Some Favorite Pics

My primary reason for starting the "Paris Over 50" blog was so Melanie and I could relive our adventures in France and other destinations around the world. We have both taken a lot of pictures and videos; and earlier today I transferred everything off my phone, and moved some of my favorite memories into a special folder on my laptop.

Here they are:

Notre Dame, overlooking the Seine, early one morning

Part of St. Augustin church, which was built during the reign of Napoleon III

I can't identify this building, but it seemed to complement the somewhat dreary day

Was walking near the Opera when I saw this gated entrance to a restaurant

Pretty Simple took the whole company to Ibiza, Spain! I shot this picture from our hotel.

This was taken in my hotel room where I had two Jacuzzis AND a private steam room. (And look at that view!)

Melanie and I love the streetlights in Paris

Part of the Louvre

I took this picture of Melanie while we were sitting at a cafe near our apartment

When it started to snow one day I went up to the roof at work and took this photo

A street in La Marais, one of my favorite areas in Paris

I took this sunset picture one night after French class... forgot about it until now

A little tapas bar in La Marais

The Eiffel Tower almost looks ghostly in this evening shot

Paris doesn't have a lot of trees, so I snapped this pic of a tree-lined walkway

Leaving Paris To-Do List - Le Chateaubriand

Well... last night's dinner was a very... interesting... experience. Melanie and I are going to be talking about this one for a long... long... time. Curious? Read on.

Before leaving the United States we watched a lot of TV shows about Paris, and we especially enjoyed a couple of Anthony Bourdain episodes, including one that highlighted a gentleman named Iñaki Aizpitarte, head chef at "Le Chateaubriand". If you read my last blog post you already know that this restaurant is one of the items on my "Leaving Paris To-Do List", so I made a late night reservation.

Although the restaurant has a Michelin star, and was once on the short list of "Best Restaurants in the World", the interior is decidedly unpretentious, more like a noisy diner than a purveyor of fancy haute cuisine.

Our reservation was at 10:30 PM, but we arrived a little early

We were waiting to place our orders when I remarked to Melanie, "You know, every time we come to a restaurant because of some chef we've seen on TV we find out that they don't actually cook there anymore..." I had barely finished my thought when Iñaki Aizpitarte walked past me. I think I was a little starstruck and it took me several minutes to stop smiling.

A few minutes later a perky waitress arrived at our table with a bounce and explained that they offer a multi-course set menu. Then she asked a very strange question, "Do you want us to tell you about the food before or after you eat it?" My first thought was, "Errr... what?" My second thought was, "Wait, why do you even need to ASK a question like that???" But Melanie and I have clearly gotten adventurous in our old age, so we both looked at each other and said in unison, "After!" (We would soon learn why they ask that question.)

Melanie ordered a nice glass of wine, while I went with the wine pairings. My first drink, actually, was an apple cider to accompany our cheese puffs. They were very good.

Delicate cheese puffs with poppy seeds

After the puffs I was given a shot of some strange liquor and told to pound it immediately after pounding our first appetizer. Well, this meal had certainly gotten off to an entertaining start!

The waitress delivered these little glass bowls with a reddish liquid inside. She explained that it was a ceviche with avocado juice, ginger, lime, and a bunch of other ingredients. I followed her instructions and WOW! What an explosion of flavors! There was so much going on it would be hard to describe it all, but this thing made the hairs on the back of my neck stand up. Really really good!

Red onion ceviche with an onion flower floating on top

Next, a different waitress brought out two pieces of tempura and I thought I heard her say the word "veal". Melanie made a face because she HATES "eating babies". I was a little miffed because I thought our courses were going to be kept a surprise. Oh well, Melanie was a trooper and she ate her piece.

I thought the waitress said "Tempura Veal", with grated horseradish

The fried outside was nice and crunchy, but the interior was soft and gooey... I figured I must have misheard the waitress... perhaps this was tempura cheese. To be honest, it didn't taste like cheese, though... in fact, it didn't really have a lot of flavor at all, though I did enjoy the contrast between the crispy outside and creamy inside.

We cleaned our plates and when the waitress came by to pick them up Melanie asked, "So was that a tempura cheese?" The reply was -- and I'm not even slightly kidding here -- "No madame, that was veal brains!"

SAY WHAT NOW???

Yep, last night Melanie and I ate baby cow brains. My wife will never let me take her picture, but trust me when I say that her face looked like this for about three straight minutes:

Melanie's face after learning she just ate calf brains

Trying to lighten the mood I said gently, "Hey, maybe eating brains makes you smarter!" She jokingly shot back, "Yeah, smart enough to never to eat here again!"

Our remaining courses were decidedly less adventurous, with one small surprise towards the end.

Raw oyster with pickles, cream with sorrel, and cucumbers

An outstanding cold tomato soup with olive oil and red currant (sorry for the blurry pic)

Skate wing with roasted fennel, raw fennel, fennel juice and thyme

Red tuna and pickled onions in a Japanese fish head sauce

Sous-vide chicken with almonds, sesame seeds, and white asparagus

Fresh cherries, cherry sorbet, and capers

When one of the waiters delivered our final dessert course he said, "I can't tell you what this is..."

Uh oh.

The dish looked really good, though, so we ate it all in one bite. Turns out the orange thing on top was a caramelized raw egg yolk! We had already eaten brains, so this was no big deal. Besides, it was absolutely delicious!

Caramelized egg yolk on a bed of meringue and sea salt

Fresh apricots with candied Indian spices (an after dinner palate cleanser)

This was absolutely one of our favorite meals in Paris, though I think Melanie and I enjoyed our dinners at Frenchie a little more. That said, the menu at "Le Chateaubriand" changes all the time, so we may go back and give it another try before we leave France.

Our Paris Dream... It's Time to Wake Up

As the saying goes, "All good things must come to an end."

Stupid sayings... <grumble>

Yes, our Paris adventure is nearly over. We moved to France almost two years ago and it has been an incredibly wonderful experience. Unfortunately, I'm a square peg and Pretty Simple was a round hole. We just didn't fit together, and so I must leave to find greener pastures a bit further North!

I cannot thank Corentin, Bastien, and the other folks at Pretty Simple enough for giving Melanie and me this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. We will never forget our time here, the places we've seen, the friends we've made... the food we've eaten!

I wish I had the words to express what Paris means to me, but I don't think I could do this city justice. So instead, I'd like to paraphrase something beautiful written by Anne Rice:

"Paris is a universe whole and entire unto herself, hollowed and fashioned by history, with her towering buildings, her massive cathedrals, her grand boulevards and ancient winding medieval streets--as vast and indestructible as nature itself. All is embraced by her, by her volatile and enchanted populace thronging the galleries, the theaters, the cafes, giving birth over and over to genius and sanctity, philosophy and war, frivolity and the finest art; so it seems that if all the world outside her is sinking into darkness, what was fine, what was beautiful, what was essential might there still come to its finest flower. Even the majestic trees that grace and shelter her streets are attuned to her--and the waters of the Seine, contained and beautiful as they wind through her heart; so that the earth on this spot, so shaped by blood and consciousness, has ceased to be the earth and has become Paris.”

Melanie's favorite bridge

What are we doing now? Well, I have received a very nice offer from a company in Berlin; we'll be moving there when my contract with Pretty Simple ends in September. In the meantime, we are planning some trips around Europe and I'm creating a to-do list of things to experience before we leave Paris.

Here's what I've come up with so far:

Visit the Louvre (Again) (Completed July 26)
This famous museum is only a few blocks from our apartment and it's probably my favorite spot on the planet! It transports me to another place and time on every visit.

Eat at Septime (could never get a reservation)
Septime was recently named the 35th best restaurant in the world, and the prices are supposed to be reasonable for a restaurant with one Michelin star.

Go to the Musee Marmottan (not going to happen, ran out of time)
This museum features a collection of over three hundred Impressionist and Post-Impressionist works by Claude Monet (with the largest collection of his works in the world), Edgar Degas, Édouard Manet, Camille Pissarro, Paul Gauguin, and Pierre-Auguste Renoir.

Take a Nighttime Cruise Down the Seine (completed September 1 - it was so COLD)
Paris is beautiful at night, so we're excited to see it from the Seine!

See the Eiffel Tower at Night (Completed the night we took our cruise -- BRRRRR)
The tower is lit up at night, and every hour it sparkles for several minutes. We definitely need to see this again before we leave!

Eat at Le Chateaubriand (completed June 16)
We first heard about this restaurant from Anthony Bourdain, who called the chef a genius! (We have reservations for tonight!)

Eat Once More at Frenchie (just didn't seem that important)
We love this restaurant so much we'd like to go back one more time. (At least.)

Have a falafel at "L’As du Fallafel" (completed June 17)
This Middle Eastern restaurant in the Le Marais area is practically an institution here in Paris!

See the Inside of the Palais Garnier (completed September 12 -- it was amazing!)
We live about a block away from the Paris Opera House, one of the most beautiful and impressive buildings we've ever seen. But we have never been inside! We want to remedy that.

Have Lunch with Friends (Complete... though I'd like to have lunch with a few more buddies)
Before we leave Paris I'd love to have one more lunch with some of the many friends I made here.

Visit Père-Lachaise Cemetery (ran out of time)
I toured this famous French cemetery while Melanie was back in the United States. I'd like to share the experience with her.

Go to the Musee d'Orsay (ran out of time)
This is another famous Parisian museum

Get Wild at the Moulin Rouge or the Lido de Paris (completed September 7 -- had a blast!)
I discovered the Moulin Rouge one morning, while taking a walk, but Melanie and I would like to catch one of the shows!

Spend the Evening at Bacteria Alley (decided it wasn't worth it)
Okay, this one needs some explanation. I was researching "fun places" to go in Paris one day, and I read about this particular street which is jam packed with fun restaurants, bars, and other food stands. Unfortunately, a review (from many years ago) called it "Bacteria Alley" due to poor food handling practices, and now that's the only name we can remember! (Okay, looked it up. The street is called: "Rue de la Huchette")

The cleanliness standards are supposed to be better now, so we want to go.

Picnic on the Seine (completed August 22)
This is perhaps the quintessential Parisian experience. You buy a baguette and a bottle of wine, maybe some stinky cheese, then take it down to the Seine and just... chill.

Another Visit to Frenchie!

To celebrate our 36th wedding anniversary Melanie and I returned to one of our all time favorite restaurants: Frenchie, in the 2nd arrondissement.

There is no set menu at Frenchie, all diners are served the same 5 course tasting menu, which changes every couple of weeks. For our anniversary we included some amazing wine pairings as an accompaniment. (You might note that there are 7 pictures below, this is because the meal also includes an "amuse bouche" and a "pre-dessert".)

Smoked eel broth with crunchy eel and quail eggs

Foie Gras with powdered celery and mint

Marinated eel with cauliflower done seven ways (plus some super fresh beets!)

Pollock wrapped in zucchini blossoms with pureed zucchini and fried gnocchi

Roasted squab with red fruit (good, but probably our least favorite)

Meringue sticks with mint, berries, and clotted cream

Chocolate mousse ribbons with white chocolate discs and vanilla gelato