266287 Fri Jun 17 13:06:09 -0700 2005 11 49 France 0 1404742 A big thank you to all of you for your help over the past 6 months of constant questions and obsessions. It was totally worth it. Here is my food report, divided into several long chunks...enjoy!! (And I apologized in advance for misspelled words...I tried my best!) A Week in Paris: Meal by Meal The Gastronomical Adventures of a Foodie and Her Accommodating Husband Day One Breakfast -- Arrived at 6:30 a.m. and got to our B&B on Ile St. Louis around 9. Dropped off our luggage and began to explore. Went straight to Calixte -- the patisserie highly recommended by Patricia Wells. Ate our first pain au chocolat of the week. It was delicious but not mind-blowing. We had better ones every day at our B&B, but it certainly whet our appetite for all the wonderful food and treats to come. Lunch -- Tried to go to Le Vieux Bistro near Notre Dame, but they were closed due to a stove malfunction. It was cold and rainy and I was really hoping for some of their boeuf bourgignon. Another time. We walked down the street to the Cafe Esmerelda and enjoyed our first cafe meal. I had a croque madame -the famous grilled ham and cheese sandwich with an egg on top that I’ve been wanting to try. And a side dish of aligot -- the mashed potatoes and cheese dish from the Auvergne region. Both were hot and comforting to my soul. The croque madame was similar in ingredients to breakfast sandwiches we find in the States, but far better. And the aligot was amazing...I’d say half cheese and half potatoes whipped together into a thick “glop” and I mean that in the best way. So tasty and heavy and just what I needed on a cold, rainy day. (I hate cold, rainy days!) The sandwich came with a small salad, which was a good balance to all that richness! Husband had duck confit which he loved and even gave me a bite which made me swoon. A very successful first French lunch! Dinner -- Our hosts had suggested L’Ilot Vache which was right across the street from their apartment, and I’m glad we went there as we were exhausted from the jet lag and our walking all day. A lovely little place you won’t find in the guidebooks. The menu is 33e for starter, main, cheese and dessert. My starter was a terrine of avocado with a tomato-basil coulis, that was so fresh, I’m sure the tomatoes were picked that day. The flavors just burst in my mouth, and I savored each bite. I was expecting the terrine to be pureed avocado, but it had large chunks in it so that was marvelous for both texture and flavor. Main dish was salmon with 2 sauces -- a “sauce Americaine” which was a lobster sauce, and the other a beurre blanc. Little slices of grilled zucchini and boiled potatoes surrounded the dish. It was lovely to look at and the flavors were delicate and delicious. Cheese came to each of us on a plate -- I believe there were 3 small pieces, which were all good, one was my new favorite -- robluchon. Can’t remember the others. I appreciated the small servings as I was soon to discover so many places load you up with cheese choices and it’s hard to say no! Dessert was Ile Flottante -- “floating island” -- which I was wary of because I’m not a huge meringue fan (unless it is fully cooked and crunchy), but I knew I had to try it once, so it was time. As suspected, I loved everything about it except the meringue. The creme anglaise it “floated” in was wonderful...ate that up with a spoon. The caramel drizzled all over was great, and the toasted almonds on top mixed well with everything. I kept trying bites of the meringue, and just stopped eating it. I’m sure meringue lovers would love the dish. I’m still glad I tried it. I can’t remember hubby’s meal (failed to write it down), but he did enjoy it. He had his first creme brulee there and we were both disappointed. It was not silky and creamy, but more solid and custardy...but the brulee part was great. All-in-all I would recommend this place because it’s quiet and peaceful...lovely...not too expensive, and they have good, traditional choices on their menu, and everything had wonderful flavor. Visit their website at www.ilotvache.com Day Two Breakfast -- included in our B&B. Will be the same for the rest of the week -- a wonderful assortment of local pastries (pain au chocolat, pain raisin, croissants of different kinds...she changed the assortment daily), fresh fruit (berries, melon and some of the best ruby red grapefruit we’ve ever had!), yogurt, lovely jams, unlimited strong coffee. A couple of days we begged off the pastries and had toast. :) Lunch -- A picnic on the Pont des Arts, a pedestrian bridge over the Seine. Carol, our hostess, gave us a lovely basket with table cloth and blankets to sit on, glasses, plates, etc., as well as some fruit, and a hefty slice of her husband’s homemade country pork pate and then we went shopping at little places on Ile St. Louis for the rest of our fare. Bought some amazing raspberries and strawberries as well as cherry tomatoes from the green grocer on the ground floor of our building, went to the local cremerie for cheese, but they were closed, so found a little market and bought some robluchon and (gasp!) a Coke for my husband and so I had to try “Coke Light” which is the French version of Diet Coke. I also found “my” cookies that I used to eat as a little girl in New York, but could no longer find in the states anywhere -- Paille d’Or by the Lu company. Little crisp wafers filled with raspberry. I was in heaven. It was a glorious day and we enjoyed our picnic...and the homemade pate was fabulous. Dinner -- Altitude 95 in the Eiffel Tower. This restaurant seems to cause all manner of controversy on travel boards. Let me say this -- it is worth going if you call 3 months in advance and get a window table on the Trocadero side. Watching the sun go down from the Eiffel Tower while sipping a kir royale (champagne with with cassis) is not a bad way to spend an evening...and the food wasn’t horrible, in fact, some of it was quite good. The seafood platter lived up to its good press. Hubby ordered the small version, and it was HUGE. Was enough for a meal in itself and the assortment was amazing -- a large pile tiny little snails we had to use a metal pick to get the meat out, bigger shellfish which I believe were winkles, and a couple of langoustines, about 6 oysters, a pile of peel-and-eat shrimp. It came with slices of really good bread which was not basic white French...perhaps some pain complet which has whole grain in it. Whatever it was, it was great. My starter was a salad of crunchy (could have been a bit crunchier) green beans with slices of some kind of warm sausage all dressed in a delicious vinaigrette. I was happy. Our main dishes were kind of bland. I had the steak tartare which came with fries and salad. All the sauces and condiments for the tartare were zippy and delicious but the meat was totally flavorless. I only ate half of it. The salad was fine and the fries were fine, nothing special. Hubby’s main was some kind of beef that he liked and I thought was just OK. Desserts were far better...I had a milk chocolate pot de creme that truly was to die for, and I am NOT a milk chocolate fan. If it had been dark chocolate, I probably would have been raptured on the spot, so good thing it was milk instead. :) Smooth as silk, one of the best desserts of the week, and we had many wonderful ones. Hubby had fabulous coffee ice cream which was really intense in flavor, with bits of crunchy coffee candy in it. We both ate every molecule. And they brought our desserts with candles and little “joyeux anniversaire” signs in it for our 20th anniversary. A lovely touch. We ended with a coffee that came with one chocolate-covered almond. A perfect ending to a mostly-good meal, and a fabulous romantic experience! I say GO to this place for a sunset cocktail, appetizer and dessert and skip the main course. :) You will save money and have a fabulous experience. Day 3 Lunch -- After a LONG walk from the Louvre through the Tuileries and up the entire Champs Elysees, we were tired and hungry, and had many other things planed for the day. I was looking for Laduree to have either lunch or high tea, but couldn’t find it. We were getting tired and grumpy and hubby wanted something quick and before I knew it, we were in line at (OK, get ready to gasp) McDonald’s. I stood there, and thoughts of wasting one of our precious meals in Paris overtook me and I had my first bratty foodie moment of the week (I only had 2...not bad!), and said, “I’m sorry...I CAN’T do this!” I was fine with him staying there, but I could not surrender to McD’s for lunch when there were so many other choices to be had and we really did have plenty of time. So we both left and went next door to a Danish place called Flora Danica and ate outside on the Champs Elysees. That was fun...gorgeous day and experiencing the bustle of the Champs Elysees was worth the time and traffic noise. Food was good! They brought Danish rye bread and butter. Hubby had reindeer quiche, a unique choice that we both liked, along with a small salad. I had a lovely salad of marinated salmon (chunks of gravlax) mixed with apples and dill in a light mayonnaise-based dressing. The combo of salmon, apples and dill was new to me and I just loved it. I’m going to try to re-create that at home. We both were happy with our meals, and I apologized for being a brat, and we kissed and made up, and off we went. Dinner -- THE dinner we’d been anticipating for months at La Tour d’Argent. I could write a novel about the magical experience we had there. But about the food...was it the best in Paris? Probably not. But we went for the history and the experience and the food really did not disappoint. A kir royale (my new favorite drink!) to start, and a lovely little silver tray of amuse bouches (small hors d’oeuvres) to keep us interested. We ate them all...they were delish! I started with pike quenelles (like dumplings) which were a revelation for me. They were delicate and cooked in a light sherry sauce with mushrooms and I could have eaten that all night. The texture, flavors, everything was perfect. I think it was the best dish of the evening. Hubby had Scottish salmon with a blini and sour cream-mustard sauce that was quite good. We ordered the duck (of course) for 2 -- a l’orange style. (A favorite dish from my youth.) First they brought the cooked duck to us on a platter surrounded with oranges for our “approval” (has anyone ever refused their duck and asked for another one?). Then they served us the breast first. We’d asked for it “bien cuit” (well done) as we’re pesky Americans who don’t like pink poultry. :) It came to us piping hot and cooked to perfection. Still moist, tender, with crisp skin, and the sauce!! Orange sauce can be tricky...can be far too sweet and cloying but this was fabulous. Also on the plate was a spinach puree between layers of puff pastry, and then we were served these amazing little potato “pillows” -- I have no idea what they are or how they are made, but they were light as a feather and just delicious. Second duck course was the legs, which had been grilled and were served with a bernaise sauce. I found the legs to be a bit tougher than the breast, but still good flavor, great skin, and lovely sauce. Excellent bread with the meal and the butter was soft and silky and wonderful. By the way, for those who care, our duck was #1,031, 299. :) They brought out a cheese tray, and I had 3 -- a bit of the best roquefort I’d had so far, some more robluchon (of course) and some kind of very soft cheese they needed to serve in a spoon. Fabulous! All served with a nice raisin bread. Hubby stuck to brie. Desserts were hard to choose, everything sounded good. Hubby had the house specialty -- a flambéed peach with raspberry brandy on a little cake (that we hate to say, looked like an unglazed Krispy Kreme donut), and ice cream. Loved the theater of the flambé. A bit boozy for hubby’s taste, but it was still good. I had the profiteroles (cream puffs) with “hot Caribbean chocolate sauce.” I think coconut made it Caribbean. When I told our server “j’adore chocolat” he poured just about the whole pitcher onto my plate. It was rich and wonderful. But I couldn’t finish it...too full! A small tray of treats came next -- the teeniest little pound cake loaves I’ve ever seen (smaller than a madeleine), strawberry tarts the size of a quarter, little pistachio macarons. Redefines “bite size” but just perfect to end the meal. Coffee was tiny, too, but strong and perfect, served with 2 more little treats -- pineapple jelly and to-die-for chocolate truffles. Hubby wouldn’t touch them, he said he would burst. I was going to burst, too, but cannot leave good truffles on the table. :) A fabulous 3-hour meal, made even better by the sunset behind Notre Dame from our window table, receiving a gift from Claude Terrail (the owner since 1947) for our anniversary (an autographed copy of his book), and visiting the wine cellar before rolling out the door and walking the 5 minutes back to our B&B. A magical, amazing night and meal. Fri Jun 17 13:06:09 -0700 2005 0 wyf4lyf 1 1404758 Loved your lengthy report - many thanks. My wife and I are returning to Paris after a 20 year "hiatus" (children!). We would love to stay on Ile St Louis and wondered if you would post the contact details of your B&B, and most importantly - the cost! We're looking forward to your English adventures now. Sat Jun 18 03:05:25 -0700 2005 1404742 0 bjrocky 2 1404766 I will send you an email about the B&B since it has nothing to do with food. :) If anyone else wants the info, please feel free to email me! Sat Jun 18 09:37:20 -0700 2005 1404758 0 wyf4lyf 1 2300342 Hello' I just now found your posting. I am working London and have five day weekend next week. could you please send me the particulars of your B&B. Thanks Fri Feb 16 13:53:10 -0800 2007 1404742 75089 vger 1 2302379 . Sat Feb 17 10:14:43 -0800 2007 1404742 45908 orangewasabi 1 2302560 email me at wyf4lyf@wichman.org Sat Feb 17 11:27:24 -0800 2007 1404742 11921 wyf4lyf 1 2303948 In what season did you make your trip? Grapefruit suggests winter, but truly fresh, local(?) berries and tomatoes suggests imports or summer. On the other hand the number of outdoor meals suggests early fall. Sun Feb 18 04:59:03 -0800 2007 1404742 10711 VivreManger 2 2305862 June 2005. We had glorious weather all week. Sun Feb 18 21:09:23 -0800 2007 2303948 11921 wyf4lyf 1 2304148 the tiny pound cakes were financiers. Sun Feb 18 07:36:23 -0800 2007 1404742 66900 wryorwhite 2 2305866 Actually, I don't think they were. I've had financiers, and that's not what those were. They were literally the teeniest, tiniest, little pound cake loaves I've ever seen. Sun Feb 18 21:11:34 -0800 2007 2304148 11921 wyf4lyf 1 2304252 What a delicious report! However, when you decide to go looking for your "new favorite" cheese, you'll have more luck if you ask for Reblochon. My favorite, too! Sun Feb 18 08:32:17 -0800 2007 1404742 52499 ChefJune 2 2305867 Yes, I have since learned the correct spelling of that cheese. :) I also learned that the other cheese I fell in love with is Epoisse. P.S. Somewhere on this board is the rest of my trip report, broken up into several segments...in case you're interested. :) Sun Feb 18 21:12:13 -0800 2007 2304252 11921 wyf4lyf