I’m going to have to break down the food discussions by location or else this would be one long post! They will be posted for the following locations: Paris, Barcelona, Cinque Terre and Rome. And so we begin…
Beau and I arrived into Paris around lunch. At least it was the American lunch hour (noon). But in Europe, lunch begins around 1:30. You think this odd? I would too, if I were getting up at 6:00 for work and having breakfast around that time. But Europeans don’t get up that early and have their breakfast. In fact, their breakfast hour is between 8:00 and 10:00, lunch between 1:00 and 3:00 and the dinner hour begins around 7:30. And just so I don’t forget, Paris was the early to dinner crew. The Spanish start around 8:00pm and the Italians start around 8:30pm. They are definitely making full use of daylight in their days!
Back to Parisian food…
Our first meal in Paris was “lunch” on the street. We stopped at a café that had a long line (this was a good sign) to see what they were offering. We were in Beau’s heavenly place-a café of sandwiches. And this was no Subway. Ten different kinds of sandwiches with cured meats on French bread. The one we chose: Salami with aged mozzarella and gherkin pickles slices (cut long ways). There was no sauce, no mayonnaise, no dressing and it didn’t need it. The salt from the salami, the tartness of the pickle and sweetness of the cheese all encompassed by that crispy soft French bread was delicious! And on the side, a COKE zero. Beau and I walked through the streets handing the sandwich back and forth, taking bites at leisure. We were very French!
Meal # 2 was dinner on our first day and that was inside the Eiffel Tower! We were on the first level up, overlooking Paris. Thankfully, we were given a seat right by the window so no one was blocking our view. After reviewing the set menu choices, here’s what we were given:
A bottle of red wine from the Bourdeaux region (Kathryn’s favorite red wine)
Crispy French bread with butter
Beau
Appetizer: Cream of Chestnut Soup
Entrée: Guinea Fowl Breast with Chanterelles Mushrooms and Garlic Whipped Potatoes
Dessert: Profiteroles with Vanilla Ice Cream
Kathryn
Appetizer: Cream of Chestnut Soup
Entrée: Jon Dory Fillet with Creamed Carrots and Garlic Whipped Potatoes
Dessert: Rum Cake
In my opinion, Beau’s entire meal was better than mine. (This actually happened most of the trip.) I’ll hone in on the highlights here.
The guinea fowl breast was similar to chicken, but sweeter and very tender (easily cut with a butter knife). Eating the Chanterelles mushrooms was a first for both of us, but not the last. Those little mushrooms are different in texture to most mushrooms, with a sort of toughness to them, but packed with a lot of flavor.
The cream of chestnut soup was served with the chestnuts and cheese already in the bowl. The waiter brought the chestnut broth and poured it over everything after placing everything in the bowl. Very neat presentation and a very good soup that was then soaked up with the bread!
We’re skipping my entrée and dessert because they weren’t really anything to speak of.
Beau’s profiteroles with vanilla ice cream were light and crisp and yet soft in the middle and wonderful! And he was sweet enough to share them with me. J
And the evening topped off with a cup of coffee.
Meal # 3
Breakfast in Paris consists of coffee and a pastry, which I had no complaints over. An apricot pastry last only seconds and left me wanting more.
Meal # 4
Beau and I went on the search for a multiple coarse meal, but to no avail was not found. Instead, we took the advice of the concierge and went to a place called Brasserie Lipp for a late lunch. We were seated on the patio, facing the street. As we’re looking at the menu, Beau notices that the paparazzi has come flying up in front of the restaurant and a super nice Mercedes is sitting in front. Out of the car steps Kate Moss, our 2nd celebrity sighting. Yes, she’s thin and no, I don’t know how tall she is. J Back to the food.
Appetizers:
Escargots-they came in the shells. We had a good time handling those little suckers. Delicious! And we soaked up the extra sauce with our bread.
Frisee salad w/ Bacon and a Poached Egg-this one will be made at my house as soon as possible. We were splitting both items, but I don’t think either one of us wanted to give this one to the other person.
Beau-Steak with Beurre Blanc and French fries. He loved the steak and the sauce, but the fries left much to be desired.
Kathryn-Duck Confit and French Potatoes. It was good, but I wouldn’t say it was great. I think it was more what I ordered than how it was cooked. Now, don’t get me wrong, I ate it all, but nothing wowed me.
And that pretty much sums up our Paris food. It gets better….
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