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: 7am-8pm
Closed on Saturday, Sunday
Patric Roger is one of France’s finest chocolatiers—he has been awarded the Meilleur Ouvrier de France (MOF) title in 2000 and is systematically amongst France’s top ten chocolate artisans of the year.
Patric Roger is known for his extravagant chocolate sculptures that are a total delight for the eyes. He is a must-see and must-try. Aside from his top-of-the-line treats and entertaining sculptures (I’m crazy about the “Allegory”—a caramelized almond, orange and grape chocolate candy, and the “Cuzco”—almond nougatine chocolate candy), what I love about Patrick Roger are his opening hours—they are as straightforward as can be. The hours are the same everyday in every boutique. And this, believe me, is very refreshing in the land of awfully puzzle-like and debilitating store opening hours!
Check out Patrick Roger’s website to see his chocolate creations and have a look-see at his portrait… it’s worth the detour.
Patrick Roger
Patrick Roger 6th arrondissement
108 Boulevard Saint-Germain
75006 Paris
tel: 01.43.29.38.42
Metro: Odéon, Cluny - La Sorbonne
M-Sat: 10.30am-7.30pm
Closed on Sunday
91 Rue de Rennes
75006 Paris
tel: 01.45.44.66.13
Metro: Rennes
M-Sat: 10.30am-7.30pm
Closed on Sunday
Patrick Roger 8th arrondissement
199 Rue du Faubourg Saint-Honoré
75008 Paris
8th arrondissement
tel: 01.45.61.11.46
Metro Charles de Gaule - Etoile, Ternes
M-Sat: 10.30am-7.30pm
Closed on Sunday
Patrick Roger 16th arrondissement
45 Avenue Victor Hugo
75016 Paris
tel: 01.45.01.66.71
Metro: Charles de Gaule - Etoile, Ternes
M-Sat: 10.30am-7.30pm
Closed on Sunday
I will take the metro at dawn and endure the early morning dense crowd for croissants from Le Triomphe, even if some of Paris’ croissants voted “best of” can be found a few blocks away from my place. They are what I would call the quintessential Parisian croissants and Le Triomphe makes them how I like them best: no fancy sweet glaze on top, flaky on the outside, doughy inside, buttery but not greasy, just the right texture and flavor. It’s this kind of croissant that makes a Frenchman homesick when he is away from the motherland and has a tourist rush to a bakery on his arrival to France. Le Triomphe pastry shop has three stores, two in Paris (I went to the one in the 20th arrondissement) and one right outside of the city limits. I tried some of their pastries too and they are absolutely delightful. I will go back for more of those too. Thank you A. & D. for pointing me in the right direction.
Le Triomphe
Le Triomphe 20th arrondissement
95 Rue d’Avron
75020 Paris
tel: 01.43.73.24.50
Metro: Maraîchers
Tu-Sat: 7.30am-7.30pm
Sun: 7.30am-7pm
Closed on Monday
Le Triomphe 12th arrondissement
23 Rue du Rendez-Vous
75012 Paris
tel: 01.40.02.08.79
Metro: Picpus
Tu-F: 8am-2pm / 4pm-7.30pm
Sat: 8am-7.30pm
Sun: 8am-2pm
Closed on Monday
Le Triomphe Vincennes
117 Avenue de Paris
94160 Saint Mande
tel: 01.43.28.03.16
Metro: Saint-Mandé
Tu-Th: 9am-2pm / 4pm-8pm
F, Sat: 9am-8pm
Sun: 9am-1pm
Closed on Monday
At Goût, Thé et… Chocolat on rue d’Aligre you’ll find a careful selection of chocolates, dark and milk pralinés or ganache made by France’s finest artisans. The chocolates that are for sale in this tiny shop are by a select few such as Rémi Henry, Hubert Masse or Fabrice Gillotte who won the Meilleur Ouvrier de France (MOF) title, which is the highest title given to an artisan for the quality of his work in his trade. Do not leave Goût, Thé et… Chocolat without a box of Fabrice Gillotte’s new creation (Fall 2009): Aquacao—a selection of dark ganache squares each made with cacao from four different origins (Venezuela, Peru, Colombia and Ecuador) and filled with a cocoa-bean-infused jelly. And while you are at it, grab one of Fabrice Gillotte’s Christmas creations: a dark or milk chocolate praliné Christmas tree. It doesn’t look like anything, aesthetically speaking, but I guess the energy that didn’t go into making it look pretty went into making it taste like you are a kid again and if you don’t get your chocolate Christmas tree you are going to have a fit! It’s that addictive.
There are also other sweet things such as artisanal ice-creams and sorbets by Mr Phoenix who only sells to reputable restaurants, macarons, tuiles au chocolat, dragées, cheesecake… If they are selling the dark chocolate-covered hazelnuts with cocoa powder on top when you stop by, try them!
If you are looking for high end chocolates in the 12th arrondissement, this is the place to go to.
In the same neighborhood, check out Les Crus du Soleil for great wines at an unbeatable price, Sur Les Quais for some delectable tapenades or La Graineterie du Marché for a one-of-a-kind picturesque dry goods store.
Goût, Thé et… Chocolat
13 Rue d’Aligre
75012 Paris
tel: 01.43.40.34.45
Metro: Ledru-Rollin, Faidherbe-Chaligny
Tu-F: 9.30am-1.30pm / 3pm-8pm (4pm-7.30pm in August)
Sat: 9am-8pm
Sun: 9am-2pm
Closed on Monday
When I feel like eating a hamburger I head straight for Café Charlot in the Marais, right across the street from the Marché des Enfants Rouges, on rue de Bretagne. Here it is served with the right kind of bread, a soft sesame seed bun, a perfectly cooked burger (medium-rare by default), with everything it should have inside, and crispy French fries. It’s actually a cheeseburger and it costs €15. For the same price you can also order a delicious, and organic, chicken burger, also served with fries. Among the other gourmet sandwiches are the BLT, the hot sandwich Charlot (cheese, beef and grilled onions served on a french roll) and Café Charlot’s own take on the classic croques: le croque jeune homme and le croque jeune fille.
That’s for the sandwich section, there are also some classic French dishes a la carte such as bavette à l’echalotte or swordfish steak served with green beans. Aside from the food, the service is amicable and fast. If you stand out and like to be noticed you are more likely to be stared at, just as much as you can entertain yourself checking out the very Parisian crowd that itself cries for attention!
Other good places in the neighborhood that I recommend are Rose Bakery (another “trendy” place) and Breizh Café (a refreshing bowl of down-to-earthness!)
Café Charlot
38 Rue de Bretagne
75003 Paris
tel: 01.44.54.03.30
Metro: Filles du Calvaire
7/7
M-Sun: 7am-2am (Food is served all day until 12am)
Au Vieux Chêne is a typical French bistro serving traditional food. The restaurant owners are against intensive agricultural practices and the ingredients they use are seasonal to ensure freshness and quality. The food is delicious, whether it be the plate of charcuterie (16€), the suckling lamb shoulder for two, served with a perfect gratin dauphinois and some mixed greens (48€/2 people) or the monkfish cheeks on a bed of buttery spinach that melts in your mouth (24€). “A meal without wine is like a day without sun” says a sign on one of the restaurant’s walls. At Au Vieux Chêne the wines and the Champagnes are excellent and very reasonably priced (wines go from 14€ to 120€ a bottle). Whether simple or elaborate, the dishes are always carefully crafted. For a less expensive meal try their lunch menu: 14€ (appetizer+main dish or main dish+dessert) or 17€ (appetizer+main dish+dessert), and respectively 28€ or 33€ for dinner menus.
For dinner, I recommend making a reservation.
Au vieux Chêne
7 Rue du Dahomey
75011 Paris
tel: 01.43.71.67.69
Metro: Faidherbe-Chaligny
M-F: 12pm-2pm / 8pm-10.30pm
Closed on Saturday and Sunday
Bonjour Vietnam in Paris is the place for really good Vietnamese food in Paris.
The restaurant has only 4 tables (2 for two and 2 for four)! You can make a reservation if you want to make sure you have a table.
Recently a few changes have been made to the menu and the prices went up a bit, but the quality is the same: top of the line. Make sure you order the Bo Bun—the best I’ve had so far (12€), the summer roll (beef roll for 12€) the Vietnamese pork crêpes (8€) and the ravioli (awesome).
Bonjour Vietnam
6 Rue Thouin
75005 Paris
tel: 01 43 54 78 04
Metro: Cardinal Lemoine
Mon-Sat: 11.30am-3pm / 4.30pm-10pm
Closed on Sunday
There’s an annex to this restaurant, same owner, same food, different cook (not always as good as the one on Rue Thouin) at:
Bonjour Vietnam
85 Rue du Cardinal Lemoine
75005 Paris
tel: 01.82.11.60.93
Metro: Place Monge, Cardinal Lemoine
Tues-Sun: 11.30am-3pm / 4.30pm-10pm
Closed on Monday
Pozzetto has some of the best pistachio gelato I’ve tried in Paris, it’s made from Sicilian pistachios and absolutely no artificial flavoring. The gelatos and sorbets are made daily for freshness, with the best fresh milk and/or seasonal fruit. There are only 12 flavors at a time, so that each one can be given all the attention it deserves. At Pozzetto they won’t ask you how many scoops you’d like and then charge you by the scoop. Here they do it Italian style: they fill up your cone or cup with a spatula and you can ask for as many flavors as you want!
Pozzetto’s espresso drinks are delicious too. A pleasant surprise in Paris where most espressos will make the inside of your mouth cringe and make you walk around with a contorted facial expression afterward.
What I also like very much about this place is that, you know when you get that craving late in the evening and everything else is closed, well Pozzetto’s there for you!
Pozzetto
39 Rue du Roi de Sicile
75004 Paris
tel: 01.42.77.08.64
Metro: Saint-Paul
21 Rue de Levis
75017 Paris
tel: 01.42.77.08.64
Metro: Villiers
7/7
M: 12pm-11pm
Tues-Sun: 11am-11pm
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