Seattle Bon Vivant

Chew on this: Air France announces non-stop service from Seattle to Paris!!!

Sunday breakfast for two at L'etoile Manquante in the Marais

Here is one more reason to love living in Seattle and a bit of news that will make all of us local Francophiles very happy.

Seattle Times travel writer Carol Pucci (who by the by just returned from Paris herself) reports in today's paper that Air France will start daily non-stop service from Seattle-Tacoma International Airport to Paris this summer with a new flight into Charles de Gaulle Airport starting June 11.

How cool is that?

So, no more having to endure 6am departures from Seattle with connecting flights through Atlanta or New York, Pittsburgh, Newark, Houston, O'Hare or the worst offender, Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky Airport.

No more schlepping of bags across terminals, with minimum connecting times between flights and the resulting running through long and maze-like concourse corridors, up and down escalators and stairs to make the next shuttle and catch the next flight to Paris only to have the connection delayed or canceled.

Or worse! To arrive in Paris like it happened to us in March 2005 only to find that our bags never made it to our JFK-CDG flight. And it was winter! And a blizzard was covering the country and England. And we were taking the Eurostar to London that week too! I still get very cold when I think about it.

And-sorry Boeing--but we will be flying Airbus with those personal televisions at every seat and over 9 film and TV channels to keep this cinephile happy. Just thinking about it is making me giddy already.

Now all of you fellow gastronauts out there, isn't this the best incentive to make Paris your next travel destination? Imagine this: early dinner in Seattle, a few fab films along the way, perhaps a long nap et voilà!... brunch in Paris the following day? Dreamy huh?

Mais oui, bien sûr!

Air France to start non-stop service from Seattle to Paris

Christine Ferber Confiture Envie

Reason #145 to keep going back to Paris. Pears, black currant and violet. Thick but not chunky, easily spreadable but not runny. Excellent on PB & J or over Greek yogurt. I finished the last of it this morning. Sniff, sniff!  € 8.60 (about $10.33 USD) at Pierre Hermé.

SHF:Tarte et Île Flottante aux Pralines Roses at Aux Lyonnais

I find myself in Paris at the moment, without a kitchen of my own to concoct any custardy dish for today's Sugar High Friday - Cooking Up Custard. However, I could not possibly miss participating when the fabulous Elise of Simply Recipes gets her turn to be the hostess.

So, last night, while having dinner at Aux Lyonnais, I remembered about today's Sugar High Fridays event and picked dessert especially for the occasion.

My choice? An amazing Tarte et Île Flottante aux Pralines Roses (8E). Served in a glass dish, this little marvel is a sweetened, beaten and baked egg white island floating on a sea of custard (crème anglaise).

Every bite is soft, airy and ephemeral, like biting on a sweet and puffy cloud that disappears in your mouth in fractions of a second. How can something so light feel so decadent?

Bits of pralines roses (pink pralines) here and there, chewy and aromatic. The crème anglaise is pure perfection. Not too sweet, unctuous and silky, perfect consistency

The Île Flottante is served with a small slice of a pink praline tart that reminds me of ubiquitous pecan pie Americans bake for Thanksgiving. Interesting combination of flavors and textures. I could not finish it as it was a bit too sweet for my taste but pecan pie/tart lovers dining at Aux Lyonnais should not miss it.

Aux Lyonnais
32, rue St-Marc
75002 Paris
Lunch: Tuesday – Friday
Dinner:Tuesday to Saturday
Tel.: 01 42 96 65 04
Fax: 01 42 97 42 95

Dinner at Aux Lyonnais

Madame Favre made the reservation for seven thirty but by the time I returned to the hotel, took a shower and started to get ready, I knew I would not make it in time.

I called the restaurant and explained my predicament. "Not a problem at all, madame", he said. So I slipped on these impossibly high heels, grabbed my tiny bag and shawl and ran to get a cab.

I hailed it at the corner of rue de Renard. Like nobody's business. As if I was back in Seattle, or New York for that matter.

Within a few minutes that felt like neverending hours a very friendly Vietnamese cab driver (he's lived in Paris for 24 yrs) took pity on me and my blistered feet.

About 5 minutes later, and distracted by conversation of Vietnam, Seattle, Eric Banh, Monsoon, phở and Baguette Box we arrived. At the door at 8pm. 6 Euro cab ride. Sweet!

A very suave gentleman showed me to my lovely table with a view of the whole room. Lucky girl! For my appèritif, a gorgeous fizzy rosé: a Bugey Cerdon. A bubbly dream, like nothing I've ever had before.

Sweet, with a gorgeous pink hue. Happiness in a glass. Lovely! I gotta buy me a case of this when I get back to Seattle. Who would have thought a sparkling Rosé could be this good as an appéritif? (I've just spotted a Chevalier Montrachet Grand Cru 98 for 1000 Euro!). To be continued...

I'm leaving, on a jet plane...

In a few minutes I'll be on my merry way to Sea-Tac, where I'll have a little breakfast before boarding a flight to Philadelphia and from there a connecting flight to Paris and London via Eurostar.

Again, you say? Oui, pourquoi pas? A mixture of work and play, visiting with old friends, research and inspiration for a couple promising projects simmering, at very low heat, somewhere back home.

Barring any unforseen last-minute connection or battery juice snafoos, I shall be moblogging some of my culinary exploits, food shopping discoveries and visits to favorite places, checking email and reading your comments via Sidekick II, my trusty, constant companion.

So, until we see each other again, dear readers, live well, count your blessings, continue supporting the Katrina relief efforts and take good care. À la prochaine...

The Gourmet Shops of Paris

Three weeks ago, while shopping at Virgin Records Champs Elysées I came upon a fabulous discovery. The Gourmet Shops of Paris caught my eye like no other book I've seen on the topic of food purveyors in Paris in recent years.

The writing was lovely and animated, the photography utterly glorious and mouth-watering. The vendors selected by the author were not only top notch but included many of my very own favorites that we keep going back to over and over and over again, some of which I've mentioned on this blog.

Between the fact that it was closing time (midnight) and the high cost of the book in Euros (around 50 USD) I figured I could wait until returning to Seattle to place an order for the English version at 50% off the retail at amazon.com.

Imagine my disappointment when once in Seattle I realized, upon searching for the book on the web that it was available only as a pre-order from amazon with a US publishing date of March 29th. So, I pre-ordered the book and forgot all about it.

This morning, however, amazon sent a note confirming shipment. It should arrive in a few days.

This is a book I really think all of you Paris lovers, foodies and Francophiles alike will absolutely love. It truly is an indispensable guide for your next trip to the food capital of the world and a lovely book to keep on your coffee table--or give to a friend--not to mention a visually enticing and delectable incentive to go back to Paris.

On Paris Tea Salons

Today's Miami Herald has a great little story on some of Paris tea salons. The article has an *accompanying bonnes adresses list of the author's (Joyce White) favorite spots that include not only some of the usual suspects and my personal favorites--Ladurée, Mariage Frères and Dalloyau-- but also a few other lesser known salons.

*a less than a minute free registration is required

France Ma Douce & more Fleur de Sel Caramels

Servane Guérin is the friendly and very sweet owner of one of my favorite little shops in the Marais, France Ma Douce . In it, she stocks specialty products that she procures in her frequent travels around the many regions of France.

From bath and body, to fragrance, candies and caramels to kitchen accessories and tableware, the selection is top shelf and the shop --steps away from Mariage Frères-- is cozy and inviting and offers plenty of lovely choices, whether you are gift shopping or looking to pick something artisanal and trés French for yourself.

Among the many little gems she sells at her 7, rue du Bourg-Tibourg shop are these amazing caramels made with salted butter and Fleur de Sel de Guérande from Brittany. We love them so much that a trip to Paris would not be complete without a stop for these.

Chewy, intensely buttery, with a beautiful bright caramel color, loaded with caramelly saltiness and plenty of delicious salt crystals to twirl around in your mouth until they dissolve away. They come in a tin that doubles as a coin bank, with the cutest of labels.

Even at 8 Euros each, we suggest you take home more than one tin because you are bound to devour them before reaching US customs. 

They do make great gifts (she carefully wraps everything for you) and are not at all heavy to schlep back home.

But I am telling you, once you try the first one you'll be scrambling around at the Duty free shop for substitute gifts because it will be too hard to part with these babies.

This we've learned first hand and we'll never tell who got the Fauchon jam instead. ;-)

Hoard as many as you possibly can.

 

More green tea, please!

We already knew it was not only delicious but also good for us but for the most part its anti-oxidants remained the fodder of health food and tea aficionados.

At last, proof that there is indeed a compound in green tea called EGCG that fights cancer. So, what better reason to drink up?

Seattle Bon Vivant recommends Le Palais des Thés green teas (packaged, in compressed tea blocks or loose in beautiful pots). I've been enjoying their teas for years (both black and green tea blends) and have never been disappointed.

Their Paris shops are great places to explore all the wonders of tea. You can find great books on tea cultivation, harvesting and grades around the world and fabulous accessories to serve these gorgeous teas at home.

Prices, even with the strong Euro, are affordable (compared to say Mariage Frères, another Paris tea favorite) and I've found lovely colorful accoutrements to take home as gifts for myself and friends.

Last September I purchased these cute glass tea cups in gemstone colors for less than $5 each. The nice people at the Marais shop wrapped them up carefully in bubble wrap and they made the trip to Seattle without a single chip.

Le Palais des Thés teas are sold at four locations in Paris (their Marais shop is my favorite of all) and last year they opened a boutique in Los Angeles. Mail order is available.

Salut à tous!

We are back in Seattle, happy to be home, mildly adjusted from jet-lag and with the suitcases in the hallway--only the food items are have been unpacked, of course.

Other than heading out to see the superb Florencia en el Amazonas last night at McCaw Hall, all I've done is sleep and sleep and sleep some more, making up for all the non-stop walking, eating, drinking and shopping. I've also been playing around with Typepad's template style settings. Tee hee!

The trip was fabulous. There is much food talk to get into--and oh Meg, I did find M. Guy Allart and his  Tournesol Honey, yay!--but for now I'm going back to bed. Bon nuit!