Restaurants in the 15th Arrondissement

One thing about visiting Paris during the holiday season

is the inevitable restaurant closures in our neighborhood. 

So this visit we returned to a place we haven't been in far too long:

Restaurant de la Tour.

Located close to the Tour Eiffel

(thus the name)

it is owned and run by Chef Cedric Robert

and his wife Carine Robert. 

We went for their lovely New Year's Eve dinner

and to say hello after too long away.

One of my favorite things in Paris is Foie Gras.

I know I shouldn't love it but...

can't help myself. 

We devoured our main courses. 

Not even time for pictures.

And the desserts were as divine as they looked. 

With one of the restaurants we wanted to go being closed,

we finally tried a small bistro close to home for lunch

that we've spent years walking past. 

The Bistro Dupleix is just steps from us

and, while basic traditional French food,

served a perfectly delicious lunch. 

Gotta love the French's idea of a salad,

like this one covered with potatoes, ham, egg and cheese. 

And there's nothing better than sitting and watching 

the French world go by. 

Restaurant de la Tour

6, rue Desaix

75015 Paris

+33 1. 43.06.04.24

Bistro Dupleix

62, Blvd de Grenelle

75015 Paris

+33 1.45.77.24.96

(All Photos copyright: Kirsten Steen)

Novel Setting & Deep Breathing

It's been a rough week here in the US

with the hearings (don't even want to say his name) for the Supreme Court nominee,

 feelings of frustration and betrayal along party lines, fear and anxiety among women,

the list goes on and on. Emotions are high. Women are trying to stand together

and at the same time, I'm seeing some very reactive behavior. 

Me included. 

Anybody else wake up in the mornings with just a tad bit of anxiety?! 

Maybe even more than usual?!

Sometimes I wake with the feeling that I just can't do what's expected on this planet. 

And I don't have what you would call a high stress life,

especially after my injury put me out of work. 

But the feeling is still there, like I'm not meant for this place and have no idea

how to navigate what must be waded through.  

It feels like it's sometimes too much for my brain to comprehend. 

Luckily, it's my writing day

so I'm retreating into my novel

where many of those above feelings are still located 

but my job is only to help my characters navigate

and try to make the language work as smoothly as I can. 

The photo above is the Prior's Table Restaurant 

(within a 12th century Cistercian abbey in the French countryside 

called Abbaye des Vaux de Cerney) 

where my love interests meet and set up their first date. 

I'm in my final read through before sending out 

to my last round of readers. 

Wishing you a good week

and hoping whatever you are navigating 

is nothing but smooth sailing. 

Be sure to take deep breaths and 

hold someone's hand if needed! 

I'm here if you need me. 

For more photos and info on the Abbaye, 

Click Here

(Photo copyright: Kirsten Steen)

Restaurant Le Montparnasse 1900... encore

I ran across some lovely photos yesterday

of the restaurant Le Montparnasse 1900. 

And of course I was missing Paris as soon as I spotted them.

The magnificent decor is of early 1900's Paris.

It originally opened in 1858 with its first renovation in 1906

giving it its Art Nouveau beauty,

then renovated again in 1924 and most currently, 

nearly 100 years later, in 2003.

Its stunning interior is worth the price of admission,

typical Brasserie fare

serving many of the most traditional French dishes like

Steak Tartare, Foie Gras, Soup a l'oignon, Escargot and more. 

My mouth is watering just writing the words. 

If you'd like to see the original post 

with more photos,

click Here.

For the website with a full gallery of photos of the interior

and the menu, 

Le Montparnasse 1900. 

(Photo copyright: Kirsten Steen)

Nos Ancetres les Gaulois

When we first started coming to Paris many moons ago,

we were taken to a fun little place on the Ile St. Louis

called Nos Ancetres les Gaulois. 

By Paris standards, it would be called simple food

but it is fun for the buck (er...euro). 

The interior is a step back in time

to Our Gaul Ancestors.

You are led to bulky wooden tables and chairs

lined together and set family-style.

The floors and walls are rough stone,

ancient tools hanging nearby 

and timbered ceilings add to the medieval atmosphere. 

For a fixed price (now 40 euros),
you are given a small pitcher (pichet)
and directed to the wine cask
filled with a red Bordeaux
to refill as often and as much as you like. 

The starter is a basket of fresh veggies (crudites)
with a paring knife at your place setting...
and a small buffet holds several French salads
like the carrot rappee, julienned celeriac and piles of saucisson.

A waiter takes your meat order,
beef, lamb or chicken cooked in the nearby wood-fired, stone fireplace.
A cheese plate ends every French meal
as well as a seasonal fruit basket,
 dessert and coffee.

And while you eat,
a festive and raucous wandering troubadour
will produce any song requested,
for the price of a glass of wine from your pichet,
  and have the entire restaurant singing...in many different languages.

Started as a poetry and song club in 1969 in a medieval cellar,
the restaurant now includes 7 rooms and 300 seats
all situated in the very heart of where Paris began centuries ago.
Step back in time with a medieval experience
for the modern day traveler.


Click Here to see inside. 

Hover over the photo,

then left click and move around the room. 

Nos Ancetres les Gaulois

39, Rue Saint- Louis en I'lle

75004 Paris France

33.1.46.33.66.07

Open every day from 7pm-1am
Now also lunch 12-3.


(Photo copyright: Kirsten Steen)

L'Etoile Venitienne

Just a photo today. 

Have been AWOL quite a bit lately on my blog

so thought I'd at least give you a little eye candy while I'm working on the next post. 

This is a restaurant we met my sister at for lunch during our most recent visit. 

Sadly I did not get any indoor photos which had a fun 

mirror picture of the canals of Venice. 

We were recently in New York for a wedding

and will soon have a post with photos of that trip. 

Til then, Happy Monday! 

*********

L'Etoile Venitienne

20, Avenue Kleber

75116 Paris

33.1.45.00.68.19

Metro: Kleber on the 6 Line

(Photo copyright: Kirsten Steen)

Our Favorite Corner of Paris

A trip to Paris is never complete 

without a visit to our favorite corner not far from Notre Dame. 

And our favorite little eatery. 

I've posted before about La Reserve de Quasimodo

which serves old French favorites

and does them well. 

Their bread is from one of Paris' finest boulangeries

using the old style of baking. 

And a separate entrance leads into their wine shop. 

The view looks out on

 Paris' magificent Hotel de Ville 

right across the Seine. 

And just around the corner,

sits another building claiming to be one of the oldest in Paris. 

All decked out for Noel

including Bethlehem polar bears. 

Paris is always beautiful

but even more so at Christmas! 

Next time I'll have more photos of a walk on the other side of this bridge

and the church of St. Louis. 

(Photos copyright:Kirsten Steen)

Vivaldi Concert at La Sainte Chapelle Church in Paris

Enfin!! Finally! 

I'm here...I'm back...

from Paris

and the holidays! 

I do hope you had a joyous holiday season. 

Our first set of photos from this most recent visit to Paris

is to the royal medieval Gothic chapel of

La Sainte Chapelle.

For the 23rd anniversary of our first date

on the 23rd of December,

I decided rather than spending a huge amount on a fancy restaurant,

the Chef and I should see a concert in a cathedral

and then have a nice dinner nearby. 

I've always wanted to see one of these cathedral concerts

so this was the perfect day...and excuse. 

But it was COLD! 

A friend had warned me:

Bundle up! 

It will be cold. 

But a magnificent backdrop

for such exquisite music. 

Vivaldi's Four Seasons.  

These beautiful angels hovered just next to me as I listened.

And religious figures stood nearby. 

Even the floors are colorful and exquisite.

Adam and Eve grace the exterior doors on the way out. 

And the ancient church spire

hovers under a darkened sky. 

The church, located on the Ile de la Cite,

was commissioned by Louis IXth 

to hold his Passion Relics

one of which was to be the Crown of Thorns. 

The church itself was opened in 1248. 

Sainte Chapelle is most known, among other things,

for being the largest collection of 13th century stained glass windows anywhere.

(See first photos above for a small sampling.)

It was my 3rd visit to this special church

and I never tire of it. 

Next time, I hope to see a concert there in the summer! 

***********

From the church, we made our way to the restaurant L'Absinthe,

quoted as a 'neo-retro bistro'.

A little Paris, a little New York,

the restaurant is run by Caroline Rostang,

daughter of the famous Michel Rostang.

I wish I'd gotten some shots of the interior

but you can see photos by clicking the link below. 

We sipped bubbly 

(in memory of our very first bubbly together on that first date)

and had a fabulous meal just near the clock. 

I highly recommend it. 

Thanks for coming along 

for the first of many photos of our recent time in Paris!

(All photos copyright: Kirsten Steen)

**********************

La Sainte Chapelle

8, rue Blvd. du Palais,

75001, Paris, France

33.1.53.40.60.80

L'Absinthe (Paris)

24, Place du Marche Saint Honore

75001 Paris France

01.49.26.90.04

Brasserie Suffren and Exhibit at the Musee Maillol

One of the things I'm looking forward to while in Paris 

(THIS TIME NEXT WEEK!!)

is hitting some of my favorite eateries

and a few ART exhibitions! 

The Brasserie Suffren sits right on the corner 

(of La Motte Picquet and Avenue de Suffren)

at one of the entrances to the park of the Champs de Mars, 

the break between the 15th and 7th arrondissements. 

It boasts a beautiful Fruits de Mer plateau (seafood platter)

and a mean Soupe a l'Oignon.

It's a short walk from home

and I'm looking forward to sitting in their rouge decor, 

sipping something bubbly with the same gentleman waiters who never leave

and watching the people go by while waiting for some fabulous food. 

And across the park in the 7th arrondissement at the Musee Maillol

is an exhibit on the art collection of the Borgias, 

from Michelangelo and Da Vinci to Bellini and Raphael.

I don't know about you but I watched every episode of 

The Borgias I could get my hands on. 

Interesting to see what they collected.

Will see if I can get photos. 

A tout a l'heure. 

*********

'Les Borgias et leur temps'

runs from Sept. 17, 2014 to Feb. 15, 2015.

 Musee Maillol 

61, rue de Grenelle

7th arrondissement

Metro: Rue de Bac

Open: Mon/Wed/Thurs/Sat/Sun 10:30am- last adm 6:15pm.

Friday 10:30am-9:30pm -(last adm 8:45)

(Photo copyright: Kirsten Steen)

Food Writers Panel Discussion at The American Library in Paris

This Tuesday October 14th, 2014, at 19:30, Food Writers Clotilde Dusoulier and Alexander Lobrano will discuss writing about food in France, food trends and restaurant reviewing as well as their most recent books.

Clotilde Dusoulier's latest book, Edible French: Tasty Expressions and Cultural Bites, goes into the meaning behind fifty of the French's popular food-related expressions. It makes perfect sense to me that the French use food to express the idiosyncrasies of life and she delves into the history of many of them.  Dusolier is also a Travel Writer and Food Trend Consultant (Wait! What? I want that job!!) and the creator of the immensely popular food blog,  Chocolateandzucchini  which includes her books, Paris favorites, travels and recipes. And her September Favorites includes who makes the best Pain au chocolat in Paris. 

Alexander Lobrano is a food and travel writer for some of the biggest name publications out there, living in Paris since 1986. And from his website, I learned that in the early-morning hours after this discussion, he will depart Paris to launch his California book tour with his newest book: Hungry for France, hitting San Diego, LA, SF, Napa and Larkspur. I also learned (his opening webpage is blog-style) about what he calls 'The best new restaurant of La Rentree (Fall Season)' which happens to be just across the river from us in the 16th: Restaurant Pages. My mouth is still dewy from the photos and descriptions of the elegant and delectable dishes posted. Thank you, M. Lobrano! Can't wait to try this new restaurant. 

This is definitely one discussion at the ALP I wish I wasn't missing! 

***********************************************

The American Library in Paris  is located at:

10, rue du General Camou
(Just off the Champs de Mars and the Eiffel Tower)

75007 Paris, France

• Tel. +33 (0)1 53 59 12 60

http://www.americanlibraryinparis.org/ 

Tu-Sat: 10-19:00, Sun: 13:00-19:00