped our coffee and then we headed down to the Edgar Quinet market, right up the street, to buy provisions for our day of traveling. It’s always so nice to be able to turn down the terrible airline food and unpack our picnic of Parisian treats! We bought a lovely little slice of pate de canard et foie gras and also a good slice of jambon, a fresh baquette and some chocolate almond croissants to have at the airport with another coffee. Back at the apartment, I made sandwiches, using the last of our fantastic comte cheese and wonderful butter. We’d stop and buy a few Lauduree macarons at the airport for dessert and we’d be all set.

After a final look around we said goodbye to our home in Paris and set off for the Air France bus, a short walk from our apartment. This time (9:30AM) there was no traffic and we were at the airport in plenty of time to check in, buy our macarons and relax with a coffee and our croissants before boarding our plane back to Boston. We also got lucky and were able to move into the exit row seats for just the two of us where we had plenty of leg room. A great end to relaxing and delicious trip!

this is my sort of holiday!

please can I come with you, next time?

Thx for the concert information-- really appreciate it! We actually booked tickets for a concert at Eglise de la Madeleine for Saturday evening, so I'll look into the free Sunday concert as well while there.

Thank you for finishing your report--my kind of trip indeed!

Oh my! Time for a return trip to Paris! Thanks for this wonderful, information-filled trip report. I love all the food details and pictures. Would you be willing to post the web address for Julien's blog? That sounds like something I would like to follow.

kyliebaby3: Pick up a copy of Pariscope at any tabac or kiosk while you're in Paris. It's a detailed daily listing of all concerts, shows, etc. that's published weekly on Wednesdays. (Make sure you have the right dates on the copy you buy - although very inexpensive.) At any rate, every venue is listed with details, addresses, and fees, if any. This is a wonderful source for (free) concerts. DH & I took in at least 4 concerts during our week in Paris last spring, including a lovely concert at the American Church in the 7th. EJ

Julot's blog:
http://www.julotlespinceaux.com/
His Food Porn gallery:
http://picasaweb.google.com/ZeJulot

Incidentally, I engaged him professionally once (long story) and found his counsel re: Paris restaurants and snacks spot on. He is also a delightful lunch companion. But then again, so is elsiejune.

Oops, sorry, I guess that blog link doesn't link. Strange, because that's what I have bookmarked--but it's old.

Wonderful report. I appreciate all the effort it took for you to make it and let us experience your pleasure. Sorry, though, that you missed Zygomates. it's one of our favorites. Please put it back on the list for next time.

Julie, Yes, we were sorry to miss Zygomates as well and it's still on our list because of your rec. I've passed the rec on to others as well and we'll definitely get there next time.

Leely and Sherona: yes, Julien's webpage has been highjacked and is temporarily unavailable but check out his picassa album. Great food porn!

hi pladfield,

resurrecting this thread because ..hurray! we're off to Paris. Not til January, and only for 2 nights, but the plan is to arrive on sat night, [in time for dinner i hope] go to the Monet exhibition in the grands palais on sunday morning, then HAVE LUNCH.

YES, this is a capital letter lunch. Assuming that the €78 menu is available for sunday lunch at Georges V, [the website doesn't say it isn't] is there anywhere else you might recommend for sunday a lunch near the grands palais?

bookmarking!

You are the best for suppling all this wonderful information and pictures.

Annhig, I would definitely go for lunch at Le Cinq (george V)on Sunday. The 78E menu is always available, although I think I've read that it might be 82E now, still a great value in my opinion. You can save quite a chunk of change by skipping bottled water and/or coffee. Make your reservation well in advance and don't eat any breakfast!