I live for food, y’all. I love to cook good food and I love to eat good food! I will most definitely at least try something once. I also have some cuisines that I like more than others but, bottom line is that I like food.
Paris is known for it’s fine culinary cuisines. It’s not even French food that they are known for. They do everything well. From pasta to Thai food and much to my surprise, the sushi is even yummy! They choose the freshest of produce and take pride in using excellent ingredients.
For this trip to Paris, I seemed to focus more on food than anything else. Let’s be real, I started the trip telling Stephen that we had to have at least one crepe a day. Don’t judge me...
I won't bore you with every detail of every meal but, there are definitely some highlights that I think you should know if you are planning your next trip to Paris!
For my Canadian friends, definitely hit up The Canadian Embassy Pub. We were half asleep from the jet lag when we ate here. The food was surprisingly good and the beer was even better. The atmosphere was what we appreciated the most. The bartender, James, was American. Only moving to France a few years prior to chase his girlfriend across the world. He ended up at this pub and has loved his life ever since. We also made friends. Well, Stephen and I could talk to a wall so, that part shouldn’t be surprising. Tommy and Mary were delightful. And so was the tequila!
For our second day in Paris, it consisted of eating mostly. Stephen and I decided to do each course at a different restaurant. We found our way into this adorable area called Les Halles with cobblestone streets lined with restaurants. We LOVED walking through here. If you are headed to Paris, please take the time to walk through this area, it's so charming. We had French Onion Soup and a glass of Rose at Le Paradis.
We then walked over to Notre Dame and took in the depth of its beauty. There were hardly any tourists there so it felt like we had the place to ourselves. We walked back to the enchanted cobblestone neighborhood that we found before and wandered the streets holding hands until we stopped at another restaurant with a patio that wasn't crowded to sit under the awning to share the most delicious spicy, vegetarian noodle dish. It was the perfect amount of food paired with a crisp glass of Chardonnay.
We made our way back to our neighborhood in E'toile just in time to stop at a charming cafe and shared chocolate cake with ice cream...and Chardonnay, of course. It was the perfect ending to an incredible day in Paris.
I woke up on day three staring out of our hotel window at the Basilica Sacre-Coure. I had heard such wonderful things about this basilica and its surrounding neighborhood. As soon as Stephen got off of work, we took the train straight up to Montmarte to walk the neighborhood, see artist square, and take in the beautiful basilica. We stumbled into this small fondue place called Le Refuge Des Fondus.
The small room was lined on each side with mirroring picnic tables covered with cheap table cloths. The only way to get into the inside seat was to literally climb over the table. There is writing all over the walls and people were drinking wine out of baby bottles (yes please).
There was one menu where you chose meat or potatoes. We chose both. The meat was served with the oil in which to cook it with. The bread and potatoes was served with cheese...which had wine in it. Yum! We spent 2 & 1/2 hours here casually eating and drinking wine and talking with the people sitting next to us...who were on their honeymoon. I do love LOVE. This fondue restaurant was such a gem! We were so thrilled to have stumbled into this warm, quaint restaurant. Please do yourself a favor: visit Le Refuge Des Fondus.....if even to just drink wine out of a baby bottle in Paris!
Next up in Paris, I enjoyed a 5 course lunch at the bright and new restaurant, Capitaine. My sweet friend Willow, who lives in Paris & teaches yoga there, made us a reservation at this new upscale french cuisine restaurant owned by two brilliant female chefs. The food was incredible. It was light and filling all at the same time. It was beautiful and flavorful with incredible amounts of herbs and spices. We started with a few small bites: chicken wings and sardines.
The next course consisted of a cold fennel soup which was filled with lots of cream and Asian white turnip soaked in soy and a braised soy dollop on top.
The soup was incredible. One of the best things I have ever tasted in my life. It was bursting with rich coconut flavors. I was blown away. The entree was a white fish that was cooked perfectly. I’ve heard people describe delicious food as “melting in their mouths”. I’m not going to lie, this fish melted in my mouth. Like butter. It was the tastiest fish I’ve ever had! It was paired with pea shoots and baby carrots all drizzled in a rich buttery sauce.
Next up was dessert. Don’t even ask me how I could eat it. I was stuffed. When they laid the gorgeous dessert plates in front of us, believe it or not, my belly rumbled! We were served a light pastry with a mocha flavored mouse stuffed in the middle along side sorbet with rhubarb.
It was outstanding. I would never imagine pairing some of these items together but, this was by far the most incredible meal that I’ve had in a very long time. If you find yourself in Paris, please do yourself a favor and have a meal at Capitaine.
I know this post was long. I can’t even apologize. We had so many great meals! I just had to share in case any of you are traveling to Paris soon. I hope we can share memories of enjoying some meals at the same restaurants one day! Please, share your experience if you have been to any of these places or if you are planning to do so! I love hearing from you guys!
Au Revior.
Xoxo,
DeAnna
The Canadian Embassay Pub:
71 Boulevard Gouvion St-Cyr Paris, France 75017
Le Paradis:
76 Rue Saint-Martin
Paris, France 75004
Le Fefuge Des Fondus:
17 Rue des Trois Frères
Paris, France 75018
Capitaine:
4 Impasse Guéménée
Paris, France 75004
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