Sweet Teeth in Paris



A common sight in Paris: enticing pastries of every color and flavor
imaginable...pig flavored too?? (Click for larger view).

Paris is the home to Euro Disney, but I didn't have to go there because the city of Paris itself was  Disneyland enough for me--especially for my taste buds and even more for my sweet teeth (yes I'm pretty sure I have more than just one).

As I mentioned in the last post, I ate a lot of both sweets and savories and did not gain a pound.  Paris may not offer the outdoor sports activities that Hawaii does, but to see Paris properly you're on your feet a lot more than on your butt (although the most fun I had was sitting and eating!).  That said, many people claim it's not just the walking but also the fact that French (also Italian and Spanish) food is much healthier with less additives.  See below for a link to an interesting, yet embarrassing obesity chart by country.  Embarrassing for us Americans, but when in Paris, you can relax knowing you're in skinny territory and can do like we did (Reminder: Click on photos for larger image):


At Angelina's on Rue Rivoli near the Louvre Museum

1) You don't have to wait for lunch to have dessert.  At the famous tearoom, Angelina's, we had their famous hot chocolate which was dark, thick, and rich.  We each had our own little pitcher of whipped cream.  With it we had a huge palmier (buttery sweet flaky palm leaf) which was a childhood favorite of mine--anyone remember the old Alexander Hotel in downtown Honolulu?  We also shared a pain au chocolate (croissant-like roll with dark chocolate inside).  Charlie continued his Parisian chocolate eclair taste testing.  After this breakfast we were ready for the trek up the Champs Elysee.

Clockwise: fresh whipped cream, chocolate eclair, palmier,
the famous Africain hot dark chocolate, and pain au chocolat.



2) Before arriving in Paris I didn't know what a macaron was.  It's related to neither macaroni or macaroons.  It's an interesting "sandwich cookie" made of two delicate meringue shells (egg, sugar, and almond powder) with a cream, jam, or ganache filling.  Flavors are endless and creative ranging from the usual chocolate and vanilla, to the exotic passion fruit, rose, and licorice.  Being flourless, you could say they're more a candy confection than a traditional cookie.  It's easy to get obsessed comparing the macarons around Paris and finding your favorite flavor.   The consensus seems to favor Laduree as the best source for macarons.  After all, they're credited with being the creators of the modern macaron.



The famous Laduree macarons--they come in every color. 

3) Another dessert we sampled more than once in Paris was the profiterole.  It's not as exotic as the macaron, but for a chocoholic ice-cream-addict like me, it's just as good and much easier to understand.  It's simply a small cream puff with an ice cream filling (usually vanilla), topped with chocolate sauce.  Many of the cafes we went to offered this dessert due to its popularity.  Our first profiterole was the best because it didn't taste like what you'd expect.  Somehow the vanilla ice cream tasted different and the chocolate sauce obviously wasn't from a squeeze bottle.  I was happy to find that although the components were

This one's a bit large and messy...or possibly someone
got to part of it before my camera did.

"ordinary" to us Americans, the flavor managed to say "Yes, it was worth traveling for two days to get here!"   The profiterole in the photo was the second or third we had.  It's relatively large, while the first ones we ate were smaller (three on a plate rather than one large).  Susan, Jordan, and I devoured it before realizing that we'd forgotten to take a photo.  We waited in vain for the waitress to pass by with another order, but it was just as well.  Would we really have had the nerve to say "Wait!  Let us photograph your profiteroles!"



Fruit Tart from Le Croissanterie at Forum de Halles

4) One of my favorite pastries are fruit tarts.  The one pictured here was part of our first lunch in Paris purchased at La Croissanterie at Les Forum des Halles, an underground shopping mall.  The raspberries were so large I thought they were strawberries.  Like all of the desserts I tried in Paris, although the tart appears to be very sweet, it wasn't overly sweet.  This could be another reason we didn't gain weight there.

La Croissanterie, I learned later, is part of a chain of "fast food" cafes.  Brioche Doree is another similarchain that we inadvertently visited.  Thirty-five years ago Paris didn't have these chain cafes so it didn't occur to me that we'd been frequenting

 Click on this photo to see a larger version of the little pink
pigs made of meringue.

chains--duh! I probably would've avoided them knowing they were indeed part of a chain, but I think the food was still delicious regardless.

5) The best part about walking the streets of Paris is definitely "window licking" (the literal translation of the French term for "window shopping",  lèche-vitrine).  If you ask me, that's an appropriate term since so many of the shop windows in Paris pretty much make your tongue hang out. 



Patisserie de Sud Tunisian
Photo taken by Denis Prezat



The delicious windows are not limited to just the French patisseries, but to other cuisines as well.  While visiting the Latin Quarter, I found the "South Tunisian" (similar to Greek) pastries irresitible in the window of Patisserie du Sud Tunisian.  Again I neglected to take a photo, but found this online.  I chose something similar to baklava and Jordan chose, of course, a chocolate cookie.

6) Berthillon ice cream was born the same year I was and it's said to be the best ice cream in the world so obviously it was a very good year.  We went searching for it one day on Ile St. Louis.  On every block on the little island there was a shop selling it so we got a little confused.  We then learned that the original store was closed that day, but happily we still got to purchase some at one of the other shops.  I love almost any ice cream so yes, it was at least as good as Haagen Daaz. On any given day they offer over 60 different flavors which change with the seasons.  Check out a list of the flavors linked below--pretty amazing.  Unlike American ice cream, Berthillon relies less on add-ins such as candy bits--although they're not above adding them--and more on varying the flavor of the base ice cream itself using fresh seasonal fruit, spices, liquers, etc. And again, natural ingredients.

I could be wrong, but possibly the Cochon (pig) is France's
mascot or national animal.  "La Vie En Rose" is on the right.

7) One evening on Rue Montorgueil it was fun to find Jordan's idol Edith Piaf honored with a dessert called "La Vie En Rose,"  a concoction of rose ice cream and strawberry sorbet...and a pink piggy.  Naturally we ordered it for her.  Susan's dessert also came with a cute meringue cochon.  Well, the cafe is called "Le Pied de Cochon," after all! 

8) Research before, not after, your trip. On our last evening in Paris, I was panicking.  It was a Sunday.  I had promised Jordan, after denying ourselves a few days earlier, that we'd have "fancy pastries" on our last day.  I found several patisseries that I had hoped to buy from closed.  The French are not like Americans.  They actually like to rest on Sundays so most stores are closed or close early.   Just when I was feeling very disappointed, we discovered a patisserie open on Rue Montorguiel.  I didn't even notice the name of the shop since I was just so relieved that we'd found our "fancy pastries."  We chose a few to take back to the apartment.  Again, they looked super sweet, but oh my goodness, they were so incredibly delectable, I'm not ashamed to admit I was glad Charlie and Susan were too full to want any!

  

Pastries from Stohrer's on Rue Montorguiel.  The chocolate
one in the middle was a-maz-ing.

Now keep in mind that we had just two months to plan this trip so procrastinator that I am, I didn't get to do the research I should have.  I actually read more about Paris after our trip than before or during.  It was during this after-the-fact research that I discovered that Stohrer's is  the oldest patisserie in Paris and one of its most reputable...and located on Rue Montorguiel.  I ran to look through my receipts and sure enough, that "last resort" patisserie we'd found open on our last day was indeed Stohrer's!  It had been a blessing in disguise that the other shops had been closed because if I had returned to Hawaii without sampling Stohrer's wares, I would've been devastated, considering we'd been staying just a block away! 

I know there are a hundred other patisseries and cafes I'd love to try in Paris.  You can be sure I'll have my list ready with me if I am lucky enough to return to my Disneyland of Food. 

Links:

Obesity chart by country

The Berthillon Ice Cream Story 

French Photographer, Denis Prezat's Photostream

19 for 19 = No Bad Meal in Paris

I may have lost all four of my readers due to my neglecting this blog.  Aside from sheer procrastination and a million other distractions, it seems my trip to Paris is what really disrupted my flow.  Of course I did write the previous entry about our trip, but I wanted to write more about Paris and somehow couldn't get my thoughts organized.  Paris is just too overwhelming.  To complicate matters, I've been reading "French or Foe?"  It's a fascinating book about the French and their culture and my "processor" couldn't handle all the new data. My memory was already full of  Paris-bytes so my blog-writing abilities froze up. Strangely, both my laptop and desktop computers seemed to mimic my own "onboard computer": the former got a trojan and went kooky, while the latter lost its voice (soundcard driver is messed---help!)...as I said, a million distractions.

  

Who is this Parisienne eating a Lebanese dinner?

There's so much I want to share about what I've learned over the past two months, but at the same time, I don't want to bore readers with "vacation talk".  You know, like when the Smiths invite the Jones over to see vacation slides.  [Personally, I don't mind looking at photos of people's trips...as long as it's a place I'm interested in and it includes food photos.]  Not that I didn't make organizing my photos  my #1 priority after returning to my trip, and I am guilty of forcing a few friends/relatives to either look at Jordan's thick 200-photo album or viewing the Smilebox slideshow I made, but I will leave blogging about the Paris city tour to those who are good at both recalling and writing about the details. I came across one such blogger, Noelle Clark from Australia, and if you'd like to read about her week in Paris, it's a wonderful read. (Link will appear below).  My own Paris blog will be less disciplined, for sure. 

Food blogs seem to be the most popular genre for both writing and reading, so who am I to buck the system?  The way to a blog audience's heart may be through his/her stomach, so read on... Reminder: photos can be clicked on to see a larger version.



Endive and salmon salad at Le Boui Boui on
Rue Marie Stuart off Rue Montorguiel

Anthony Bourdain claims there's no bad meal in Paris (click for video), and although I'm sure there must be a few somewhere, my 19 meals were all good to excellent, from the simple baguette sandwiches of sidewalk carts to the decadent confections of Stohrer's;  from the most French of fares--crepes,escargot, and Confit du Canard---to the least French fare--kebabs, shawarma, and stuffed grape leaves. All good!

Why is the food so good there? First and foremost, the French take their food seriously. I believe they consider food more important than money, and consequently their food tastes better than money does. But seriously, my understanding is that the EU is quick to ban additives they consider unhealthy, unlike in the U.S.  In fact, new food additives must be first proved to be safe before they are allowed to be used commercially, whereas it's the opposite in the U.S. where anything "reasonably safe" may be added then only banned if it's proven harmful.  Isn't that special?  Money talks, American health walks. Look below for links to some interesting articles.



Seafood vendor in the Latin Quarter

Paris is full of small, specialized markets with fewer supermarkets and big box stores, which may indicate that people there shop more often and use fresher ingredients.  I was surprised to see a huge selection of yogurt in all of the grocery stores we visited, even in small convenience markets.  It was a pleasant surprise to find that most of the yogurt was free of corn syrup, which Jordan is allergic to.  For instance, they had a plain yogurt that was lightly sweetened with sugar that we enjoyed daily.  No such flavor here in the U.S., at least not in Hawaii anyway.  C'est dommage.

Confit de Canard at Au Compas D'Or on Rue Montorguiel

Like that yogurt, all of the food that I ate in Paris was not too salty nor too sweet.  Even when you'd expect something to be salty, such as their baguette sandwiches with cheese and ham or sausage, it surprised me that it was not.  Looking at the array of fancy pastries in the windows of countless patisseries all over Paris, you could almost feel a toothache coming on, and yet I was surprised that the majority were delicious without being overly sweet.  Even the canned "pate" that I brought home (duck and rabbit meat) did not contain any additives except salt and pepper, and again, not salty. 

I never doubted Jamie Oliver and now I've seen for myself: despite the thousands of cafes, patisseries (pastry shops), fromageries (cheese shops), charcuteries (sausage shops), and boulangeries (bread shops) in Paris, I rarely saw an obese person, and probably they were American tourists.  I ate anything I wanted to and assumed I'd gain a few pounds like I usually do when visiting Honolulu or Las Vegas, but shockingly I didn't gain even a pound.  Of course we weren't sitting around much either, but considering all the french fries, profiteroles, and pastries I ate, it was quite a shock when I got on the scale at home.  I've gotta go back there!! I was in heaven without even knowing it.

Although modest looking, these stuffed peppers were
absolutely scrumptious.

I can't decide which was my favorite meal so I'll say I had two. The first was Confit de Canard (pictured above: duck leg cooked in duck fat then sauteed until crispy) with sliced garlic potatoes (the yummiest potatoes I've ever had) at Compas d'Or on Rue Montorgueil. Rue (Street) Montorguiel is a foodie's paradise of over a solid quarter mile of food shops and cafes.  Our second apartment was located just a short block from there and for me, it was like being in Disneyland and staying at the Disneyland Hotel. 



Adana Kebab at Cafe Istanbul in the Latin Quarter

 The other favorite meal was our Turkish lunch in the Latin Quarter at Cafe Istanbul.  Jordan and I shared the adana kebab, which the menu calls "ground beef" but it was nothing like hamburger--more like slivers of beef pressed together, deliciously seasoned and grilled; and rice-stuffed bell peppers which were so tasty I had to refrain from hogging it all. 



One of the restaurants we dined at is famous for its longevity and being open 24/7. Its name, "Au Pied de Cochon" means "at the foot of the pig" and guess what its specialty is.  I can't vouch for the taste of the very impressive-looking pigsfoot because I opted for the trout instead (Again, the French know what they're doing, it was very good.)

Creepy, but crispy looking Pied de Cochon

Speaking of the knowing what they're doing, I found the French waithelp to be very professional, efficient, and polite. Most were extremely patient and every cafe and restaurant we went to had English-speaking help.  The only problem we encountered was when Susan wanted a doggy bag for her dessert and was told that they had no takeout containers.  Susan was quite persistent until finally we got to witness the classic Gallic shrug from the waiter--it was quite funny.  He was clearly disgusted with us, but when he saw her wrapping it up in a paper napkin, he came back with more napkins.



I couldn't HANDLE the trout!  At least not the whole trout,
although it was quite good and Jordan ate all of hers!



Tips at restaurants are included in the bill, so there's really no incentive for the waithelp to impress, but nevertheless, we got good service.  Be advised, however, that food is not cheap in Paris.  Even a modest baguette sandwich at a sidewalk cart will cost about 4 Euros (close to $6) and it's not even close to a footlong.

Speaking of sidewalk carts, we had some very filling and tasty crepes on the street near our St. Honore apartment and also next to the Notre Dame Cathedral.

  

Here are more photos of some of our meals:

We chose our first cafe because they had Jordan's favorite French Onion Soup on their menu.  I chose quiche (below), keeping with the "stereotypical French food" theme.

The escargot we ate in Paris seemed to be less butter-drenched than what's usually served in the U.S.  Yet another example of how we tend to overdo things, perhaps. 





Osso Buco with teeny, cheesy macaroni--Jordan had this at Compas d'Or on Rue Montorguiel









I don't remember what this was, but I ate it at an Italian restaurant on Rue des Pyramides and it was delicioso!  Oh, and dogs are allowed in restaurants there... 



Our last meal in Paris was Lebanese on Rue Montorguiel.  Shwarma in pita bread, hummus, stuffed grape leaves, moussaka, and rice.  We don't have Middle Eastern food on Kauai so I had to get my fill!

Check out Jordan's video taken at Le Croissanterie at the Forum des Halles, which is an underground shopping mall. I laughed in surprise when I first viewed this because I never noticed her boywatching before!  ("Sandwiches, sandwiches....ohhhhh cute boy...ok, sandwiches, sandwiches....")  *LOL*

The menu at Au Pied de Cochon.  One Euro is roughly $1.40

Lastly, if you're wondering where the desserts are, stay tuned for the next post!

Links:

Noelle Clark's Paris blog---this is just one entry of 6 (one for each day of her trip).

Fooducate---Interesting article on European food safety vs. U.S. unsafety

 

PlanetGreen---Corporate interests are trumping American food safety

DivineCaroline--7 Food Products Banned in Europe Still Available in the U.S.