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Posts Tagged ‘paris’

Paris Jardin des Tuileries

Paris Jardin des Tuileries

It could have been the overcast sky that greeted me. Or, maybe the fact that after more than 24 hours on a plane with three different stopovers, I was told that the airline had lost my luggage… or having to spend my first two days on my own… Something, in Paris, was off.

I had my first meal at Aux Lyonnais which has become somewhat of a tradition to begin any trip to Paris at this Alain Docasse run Bistro. The lady who had been greeting me for the last four years, I found out, had left and new staff had taken over the floor. While the new waitstaff were knowledgeable and efficient, there was no “Hello! How are you? So good to see you back” to greet me. To start I had an egg cocotte with black truffles and morrels and for main I had the pollack (which I was told was only in season every April) a la meuniere. Again, while the food was cooked well, I left the restaurant thinking that I might have to change traditions next year.

Aux Lyonnais

Aux Lyonnais

Day two was dinner at Le Chateaubriand which has been named the 9th best restaurant in the world. Two years earlier we had eaten in this restaurant and was blown away with the food (and, okay, maybe the chefs and waiters too), so I was excited to come back. I guess I was expecting too much but the food didn’t seem as inventive or exciting as before (okay, the waiters and chefs were still as good looking).

Chateaubriand Paris

Chateaubriand Paris

Things weren’t looking too good.

And then my husband came and things started to pick up.

“I’m bored.” I told him. “Paris doesn’t seem the same to me.” So that night we went to Hotel Costes, a boutique hotel located on the First Arrondisement. By day you can sit by the open courtyard and people watch. At night the whole place transforms into a trendy restaurant/bar. This is where we met Ali – mixologist extraordinaire. I explained to him that I didn’t normally drink but my fate that night was in his hands. To please make me a cocktail that was fruity but where I couldn’t taste the alcohol.

“Leave it to me, I am an expert” Ali said.

Two drinks later, my head was spinning and anything anyone said seemed very funny to me. My husband was holding me back from ordering a third drink. “I think that’s enough. Let’s close the tab.” he said. “Wait a minute! I said to Ali, “I need to know the name of this so I can make sure to order it next time.”

“It has no name, this one I just invented.” said Ali.

“We can’t not have a name for this drink!” I replied.

“Okay, let’s name it after you, Teresa” Ali said.

“Okay, tomorrow, you and me, we’ll have a showdown!” I shouted back at Ali, giggling uncontrollably.

“Yes, of course!” He smiled.

You have to realize, I never drink. Ever. So as embarrassing as it sounds, I got wasted after two drinks.  A few hours later things got messy, my head pounding, I was crying and cursing Ali like there was no tomorrow.

The day after was no different. Every time I stood up I felt like my world would turn upside down. When my husband joked about the proposed showdown with Ali I gave him dagger looks. The thought of going back to Hotel Costes made me woozy.

Hotel Costes, Paris

Hotel Costes, Paris

Easter Sunday was different. I could finally laugh about the “Ali” incident! The sun was shining and after a whole day wasted, I was hoping for a little back of the Paris that I loved. So of course I headed to the 7th Arrondisement which is my favourite. The markets were opened and we were welcomed by a Frenchman playing music on an old punch tape winding music box!

One thing I’ve found, is that my tried and tested bistro in Paris is still 100% reliable. Lunch at Cafe Constant was just as I remembered it. Homey, well executed and affordable cooking.

Sea Bass with Sweet Potato Mash

Sea Bass with Sweet Potato Mash

Roasted Langoustines Cafe Constant, Paris

Roasted Langoustines Cafe Constant, Paris

Then to top it all of, was the most delicious apple tart. Layers of caramelized apples over the flakiest puff pastry, served with a side of vanilla ice cream. It’s times like these that you realize, you don’t need to be in the fanciest, trendiest or most expensive restaurant, you could be in a cramped corner of a Paris cafe enjoying a simple meal, or even laying flat on the bathroom floor cursing the bartender that gave you one cocktail too many, it’s who you’re with that makes the story worthwhile telling.

I was with my husband and I finally had my Paris back.

Apple Tart at Cafe Constant, Paris

Apple Tart at Cafe Constant, Paris

Cafe Constant Apple Tart

The day after my planned “showdown” with Ali, I went back to Hotel Costes to try and get the recipe for the cocktail he had invented for me. Unfortunately, Ali was not around that night… and the waitress told me that he would not be around the night after as well, which meant that I wouldn’t get the chance to ask him for the recipe before I left. So instead, let me share with you Christian Constant’s simple Apple Tart recipe… however, if you do find yourself on Rue St Honore one day, make sure to pass by the Bar at Hotel Costes and ask for Ali. Tell him you want to order the “Teresa”.

  • 7 “pink” golden apples
  • 45 grams butter
  • 1 roll best quality puff pastry (i.e. I would use Careme brand)
  • 35 grams caster sugar
  1. Pre heat the oven to 180c. Roll out the puff pastry and place it in a round or oblong tart. Using a fork, prink the bottom and sides of the pastry to prevent it from puffing up during cooking. Place in the oven and cook for 10 minutes.
  2. Meanwhile, peel the apples, cut in half, remove the cores and sees and slice very thinly.
  3. Arrange the apple slices on the pre-cooked pastry shell, overlapping and fanning them out evenly. Sprinkle with half of the sugar and add a knob of butter.
  4. Place in the oven and cook for 20 minutes. Midway through the cooking time, sprinkle with the remaining sugar, and turn the tart from time to time so that it browns evenly. Cool before serving.

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Pistachio Crusted Fish

Pistachio Crusted Fish

“I.C.M.T.” I tell my husband as I tuck into my dish.

“Huh?”  My husband is skeptical.

Flashback to a few months ago when we were having lunch at Cafe Moderne, a restaurant in Paris which came highly recommended by the hotel’s concierge.  We had just spent a good couple of hours browsing through the nearby cookbook store, Librarie Gourmande, and I had just bought a ridiculously large amount of cookbooks (all in French of course, which I can’t speak nor understand) and we were hungry.  The restaurant is located in the 1st arrodissement, very much in the middle of the business district.  I look around the restaurant and it is filled with investment bankers in expensive business suits – definitely nothing like the quaint bistros we had been lunching in for most of our trip.

Our waiter encourages us to order the sea bass, the restaurant’s specialty.  The fish is delicately crusted in pistachio crumbs, a hint of thyme, and garlic… I think.

So I say I.C.M.T.  The acronym stands for I Can Make This.  This is our “secret code” when something tastes so delicious that I need to make it at home. Is that weird?  I think it is something I picked up from my Mom.  Every time we eat out, we find ourselves “dissecting” the dish and thinking how we can re-create it at home.

And so here it is – the lovely pistachio crusted fish  – I finally made it – and now… YCMIT!  (ah – that is … You Can Make It Too!)

Pistachio Crusted Fish

Ingredients Serves 2

  • 400 grams blue eye cod fillets, skinned and deboned
  • 35 grams butter
  • 75 grams pistachios
  • 2 cloves garlic, crushed
  • 3 springs thyme
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • 1 egg white
  • 4 slices lemon
  1. Preheat the oven to 180c (fan forced).
  2. Season the fillets with salt and pepper
  3. In a food processor or mortar and pestle, combine the pistachios, garlic, thyme, salt and pepper and finely grind.
  4. Melt the butter in a small saucepan and add the pistachio mixture. Cook for around 2 to 3 minutes.
  5. Remove the mixture from the heat and allow to cool for a few minutes. Add the egg white and mix well.
  6. Coat the fillets in the pistachio mixture
  7. Place some lemon slices and thyme leaves in a oven proof dish and place the coated fillets on top.
  8. Bake the fillets for around 10 to 12 minutes until cooked through.

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Eiffel Tower, 7th arrondisement

Come and take a walk with me, along my favourite arrondisement in Paris.

The 7th… while home to the Eiffel, is so much more than that!

(more…)

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Step away from the fridge!

“Step away from the fridge! ” I barked at my husband.  “It’s wired!” I continued.

“You’ve just picked up the bottle of water.  We’ve got five seconds before we’re charged.  We can still salvage the situation.  Put the bottle down and slowly close the fridge.” I added.

And this begins our first day in Paris.

(more…)

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Aux Lyonnais

32, rue St-Marc (2nd arr)
75002 Paris
Tel.: 01 42 96 65 04
http://www.auxlyonnais.com/

Average Meal (without wine) 35 Euro
Front of Restaurant
Charcuterie Plate (Planche de charcuterie lyonnaise)

Tripes with a cream sauce and spring vegetables (Tripes a notre facon)

Fish Quenelles with Nantua Sauce

Chicken with cream sauce and spring vegetables (Fricasse de volaille fermiere ala creme, legumes primeurs mijotes)


Entrecote Steak in a red wine sauce (Entrecote non paree ala beaujolais, pomme Macaire)

Fish with capers and lemon in a brown butter sauce (Troncon de carrelet a la grenobloise)

Souffle a la verveine de Velay, Cremeux au chocolate

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