39Vaugirard

From the New York Times…

Newly launched, The Paris Supper Club promises to replace both outdated guidebooks and raves from nostalgic friends when it comes to searching out some of the best and truest places to eat in the French capital.

The club is a project of former Gourmet European correspondent Alexander Lobrano, author of a book and blog called “Hungry for Paris” (hungryforparis.com), and Wendy Lyn, a “culinary concierge” whose blog, “The Paris Kitchen” (thepariskitchen.com), vows to have you eating and drinking like a local, not a tourist.

These all-inclusive, prix-fixe dinners are limited to eight guests, with Lyn and Lobrano acting as hosts. As Lyn puts it on her Web site, it’s about “sharing a meal and a conversation — where guests can ask us everything from the best restaurants, cafes, shops, markets, bakeries to living in Paris.”

Average cost is 100 euros (about $135) per person and includes a starter, main course, dessert and wine. Guests also will be sent a list of the duo’s six favorite bistros and restaurants before their visit. theparissupperclub@gmail.com

I remember a Sunday afternoon meal at this wonderful bistro with my darling husband and my kids a year ago. Most incredible vegetables and wonderful service. No wonder Michael R. Bloomberg, the thrice re-elected mayor of NY also prefers it….

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/19/nyregion/19paris.html

Okay, I feel ashamed I don’t even know this one, but I guess now we’ll have to try it, seeing as it is supposedly just a few feet from chez nous. Actually, on the map, numéro 8 is down a bit, just a few meters short of the 5th, where the rue de Vaugirard gets lively near the Boul’ Mich.

La Ferrandaise—located near the Sorbonne and frequented by scholarly types, this neighborhood bistro has a charming, effortless appeal. Wonderful, if a little robust, cuisine. I had a pate, boeuf bourguignon, and a chestnut soufflé and could not eat again that day. La Ferrandaise, 8, rue de Vaugirard

[From Family of One: Family of One Dines in Paris 2010]

A pithy review by John Talbott on a restaurant that sounds a lot closer than it is. We’ll still call it “in the neighborhood,” since it’s about 4 métro stops away.

Le Marcab in the 15th; still very nice.

Le Marcab, 225, rue de Vaugirard in the 15th, 01.43.06.51.66, open 7/7, has a set of menus for 16, 25 and 35 €, plus a la carte items. We have friends who live a short walk from it and invited them to joing us today.

Three of them had the 4 course forced choice “menu” for 25 E which is a real bargain and I had the 35 E 3-course one.

[From John Talbott's Paris: Le Marcab in the 15th; still very nice.]

We’ve also had a very good meal at the Maison du Jardin. This is an adult neighborhood restaurant, which is really a bit too quiet to take kids, which we did. The staff though, was very friendly and the food very good.

This lovely little restaurant is a gem in Paris. It has delicious food, not a thing we ordered was anything worse than outstanding. Our hotel recommended this restaurant after the concierge had personally eaten there. He was not wrong. Very nice wine list, even if it is rather limited. The duck was amazing, but so was the “plat du jour” venison. The pumpkin soup was divine. The rabbit terrine was superb. The cheeses are sourced form a local shop called Rouge Creme and were all delicious. The service is impeccable. All in all, a real delight and highly recommended.

[From What a joy! - Review of La Maison du Jardin, Paris, France - TripAdvisor]

Oh, c’mon.

Tokyo is the gourmet capital of the world. So say the revered gastronomes at the Michelin Guide, who have awarded three stars to 11 restaurants in the Japanese capital, one more than in Paris.

Yesterday’s announcement, made days before the launch of the Michelin Guide Tokyo 2010, cements the city’s deserved reputation as a spectacular place to dine.

“Tokyo has become the world culinary capital, ahead of Paris,” gushed Jean-Luc Naret, the guide’s director general.

[From Tokyo is the new Paris, say Michelin | Life and style | guardian.co.uk]

But, I guess if they are giving the title of Paris to the city with the most 3-star restaurants, it might as well be Tokyo. For many years, people would always tease me that “actually, London now has better food than Paris.”

“Yeah, I said, and you can keep it.” I still would rather live, eat, and breathe in Paris for everyday eating than anywhere else in the world, even Northern California, where we live.

There are two amazing facts in this story reported all over the blogosphere, and also in the New York Post.

The first is that the Louvre, in a situation they can’t control, will have to co-exist with the odeurs of a MacDo in its midst. Seems the Louvre can’t control the actual tenants in the big mall under the Carrousel, which is managed by a private company. I guess that’s why there is already a Starbucks there.

Second, though, is the fact that never ceases to amaze: France is the second most important market in the world for McDonald’s after the United States. A spokesman for McDonald’s says it’s because McDonald’s is perceived as a French company. I find that very hard to believe, but it sure is a great trick if have pulled it off.

PARIS — French culture and American convenience will come together in December — thanks to plans by the McDonald’s restaurant chain to hang its shingle in the shadow of the Louvre.

McDonald’s is delighted at the prospect of feeding hungry culture vultures. But not everyone is happy about mixing high art and fast food.

The McDonald’s will be installed in the food court of the underground mall adjoining the museum, known as the Carrousel du Louvre, as the fast food chain fetes its 30th anniversary in France, McDonald’s France said.

The pairing could serve the interests of both. The Louvre is the world’s most visited museum; France is McDonald’s top market outside the United States.

[From McDonald's restaurant to be placed inside food court at Carrousel du Louvre]

The food is already about as bad as it can be in the Louvre food court. Visitors are strongly advised to eat after or before they enter the Louvre maze.

I read today that Sheila Lufkin, the author of “Silver Palate Cookbook 25th Anniversary Edition” (Julee Rosso, Sheila Lukins) had passed away. I was struck that her cookbook got me started cooking when i was just out of college, some 25 years ago. During my weekends to NYC from Boston where I attended college, many people were talking about her recipes and her catering company. Many of my most memorable dishes and dinner parties, through my early 20s, 30s and often now with my family, consist of simple dishes that I learned to cook from book. Salut! Here is my favorite recipe from her book. It’s not French, but Spanish/Moroccan, named after a beautiful seaside resort Marbella, where we visited with our friends Jose, just last summer….

[From Chicken Marbella Silver Palate Cookbook Recipe at Epicurious.com]

What a find. Our friends Jean-Jacques and Jane, my husband and I had a dinner out at Chez Michel, in the 10th arrondisement. Cuisine is Breton, and the atmosphere breezy. According to our discriminating friend Jean-Jacques, Chez Michel is one of the top 10 traditional bistros in Paris, and indeed, I think it lives up to its status. My fish on top of ratatouille was delicious, and the entrée course of salade, with sprigs of Breton seaweed that tasted more like dill was very intriguing. Their dessert specialité is Paris-Brest, a classic cream filled choux pastry.

10 rue de Belzunce, 75010 Paris (00 33 1 44 53 06 20