Barbara Joy Cooley's Paris Journal

Paris Journal 2015 – Barbara Joy Cooley Home: barbarajoycooley.com

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Tom noticed it first. I missed it, thinking it was just another little metal barrier for some work being done beneath the rue du Theatre.

But this metal barrier wasn’t for infrastructure work. It was walling off the scene of a terrible automobile fire. The charred, skeletal remains of the vehicle were still there, as well as a stretch of pavement covered in ash and charred wood. The exposed wood parts of the adjacent building façade were also charred, and in places, burned away. The metal roll-down shutter was in place and not marked, so at the time of the fire, I think it must have been rolled up in the ceiling of the workshop.

The workshop is a mechanic’s garage, so we assume that the fire was an accident, and that it started in some damaged car that had been brought in, perhaps smoking, for repair.

That the fire was fierce enough to jump across the sidewalk and seriously damage the building was frightening. I hope nobody was hurt in the blaze.

There was no crime scene tape and there are no news stories in the local papers about the fire, so we don’t know any more to say, except that it was recent, and it was bad.

After a considerable pause, we walked on up to the Place Cambronne and onward to the Place de Fontenoy, where I took a photo of my favorite side of the École Militaire (Military School). This is the side facing UNESCO, not the side facing the Champ de Mars where the Eiffel Tower is also located.

UNESCO and the École Militaire are the two nearest important “landmarks” to the apartment where we stay every summer. Both Tom and I remember reading about UNESCO in My Weekly Reader when we were kids in school. Its significance as an international organization made an impression on us, and we like the idea of living nearby.

I also like the École Militaire for its stately elegance on this Place de Fontenoy side. This side of the school has been restored almost entirely; one area on the left still has some scaffolding and canvas in place.

Now if somebody would just take responsibility for the landscape between these two institutions, it would be a lovely spot on the Paris map. But neither the arrondissement, nor the city, nor the national government, nor UNESCO seem to care. So instead, this place is a barren desert.

After passing through the dessert, we were on our way to the avenue Breteuil, where we paused to admire the golden dome of the church of Saint-Louis des Invalides.

We continued on past the Place du President and the imposing church of St. François Xavier to the beginning of the rue Babylone. This long stretch in the heart of the 7^th arrondissement took us past the back of the grand garden of the Hotel Matignon (headquarters of the Prime Minister) and the walled garden of Catherine Labouré, a public park that is popular among 7^th arrondissement kids – a fortunate bunch!

Then we reached our goal: the famous old department store, Bon Marché, born in 1852 when Aristide Boucicaut became a partner in what had been a novelty shop. The French claim Bon Marché was the world’s first department store, but that really is not true. The first department store was started one year before that, in 1851, by Simon Lazarus in Columbus, Ohio.

Both Boucicaut and Lazarus greatly and rapidly increased the profits earned by their stores, and greatly grew their businesses.

Tom and I were in the Bon Marché’s Grand Epicerie (gourmet grocery) last year, and I’ve been reading little bits and pieces about planned improvements for the store in recent years. But we were not prepared for what we experienced when we entered the department store from the rue de Babylone at the rue de Bac.

An elegantly dressed security guard was checking larger handbags and knapsacks as people entered the store. The entrance was bright and uncluttered; it led to a vast interior of spacious, well-lit, modern and elegant boutique spaces. The merchandise was all top-of-the-line. This was far, far different from the frumpy and cluttered Bon Marché department store that we remembered.

We walked all around the entire ground floor, then the first and second floors. We missed the basement level, which I now know is where the massive renovation began, in 2012.

The final part of the renovation occurred just since last summer, and was completed in December 2014, when the store hosted a huge party to celebrate. This final part was the Grand Epicerie building, at the rue de Bac and the rue de Sevres. The two buildings are connected by a skywalk over the rue de Bac.

The Grand Epicerie now glistens with light, and has an elaborate set of escalators in the middle. The escalators go up to a level where there is a fine restaurant, and another level that is a home accessories department. It seemed like almost all the home accessories are modern in style, except for some of the china and glassware.

The Epicerie itself has been rearranged and spiffed up with lovely shelving that is reminiscent of old fashioned groceries, but is really much, much nicer.

The old Bon Marché didn’t impress us much; but the new Bon Marché certainly does. Hats off to LVMH, the owners of the store.

We bought a couple bottles of cold Arizona Iced Tea in the Epicerie and took them out to the Square Boucicault for a break before walking back to the apartment (about 45 minutes each way). The Square is a leafy park, with very mature trees. It is heavily used by the neighborhood and by shoppers. The trash receptacles were stuffed with bags and packages from the Grand Epicerie.

Back at the apartment, we rested, watched the Tour de France, and got ready for a dinner we’ve been anticipating. I’d reserved a table at l’Alchimie, and we were hungry.

The chef, Eric Rogoff, greeted us and remembered us absolutely. We had a pleasant chat with him, about our summer plans (his and ours). He gave us our choice of tables, and presented us with complimentary champagne.

We ordered the foie gras to start. Eric knew we were going to share it, so he beautifully divided it up and presented it to us on two separate plates. That was incredibly nice.

Eric has a way of lacquering foie gras with interesting things. One year, it was dark chocolate. That may sound strange, but trust me, it was wonderful. This year, it was a confiture made from melon and port. And that was really good, too.

The little salad that accompanied the foie gras was deceptively simple looking. But it was very fresh and had just a dash of a really fine vinaigrette. Delicious.

We each ordered the duckling, which was the best I’ve had in a very long time. It was rosy and juicy, and yet just firm enough. It sat in a pool of rich, fruity sauce, and was accompanied by a potato and vegetable composition that was all very delicious.

We ordered one apricot tart to share for dessert, but Eric brought us two. What a generous and kind man he is.

By the time we left, there were several other tables occupied in the little restaurant. I’m glad, because we want Eric to live long and prosper, there at l’Alchimie, where he transforms ordinary, good food into gourmet wonders.

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Sunday, July 19, 2015