Paris Journal 2013 – Barbara Joy Cooley Home: barbarajoycooley.com
Find me on Facebook 2012
Paris Journal ← Previous Next
→ Back to the Beginning
|
We just experienced a bit
of amusing confusion about an event we’re attending tomorrow, on the occasion
of President Obama’s birthday. Our friend
Kim sent us an email saying she was organizing this photo op of Americans in
Paris at the Statue of Liberty at 4PM.
I wrote back that sure, we would be there, and I sent the message on
to other Americans I know in Paris. I assumed she meant the big
Statue of Liberty on the Seine, off the Pont de Grenelle, at one end of the
Allée des Cygnes. Wrong! She meant the smaller one in the Luxembourg
Gardens! I had to email everyone
again. So funny – to be confused
because there’s more than one Statue of Liberty in Paris! *** The breeze is back, and we
appreciate it. For a day and a half,
there was no wind whatsoever in Paris.
And it was hot. So hot. Then yesterday afternoon,
the awnings began to move again. The
air was moving, and it moved the pollution and the heat right out of the city
by 9PM. The stroll down the rue du
Commerce and the avenue Félix Faure was pleasant. It was about 7:45PM, and the air was still
warm and heavy, but noticably improving by the minute. We stopped briefly at the
Carrefour Express to buy a package of Carte Noire coffee for the
morning. The tall young man working
there could not have been nicer. He
set the tone for the entire evening:
very, very pleasant. When we arrived at Bistro 121,
we were given a table that I admired last time we were there – a table for
two in the window, but a larger-than-normal, rectangular size. No other tables were pushed too close to
it. It is luxurious to have such a
feeling of space in a Parisian restaurant. I sat on the banquette, and
Tom took the sturdy, comfortable leather-upholstered chair. We were completely at ease in this air
conditioned, cushy spot. Vegetable-lover that I am,
I’d been wanting to have a celeriac appetizer, and sure enough, Bistro 121
has one on the menu: remoulade de deux celeris, émietté de
tourteau aux pommes vertes. The
remoulade was indeed a bit spicy as it should be, and the celery root strips
were fresh and delicious. Tom and I
shared the dish. Then I ordered the dorade royale again (dorade royale grillée, tomate à l'écrasée
de pommes de terre et olives noires).
I had that main course on my first visit to Bistro 121 (July 20), and
liked it very, very much then. I wrote
then that the potatoes were the best puréed potatoes that I’d ever
consumed. That was until last
night. They were even better. And the dorade
was even better. Another glorious,
buttery, fish-and-potatoes dinner.
Heavenly. Tom ordered the roasted
pork flank again (as he did on July 23), and it was superb, too. We splurged and each
ordered a dessert. Mine was a lingot of rich, creamy, dark
chocolate, with a few raspberries, and a generous garnish of white chocolate
shavings. Tom’s was a café gourmand,
involving a sampling of small desserts and a good, strong, hot cup of
espresso. I appreciate the fact that
Bistro 121 offers a short but nice list of wine by the glass. Last night, I chose the sancerre blanc –
refreshing and delicious. The service was so friendly
and perfect; Tom and I feel very welcome there. The chef, the talented Eric Corailler, came
out to greet us. I asked him if it was
hot in the kitchen. He said yes “quarante cinq degres.” 45 degrees C is 113 degrees F. Mon
dieu! No wonder his brow was glistening. Tom asked if he had air
conditioning back there. Eric said
yes, but then he made a gesture indicating that it was worthless. How could it possibly keep up with the
grills, ovens, etc.? All I can say is that we
appreciate his heroic efforts so much.
Thank you Chef Eric! Before he took over Bistro
121, and after he’d been chef at the Sofitel La Defense, Eric was chef at the
Bistrot de Paris on the rue de Lille in the 7th
arrondissement. I think he’d also been
the chef at the Bistro des Vignes in the 16th arrondissement (rue
Jean Bologne). He’s five and a half
years younger than I am. According to the cadeaumalin.fr
web site, his credo is “choisir des
produits de saison et de grande qualité pour servir une cuisine
traditionnelle avec une pointe d'originalité.. ” (To
choose seasonal and high-quality products in order to serve traditional
cuisine with a touch of originality.) Well done! |
Saturday, August 3, 2013
The
Statue of Liberty in the Luxembourg Gardens (photo taken in September 2011).
The
celery-root remoulade, with freshly sautéed
croutons.
The
soft, tender, moist dorade royale,
with buttery, smooth puréed potatoes and a roasted tomato stuffed with a mixture
of black olive tapenade and more buttery, smooth puréed potatoes.
Pork
araignée.
Café
gourmand et lingot chocolat. |
