The corner of Bd Raspail, rue du Bac and Bd St German is a pretty fancy part of the city and it is therefore a miracle to find there a good earthy French restaurant where you will always be surprised by the quality of products. Three friends including a Basque chef, Maxime Pettré, run this real bistrot called Aux Vieux … Read More
Les Diables au thym, my new cantine
The first time I tasted Eric Lassauce’s cooking was at a friend’s house across the street from his restaurant, Les Diables au thym, on 35 rue Bergère, in the 9 th arrondissement. The whole dinner was delivered as we were progressing and I still remember the côte de veau with carrots that we ate. Never had I tasted such a … Read More
Pink Mamma, needs improvement
I have always so loved my pizzas and parma ham at East Mamma on faubourg Saint Antoine, that I was looking forward to having lunch at Pink Mamma, the new Mamma group antenna, opened last June in the 9 th arrondissement, by Victor Lugger and Tigrane Seydoux. They have added great red meat to the Italian menu but the vegetables … Read More
Jean Bissonnet, a young butcher who went very far
The theme of the evening at Club de la Chasse et de la Nature, was the crowning of a very long working life, that of Jean Bissonnet, who started as a young butcher in Paris at 18 and is now, at 87, at the head of an empire of real estate, butcher shops and a shooting paradise near Orléans, called … Read More
A new hotel and bar for the young and trendy
I was overly excited to go to the new Hoxton Hotel for lunch and brought with me an architect and a shrewd journalist so we could all give our opinion. Four years in the making, the old courtyards and different buildings of rue du Sentier, opposite where Madame du Barry used to live, have become a 172 rooms hotel set … Read More
Fulgurances, a trendy restaurant and a food magazine
Again it was one of my nephews who recommended this original and unpretentious restaurant on rue Alexandre Dumas (you know the author of Les Trois Mousquetaires!) near boulevard Voltaire in the 11 th, the heart of Paris’ trendiness. I chose to invite young architect Leonie Mason who works nearby and happened to be intimate with the owners… A nice coincidence.
A beautiful dinner at Le Crillon
When my friends Caroline and Olivier asked where I would like to have dinner on this mild August evening, I told them I was dying to try the new restaurant at Hôtel de Crillon which has been closed for four years for restoration. With its 124 rooms and suites and remodeling of the 18 th century building by Gabriel, the … Read More
52, a number to remember
Thank God for my nieces who introduce me to their young world ! After tasting three different expensive, pretentious and bad restaurants recently, I had the most delicious lunch at « 52 », a new spot on Faubourg Saint Denis which replaced a butcher shop. The owner Charles Compagnon, is himself worth the visit: he lives upstairs above the restaurant with his German … Read More