Au Revoir, Paris!

It was our last day in Paris today, and I am sad to leave, but eager to get home to my dogs, my routine, and my morning smoothies. This eagerness didn't stop me, however, from enjoying lots of Parisian food today.

The first food I purchased today was from a small grocery store. I bought some clementines for myself and the slightly-less-sick Man of Science. For some reason that I will probably never understand, the elderly French grocer insisted that in addition to my clementines I take one free leek. One free leek that will likely go unused, since I'm pretty sure I can't bring foreign vegetables back into Canada with me tomorrow. Bummer.

Lunch was falafel yet again. I bought this round from one of the bogglingly plentiful fast food places that are just around the corner from the Shakespeare and Company bookstore.



There are three or four streets full of fast food places, each with it's own pushy proprietor standing out front shouting, "Bonjour Mademoiselle!" and "Comment ca va, ma belle!" attempting to get you the eat at their establishments. I was looking for the famed Maoz Falafels, but unfortunately I couldn't find it and ordered some falafal sandwiches from a different place instead. They were all right. Nothing spectacular.

But dinner! Oh, dinner. I checked online to see if there was a vegetarian place that we hadn't tried yet and we selected Le Potager De Marais. Good choice! It was the best meal I've had all week. It was just the Man of Science and I because the Parents of Science left this morning. It was a cosy, romantic little restaurant, just a quick walk away from our apartment. Parfait!



I was impressed by how many vegan (and gluten free) dishes they had on their menu. Though I did notice that dishes were only marked "vegan" and "gluten free" on the English version of the menu. Perhaps French people just don't care. At any rate, the menu was great. Small and not overwhelming, but with a good variety of choices. For our appetizers, I chose the mushroom pate and the Man of Science had the seaweed tartar. Both totally vegan and, I think, gluten free.



I loved the mushroom pate. I tried a bit of the seaweed tartar and did not like it, but that is likely because I do not generally like the taste of seaweed. "It tastes like I'm eating the beach," I told the Man of Science, who happily gobbled up his beachy appetizer, clearly enjoying the seaweed more than I did.

For our main courses, I chose the seitan bouguignon, largely in deference to Julia Child. I'm not going to eat the classic beefy French version, but I was happy to order the vegan version.



The Man of Science had something called a "tartiflette" which was made with smoked, deep fried tofu and melted cheese. He loved it a whole lot. I haven't heard him that happy with a dish the whole time we've been here. It did look pretty great, and I tried a little piece of the tofu, which was very flavourful.

There were quite a few excellent sounding vegan desserts on the menu, most of which were also gluten free, so I really couldn't resist an order of flourless vegan chocolate cake with almond cream.



It was supremely delicious. And made with chestnut flour. Chestnut flour!? Where does one find that? I don't know, but I was sold on this dessert from the first bite. I ate it all even though I was almost completely full by that point. It was the perfect last thing to eat in Paris. We leave for the airport at 6:45 tomorrow morning and by tomorrow evening we'll be back in cold, cold Ottawa once again. Au revoir, Paris! Je t'aime beaucoup.

J.

Bonjour, Paris! (Part Five)

Oh dear.

Our trip hit a tiny bump last night when the Man of Science came down with some kind of throat-hurty cold. I don't do well with bad news in the middle of the night, so I was up from 3 AM until 4 AM worrying that he had swine flu and madly internet chatting with my friend Jess the naturopath-in-training who gave me advice for staying healthy and calmed me the hell down. Thank you, Jess. And thank you, Internet (and time differences) for allowing me access to her during my attack of worry.

In the calm light of day it became clear that the MoS is not swine fluin'. He just has a crappy cold. Perhaps the same Cold That Would Not Leave that I had in October. At any rate, I was on my own for wanderings today, which was fine. I have no trouble making my way in strange cities, it is actually something I enjoy. Though I missed the MoS and felt bad that he was stuck in the apartment all sicky while I was wandering in and out of bakeries looking for these:



Macaroons. Chocolate, pistachio, raspberry. A brilliant texture, not too sweet, magically delicious. And yes, I know they're not vegan. I ate a couple anyway. They are perhaps the best cookies I've ever tasted.

Prior to the macaroon finding, I ate at a little restaurant called Cafe Grizzli. Not to be too dramatic about it, but this place felt like stepping inside a really good novel. It was full of interesting French people and charming servers. It was cosy and relaxed with a great menu (most of it not vegetarian, though). To my left was a table of three, one Parisian woman and two Americans, who spoke in both English and French and who commented on the English novel I was reading. To my right was an older man having lunch across the table from his phenomenally adorable french bulldog, who sat on the chair opposite the man and quietly surveyed the restaurant. I wanted to take a photo so badly, but the older man seemed slightly cranky and no matter how much I practiced "Est ce que je peux prendre un photo de ton chien?" in my head, I couldn't summon the courage to actually ask.

I ate roasted baby vegetables in coconut curry cream for lunch. With fresh bread and fizzy water. It was one of the most delicious meals I've had all year. The atmosphere made it even better. But it was dark and I was feeling a little self conscious, so I have no photos, sadly.



Tonight for dinner the Parents of Science and I left the sick Man of Science at our apartment and went off to a second restaurant owned by the same people who own the place we went to on our first night here. It was basically the same food as the other location, which made me happy because I got to try something else off the lengthy, mostly vegan menu. The first thing I wanted, though, was one of their fresh juices. I figured it would add to my don't-get-sick defenses. The juice I chose was carrot-ginger-apple. The waiter made it right when I ordered it and the whole restaurant smelled like ginger. It was the perfect way to start my meal.



I followed that with some vegetable soup which was good, but not as excellent as the lentil soup I had at the other location. But it was warm and wholesome and that was just what I was looking for. I had a small glass of wine to go along with it.



For my second dish I chose another appetizer because I wasn't very hungry after the juice and the soup. It was called "Chickpea Mousse" which is, ah... hummous. But it was baked in two small scoops and placed on a bed of lettuce, beets, and grated carrots. The raw vegetables were very satisfying and the "mousse" was flavourful. So good in fact that I'd eaten almost all of it before I remembered that I hadn't taken a photo. Whoops. Here's a photo of the restaurant's excellent plant wall instead.



So tomorrow is our last day in Paris, and I imagine I'll be going solo again, since the Man of Science will likely want to rest up for our long day of travel on Monday. I will try, once again, to get a photo of lunch since I seem to be failing in that regard so far. The only thing on the agenda is book shopping at Shakespeare and Company and maybe walking over to a shop we passed tonight that looked like it might have some fun gifts to bring home with me for loved ones. The Parents of Science are flying out tomorrow morning to go to Canada for Christmas. I can't say enough about how generous they've been, putting us up and taking us out for lots of meals. We are lucky people indeed.

J.

Bonjour, Paris (Part Four)

Falafel again for lunch today, my friends! And, once again, no falafel photos. But I assure you, The Man of Science and I went straight from the Centre Pompidou Modern Art Gallery to a falafel shop and had some very tasty sandwiches with greasy fries. Yum. Instead of showing you a picture of that, how about I show you my favourite shot of the day, taken from the very top of the Centre Pompidou:



Oui oui! Tres bien! J'aime ca! Bravo!

Ahem.

Dinner, as I mentioned yesterday, was to be found somewhere along the Champs Elysees. I was a bit wary. But, after a bit of walking and looking, we ended up having a very good meal in a slightly odd restaurant. It was kind of Japanese, but also served things like lobster bisque and risotto. I had edamame and sushi!



Sorry, the lighting was weird so the picture looks not great, but it was very tasty, especially the edamame. The Man of Science had veggie tempura and "autumn vegetable" ravioli that he said wasn't particularly autumnal. But he seemed to enjoy his meal, nonetheless.

The restaurant was dark and shiny and full of pictures of naked ladies. It kind of threw me for a loop when we first arrived.





Ah, those permissive French.

After dinner we had some cognac and then took the Metro to the Eiffel Tower which was having a light show to celebrate its 120th birthday.



It was beautiful but freezing, so we had some more hot wine and then got back on the Metro and came back to our apartment. Now we're having potato chips and Perrier and I don't think I'll be awake for much longer. Bon soir!

J.

Bonjour, Paris! (Part Three)

For lunch today, we all set out (through the SNOW!) to have lunch at L'Ebouillante, a restaurant listed on the web as being "70%" vegetarian. Since that is approximately 69% more vegetarian than most Parisien restaurants, we were excited to give it a try.



It was a cosy little place and a good spot to settle in for some wine and food. The menu was very eggy, so I elected to have the soup, figuring correctly that it would come with some good bread and fill me up adequately. The Soupe De Jour was carrot, and it was smooth and tasty.



After some comic book shopping with the Man of Science, I headed off on my own to check out a giant department store nearby. I got a falafel sandwich on the way and my body rejoiced for the sudden dose of protein. I didn't get a photo of the sandwich, but I did manage to get a shot of this drool-worthy aisle at the Bazaar De L'Hotel De Ville:



Good thing I have to carry my own suitcase home, or I might have come out of there with a couple of those pretty, pretty cast iron dishes under my arm.

For dinner we tried to go to another vegetarian restaurant owned by the same people who managed the place we went on our first night in the city, but alas it was closed. So we wandered through the 5th Arondissement until we found an Indian restaurant that looked promising.



Being vegetarian in Paris means coming to terms with the fact that you're not going to be able to eat French food. I am slowly getting over this fact. I'd read a lot of travel guides saying that vegetarians are best to stick to "ethnic" restaurants and this is certainly true. Our Indian meal was the most satisfying meal I've had so far. Lots of vegetarian choices on the menu. We ended up with a variety of curries, rice, and naan.



Aside from the service being, at times, comicly slow, it was a wonderful meal.

Tomorrow will be a real challenge, finding food near the Champs D'Elysees when we go over in the evening to look at the lights. Hopefully my legume consumption from today will carry me for a bit.

J.

Bonjour, Paris! (Part Two)

The important thing to remember about picking a restaurant in a city you are visiting is that if the meal is not that great, it is not the end of the world. There will be many other meals. Sometimes you pick a restaurant for its convenience, like we did tonight, and you end up with a palatable, though not fantastic meal. Our meal tonight was at an italian restaurant close to Notre Dame that likely caters primarily to tourists. Hence our palatable-though-not-fantastic meals. I had what is pictured above: a plate of "focaccia" which was basically a dry pizza crust (it wasn't bad, just drier than I expected) and a green salad topped with grilled vegetables. The grilled vegetables were nice, but the salad was over-dressed. The Man of Science has gnocchi with primavera sauce. I had some kind of memory problem when we were ordering and mixed up gnocchi and tortellini, otherwise I would have had the gnocchi too.



But, you know, there's always wine to save the day. Today we had hot spiced wine (or Vin Chaud as the French say) while we walked around a Christmas market. It was delicious. A perfect thing to drink while walking around in the cool temperatures. I read somewhere before we left on our trip that it is a good idea to bring along a small thermos for the plentiful hot wine, so that's what I did. It worked out well. I drank it while I looked at Christmas ornaments and sweaters and nesting dolls all up and down the Champs D'Elysees. Later we went out at drank absinthe and now I'm eating dark chocolate. Oh, Paris! Je t'aime!

J.

Bonjour, Paris! (Part One)

After many, many hours of racing through airports and sitting on planes, The Man of Science and I arrived in Paris today, quite sleep deprived but otherwise happy to be here. After a long afternoon nap we ventured out to a nearby vegetarian restaurant for dinner with the Parents of Science (who are hosting us here in an apartment they've rented for the week). This restaurant, Le Grenier de Notre Dame*, promised vegetarian versions of "French Peasant Food" which is totally my kind of thing.



I wasn't sure what to expect vegetarian-wise here in Paris, but there seem to be quite a few places that are, if not vegetarian, vegetarian-friendly. The place we went to tonight was small and cute and cosy, and had an extensive menu with lots of delicious looking choices. For me, the vegan soups were the best part of the meal. I had lentil soup, which was flavourful and pureed and delicious, but the Father of Science had the daily special vegetable soup which also looked great.



For my entree, I chose the vegan cassoulet, which had white beans, tofu, seitan, tomato sauce, vegetables, and bread crumbs. It was good comfort food, not spectacular but well made and tasty. Just the kind of meal you'd want to have after subsisting on airplane food and Larabars for 14 hours.



One of the desserts on the menu was vegan, so I couldn't resist giving it a try. It was a apple tart with almonds. The crust was whole wheat flour which made it nice and hearty, and I liked that it wasn't overly sweet.



And there was wine, of course. Lots of wine. And cognac. And chocolate. And now it is time for bed.

J.

*When the Mother of Science first mentioned the name, what I thought she'd said was "Le Grenouille de Notre Dame". Which is not at all what it is called. No wonder she was confused when I referred to it as "the frog place".