263082 Mon Aug 18 09:18:59 -0700 2003 5 26 International 0 1389932 Bonjour Paris reports the following recent ice cream creation by Herme: "Miss Gla Gla, Pierre Herme's take on the ice cream sandwich. This is no chocolate wafer with vanilla filling however. The Miss Gla Gla I tried swirls strawberry sorbet and cardomom ice cream with a touch of orange sauce, all sandwiched between two delicious wafers." I have not yet sampled Ishpahan ice cream, modelled after the rose macaron/lychee pastry concoction of the same name by Herme. The Herme shop is apparently closed for certain portions of August, though. Pierre Hermé, 72 rue Bonaparte, 6th. Metro: Saint Sulpice Mon Aug 18 09:18:59 -0700 2003 0 cabrales 1 1389939 I found at least one compelling reason to seek out Pierre Herme after reading Kirk Wallace's post the pastries there. To quote KW directly, "try the "carrement chocolat" if you're a chocolate fan. can't eat it there, but Pierre Herme pastry on a bench outside of St. Sulpice is a very good approximation of what i hope a piece of heaven is." In fact, Pierre Herme is only minutes walk from where I'm staying in Paris. Unfortunately, it was closed yesterday. I tried calling later in the day to see if there was any sort of message advising when they would re-open after August holidays but no such luck. I'll check again next week. Meanwhile, a very good croissant or pain aux raisins can be had at Paul bakery on rue Buci. Link: http://myfreedomjournal.blogspot.com Tue Aug 19 07:08:08 -0700 2003 1389932 0 Sally "Freedom Hound" Chow 2 1389941 If Pierre Hermé and St. Sulpice are nearby, then so must be Gerard Mulot on the Rue de Seine (corner Rue des Quatres Vent, je croix) where the pastries are good, the window displays eye-opening, and the chocolats excellent (as good or better than Maison du Chocolat). The clerks in their pink lab coats can be a bit crisp, but that's part of the charm. Also, have you tried Brasserie Fernand on Rue Guisard for dinner? It's a convivial neighborhood kinda place where the food is good and straightforward (no pretense of "creativity" here). Tue Aug 19 10:34:13 -0700 2003 1389939 0 GG Mora 3 1389948 If you go to visit Gerard Mulot, as indeed you should, notice a crummy looking little resto across the street, le Petit Vatel. Tiny place, with no decor save a few very old movie posters. The patron-chef and his wife, who oversees the "dining room," travel a lot outside of France, and bring home ingredients and ideas from where they've been. The ingreds and ideas find their way onto the chalkboard menu-carte as rather inventive and tasty stuff. Cheap place for an interesting lunch with mainly neighborhood folks and pas de touriste. And there's a good but pricy food hall in the restored covered Marche Saint-Germain just a couple of doors west. Good place to collect a picnic to eat on a shady bench in the square Viviani behind the Eglise St-Julien-le-Pauvre, with a fine view of Notre Dame across the river. Tue Aug 19 14:10:34 -0700 2003 1389941 0 Maurice Naughton 4 1389949 "And there's a good but pricy food hall in the restored covered Marche Saint-Germain just a couple of doors west. Good place to collect a picnic..." Indeed it is! I've done so for passing the time in the Lave-Club across the street. Parisians (and the French, in general) never seem to bat an eye at picnics in the oddest places. Tue Aug 19 14:23:42 -0700 2003 1389948 0 GG Mora 5 1389953 A visually appealing restaurant offering quite good food for the price it charges is La Mediteranee. It's within an easy walk of the Jardin de Luxembourg and therefore of the Herme store. Murals and Jean Cocteau artwork to really ravish a diner. Also, inexpensive at under 30 euros for certain three-course menus. An environment that is charming, offering some selections of oysters at times :) http://www.la-mediterranee.com/ (Click on "L'Histore", and then on the individual pictures to see the murals) Tue Aug 19 19:16:12 -0700 2003 1389949 0 cabrales