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Paris Trip Review

Paris was beautiful. The food was really good (new reviews and some follow ups below). The wines were fantastic. I like the way they mix a Negroni there as well -- as a tall drink on the rocks rather than in an on the rocks glass. Probably less gin, too. Very tasty.

Below is a nice shot of the Eiffel Tower over the Seine at night. The night before they had it sparkling with (I assume) Christmas lights and it was pretty spectacular.

Here are a few nice daytime shots up and down the Seine, as well.

As for memorable restaurants, we tried the place that Alan and Elaine highly recommended -- D'Chez Eux -- and it was truly excellent. Great casually elegant atmosphere, really nice wine list and fantastic (slightly upscaled) classic French country fare. Probably a good idea to book up in advance. We did not and probably were lucky to get a table. We have a whole batch of their key chains if you'd like a solid reminder for your next trip. Otherwise, here is the address post from before:

D'Chez Eux
2 av Lowendal
7e, 7th Arrondissement
Tel: (33) 01.47.05.52.55
Web Site: http://www.chezeux.com/index.asp
- (From their key chain:) Son accueil - Foie gras - Cochonnailles - Grenouilles - Cassoulet - Fameux desserts - Sud ouest et tradition

A place that came highly recommended from the staff at L'Hotel where we were staying was Cinq-Mars. It was close to the hotel in St. Germain-de-Pres between av St. Germain and the Seine. The food and the whole experience of the place was just fantastic. It's a small place, so -- even for lunch -- you need to book a table.

Cinq-Mars
51 rue de Verneuil (near corner with rue du Bac)
6e, 6th Arrondissement
Tel: (33) 01.45.44.69.13
- Classic French bistro food was fantastic. The personnel were just great. The selections from the smallish wine list were really top notch.

A place that we stumbled onto -- somewhat guided to the area by the guide from a Da Vinci Code Walking Tour which we took -- for lunch that had great food was Le Mâchon d'Henri.

Le Mâchon d'Henri
8 rue Guisarde
6e, 6th Arrondissement
Tel: (33) 01.43.29.08.70
- More great French bistro fare. A packed house immediately at lunch, so get there early. Still a bit in the dark(er) ages with respect to "international credit cards" so plan ahead and bring cash.

Returning to the street where we found Le Mâchon -- most of the streets in this area from av St. Germain to St. Sulpice are packed with restaurants -- we found a wonderful, inexpensive place for dinner, literally right next door. La Boussole (The Compass) provides a slight twist on classic French fare by adding influences from "la route des épices" to many classic French dishes. The food was fantastic and the prix fixe for a three course dinner was about 25 euros! Try the triplet of spiced creme brulee for dessert. We'll be back on every trip to Paris.

La Boussole
12 rue Guisarde
6e, 6th Arrondissement
Tel: (33) 01.56.24.82.20
Web Site: http://www.la-boussole.com
- Classic French fare with a twist of spices from "la route des épices". Between 8:30pm and 10:00pm on a midweek night the place was packed so full it was hard to move around. The food was just wonderful. Try the spiced desserts.

posted by HDShea @ 1:51 PM