Paris Journal 2009 – Barbara Joy Cooley Home: barbarajoycooley.com
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We’ve been customers at Oh! Duo for twelve years now. The proprietors, Mr. & Mrs. Valero,
never seem to tire of being in the restaurant business. His food is always delicious and
innovative. Her reception is always
warm and friendly. Like many
Parisians, she loves to complain about the weather. Last night, we had fun disagreeing with her,
saying that no, the weather is now perfect. And it is. Highs are in the 70s. It rains a little bit here and there, which
keeps everything clean and fresh in the city. Because of the change in the
weather, we moved to the bigger apartment in the 15th. Well, we haven’t moved everything – just
the essentials, like computers and a change of clothes, etc. Later today, I suppose, we will move the
rest of our things. Tom’s son, Dan,
and our daughter-in-law Mary, will arrive on Saturday, and they’ll stay in
the apartment in the 6th, closer to all the things tourists love
to see and do. To commemorate the move, we
strolled down the avenue Emile Zola to dine at the Valero’s resto. On the way, we saw a touch of some of the
finished work that comprises the big Beaugrenelle urban renewal project. In so doing, we found a bank where we used
to buy newspapers on Sundays at the Place Charles Michel – a busy
intersection of five or six streets.. But just past that intersection,
we found a newspaper shop that was about to close for the day. The proprietor, a French man of Asian
origin, was most welcoming and willing to sell us papers which he’d already
bundled to give back to the distributer.
Many shopkeepers would not like this inconvenience, but he just was
pleased to see us and to take a few of our euros. So we bought our English and French
newspapers, and made our way across the street to the restaurant. In the spirit of the reduction
of the TVA tax, the Valero’s lowered the prices on several items, including
the two-course menu. It was 27 euros,
but now is 24. There is also an even less
expensive, three-course menu at 21 euros, but you have no choices. It is croustillant
de chevre with its own little salad for a starter, poached salmon and
puréed potatoes for the main course, and tarte
aux pommes (apple tart) for the dessert. That’s what Tom ordered. Upon hearing that the starter of the day
was a croustillant de foie gras with
its own little salad, and seeing that rabbit was still on the main carte, I decided I would have to go
with the 24-euro two-course dinner. Our starter courses arrived
looking very much the same, except that my croustillant was a tad larger and I had a bit more salad. The salads served with the croustillants were delightful. There was a bed of a few extremely thinly
sliced apples on the bottom, topped with a perfect mix of delicate greens and
a gentle but tasty vinaigrette. The croustillants were envelopes of flaky, tasty pastry, not unlike
the outside of the very best croissants, and inside mine, there was just the
right amount of foie gras – slices
of the real thing, not a paté. The rabbit was served in chunks
that were a bit smaller than golf balls.
There were no bones. The meat
was so tasty – it’s like the best of white chicken breast but with more
flavor, like the dark meat of a chicken.
It came with just a little bit of demi-glace. Chef Valero knows how to properly
and perfectly purée potatoes. His are
light and smooth, with not one little lump to be found. Tom’s
tarte aux pommes was perfect as
always. If you want a reliably good tarte aux pommes, this is your
place. But note: the Valero’s go on vacation for the last
week of July and first two weeks of August.
The restaurant will be closed then. I wonder why I haven’t yet
mentioned the Tour de France? We’ve
been watching it at the end of each day, not only because Lance is back, but
because our friend’s nephew is racing with the Garmin team. Our friend, Babe Vande Velde,
used to race a little himself, we think.
His brother was the real competitive bicycle racer. And now the brother’s son, Christian Vande
Velde, is a leader on the Garmin team. Babe’s great talent is playing
the saxophone, plus being such an amiable and good guy. Lance’s participation has added
more suspense to the Tour. Is he going
to win? When will he make his decisive
move? Will it be today? Or will his ancient age of almost 38 get
the better of him? We watch, and wait. The scenery is fantastic. I just love all those helicopter views of
charming French villages, medieval castles, grand chateaux, pleasant country
churches, and great cathedrals. Ah
France. |
Thursday, July 9, 2009
Kids
can ride ponies in the Luxembourg Gardens.
An
ultra-manicured flowerbed and hedge by the museum in the Luxembourg Gardens.
The
palm trees in the Luxembourg Gardens keep me from feeling homesick.
Café
in the Luxembourg Gardens.
Bumble
bees on flowers in the Luxembourg Gardens. Note: For addresses & phone numbers of
restaurants in this journal, click
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