Eating and Drinking in Paris

There is something about Paris that makes it special, even in the snow. Our flight landed at 8:20 AM the day after the snowstorm and we did not leave the airport until 11:00 AM. Turns out they were unprepared for snow. The taxi driver got lost trying to find the hotel, not because of the snow but because he did not his way around Paris. By the time we got to the hotel we were tired and cold and the streets were full of slush and ice.

Croque Madame

 But it was Paris, so we made our way to Café de Flore, 26 rue Benoit/Sain Germain-Des-Pres. I had the La Jockey (Croque Madame) and Michele had quiche.  This is a very popular place both with the French and tourists and there are so many interesting people to watch.

By the next day the snow was gone and we went for a walk toward Les Halles. We passed a small restaurant that resembled an old Parisian Bistro and I looked in the window. The décor was old fashioned and kind of shabby and the menu on the chalkboard outside looked great, plus it was inexpensive. We kept it in mind and a few days later we went for lunch. Le Gros Minet 1Rue Prouvaires (+33 1 42 33) is a family run restaurant.  The food is simple in the style of Southwest France but very good and the bread is excellent. The staff is friendly and the service is attentive. There is a choice of house wines. I ordered a Cote Du Rhone and I could not believe how good it was, though I never did find out the name!  I had kidneys in a mustard sauce and Michele had a salad with foie gras.

When the taxi arrived at Taillevent, 15 rue Lamennais (www.taillevent.com), two men opened the doors and  escorted us into the restaurant. Inside there was a gracious welcome.  We were escorted to a very comfortable table and settled in with a glass of champagne. I do not have any pictures because one does not take pictures at Taillevent! The food was excellent as was the wine and the service.  The menu at lunch changes every two weeks, so I will not write about what we ate. But for dessert it was Paris Brest, basically a cream puff pastry with hazelnut filling.  It was so delicious. The meal ended with a glass of Armagnac.  The meal was expensive but I have paid more in restaurants in NYC that were not as good.  This was a very special experience.

Confit of Duck

One chilly and rainy night we made our way to Restaurant Chez Paul at 13 rue de Charonne.(+33 1 47 00 34 57). This is a traditional Bistro, very cozy and very crowded. Michele had made a reservation on line but when we got there the gentleman at the desk said they did not have the reservation. After a few awkward moments, he smiled and seated us at a table close to the bar. From now on we will always confirm our reservation that we make on line by phone when we arrive in Paris. I had an excellent confit of duck with apples and garlic and Michele had Steak au Poivre. For dessert Dèlicieuse poire au vin èpice et vanillè. It was, as it name says, delicious and it is the house specialty. We drank the Domaine Milan Les Baux de Provence Clos Milan Rouge 2005 made from 75% Grenache, 20% Shiraz (Syrah) and 5% Cabernet Sauvignon. The grapes come from vines that are at least 40 years old that grow in quaternary sands and gravels. The grapes are destemmed and fermented in cement tanks for about three weeks and then aged in old barriques for a further 12 months.

Poire

La Regalade now has two locations. The original at– 49 Jean Moulin and the other at 123 Rue Saint Honore (+33 1 42 21 92 40).   Both locations start you off with a large terrine of pate de campagne and a crock of cornichons with bread that is toasted and crunchy. It is almost a meal in itself and delicious.

Pate de Champagne

The first night we went to the one on Rue Saint Honore because it was close to the hotel. The food was good but the pigeon I ordered was covered with FOAM. This was completely unnecessary, did not add anything to the dish, in fact it distracted from it. We had a nice bottle of Cahors 2009 Château du Cadre.Made from 90% Malbec, 5% Merlot and 5% Tannat Fermentation is between 30 and 35 days with with pumping down at the beginning of fermentation. Malolactic fermentation takes place in barrels. Aging for 22 months in oak barrels (Troncais) of different ages. The wine is not filtered.  It has black fruit aromas and flavors and a hint of spice.

Pigeon with Foam

We went to the original La Regalade a few nights later with a French friend who lives in NYC but is working in Paris for the next six months. We went by Metro and she carried her dog in a cloth basket on the train and brought it  into the restaurant. The dog was very well behaved and was given some water by the waitress. The food was good but again the FOAM, this time on my pork.

Egg on a Bed of Asparagus

Michele had a perfectly cooked egg on a bed of asparagus topped with a thin slice of cheese wich she really liked.

We drank a bottle of Bandol 2006 Domaine Ray-Jane.  I believe the principal grape is Mourevdre and it went very well with the food.

We stayed at the Hotel Molière, 21 Rue Molière(+33 1 42 96 22 01) on the right bank. This is a quiet family run establishment with very nice rooms. The highlight however was the bathroom; it had a large walk in shower, a big bathtub, a long trough-like sink and more light than any bathroom I have ever been in before. The hotel was in a good location because it was in walking distance of many of our favorite restaurants.

Just a few blocks away was Chez Georges- located at 1 Rue du Mail (01 42 60 07 11)

Calf’s Liver

Michele really enjoys the atmosphere of this classic Parisian bistro.  Usually we order the same dishes each time we go but this time we ordered foie gras to start instead of the Salade Frisee aux Lardons we usually get.  Once again we ordered calf’s liver al anglaise fried in butter with a big thick slab of bacon on top, and frites. Since it was our last night we added a cheese course. For dessert, as usual we ordered the Tarte Tartin, an upside down apple tart accompanied by a large bowl of extra thick crème fraiche.

Crozes- Hermitage 2010Domaine Saint-Clair 100% Syrah. This was a lovely red wine that went very well with the food.

Chestnut Souffle

L’Ardoise 28 Rue due Mont Thabor (+33 I 42 96 28 18) We had a very nice meal here but the food came out too quickly and the place is small and cramped. The most memorable dishes were the desserts, a chestnut soufflé and a lemon meringue tartlet.  

Jaques Genin 133 Rue Turenne.   It was cold in Paris and what better way to spend part of the afternoon than in a beautiful place enjoying a hot chocolate. We drank hot chocolate and munched on bite sized chocolates and caramels. The caramels are expensive but well worth it-they are indescribably delicious!

Wine Buys in Paris

In Feburary Michele and I stayed in an apartment around the corner from the Church of St Denis in the Marais. We were the highest bider on an apartment as an item in a charity event for Cancer Care for Kids.

It was a great apartment and we would often eat lunch there. One afternoon I brought a bottle of Crozes Hermitage Vieilles Vignes 1996 from Paul Jaboulet Aine. It was all leather and cherry and was a perfect combination with the paté de lapin with cognac, bread and sheep milk’s cheese that we brought at the market.

One of the best buys in wine today is Crozes-Hermitage. They can also last a very long time. There is a wine store that had magnums of the ’79 from Jaboulet. It took me three trips to Paris but I bought all that he had. I drank them all. On the last two trips I brought the last of the magnums of the 1989 and am looking forward to drinking them.

De Vins Illustribus is a wine store that specializes in old wines. The owner Lionel Michelin speaks English and is very knowledgeable about older vintages. I purchased two bottles of 1985 Hermitage from Captiour and one bottle on Chateauneuf-du-Pape 1998 from Clos Pope. I asked him if he had an wines from 1942, my birth year. He showed me a 1942 wine from Algeria but it was 500 Euros!

Paris In The Winter

The first time I saw Paris was in the summer of 1972. It was very hot and even back then there were a lot of tourists. We have gone to Paris six times in the last eight years either in January or February. There are less crowds but it is rainy and cold. Michele likes to think of it as” good eating weather.”

This year, however, we experienced an early spring in Paris. The weather was perfect: not a cloud in the sky and temperatures between 50 & 60 degrees. We walked all over or took the Metro. Walking and taking the Metro made up for all the rich food we ate.

We decided to only eat in Bistros and to eat in as many long established ones as possible.

The first night we went to Au Tru Gason. This was the most expensive meal that we had but there was a lot of food. Michele had layered foie gras, Jerusalem artichokes and shredded black truffles to start. Next was a thigh and leg of goose confit with chanterelles and salad. I had sautéed foie gras with grape coriander. Cassoulet is a specialty here and it was one of the best I have ever had. I should have stopped here but when the waiter offered a special sheep’s milk (brebis) cheese to finish off the wine, how could I refuse. The cheese had a slight caramel flavor and was not too old. Wines from the southwest of France are featured here and we had a bottle of Madiran AOC, Chateau Bouscasse 1999 Vieilles – Vignes (old vines) which was 100% Tannat. For desert we had Gascon tart with torffe ice cream and chocolate ice cream with a meringue and cream cookie.

I was surprised to see my favorite Italian coffee, Illy Caffe, being served at Gascon. The caffe (espresso) was excellent. There are a number of other restaurants and cafes that feature Illy all around Paris. The meal was 211 Euros. The service was very friendly and professional. The tables were well spaced and the chairs comfortable. It was well lit and you could talk because there was no music and the French tend to speak softly

The next night we went to La Regalade my favorite restaurant in Paris. When we went here the first time I had duck in a fig sauce and almost came off my chair, it was that good. They send over a large tray of pork pate with bread when you come in. It is very good and you can almost make a meal of it. I ordered a glass of Pinot de Charentes to go with it and it was a perfect combination. For my first course I ordered soft scrambled eggs (they seemed to be floating) covered with black truffles. The aroma was to die for and the taste…! Michele ordered the same thing. I was glad she did; I did not want to share. We both had the breast of pork, crisp and tender with a salad on top with country mostarda and mashed potatoes. The 1998 Bandol from Domain Ray–Jean went very well. For desert we both had one of the lightest, tastiest souffle we have ever had. We finished with one of the best espressos in Paris, 160 Euros and worth every penny.

A few years ago, Frank Prial, who was the wine columnist for the New York Times, recommended s Sauseyrac for dinner. It was great and a lot of fun. We made the reservation through AMX and called to confirm when we got to Paris. As we approached the restaurant it did not look like we remembered it. In fact it was a different restaurant. We checked the address and it was correct. After much back and forth we realized that the new restaurant had kept the same phone number and something was lost in translation.

Paris

Last May Michele and I were invited to a dinner and auction for Cancer Care for Kids. There was a silent auction and I was the highest bidder on a case of Chateau Musar 1998a red Boudeaux style wine from Lebanon. After dinner there was the regular auction and the items were very interesting. I bid on but lost on a weeks stay in an apartment in Rome. The next item was a weeks stay in an apartment in Paris,three nights in a Chateau with dinner and a car rental for those three days. As the bidding went up I looked at Michele to see if I should keep on bidding.However I did this without lowering my numbered paddle and the next thing I heard was the auctioneer saying my number and a thank you very much. On Feburary 4 we will be leaving for Paris.I will give a full report when I come back on the restaurants, winebars, food shops and markets We are saving the three nights in the Chateau for the summer.On March 5th, April 23 and June18 I will be teaching Italian wine classes at the Westchester Italian Cultural Center in Tuckahoe. www.wiccny.org 914-771-5900Take a look at my all Italian web-site on Food and Wine presented in connection with the John D. Calannda Italian -American Institute and the University of Rome. www.i-italy.org/blog/wine-and-food This spring we are doing a tour to Sicily with Tour de Forks. Michele does the food and culture and I do the wine and the history. The dates are from May 4th to May 14th. www.tourdeforks.com