Paris Journal 2014 – Barbara Joy Cooley Home: barbarajoycooley.com
Find me on Facebook 2013
Paris Journal ← Previous Next
→ << Back to the beginning
|
The food market of Saint Germain opened for the week, after its usual Sunday afternoon/all-day Monday closing. It also closes for a long lunch hour every day, so at 4PM, at the end of our work day, we ventured out to the market for some gourmet supplies. Our typical round at the Marché Saint Germain includes at stop at the North African verger to buy bananas for Tom, and things like Romanescu for me. We also bought the makings for salad and a few figs. At the Sanders Fromagerie, we were recognized and remembered, which is heartwarming. We bought some fine Laguiole cheese as well as a little bit of Roquefort, and some orange juice and a half dozen eggs. As Tom got in line at the butcher stall, I went into the wine shop and bought a couple bottles. Tom bought a few slices of divine country ham, and a slice of country terrine. Tom decided to buy a baguette at the bakery across from the Saint Germain market, and so our food shopping for basics was completed. Clearly, we will not go hungry. The fridge is stocked. We were exhausted from lack of sleep, working, and shopping. So after a nap, it was time for the evening adventure. The metro was packed with people as we stood, riding swiftly back into the 15th arrondissement. After we exited the metro and before our dinner reservation, we had a little time, so we visited the FNAC Digitale and the Darty stores in the Beaugrenelle mall, just to see if we could find an inexpensive CD player that we could plug into the stereo in the apartment. Everything was too pricy for our temporary need, so we think we’ll just keep using the CD/DVD drive in Tom’s computer, hooked up to some speakers. We also visited the second kitchen/housewares store in the mall, just for fun. Then it was time to go. We met our friend Roy at LePario and had a lovely dinner. He had just returned to Paris from Cold Spring, NY, that morning, and today he goes off to a conference in Toulouse, then another conference somewhere else on Sunday, and then a conference having to do with his family’s history in Lithuania. Keeping such an itinerary is unimaginable to us! The food was all beautiful and delicious at LePario, but I did not photograph it because we were all so involved in our conversation. Much of the time we talked about Roy’s retirement. He isn’t really retiring, but is entering a phase where he won’t be teaching as much (in return for a reduced salary) but he will also begin drawing on social security in the coming years. I also asked Roy what he thought of the new Beaugrenelle mall. He said he hates it, and that his wife Barbara likes it. I explained that I think it is okay now, but I worry about what it will become. I explained my theory about tax laws and depreciation that encourages neglect, and he concurred that is likely one of the big problems, which also led to the decay of the former Beaugrenelle. He also is annoyed that the venture was built in part with taxpayer money, which, I noted, was also the case with the former Beaugrenelle. We shall see if history repeats itself. A pretty dish of snails with veggies was the starter course for Tom; and for me it was luscious lobster ravioli in bisque. Roy had three starter courses instead of a starter and main course. One of these was the delicious encornets (calamari). I had a main dish involving two kinds of cod (cabillaud, which is fresh, and morue, which is salted and in this case used in a stuffing for little cannelloni). Tom had delicious veal medallions in a rich sauce. Roy had the incredible poached pear with homemade caramel sauce for dessert, and Tom and I had the profiteroles with sinfully rich dark chocolate sauce. It was a veritable feast. LePario has become one of our most favorite Paris restaurants. We walked back part of the way with Roy, and then we said our farewells at the entrance to the Emile Zola metro station. When we arrived back at the apartment in the 6th, dear Elisabeth was having a talk with the literary critic about the volume of his television. Bless her! As a result, I slept well last night and feel great today. The publisher in New York has moved up the deadline for Tom’s next book, so we are plowing ahead, full steam. But we have another restaurant adventure with friends planned for this evening, so stay tuned!
|
Wednesday, September 10, 2014
Very different doors on the rue Monsieur le Prince.
Old door on the rue Antoine Dubois.
Costume and mask shop next to the Danton brasserie on the
Carrefour de l’Odéon.
|
