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Du Pain et Des Idées in Paris: A treasure of a bakery.
It is true what they say, Christophe Vasseur’s caramelized apple tartelette is to die for. It is simply the best one I’ve had—it probably came out of the oven a little before I bought it because it was still warm and that only added to my one-of-a-kind experience of apple tartelette consumption. It’s funny how some rather trivial things in life can change the course of your day. I think I will forever associate that part of the 10th arrondissement with Du Pain et Des Idées bakery.
Christophe Vasseur is passionate about his trade. At 30 years old he left the corporate world to become the renown baker that he is; he opened his bakery Du Pain et Des Idées in 2002 and was elected Meilleur Boulanger de Paris 2008 (Best Baker of Paris) by Gault & Millau.
At Du Pain et Des Idées all of the breads and pastries are made the most traditional way (here a baguette is made in seven hours as opposed to the average hour and half) and with the best ingredients (only fresh seasonal fruits are used for the pastries.) Three-Michelin-star chef Alain Passard says of Christophe Vasseur’s Le Pain des Amis that it is the best he’s had.
Du Pain et Des Idées
34 Rue Yves Toudic
75010 Paris
tel: 01.42.40.44.52
Metro: Jacques Bonsergent, République
M-F: 6.45am-8pm
Closed on Saturday, Sunday
How to get to and from Paris and its’ airports (CDG & Orly).
Traveling to and from Paris-Charles de Gaulle airport by train:
-TGV, Thalys or Mainline rail services
-RER B
Traveling to and from Paris-Charles de Gaulle airport by bus:
-RoissyBus
-350 bus
-351 bus
-Air France Buses
-Noctilien (Night bus)
Traveling to and from Paris-Charles de Gaulle airport by taxi:
-Taxi
Traveling to and from Paris-Orly airport by train:
-RER C (then airport shuttle from and to the RER C station Pont de Rungis Aéroport d’Orly) and RER B (then airport shuttle Orlyval from and to the RER B station Anthony.)
Traveling to and from Paris-Orly airport by bus:
-Orlybus
-Bus 183
-Bus 285
-Air France Buses (line 1, line 2, line 3)
Traveling to and from Paris-Orly airport by taxi:
-Taxi
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Zef in Paris: Casual chic clothing for children.
Chic and fashionable Parisians dress their kids in Zef clothes. Designer Mariu De Andreis, the daughter of Italian fashion photographer Paolo Roversi, captures the perfect French bobo (bourgeois-bohème) look for her line of kids’ clothing Zef. The quality of fabrics, the elegant patterns, the ethnic touch, the casual yet sophisticated clothes definitely set this brand apart. It is classic and hip, timeless and modern. Sizes range from new born to 12 year’s old.
Also, the accessories are very tasteful and I can easily imagine grown ups shopping for themselves at Zef!
Zef 1st arrondissement
32 Rue de Richelieu
75001 Paris
tel: 01.42.60.61.04
Metro: Pyramides, Palais-Royal - Musée du Louvre
M-Sat: 11am-7pm (closed for half an hour at lunch)
Closed on Sunday
zef 3rd arrondissement
15 Rue Debelleyme
75003 Paris
tel: 01.42.76.09.65
Metro: Saint-Sébastien - Froissart
7/7
M, Sun: 2pm-7pm
Tu-Sat: 11am-7pm
zef & zef piccolo, espace naissance 6th arrondissement
55 bis Rue des Saint-Pères
75006 Paris
tel: 01.42.22.02.93 / 45.22
Metro: Saint-Germain-des-Près
M-Sat: 10.30am-7pm
Closed on Sunday
zef, espace Printemps Haussmann 9th arrondissement
64 Boulevard Haussmann
75009 Paris
tel: 01.42.82.50.00
Metro: Havre-Caumartin
M-Sat: 9.35am-8pm (open until 10pm on Thursday)
Closed on Sunday
zef 16th arrondissement
93 avenue Kléber
75016 Paris
tel: 01.45.53.55.89
Metro: Trocadéro
M: 2pm-7pm
Tu-Sat: 10.30am-7pm
Closed on Sunday
Emmaüs Défi in Paris: A second hand furniture store (and much more.)
L’ Abbé Pierre—a French priest praised as a living legend for devoting his life to helping the homeless—bought a place in 1945 and turned it into a homeless shelter. He called it Emmaüs. Aside from offering shelter, Emmaüs is also a chain of stores, similar to Goodwill and the Salvation Army, that relies on donations* of clothes, quality furniture and household goods from the public. The Emmaüs Défi store in the 14th arrondissement is huge and sells affordable goods donated by Parisians, spanning from records and books to clothing, furniture, electronics, jewelry, paintings and much more. This store is only open for shopping on Saturdays.
Emmaüs Défi
80 Boulevard Jourdan
75014 Paris
tel: 01.45.43.37.82/01.45.43.95.28
Metro: Porte d’Orléans
Sat: 10am-6pm
*For donations, drop off and/or collect times are:
Tu-F: 3pm-6pm
Violette and Co: A bookstore for girls, tomboys and their friends.
Violette and Co is an 850 square foot space dedicated to books about women, lesbians and the rest of the queer community. It’s a breath of fresh air in a city where a guy on a motorcycle feels the need to comment about two women holding hands as he is riding by (and pass for a douchebag); in a city where four men in a car will have the urge to laugh at two women holding hands on the street (while definitely making fools of themselves); in a city where pimply teenagers will insult two women embracing each other on a sidewalk (ignorance is such a plague.) Finding essays and studies about the gay community is particularly refreshing when you want to offer, let’s say, informative literature about homo-parenting to a parent with some internalized homophobia.
Violette and Co sells novels, essays, thrillers, art books, comic books, magazines, books for youths, CDs and DVDs. The bookstore also hosts book signings, book readings, debates and exhibitions.
Violette and Co
102 Rue de Charonne
75011 Paris
tel: 01.43.72.16.07
Metro: Charonne
Tu-Sat: 11am-8.30pm
Sun: 2pm-7pm
Closed on Monday