Category: Paris

Paris street culture, and a lesson in French slang

After an exhibition at Musée Maillol, we were enjoying an aperitif outside a bar

but we weren’t expecting a spontaneous lesson in slang.

The bar was at a small crossroads in the 7th arrondissement, the embassy district. A squad of armed police appeared on the corner, and started directing traffic.

As a motorcyclist disobeyed his command and drove off, one of the officers shouted –

‘Putain!’

If you’re a fan of the French TV cop show ‘Spiral’ you’ll recognise the word, it peppers the dialogue liberally, but it was the first time I’ve heard it used in real life.

It means everything from an expression of mild irritation to the F Word; probably the latter on this occasion.

In due course the officers stopped all traffic to allow an SUV with blacked out windows to pass at speed unimpeded, escorted by police motorbikes and unmarked cars with blue lights flashing and sirens blaring.

 

Musée Maillol for some street culture

Musée Maillol is a good gallery to watch for photography exhibitions. We were there to see ‘Instants Données’ (‘Given Moments’), a retrospective of the work of Robert Doisneau.

 

‘The marvels of daily life are so exciting; no movie director can arrange the unexpected that you find in the street’.

Robert Doisneau, 1912 – 1994.

If you don’t recognise the photographer’s name, you’ll know his style. Starting in the 1930s by capturing the street life of children at school and at play, he went on to portray the hardship of workers in the Renault factory, portraits of artists and writers (famously Picasso and de Beauvoir) and downtrodden drinkers in the bars of Paris, reminiscent of the paintings of Toulouse Lautrec.

The exhibition continues until 12th October 2025.

https://museemaillol.com/expositions/robert-doisneau-instants-donnes/

 

Hockney 25

Earlier in the week we went on an expedition to the extraordinary, ship-shaped Louis Vuitton Foundation in Bois de Boulogne to see the retrospective that David Hockney regards as the most significant of his career.

Curated by the artist himself, he called in favours from collections around the world to loan significant works.

I had seen two Hockney shows before. In 2019 his works were hung alongside pictures by Van Gogh in Amsterdam; he memorably corrected our impression of Van Gogh as a depressive – ‘if you look at his paintings they’re full of joy’.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Then in 2021 came the exhibition of his iPad paintings at the Royal Academy.

In Paris the story begins with a portrait of the artist’s father, painted when Hockney was just 19, then a room of his early works that reflect his sexuality, still illegal at the time. Hockney is still producing work in his eighties, still innovating, and he’s clearly happiest when he’s working.

There’s his largest work to date, painted in the open air: ‘Bigger Trees near Warter’.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It was made of fifty canvas sections small enough to be transported by car, the oil paint still wet.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

In 2019 Covid restrictions stranded Hockney at his home in Normandy. He started producing works every day to send to friends by email.

He was there partly to revisit the Bayeux Tapestry, which influenced his mural of the Norman countryside. The Vuitton Gallery is something of a space age warren, and sadly I missed that room altogether, although with over 400 works to view, it wasn’t a disaster…..

The exhibition closes with his collage of photographs of artworks from the 1400s to the present. They illustrate Hockney’s research that led him to the controversial theory that throughout the history of western art, painters have used optical devices to help them produce work. He applied his practitioner’s eye to reach a convincing conclusion.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Catch Hockney 25 until 31st August 2025: 

https://www.fondationlouisvuitton.fr/en/events/david-hockney-25

Postscript from Paris

A feature of the city streets is the engraved plaques commemorating resistance fighters, often unidentified, who were killed in street battles to achieve the liberation of their city in August 1944.

In this anniversary year of Victory in Europe, this poignant memorial in a quiet street in the 7th caught my eye, on my way to the local wine shop.

 

 

 

‘A tribute to Lilian Vera Rolfe.

Born in this building in 1914 and executed in Ravensbrück in 1945.

A radio operator in the service of the British Special Operations Executive, formed in 1940 to support the resistance movements in Europe and to prepare for the landings on 6th June 1944′.

 

 

 

 

Red Gingham Tablecloths

Red gingham is a bit of a cliché, the ubiquitous table covering of an unpretentious traditional bistro in provincial France. Or so I thought.

In 2013 I came across Ristorante Tromlin in the hills overlooking the Italian city of Turin.

Torino was the capital of the Kingdom of Savoy, which also ruled Nizza, now better known as the French city of Nice.

I developed a theory that perhaps the red-and-white check entered French culture through this historical back door.

 

Ristorante Tromlin

 

The bistros of Paris were opened by people from the countryside who migrated to the city, and classic dishes from the French regions, notably Beaujolais, Alsace, and (not forgetting) Savoie became staples.

One of my favourites is La Fontaine de Mars, where the menu is firmly rooted in the French Southwest. Jambon de Bayonne is freshly cut on the red enamel slicer that gleams at you as you’re shown to your table, to nibble as you decide whether to choose cassoulet or confit de canard.

 

La Fontaine de Mars

 

Last time we were there we startled our waiter by asking if we could have a green salad with the cheese course.

‘Une salade avec du fromage? Vraiement?(shrugs)

Vive la difference!’

 

(The tablecloths are red and white gingham in my memory, but when I found this photo I realised they are actually pink. Perhaps the effect of a glass too many of their finest Cahors).

 

Then there’s Polidor, the restaurant that time forgot. The blackboard proclaims that ‘we haven’t accepted cheques since 1873’.

Woody Allen chose it as a location for ‘Midnight in Paris’, when the lead character accepts a lift by a stranger’s car which transports him back to the literary heyday of the 1920’s, where he encounters F. Scott Fitzgerald and Ernest Hemingway in the restaurant.

 

‘We haven’t accepted cheques since 1873’

 

 

 

I remembered a visit to Mamma Mia, an Italian restaurant in Dublin.

No mistake this time, the tablecloths are proudly chequered.

 

 

Mamma Mia

 

Maybe there’s something in my theory after all.

Savoie to Paris, by way of Dublin?

I look forward to resuming the necessary research.

2019 – the Food Stuff

There’s a weekend to be planned here – nothing that couldn’t be achieved with the services of a private jet, and perhaps a bit of time travel.

You could have breakfast in Paris, take a coffee in Stockholm, then lunch on Torcello, or Borough Market in London if you prefer.

Dinner? Back to Paris, on to Amsterdam? Or (my choice) Stockholm again for a magnificent steak.

I’ll let you take in an hour’s TV to recover, then if you still have the stamina, we’ll head over to Venice for a nightcap.

 

 

Best Breakfast of 2019?

It has to be The French Bastards, for ‘A croissant worth crossing Paris for’

https://wp.me/p7AW4i-Kj 

 

Best croissant in Paris?

 

 

Mid morning coffee

A seriously good cup of coffee is one of life’s great pleasures for me, and they don’t get much better than at Robert’s Coffee, in the Saluhall market, Stockholm.

The cinnamon buns are a bonus. (They take cards only, not cash, so you won’t even have to bother buying kronor).

 

 

Fika at Robert’s Coffee, Stockholm

 

What have the Swedes ever done for us?

https://wp.me/p7AW4i-Cv

 

Lunch in the Lagoon….

Osteria al Ponte del Diavolo on the island of Torcello; all the better for being unexpected.

Torcello is about an hour from Venice; you can reach it on a scheduled service, changing at Burano, using your vaporetto pass.

 

Osteria al Ponte del Diavolo, Torcello

 

The ancient basilica on Torcello predates the city of Venice. To reach it from the quay, you walk along the side of a canal. The most famous restaurant on the island is the Locanda Cipriani nearby, but you pass three others on the way.

We weren’t looking for a grand lunch, but something to fortify us for the basilica.

The first place looked fun, but was packed with families queuing for pizza.

The second was a fairly standard Trattoria. We walked on.

The third had a big dining room with a covered terrace at the back, opening onto a garden. The menu looked as if we could find something suitable, so we went in and were greeted with smiles and shown to a table.

It was a good decision, even the bread basket was exceptional. We had a pretty antipasto of colourful steamed vegetables, all tasting intensely of themselves, served warm to bring out the fruitiness of the olive oil dressing.

Then black squid ink pasta, with crab, samphire and rosemary; orecchiette with turbot and cherry tomatoes.

We drank Arneis, a white from Piemonte.

After lunch we wandered round the garden and may have dropped off on a bench in the pergola. Just for a moment….

Osteria al Ponte del Diavolo is open for lunch Tuesday to Sunday, and dinner on Friday and Saturday.

 

Contatti

 

….and at Borough Market

Closer to home but equally unexpected was discovering the new Brindisa Kitchen at Borough Market. It’s inspired by the bars in Spanish markets.

I saw it had opened the day before I’d arranged to meet a friend for a day of shopping and sustenance (Instagram has its uses).

 

A perfect scallop

 

A glass of Manzanilla with a single perfect scallop.

Hake & mussels.

I love watching chefs happy in their work, interacting with their customers, and the bar staff were charming.

 

The head chef, Brindisa Kitchen

 

Hake & mussels

 

https://boroughmarket.org.uk/traders/brindisa-kitchen

Dinner?

Honourable mention for the Sweetbreads at Frenchie’s Wine Bar, Paris.

So good, I ate them twice.

https://wp.me/p7AW4i-Kh

 

‘Everything, I want to eat everything’

 

 

Caffé Toscanini in Amsterdam for the whole experience of food and hospitality; a perfect aperitif followed by an accomplished Italian meal, delivered with good humour and expertise.

https://wp.me/p7AW4i-Kh

 

The bar at Caffe Toscanini, Amserdam

 

The prize goes to A.G. for the best steak of 2019. I’ll be lucky to find one as good in 2020.

Most of the tables were occupied by groups of men sharing massive steaks.

There were also a few couples on date nights, sharing massive steaks.

‘Vegetarians, look away now’.

 

https://wp.me/p7AW4i-Oh

 

A.G. – ‘vegetarians, look away now’

 

 

TV Show: Remarkable places to eat, Episode 1, in which chef Angela Hartnett takes Maitre d’ Fred Siriex to her favourites in Venice.

It’s a full hour of television, so they have time to show you the dedication and hard work that goes into delivering the best ingredients and food experiences in the city. These are not cynical tourist traps. Nothing is done without effort: wading chest deep in the lagoon to harvest seafood; delivering vegetables by boat and trolley to Bruno Gavagnin, the quietly spoken but demanding chef at Alle Testiere; walking half a kilometre over bridges carrying boxes of perfect patisserie to Caffe Florian, from their production kitchen to Piazza San Marco – several times throughout the day.

At the time of writing it’s not available on BBC iPlayer, but it’s sure to turn up on your TV sooner or later.

 

Here are the fishermen:

https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m0006vw3

Here’s a clip:

https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p07g3dkl

 

 

FANCY A NIGHTCAP?

 

Let’s head back to Venice, for a glass of wine at Vino Vero. 

You’ll find it here, on my page ‘And to drink?’

 

https://wp.me/P7AW4i-aV

Night at the Museum

After an interesting encounter last year with Napoleon the Strategist at the Musée de l’Armée in Paris, it seemed rude to miss an opportunity of making closer acquaintance.

Talent or ambition – which is more important in the making of a genius? I wrote about it here: https://wp.me/p7AW4i-kE

The museum was open free of charge on the evening of 18th May 2019, and in spite of a downpour later in the evening, it welcomed 8,000 visitors on ‘La Nuit des Musées’.

For one night only, a group of re-enactors gathered outside Napoleon’s tomb at Les Invalides.

 

Napoleon’s last resting place

 

 

On the bicentenary of Waterloo in 2015, Jeremy Paxman visited a re-enactment of the battle, and commented on the age of those who participated in the rôle of senior officers.

They were of ‘advanced years’, which he put down to the fact that they were better able to afford the cost of their uniforms and equipment.

 

French infantry in the uniform of the 1790s. It seemed like only yesterday….

I won’t comment on their age….

 

 

Artilleryman of the Imperial Guard

….but you can’t deny their enthusiasm

 

 

 

Un Grognard (a grumbler) of the Guard Artillery

There was a moment when one young infantryman realised that someone was stealing his dinner

 

 

Excusez moi?

There was a senior officer, recruiting for

La Garde Imperiale….

 

 

 

Oui, mon generale!

….and a trumpeter of Chasseurs à Cheval

 

Guard trumpeter

 

Were their uniforms authentic? The exhibits in the museum spoke volumes

 

 

This one is the real thing

 

There were Horse Artillerymen demonstrating where to put a shell….

 

 

“La bas!”

….and a couple of cool dudes.

(Well, maybe one)

 

 

An officer of Voltigeurs. And a guy with a clipboard.

 

And they were all there to honour the memory of Napoleon Bonaparte

 

 

Napoleon’s hat, coat and campaign bed in La Musee

 

‘Vive l’Empereur!’

 

 

Night at the museum

 

 

 

https://www.musee-armee.fr/accueil.html

See two of my photos of the event in the museum’s compilation on Instagram:

https://www.instagram.com/stories/highlights/17858945278409830/

A tale of two Frenchies. Well, actually five.

Frenchie Restaurant in Paris opened on rue du Nil in 2015, and quickly became a hot ticket. We tried to book a table for dinner in May this year, but they still fill the restaurant months ahead.

Frenchie Wine Bar opposite doesn’t take reservations; it opens at 6.30pm, and the advice is to turn up early. We were first in line when the door opened. ‘Table for two?’

There are two small rooms, one with a view of the kitchen, the other of the bar. You sit on bar stools at shared tables.

We elected to sit right next to the glass partition looking into the kitchen, where we could watch every dish being prepared. It’s a tiny space, ruthlessly organised, where five staff were producing all the food: one male chef at the stove, two girls meticulously assembling cold mains and desserts, a female chef on the pass, and a washer-up.

 

‘Everything. I want to eat everything’

 

The friendly, helpful and informative waiting staff wear T shirts printed with the legend ‘Everything. I want to eat everything’, and reading the menu I began to see what they meant. Dishes are served when they’re ready, so we started by sharing three cold dishes.

 

Frenchie Wine Bar

 

 

An assembly of home made Ricotta, crumbled with confit Meyer lemon, fresh fava beans and peas, buckwheat for crunch and earthiness, and chive flowers, was a beautiful celebration of early summer – outstanding, one of the best dishes I’ve eaten this year (so far).

 

 

Ricotta, AKA summer in a bowl

 

Green lentil falafel came with smoky harissa, and pickled cucumber for sharpness and texture.

 

Green lentil falafel

 

 

A gutsy terrine with piccalilli and mustard seeds balanced textures and flavours, with sharp accents from the pickle. (It was so good, I failed to take a picture. Oh, the pressure).

 

Garnishing is precise, pretty and delicate; the chefs each carry tweezers clipped to their aprons, which they use to place herbs on each plate.

 

 

The sommelier wore a similar shirt to the waiters:

 

‘Everything, I want to drink everything’

 

Wines by the glass are poured at the table. We chose a petillant Montlouis from the Loire as an aperitif; gentle bubbles, golden colour.

A Cotes Catalanes rosé was a good match for our first dishes, with strawberry fruit and fresh acidity.

Then we went our separate ways. Pappardelle pasta for her, with lamb ragout, Kalamata olives and lemon confit. And another glass of rosé.

I picked crispy sweetbread nuggets with gribiche sauce. Two juicy morsels of moist tender veal arrived in a thick coat of crunchy batter perfection. Gribiche is a mayonnaise-style emulsion of hard-boiled egg yolks and mustard, finished with chopped cornichons, capers and herbs.

 

 

Crispy sweetbread nuggets, sauce gribiche

 

 

And a glass of red Saumur Champigny 2017, poured from a magnum; unusually intense and dark for the Appellation, a ‘fruit bomb’ of berries and herbs.

 

 

Be careful what you wish for

 

The owner and head chef is Gregory Marchand, the eponymous Frenchie. He earned the nickname working in the kitchen at Jamie Oliver’s restaurant Fifteen in London.

The London influence shows, there’s English wine on the list, and cheeses are from Neal’s Yard Dairy.

Gregory dropped in to observe the chefs at work and chat to them. I asked the waiter if I could say hello, if he wasn’t too busy – I met him last year at a panel discussion in London, where he has a restaurant in Covent Garden – and he came over to our table.

 

The sweetbreads were so good, I said I could eat another portion for dessert….

(I was joking).

 

A few minutes later, the waiter reappeared at the table with another plateful; he nodded towards the window behind me. There was Gregory outside, grinning, with his thumbs up to check I approved.

 

They were just as amazing the second time.

 

 

 

Frenchie

We resolved to go back next year and book ahead for the restaurant, but I have a sneaking suspicion that the wine bar is more fun, where you can arrive at 6.30 and stay as long as you want. There are clearly two sittings in the restaurant: 6.30 and 9.

 

 

Frenchie Restaurant

 

 

 

Playlist in the wine bar: high energy hip-hop, cool, funky and fun, much like Frenchie’s. It’s just on the right side of loud on arrival. As the evening progresses they either turn it down, or the clientele drown it out as the wine bar fills up.

 

Rue du Nil is a tiny street. As well as the restaurant and wine bar, there’s Frenchie To Go, and Frenchie’s wine shop.

Marchand’s energy has attracted a community of small and perfectly formed retailers to the street: a butcher, a fishmonger, a bakery, a greengrocer, a coffee roaster. A ‘bean to bar’ chocolate shop will open shortly.

 

Purple asparagus at the greengrocer on rue du Nil

 

 

http://www.frenchie-ruedunil.com/en/home/

 

There’s also the London outpost, in the National Restaurant Awards 2019 ‘top 100 restaurants in the UK’ for the 4th year in a row:

 

http://www.frenchiecoventgarden.com/

https://www.nationalrestaurantawards.co.uk/profile/frenchie/

 

 

My dessert. “Oh, I couldn’t possibly….”

 

 

A croissant worth crossing Paris for

Word was circulating that a new bakery is producing the best croissants in Paris. On a visit to the city in May, naturally I went to investigate rue Oberkampf, looking for No 61. The 11th Arrondissement is roughly equivalent to London’s Shoreditch, with little independent shops, a market, and tattoo parlours.

 

 

rue Oberkampf & the market on Boulevard Richard Lenoir

 

 

Arriving at the shop, I explained to the young man behind the counter (in my best French) that je suis escrivain d’un blog, and asked if I could take some photos.

‘Would you prefer to speak in English or in French? I’m English’ he replied (in French). ‘English’ I said, ‘it’s probably safer’.

 

 

The patient Englishman

 

 

Between customers, he was able to answer some of my questions. One of the first was how the bakery found its name.

 

 

It’s called ‘The French Bastards’

 

The business was founded in January 2019 by friends Julien, Emmanuel and David. Julien had worked in Australia, where his colleagues called him ‘the French bastard’, and back in Paris the friends decided to use the nickname for their shop.

 

 

The French Bastards put out their shingle

 

 

The counter display comprised neat ranks of colourful pastry: red fruit tarts, black fruit tarts with dark chocolate….

 

 

Black fruit tart with dark chocolate

 

 

….lemon meringue eclairs, alongside the usual chocolate and coffee.

 

 

Lemon meringue eclairs

 

 

Then there were three kinds of sandwich piled high for the lunchtime trade; admittedly expensive at €7.90, but each looked as if it would feed a small family (my eye was caught by the 36 month Iberico ham, with sun dried tomato & mizuna salad).

And viennoisserie, row upon sticky row of flaky bronze pastry, including all the classics, and more creative offerings like the Babka, made to a Polish recipe – chocolate brioche, purposely undercooked for ooze; and the Cruffin, a croissant crossed with a muffin, filled with raspberry purée.

 

 

Babka (centre) and Cruffin (right)

 

 

There was a coffee machine, and I decided we should try out the simplest emblem of the French patissier’s art, the humble croissant.

We sat at the table at the back of the shop, where behind a glass screen we could watch four bakers going about their useful work.

 

 

Croissants: their useful work before

 

 

…and after

 

 

The coffee was the best we’ve had in Paris (they use Peruvian beans)….

 

and as for the croissant….

It wasn’t too big, with a darker colour than is usual, apparently derived from the rich butter they use. It was very flaky and light, but still had substance, a rich taste, the merest hint of caramel from the butter, and not at all greasy in the fingers.

 

 

…and during

 

 

A baker came out of the kitchen and introduced himself as Emmanuel, one of the business partners. He asked what we had tried, and agreed the croissant was a good choice. ‘It’s like choosing spaghetti with tomato sauce in an Italian place; if it’s good, you know you’re in safe hands’.

Although they’ve only been open a few months, they’re already looking for more sites. The first shop is close to Le Marais and the Picasso museum, on rue Oberkampf, close to a busy street market on Boulevard Richard Lenoir.

As well as pastries they make very good bread, from Le Tradition (the baguette) to a Pain de Campagne with honey, turmeric and Corinth grapes, ‘yellower than your gilet’.

 

 

Bread at The French Bastards

 

 

Before leaving, I had to admit to another motive. While it had been worth crossing Paris for the croissant, I couldn’t resist making it known that I have another occupation.

 

 

As an English longbow archer, I had wanted to come and take a look at the French Bastards. 

 

 

‘Maison Fondee Hier’ (founded yesterday)

 

 

 

The FRENCH BASTARDS, 61, rue Oberkampf, Paris 11eme. (The Bastards take ‘Thursday Off’)

Nearest Metro Filles de Calvaire

Playlist: mellow. As well as the table, there’s a battered leather sofa. 

 

 

 

Your sofa awaits

 

 

 

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Postcards from Paris; May 2018

Rue du Nil.

Gregory Marchand was given the nickname “Frenchie” when he was cooking in the kitchen of Jamie Oliver’s restaurant Fifteen. It stuck, and in 2009 he opened his first restaurant with the name in Paris. Since then he has opened a wine bar, a wine shop, and Frenchie to Go, all on Rue du Nil, a cobbled street barely 100 yards long.

Frenchie is inspired and influenced by Gregory’s extensive travels, his “only companions his knives”. He is now a weekly commuter to London, to visit his outpost in Covent Garden http://www.frenchiecoventgarden.com/  on Henrietta Street. It was at a panel discussion in London that I was able to ask him for his recommendations for food shops and restaurants in Paris.

Not surprisingly, he directed me to Rue du Nil, where Frenchie’s neighbours include a fishmonger, a butcher, a coffee roaster and a greengrocer.

 

Checking the price of rhubarb on rue du Nil

 

 

Frenchie To Go

 

http://www.frenchie-restaurant.com/en/infos

Restaurant Frenchie, 5-6 Rue du Nil, 75002 Paris. +33 (0) 1 40 39 96 19

 

 

From Rue du Nil, we walked the length of Rue Montorgueil, a (much longer) street dominated by food, to find E. Dehillerin, another of Gregory’s recommendations.

 

“Change of use applied for” on Rue Montorgueil

 

 

Fruits de saison, rue Montorgueil

 

 

E. Dehillerin, Matèriel de Cuisine.

This resolutely old fashioned shop is a comprehensive resource for the professional chef and caterer. The unchanging windows are full of all kinds of arcane and desirable copper kitchen utensils….

18-20 Rue Coquillière, 75001 Paris

 

E. Dehillerin

 

G. Detou, rue Tiquetonne

The name of this shop is a play on J’ai de Tout (I have everything). It seems to stock every imaginable ingredient for the cook’s store cupboard, with a special emphasis on baking, and all at very good prices.

58 Rue Tiquetonne, 75002 Paris
Today’s catch at G. Detou

 

 

Then across the street for a spot of lunch at Lezard Café opposite, to fortify us for the Delacroix exhibition at the Louvre.

 

 

A careful pour at Cafe Lezard, rue Tiquetonne

 

 

Avoid the crowds at the Louvre….

The guidebook suggested arriving late in the afternoon, to avoid the queues. It worked. (We visited on Friday when the museum is open in the evening, so we missed the daytime and evening peak hours).

 

Walking straight into the Louvre

 

….but be wary of the crowd on the Metro.

After leaving the Louvre we took the Metro. There were three women standing next to me in the crowded carriage. They got off, and a seated passenger immediately asked “does this belong to anybody?”

It was my wallet; deftly removed from my pocket, and dumped on the carriage floor after my euros had been removed.

 

 

The Luxembourg Gardens 

Enjoyed by joggers, readers, philosophers, tourists and beekeepers, the Luxembourg Gardens are a prime opportunity for people-watching.

 

Les philosophes? Or discussing the football?

 

Enjoying a quiet read

 

 

A little light shopping in Saint Germain, followed by a Corsican ice cream

 

Anne Elisabeth, Rue Mabillon, Saint-Germain-des-Prés

 

 

Nearby, we came across Pierre Geronimi, a chic Corsican ice-cream shop. Among more conventional flavours they were offering basil, tomato, fennel, or mustard seed. When I realised that even their lunchtime salads come with a scoop, I began to understand…..

Pierre Geronimi, 5 rue Férou, Saint-Sulpice, 75006

 

Pierre Geronimi, Glacier Corse

 

 

Changing of the Guard à la Parisienne

We approached the gates of the Palais du Luxembourg as a coach was leaving. It was carrying what looked like a detachment of Napoleon’s cavalry in helmets and breastplates. It was the Republican Guard, destined for ceremonial duties in the capital. (The regiment is twinned with the British Household Cavalry).

 

I managed to snatch a snap – “Allez les Bleus!”

 

Paris: city of soldiers, city of pilgrims

The history of Paris has seen many violent chapters, from medieval times, through the Revolution and the Commune of 1871, to the German Occupation and the student riots of 1968 in the 20th century. In recent years new threats have emerged; in the immediate aftermath of the attacks on Charlie Hebdo and the Bataclan, patrols of armed soldiers were a common sight on the streets, and public monuments continue to be guarded by the police and army.

 

The dark side of the City of Light is chronicled by Andrew Hussey in his book “PARIS. The Secret History”, 

 

Changing the guard outside Napoleon’s tomb

 

Paris continues to be a destination for pilgrimage, whether for devotees of the cult of Napoleon, centred on his tomb at Les Invalides, or the more ancient religious celebration in Place Vauban opposite, where hundreds had gathered at the climax of the Pilgrimage of Pentecost.

 

A priest from the Pays Basque waits patiently in Place Vauban

 

The Emperor’s unmistakable silhouette, contemplating the great courtyard of Les Invalides

 

A pilgrimage of another kind: “Prendre l’Apero” 

 

The aperitif hour, Cafe Vauban

“Wish you were here?”

 

 

To Paris, in pursuit of genius

Talent or ambition – which is more important in the making of a genius?

Tintoretto, Birth of a Genius.

Delacroix Retrospective.

Napoleon the Strategist.

These three exhibitions in Paris this spring demonstrated that both are needed.

 

Tintoretto – a precocious talent.

My knowledge of Tintoretto was limited to his vast, decorative canvasses of figures in 16th century dress, a rather lifeless heir to the tradition of Titian.

My interest was stimulated in Venice, by a visit to the Madonna dell’Orto church in Cannaregio; the church is decorated with several of his works, dark vertical spirals, illuminated with dramatic flashes of light. They were created in Tintoretto’s house nearby, where he had his studio.

This exhibition at the Musée du Luxembourg showed early works by Tintoretto, “the little dyer” (named for his small stature and his father’s trade). As a young painter he had confidence in his own talent, and the ambition to succeed in a highly competitive city already full of great painters. Influenced by Titian and the masters of the day, he was also inspired by his powerful imagination.

He was not above undercutting the prices of his peers to secure commissions and increase his visibility. It was an effective commercial strategy, but not one that won him many friends among his fellow artists…..

As so often for me, it was his portraits that opened intimate windows onto the artist’s world.

 

 

Formerly attributed to Caracci, this Portrait of a Man could only be by the young Tintoretto’s hand.

 

 

Self portrait aged about twenty, Tintoretto c1539

 

https://en.museeduluxembourg.fr/

Tintoret, La Naissance d’un Génie – at Musée du Luxembourg until 1st July

 

EugÈne Delacroix at the Louvre. 

Like Tintoretto, Eugene Delacroix had a precocious talent; he himself referred to his “infernal facility of the brush.” The first retrospective in Paris since 1963, with 189 works by the 19th century French master, this exhibition has been billed as the must-see show of the year. At the start of a long and successful career, Delacroix made his name with epic paintings on a large scale. Over time he changed subject matter, painting everything from violent revolution, battles and hunts, to flower paintings, crucifixions, and disasters at sea.

He produced etchings as a prolific illustrator, and delicate watercolours, but his first love was his “nice oily, thick paint”. 

Ironically he was not an enthusiastic traveller, but developed a fascination with exotic sensuality and colour through a visit to Morocco in 1832. He was the first influential French painter not to visit Italy.

 

 

Detail from a Moroccan battle scene

 

It was in the gallery of Moroccan paintings that the idea of a tasting menu came to my mind, a meal of colourful dishes created by an inventive chef; some spicy and some a little too rich…..

Then a group of more tranquil watercolours came along, like a sorbet, a reflective interlude between courses….

It was a feast that took some time to digest.

 

 

A sleeping Arab

 

 

https://www.louvre.fr/en/expositions/delacroix-1798-1863

Louvre, Paris, until 23rd July, then Metropolitan Museum, New York, 17th September – 6th January (some of the largest works will not travel)

 

delacroix museum

Another tranquil place to contemplate Delacroix is the house in Saint Germain where he worked and lived until his death in 1863. It’s an outpost of the Louvre, and provides an insight on the painter’s life; the high window flooded his studio with natural light.

 

Delacroix’s house

 

http://www.musee-delacroix.fr/en/

 

 

 

Napoleon the Strategist.

This exhibition at the Musée de l’Armée followed Napoleon’s career.

When I studied Art History at school, my teacher quoted a definition of genius as “an infinite capacity for taking pains”. Napoleon Bonaparte had a phenomenal appetite for preparation, not unlike the chief executive of a 21st century business: recruiting talented staff; researching his enemies and gathering intelligence; supervising every aspect of the organisation and structure of his army, and the French state.

Among the maps and relics, a series of interactive games challenged you to take the same decisions that faced Napoleon:

As you set out on your rise to power, which generals do you choose to have around you, based on their strengths and weaknesses of character?

 

I tried my luck at the Battle of Ulm….

I was faced with five multiple-choice questions: should I support the general on my flank, who is in danger of being surrounded? Attack the enemy in the centre, from the cover of a forest? Be cautious, and consolidate my position on the road to Vienna?

….and won, with a score of 5/5

 

It’s a poor photo I know, but I want it on the record that I could have won the Battle of Ulm!

 

 

By the time he faced Wellington and his allies at Waterloo, Napoleon was exhausted and unwell, and beginning to accept that waging war is a younger man’s game. The battle ended badly for him, but arguably not as badly as for François-Antoine Fauveau, a young junior officer of Carabiniers-à-Cheval who had enlisted a month before the battle, and whose breastplate still testifies to the devastating effect of the cannonball that struck him.

 

 

The cuirass is engraved with the name of the officer who wore it on June 6th, 1815

 

 

With the final exhibit, you come close to the physical presence of the man behind the cult, to the clothes that defined the Napoleon Bonaparte of legend: his unadorned riding coat and and one of his hats, the habitual dress that marked him out among the colour and finery of his Grande Armée.

 

 

Napoleon’s coat and hat, and a pistol looted from his baggage train

 

http://www.musee-armee.fr/programmation/expositions/detail/napoleon-stratege.html

Until 22nd July at La Musée de l’Armée

A taste of the 7th Arrondissement

Les Invalides from “our” balcony

A typical day in the 7eme….

….starts with the view of Les Invalides (Napoleon’s tomb) from the balcony of “our” apartment (allow me a fantasy life). If we’re heading for the Metro at St François Xavier, we’ll have breakfast at La Boulangerie des Invalides on the corner opposite, where the croissants are in the oven. Returning at the end of the day there’s a queue for their baguettes, which “will be ready in 10 minutes”.

 

 

“The croissants are in the oven”

 

La Boulangerie des Invalides. Standing room only.

 

Their savoury tarts (quiches) are very good; the sweet tarts have a dark glaze, and crisp, slightly caramelised pastry. A Pistachio & Apricot was not too sweet, and the lime zest decoration on a Tarte au Citron was a clue; it was pleasantly sharp, with a texture like crème brulee.

 

rue cler

If we’re going shopping on rue Cler, we’ll have our coffee there.

Café du Marché is always busy, but reports are mixed.

We preferred the “PTT” Bar-Brasserie for un petit crème, which seems less touristy; there’s usually a cluster of local tradesmen having drinks and a gossip at the bar.

 

Cafe Society on rue Cler

 

You’re spoiled by the choice of food shop on this street. There’s a well-appointed new butcher at No 52, La Boucherie du Perche, which opened this year; they’re proud of the provenance of their meat, which looked very good; their terrine de campagne was the best I’ve ever eaten, juicy and not too coarsely cut, the seasoning well-judged and perfectly integrated.

www.boucherieduperche.com

 

La Boucherie du Perche

 

At La Sablaise, the fishmonger, a magnificent, huge, wild Daurade (sea bream) was in pride of place among a fine selection.

 

Of the four greengrocers, we like Les Quatre Saisons, where the display outside follows the seasons, while the salads are kept in a cool, humidified display inside the shop.

 

Les tomates du jour at Les Quatre Saisons

 

White asparagus, Gariguette strawberries

 

The ice creams from Martine Lambert are very good: a scoop each of blood orange and salted caramel for me, rhubarb sorbet “pour madame”.

 

Davoli offers the best of Italy and France

 

Inside Davoli

 

Paris has many chocolatiers, Rue Cler’s is François Pralus, where you can make your own selection from the counter. www.chocolats-pralus.com

 

Of the four wine shops we’ve settled on the friendly Nysa, for their helpful recommendations. 30 rue Cler. www.nysa.fr

 

Les Caves Nysa

 

There’s a well-stocked cheesemonger at No 31, La Fromagerie, which also sells eggs, bread, and fresh butter, which they cut to order off a big block.

 

There’s more cheese to be had round the corner on Rue du Champ de Mars, at the immaculate La Fromagerie Marie-Anne Cantin, one of the most reputable purveyors in the city.

 

L’Epicerie Fine, a dream of a grocers’ shop

 

We really like L’Épicerie Fine in the same street at No 8, which has a nice vibe; it’s run by a friendly and knowledgeable couple, Pascal & Nathalie, who attract a regular clientele. I go there to buy my favourite Dijon mustards from Fallot, the only remaining producer to use traditional grindstones. This shop sells everything a good grocer should, from Tiptree Christmas puddings and Patak’s pickles to Breton salted caramels (only buy these if you can afford the dental bills!)

www.epiceriefinerivegauche.com

 

A carefully chosen stock of provisions

 

USEFUL PHRASES AND SAYINGS in L’Epicerie: “Pouvez vous l’emballer pour l’Eurostar?” (Please could you wrap it to carry home on the train?)

 

AVENUE de SAXE MARKET 

As well as rue Cler, the 7th Arrondissement is also served by a street market on Avenue de Saxe, which takes place every Thursday and Saturday morning (stalls attending vary on the two days).

Perfect artichokes in the sunshine

 

The 7eme is a well-heeled neighbourhood. Market trader, farmer and legend, Peter Gott, once told me “if you’re thinking about taking a stall at a market, and you want to know if it’ll be any good – look at the shoes….”

 

You can buy six prawns, ten spears of asparagus, a slice of terrine, even half a loaf – as much as you want, or as little as you need.

Elderly locals scour the whole market, as quickly as they can manage. There’s no shame or embarrassment about using a shopping trolley.

 

Plastic bags are available on the food stalls, but the traders always ask “do you have a bag?” (Not “would you like a bag?”) and there’s no plastic wrap on veg, fruit, meat, or fish.

We bought dinner for Saturday, the only thing we had to cook was some very fresh asparagus, crunchy, green and flavourful.

 

Choosing loose asparagus

 

USEFUL PHRASES AND SAYINGS on Avenue de Saxe:

“Faites la queue, monsieur?” (meaning politely “are you part of the queue, or just standing there?” – who said the French don’t queue? This was at the stall specialising in different varieties of potato).

“Une Barquette des Garriguettes, s’il vous plait” – the ladies of the 7eme were lining up to buy punnets of these perfect early strawberries, a good enough recommendation for me!

 

Of the fish traders, Les Pêcheries de St Malo seemed to be doing the briskest business – always the sign of a good trader.

 

Interaction over the fish display

 

As well as the French producers, there are stalls devoted to products from countries besides France, such as Armenia, Italy, Portugal and Greece. Others offer single specialities: eggs, Baltic herrings, snails.

We took a chance on a couple of bottles from a wine stall at the end of the morning. The Juliénas at €9 proved to be rather ordinary, but a pink St Pourçain was a bit of a bargain at €5.50. The prices were marked on the bottles in white ink, which the trader wiped off with a dampened thumb.

 

“Shopped out” and in need of a reviver by the time the market was packing up, we followed up with a decent coffee at Le Général Bertrand, 14 Rue du Général Bertrand, 75007

The royal wedding was showing live from Windsor on the TV; realising we were British, a good-humoured regular gave up his stool at the bar. We ended up by staying on to watch, over a simple lunch of charcuterie and a glass of rosé….

 

Le Bon Marche du Marechal Saxe

 

 

http://equipement.paris.fr/marche-saxe-breteuil-5468#local-calendar

Saxe-Breteuil Market, Avenue de Saxe, 75007.

Thursday 7am – 2.30pm, Saturday 7am – 3pm

“Paris is always a good idea”

There are many reasons to travel: to explore new places, to search for novelty and new experiences; to tick a destination off a bucket list.

 

There is also pleasure to be had from returning to somewhere familiar; a voyage of rediscovery, turning an unexpected corner. Cities especially are constantly changing and evolving, so to return is like getting to know someone better, strengthening your friendship. It’s more about the relationship, less of a transaction.

 

“Paris is always a good idea”. 

I can’t claim it as original, Audrey Hepburn said it first. What is there new to say about Paris?

For me, revisiting Paris is the lure of familiarity. Emerging from the Gare du Nord to the taxi rank opposite the SNCF building, you couldn’t really be anywhere else.

 

 

Apartment in the City of Light

 

For several years, in spring or autumn, we have rented the same apartment in the 7th Arrondissement. It’s reassuringly familiar as we unlock the door, and yet it’s always something of a surprise; the light from the high fourth floor windows reflected in the apartment’s many mirrors. We know where things are, there’s no need to inspect the kitchen. We open the shutters onto a little balcony, look to the right, and there is the gilded baroque dome of Les Invalides, the location of Napoleon’s tomb since 1861.

 

Les Invalides

 

 

La Fontaine de Mars

 

We’ve acquired the habit of booking dinner on our first evening at La Fontaine de Mars, in walking distance on Rue Saint-Dominique. The waiters are charming, straight out of central casting, and often the guests are too: either chic Parisian couples or American academics. The American University of Paris is nearby (Barack and Michele Obama dined here in 2009, in the discreet little dining room upstairs). We’ve learned to ask for a table on the “Rez-de-Chaussée”, the ground floor, to be closer to the action. Tables are quite close together, the linen is red-and-white checked, and a dish of sliced saucisse sèche appears quickly with your baguette and butter. Our waiter brings a blackboard of the day’s specials; they specialise in dishes from the Southwest, so there’s usually a “véritable cassoulet, tête de veau”, and something-or-other with truffles.

 

La Fontaine de Mars. Yes, we were the last to leave….

 

We like to start with a glass of Lillet, white or pink, a rather retro aperitif from Bordeaux that comes on ice and slices of orange and lime. Then the waiter delivers a cheeky “his and hers” cliché, along with our carafes of white and red.

 

http://www.fontainedemars.com

129, Rue Saint-Dominique, Paris 75007     0033 (0)1 47 05 46 44

 

 

Rue Cler 

 

As well as the kitchen, the apartment is equipped with a shopping trolley, and our first visit the next morning is to Rue Cler, for provisions. It’s a lively little street, unusually well served even by Paris standards: a butcher, three greengrocers, two cheese shops, two florists; a smoked salmon specialist as well as a fishmonger, and no fewer than four wine shops (les priorités des Parisiens?)

 

Shopping on Rue Cler

 

L’Epicerie Fine, Rue du Champs de Mars

 

The “Ladies Who Lunch” like to sit outside the cafés, their salads left unfinished as they light cigarettes and sip a vin rouge (la cuisine minceur de nos jours?). Our favourite lunch spot is Le Petit Cler, a cafe owned by the same people as La Fontaine de Mars.

 

Cafe du Marche, Rue Cler

 

http://www.lepetitcler.com/

29, Rue Cler, Paris 75007     0033 (0)1 45 50 17 50

 

Opening hours on the street are a little complicated. Mondays tend to be quiet, shops close for lunch or half a day early in the week; the street is liveliest at the weekend, although the only bakery doesn’t open on Sunday (what’s the French for “keep ’em guessing?)

 

 

Le Boulanger ~ Patissier

 

 

Davoli ~ Italian deli / traiteur

 

 

Avenue de Saxe Market  

 

Avenue de Saxe, 7th Arrondissement

 

Another thing we’ve learned recently is not to over-buy in Rue Cler on arrival, since we’ve discovered the street market which takes place on Thursday and Saturday mornings, on Avenue de Saxe. As well as finding exceptional food, you can have your furniture upholstery repaired, or sell a neglected violin to the man who will restore it and give it a new lease of life.

 

 

Choosing fruit on Avenue de Saxe

 

 

“Don’t let your violins die in an attic or a damp cellar, sell them to me to give them a second life….”

 

“Plus ça change, plus c’est la mème chose”.

 

But it’s always a good idea.