u m a m i

Winter vitamins

The weather, it's cold. There was even a little snowfall last Sunday which lasted for all of ten minutes. It was a good thing we lifted our nose from our lunch, we ate lap mei fan made with two types of Chinese sausages - Lim Chee Guan Singapore regular type and Yung Kee Hong Kong liver version- which we had asked visiting friends to bring over.

As usual, I used my tiny and much-dented rice cooker of my singleton days. While the rice cooked, I microwaved the sausages which had been sliced and put into a bowl with some ginger, covered, for about 2 minutes which resulted in lots of oil spluttering and the bits on the top a little charred. The sausages plus oil were then chucked into the still cooking rice to continue cooking and so that the oils and juices flavour the rice. I doled out a portion for V, but for husband and myself, I drizzled some dark soya sauce and sesame oil for more colour and flavour. Some peas for vegetables and that was our simple lunch, we hardly felt the cold weather bristling outside.

Yesterday I went window-shopping with my friend. At Jean Paul Hevin on rue St Honore, we shared a slice of Mazoltov. It looks like a baked American cheesecake, only taller. Made with fromage blanc of 0% fat matter, as stated on its information tag, yet gratifyingly rich and creamy with subtle notes of orange flower water, closer to Japanese style than American and succeeding at becoming my new obsession. Alongside my old obsession the baba au rhum  which I used to like ordering at Bistrot Marius until they stoppped serving it (!). An odd thing which I've noticed is that there is a higher chance of finding this dessert in seafood restaurants, like Vin et Maree which has outlets all over the city. Vin et Maree's version was not bad, but it would have been improved if they had whipped the cream with some rum beforehand so there is that layering of liquor upon liquor.

Tonight though I am not eating so well. Husband is away, he is on a flight to Singapore of all places. V will get a piece of organic salmon for dinner. The dogs will eat roasted vegetables and bifteck which I cooked and froze last week. I am probably going to have the default husband-is-away dish i.e. Comté with some dried natural apricots nicely ripened conference pear.  Not terribly inspired, but perfect for watching telly with.

Oh lordy, look at the sky, and the time. Have to go fetch the kid. Au revoir!

Gordon Ramsay au Trianon

In April this year the infamous Gordon Ramsay opened a fine dining in Versailles, just 18km out of Paris. The local food press immediately closed ranks and as one, they savagely wrote him off. Figaroscope rated his eponymous restaurant one broken heart (out of possible 5) while even the free magazine A Nous Paris rated it 5.5 out of 10. Like the Hokkiens say, 'wah piang ah, ooh niah boh?' or 'fxxx are you sure?'

My curiousity piqued, I suggested to husband that we could try it out sometime. The time came two weeks ago when we celebrated our 10th wedding anniversary as well as V's third birthday. The restaurant is inside the Trianon Palace, a grand building at 1 Blvd de la Reine now a hotel run by the Westin group. It is a relatively small room sandwiched between a corridor bar on one side and on the other side a more open-air brasserie called La Veranda which is also part of Mr Ramsay's group. White button-hole banquettes seats and vertiginous pendant chandeliers provide illusory depth and height to compensate the lack of floor space. The restaurant was empty when we arrived, two other parties arrived later, it was a Saturday afternoon, the start of the Toussaint (All Saint's Day) school holidays. Little V loved the expansive banquette and delighted in the fancy table setting.

Drinks were ordered, and snacks came to occupy us while we considered the menu. Cones of fruity ice cream with caviar was startling but I finished mine since caviar is very expensive, at the bottom of the cone was some paler but definitely more yummy cream of salmon. The other snack on a stick was equally weird but not entirely disagreeable.

Husband and I ordered the dégustation menu, substituting the starting dish of foie gras with risotto of white Alba truffles, with paired wines to match the courses. We were served three types of wine during the meal.

The amuse bouche arrived. Soup of potirron (type of pumpkin) with smoked eel and girolles inside, the bread to eaten with some hazelnut butter shaped into a nut. Delicious. A Jurancon Çahaupe 2004 with its rich fruity bouquet and smooth coolness kicked things off to a good start.

The risotto came, the perfume subtle and lingering, a dish to be enjoyed at leisure which is a bit hard with a restless child by my side. They brought house made breads- mini baguettes, 4-cheese buns and an olive studded microloaf- all excellent, served with butter from St Malo. The breads distracted the child, she loved the cheese buns, and all was well again.

We ordered some steamed vegetables for her, in between she would get sample some of our dishes but she did not need a full blown meal. Of the vegetables, she ate most of the courgettes, beans and cruciferous types and while she exclaimed over the pretty colours of the other vegetables she rejected their taste.

Child fed, we could enjoy our second course. The signature raviole de langoustines d'Ecosse, caviar Petrossian, consommé à la verveine. The consommé was meant to be sipped together with the food, it was delicious, the tea flavour supporting but not overwhelming the flavours of gingers and crustaceans. The carpaccio of langoustines lining the base of the plate was delicate and sweet, the crunchy peas nicely bridging the contrast with the impeccable raviole, filled generously with langoustines. The caviar I thought was redundant, its distinct taste was a bit of a rude jolt not becoming of the overall delicate sense of the ensemble. Sometime between this and the next course we were served a Mersault, the white burgundy's refined finish matching the elegant dish.

The room was getting quite warm, the overhead chandeliers and the wine not helping.  V & I took a walk around the hotel lobby, there was a medical conference happening and the bar was bustling with weekend guests. Back in the dining room, we were served Turbot de ligne roti et braisé, tian de guacamole et vinaigrette aux fruits de la passion. Faultless if a bit dull. The vegetables were crisp and beautifully crisp and hardly needed the generous sprinkling of seasalt, ooh I am the fussy one no? The tian was wrapped in what I think was peeled tomato which was quite brilliant.

The main courses came, V was surprised and asked, "again?". A final wine of a sophisticated Vosne Romanee 2006 was poured.  My choice was Carré d'agneau Allaiton roti, panoufle confite, légumes à la Provencale et jus au thym. Allaiton lamb is one of the finest French lamb there is, and this dish is a homage to the meat. So highly regarded it is that they obviously did not want to tamper too much which resulted in a meat woefully underseasoned. The confited part at the base hardly fared better, it was dry and sad.

Meanwhile, husband was quietly appreciating his Filet de boeuf en cocotte et fricassée de girolles, Wellington de joues braisées, sauce au vin rouge. He kept feeding V bites of the perfectly saignant beef, and then he insisted I try the Wellington, which was a riff thereof, the pastry substituted with roasted potatoes, and when I finally did, wow, this Wellington was pretty amazing. So amazing I suggested to husband that we swap plates, hence the picture of it in mid-consumption.

The creamy-fluffy-crumbly potato acted as  a perfect base for the beef cheeks which had been braised to the point of meat candy, chewy and tough and concentrated with flavours that went on and on, so good that if they made a main dish out of it I am sure that it will sell out. The little disc at 6 o'clock is actually beef marrow battered and deepfried, that was also a little wonder in itself. The fricassée turned out to be made with braised cos lettuce, lovely. The piece of beef meanwhile, was eaten slowly, as slow as is possible with a three year old fighting for her unequal (i.e. larger) share. So while the preceding dishes were unimpeachable and toeing the line in all that is proper and correct, and making our meal a bit of a plod, this dish which the manager had not really done any hard sell for, turned out to be an unexpected star. The fireworks flew, and excitement blew through the room, at least in our little corner, even contagiously spreading to the older French couple next door who declared that they were enjoying themselves (they emphasized that they have eaten in many fine restaurants) to the point of taking pictures of themselves non-stop with their flash-enabled camera.

After the beef highlight we were in a pretty good mood, and also feeling very full. It was time to choose a cheese or a pre-dessert. We went for the pre-dessert, a chef's concoction of comice pears ice cream with crystallised pears and exotic fruits and pear liquor. I love comice pears, this was easy to enjoy.

The first dessert was ananas glacé a la meringue, minestrone à la noix de coco. The meringue contained a light coconut mousse studded with crystallised ginger pieces, the combination of shatter-crispy meringue with sharp fruit flavours and velvety cream exuberantly fruity. It was fabulous, and we were not even finished yet, the meringue was sitting on top of some lightly cooked granny smith apples, its sweet and crisp tartness totally unexpected and adding to the party atmosphere. What a standout.

The second dessert, even if it was made of chocolate, could not possibly compete. Crunchy chocolate encasing passion fruit sorbet and hazelnut praline was pretty but not not terribly exciting. We were already too full anyway, even V could only finish part of the chocolate shell.

We ordered coffee for ourselves, and were given a little silver dish containing chocolate popsicles filled with fruit flavoured cold cream. Very nice. Later the chocolate trolley was rolled around, it has big glass jars containing pistachio caramels and a selection of milk and dark chocolates. V chose these marshmallow-like treats, it's called something like 'ta ge da' and was very cute, the inside pinky white and softly melting while the outside is dusted with a fruity powdery film. We made husband try one, he liked it too.

It was a very pleasant meal. The brigade of waitstaff were very patient, helpful and attentive. I asked for a copy of the menu, this they gave to me in a discreet fashion at the end of the lunch in a folder (together with menus for the coming festive season) put into a black shopping bag within which was also nestled a small loaf of passion fruit and almond cake. V got a cake too, and they did not charge us for her plate of beautiful vegetables.

I asked husband if he thought that this places deserves a 5.5 score. He emphatically disagreed, and proffered a more generous mark of 8.5 instead. I am in accord with him, the food was of a high standard and some dishes were magnificient, the service was irreprochable and in general it deserves more attention than the relative disdain with which it is now getting. Good luck Mr Ramsay!

Updated but lopsided food list

This week we, as in V and I, will be in London for a bit of a break and lots of Chinese food. For visitors coming over to Paris, here is some updates on some new and not-so-new discoveries. It is a little lopsided because the first part focuses on pastries which I don't mention often, and the second part is mostly recommendations of ethnic places.

Part I. R ue Dominique on the stretch nearest rue Cler is bakery central, every second shop sells baked goods. Boulangerie Julien at no 85 has very good bread, one Saturday I saw a chapata-this huge flat loaf studded with caramelized onions and could not resist buying a corner chunk. It was marvelous, with a dense but well-aerated texture for pleasurable chew and a top crust loaded with shallots sweet and just a little crunchy beneath the surface but deliciously caramelised on the flat plane .

Patisserie Lemoine across the road is where I usually go for congolais or coconut macaroons. The bébé version is cute and tiny, a sweet treat that doesn't make one feel guilty. Their canéles seem popular too but I find them a little too boring, I like mine dangerously burnt and chewy on the outside and very resilient inside while Parisians seem to prefer a golden brown version with almost custardy interior.

Veering left after exiting Lemoine is rue Jean Nicot, where Secco/Poujaran has two shops side by side always busy with streams of customers. I love their apple juice sold in glass bottles and these recent weeks with apples in season I have also  been quite addicted to their tartes aux pommes which have irresistably flaky yet short crust and beautifully caramelised apples begging to be eaten with a dollop of crème fraiche. Their gougeres or little cheesy choux puffs are amazing too, much better than the ones at Le Moulin de la Vierge (62, rue St Dominique) but Moulin wins for their super crispy-sticky bittersweet palmieres. 

Incidentally Figaroscope was rating pain aux chocolate in one of their editions. Secco was second, Sui Mai who was in town tried theirs and was not bowled over. I only noticed much later that Julien was rated no 1, sorry my friend!

We don't do many French restaurants, I just haven't found many places that I like to go more than once or twice with the exception of a tiny handful like Josephine chez Dumonet because I am so in love with their foie de veau, incidentally their souffle and millefeuille are not anywhere as good as their less showy but no less delicious tarte fine aux pommes.

What we have been doing a lot of is ethnic places. Indian food is not difficult to find but the food at so many of these places are dreadful, even along rue Cail where the best we can hope for is leaden thosais with cement fritters. For a long time we only liked Aarchana at 19 rue Telegraph which is in the 20th arr, too far for us. One day we decided to try New Jawad at 12 ave Rapp in the 7th, two bus stops away from our apartment. We were pleasantly surprised. The mango pickle is not as good as Aarchana's but they have banana chutney which V loves. 

Their tandoori dishes are above average, and their pakoras and bhajis not bad but what I love is their butter chicken which is a dish that has been murdered many times over in so many other places (worst culprit: high-end Ratn). At New Jawad it is mild and creamy with coconut milk and almonds, hardly authentically Indian but very good for what it is, a subtly spiced comfort dish. New Jawad is one of three restaurants named after the owner's sons, their other restaurants are Old Jawad at 1, rue Monsigny in the 2nd arr and New Balal at 25 rue Taitbout in the 9th arr.

Paris is awash with Vietnamese eateries but we have never really warmed up to its Vietnamese food. Not until we were in the Marais one afternoon in June with my mother and aunt and we came across Minh Chau on 10 rue de la Verrerie. It is a tiny place with little tables and a never-ending stream of customers who dine in or order food to go. The nems are delicious, the summer rolls also good, and among the hot dishes I like their roast pork, caramelised pork ribs and lemongrass chicken while husband always orders their pepper beef. The food tastes home-cooked and a meal there is cheap and satisfying. The motherly owner is  friendly and her four children help her run the business which has been in the neighbourhood for about 20 years!

In July they opened H3C at nearby 9 rue du Renard to serve pho. It is a more ample space with a menu limited to pho and some grilled meat with rice dishes as well as simple appetisers like a delicately piquant dish of cold tofu marinated in ginger sauce. The pho is very good too but not scalding hot as I prefer, the soup has a pleasingly beefy yet clean flavour with fresh meat and rather likeable beef balls.

Korean is our favourite cuisine at the moment and top in our Korean list is Seoul at 165 rue de Javel in the south part of the 15th arr. Husband loves their pork with kimchi but I dream about their bo-ssam, the cold almost gelatinous belly pork complementing nicely with oyster kimchi with and an occasional respite of cold tofu to calm the palate. Another specialty is their braised oxtail, sweet and garlicky with lots of plump gingko nuts. I always overorder when I eat here so we can enjoy the leftovers the following days.

The only Chinese restaurant we go to is Les Jardins de Mandchourie.  Everything is good and fresh, they even have red bean soup which they augment with roasted peanuts. This is another overorder-and-takeaway place.

Among Japanese places, we are still going often to Inaniwa Umami-an for simple izakaya dishes. Isami for sushi. Nodaiwa for eel dishes. A new favourite is Zenzan at 4 rue Brey in the 17th arr. Typical multitasker izakaya place that serves very good standard dishes like tonkatsu, sukiyaki, tempura etc but we must leave room for their home made dorayaki.

Finally, I want to mention Chez Chung (49 Blvd Gouvion Saint Cyr). It is the only place in town that one can get remotely Singaporean food. Singapore Airlines crew staying at the nearby Meridien Porte Maillot has for years been treating this place as a canteen of sorts, along the way they've taught the eatery how to adapt some dishes to suit Singaporeans. Here is where we get our fix of meepok, fried kangkong and prawn paste chicken. No pepper crabs unfortunately but they do make an enjoyable version of salt and pepper prawns.

Youlin, Paris

               

I am finally feeling more human-like. No more falling asleep in the middle of the day and drifting in a semi-comatose state, and the throat is much better too I might just munch on some potato chips in front of the telly tonight.

While the NY pictures go through the Photoshop processor, let me share our latest favourite restaurant. Youlin is a French-Japanese izakaya place located a short spit away from Sorbonne along 3 rue Valette in the 5th arrondissement. T: 01 43 26 05 32. Sui Mai sent me the address just before she left Paris. It is a very small restaurant, with counter seating and tables enough for 20 people max, with a good part of the space taken up by a respectable selection of Japanese beers, sakes, sochus and liquors. The wine list though will not present any bargains and there aren't any wines served by the glass. Best to stick with the umeshus and sakes which goes very well with the food anyway.

A long blackboard along one wall lists the rather short menu of "small plates"dishes, and there is an omakase (chef selection) option of 3 amuses, an appetiser and 2 small plates for the bargain price of 21 euros. The kind pricing is a great incentive to try almost everything. Between my menu and husband's selections of the small plates we managed to sample almost 70% of their dishes most of which were very good to excellent

               

The style is unlike typical Japanese izakaya, nothing as simple as pork stews or fried oysters, no mam here the food is more refined, marrying classical French techniques with striking Japanese influences for example clam sashimi with tomato coulis and yuzu oil.

               

Juicy fat scallops sweet and seared, served in a pool of sauce with truffle flecks and edamame beans. On top of delicious and cute 'gnocchi' made with rice. And I was so worried that their "Italian style" would mean a dollop of mystery ratatouille. 

             

Or a fatty piece of pork rib grilled and dusted with a very unusual ingredient of szechuan peppercorn. Just enough to make the tongue tingle without the spiciness. Oishiii! Other excellent dishes included a cauliflower soup served cold in a glass and dorade (fish of the day) where the beautifully cooked cabbage stole the spotlight. 

There was only one dish that I couldn't bear to eat. A cold pressed terrine of vegetables served with untampered kewpie mayonnaise was very cold and tasteless on its own and was made more nasty when dabbed with the kewpie. It was in the omakase menu which changes weekly so hopefully it won't be included in the next roster.

It would make a nice end if they had some kind of rice or noodle dish. The handsome young man at the bar who was taking orders explained that other diners had expressed the very same thing so by the next visit maybe we'll see what the talented chef can come up with. I also noticed on their website that they have started serving lunch.   

            

Desserts included a white chocolate mousse layered confection with red fruits that had won the chef a prize in 2006. I don't like white chocolate and while I was not converted by this dish, it was pleasant enough especially accompanied by the candied citrus slice.

            

The mille-feuille won me over completely. What it lacked in layers and thinness, being more of a sandwich really, it made up for in matching perfectly the flakey, light-as-a-feather pastry with a silky fruit custard filling. And they have good tea to go with desserts too, another reason to love them.

It's only a matter of time before this place becomes too popular so don't wait any further. Just go. 

La Petite pause

               

And we take a break because I have a mountain of reading waiting for my attention and exams to prepare for. Come the weekend we will drive to the sea, to St Malo; let's hope that the sun will be out and we can enjoy lots of Normandy butter and its derivatives.

Above picture is of an apple tartlette from the famous ice cream shop Berthillon on the Ile de la Cite. The scoops that they dispense are so very tiny, after regretfully licking the last drops of ice cream one can look forward to another ephemeral treat of butter, caramel and apples. Bonne vacances!

We do bistros and brasseries too!

               

Eating with the French is always interesting. Since my spoken French is far from fluent, I am quite contented to listen and the topics, well, fascinating would be putting it mildly. How about plastic surgery and french beauties, divorces, matchmakings, saving wayward French hostages, muggings, holidaying in Colombia and grand chefs of Lyon to start with?

The restaurants chosen are also different from where we might tend to go to, you know, the tiny, overbooked under-30 covers place run by an ex-chef from famous 2 or 3 star establishment and his/her spouse and maybe a spare harried waitstaff but which is all mitigated for, hopefully, by food to swoon over. In contrast most of these "dine with the locals" meals have been in larger establishments serving classic foods with comfortable surroundings and brigades of waitstaffs. Such as Montparnasse 1900 last night. The restaurant has existed for nearly 100 years and was run by the same family for a long time before being sold off to someone else. Sitting on a plush leather banquette in the midst of gorgeous Art Nouveau everything (ceilings, walls, lightings, tiles, my tachycardic heart overwhelmed by all the beautiful craftwork), taking in the details such as the luggage racks and coathooks which harks back to the days when passengers eat there after disembarking from their train at nearby Gare Montparnasse, when we think about it all, the food hardly mattered anymore.

               

Not that it was terrible, thankfully it was not bad at all. Cocktail of avocado and shrimps, steak frites, floating islands (île flottante), creme brulée for husband- competent classic dishes, though my steak was too classical in the sense that I had to chew and chew until my jaws ached and my head screamed. So the food doesn't make you go and extol, say, the whimsical pairing of vanilla and watercress but it does allow one to relax, to carry on a civilised conversation, to butter up the baguettes, to finish the kir petillante (sparkly blackcurrant and champagne cocktail) and to raid the chocolate almonds in the sugar basket come coffee time.

               

If one prefers Art Deco, there is also La Coupole further along the same street, or Le Boeuf sur le Toit near Champs Elysée. And then there's always the bistros like Chez George and Bistrot de la Muette; the decor would not be nearly as elaborate, and the tables are closer together but these places are always full of locals as well as tourists enjoying an uncomplicated night out. 

Addresses below:

Montparnasse 1900: 59 Blvd Montparnasse (6th) T: +33 1 4549 1900

La Coupole: 102 Blvd Montparnasse (14th) T: +33 1 4320 1420

Le Boeuf sur le Toit: 34 rue du Colisée (8th)T: +33 1 5393 6555

Bistro de la Muette: 10, Chaussée Muette (16th) T: +33 1 4520 3593

Chez Georges: 273 Boulevard Pereire, (17th) T: +33 1 4574 3100

Artisan Saveurs

               

Last weekend on the way to Bon Marché we passed Artisan Saveurs, a small and charming restaurant/salon du thé on 72 rue du Cherche Midi. Their door and exterior woodwork had just been been painted a fresh layer of vivid red, beckoning us in for a spot of lunch and a cuppa.

               

The lunch menu was short, mostly tasty and straightforward interpretations of home-style dishes like fricassée du lapin (rabbit), millefeuille of lamb sweetbreads, marinated salmon and ragoût de cochon (braised pork) served with a healthy pile of salad and side dishes like polenta, gratinéed potatoes or rice. Comfortable seating, pleasant and cosy decor and attentive service may explain how this place has been in business for nearly ten years.

               

Their tea menu is long and our Darjeeling selections were brewed before being transferred to the teapot which is correct and would have been even better if they had been more generous with the tea leaves. I chose from the fairly large and tempting dessert and pastry menu a Savarin au Rhum, deliciously well-soused and surrounded by ladylike fruit slices.

All in, a genteel and tranquil place for lunch or a shopping pause in the neighbourhood. They also have baking classes if one is so inclined.

Below: a pictobrowser and composite images of home-cooked lunches for those days when I do not have any lunch appointments, some of which have featured on the blog before. To read the notes please place mouse over the word on the bottom right corner.

L'Agassin and the Duck of Blood

                  

Istanbul was amazing, we're still basking in the wonderful memories and there are many pictures yet that needs to be downloaded. (For readers who can access the personal Vox blog, do click over and have a look at the video).

In the meantime here are some images from the weekend when C was in town. To start, we spent a marvellous Saturday at the Foire Nationale à la brocante et Aux Jambons at île de Chatou which is a short drive away from Paris. Digging around for that special fleamarket find and indulging in porky products, got to give it to the French for dreaming of it in the first place. There was a stand selling cooked ham-on-the bone and it was yummy. We tried the ham with vegetable plate which piled boiled ham, roasted ham, a bit of the skin (that husband had to especially ask for), grilled vegetables, fried potatoes etc together, all of which were good especially when paired with fresh apple juice. Non-edible purchases included some silverware, a serving dish and a pink velvet-upholstered banquette complete with gilded acorns and tasselled fringes which is sitting prettily in our hallway. The fair has just ended but there's always the next one to look forward to.

                  

For dinner we didn't want to go too far. In my list of to-do restaurants I found L'Agassin in the 7th, a leisurely 15 minute stroll away on 8 rue Malar. T: 01 47 05 18 18. Contemporary decor, a bit noisy. Service was well-intentioned but slightly flustered but the food was generally good. The menu starts from 29/34 euros for 2/3 courses respectively, with quite a few supplements for more expensive dishes. C's chicken in aspic was terrific, I haven't enjoyed cold chicken in such a long time. Other dishes were competent if a bit dull, like a  hearty lamb shank stew and steaks.

As for me, I went out on a limb to order the day's special which was Canard de Sang, or bloody duck (add 15 euros supplement). The dish is better known at the famous La Tour d'Argent, where they have a machine for pressing the duck and each duck comes with its own serial number. I haven't tried the real thing, but the chef at L'Agassin had worked there before, as well as at other luminary restaurants such as Ledoyen etc etc. Since I do not foresee myself shelling out precious euros to eat at the silver tower, this would have to do, and by Jeeves it did so magnificiently. The duck was served in two courses, after the others have had their appetisers. The first course was of the duck fillets, grilled pink yet still a little rare and with a thin slightly crackling skin and its rim of duck fat served on a generous pool of intense blood sauce. Every bite was heaven, and there was a gratifying amount of meat, plenty enough to share with husband and C.

                  

The second part of the dish was of a confit version, fried beautifully and coated with a warm and slightly ascerbic mustard crust, absolutely delicious. This bloody duck now tops my list of the best duck dishes in the city.

My meal ended well with a country-style apple tart that was unassuming in looks yet yummy to eat. I liked C's soupy clementine too but cannot remember what husband had.  All in, it is a good place to go to for a reliably good meal in the neighbourhood.

Le Chic Parisian sandwiches at 46 Avenue

               

There's this small cafe just around the corner from our apartment that I came across one day after getting off the bus and turning left instead of the usual right which would bring me home. It is only open for breakfast till lunch, Mondays to Fridays. They sell sandwiches, some pastas and soups. Nothing unusual in that since such spots exists all over the country. But not all, see, have articles posted on their windows rhapsodizing their club sandwiches. One in particular, called it Le Chic Parisien Sandwich. The ultimate club sandwich in the city, made with the finest ingredients blah blah if you would believe the write-ups. Still it spoke to me because I am a sucker for club sandwiches. It is so 70's and kitschy, and I've come across my fair share made with water-logged ham and bread which sticks to the teeth, yet I feel compelled to try every version that crosses my path. Yes, even the 7 euros takeaway versions in Fauchon, delicious from what I could glean of my four bites.

So I asked GG to meet me at the street corner after my Power Plate session and we toddled off to explore 46 Avenue, so named because it is located at, ta da, 46 Avenue Marceau in the 8th arrondissement. Their sandwiches, mostly in the baguette forms come in a good variety of fillings and run about 2-3 euros higher than average but business is very good, a never-ending stream of customers who order takeaways to eat in their office or the parks a bit farther away.

What about the club sandwiches I asked? The harried counter girl pointed me to a menu. Club sandwiches are made-to-order her other colleague said; it would take at least 15 minutes.  It can only be ordered if we want to eat in the cafe, or 'sur place' as they say it in France. All said in a not-too-encouraging tone. I could sense she was keener to move vegetable cartons than go make something which generates sales but I persisted. There is a vegetarian version (10 euros) and about four or five non-vegetarian ones (13 euros each). We ordered The British and Parme to share. In the meantime we sipped on a decidedly un-chic styrofoam bowl of the daily soup, a pureed vegetable and tomato something which was not too bad in the sense that it tasted fresh and homemade but was not particularly interesting either.

We ate in the upstairs dining area, which is a little mezannine carved out from the ceiling area. There isn't enough space for actual tables and chairs, just counters and stools, but diners can distract themselves by watching The Simpsons with the volume turned completely down. Nobody else ordered the club sandwich the entire 1.5 hours that we stayed. I think the articles are seriously out-dated.

               

The Parme is Italian inspired obviously. It has parma ham, rocket, mozzarella, tomatoes and is accompanied by dressed rocket and crisps. The crisps were nothing special, no handcut potatoes with virgin-gathered salt or anything like that, more like supermarket Lays. I would really prefer a plastic basket of french fries actually. All the other ingredients for the sandwich and salad were fresh and of good-quality. The pain-de-mie or sandwich bread was nicely thin and toasted to desired crumbliness. However, I don't think the idea translated itself well into a club sandwich, it ate like a salad in a sandwich. A bit naff.

Decidedly less naff then is The British. White chicken meat, tomatoes, cheddar cheese, mayonnaise and even Cos lettuce and bacon, the last of which was served on the side; I suppose we could have crumbled it into the sandwich or use it to flavour the crisps. Who knows? This sandwich combination worked better, it was tasty, and the accompanying coleslaw was not bad either.

They serve the sandwiches on thick wooden planks which is many steps above the acrylic trays that is used for ordinary sandwiches. Still, 13 for a chi-chi sandwich, excluding drinks and dessert, is a meal that I do not care to repeat anytime soon.

               

This is more typical of my lunches. At home, usually prepared by GG if I have school in the morning. Leftovers bulked up with salads and rice. Otherwise something quick like grilled chicken. The puffy potato balls come from Picard, they are crisp on the outside and fluffy soft inside, but only if you eat them fresh out of the oven, 20 minutes longer and it turns tough and powdery.

               

Another typical lunch. Leftover pitta pockets with tuna melt, we had opened a can of tuna to make husband's lunch. Apple was a free gift from Le Salon de l'Agriculture. The plate is C's X'mas present to me, the pattern is already faded but the size makes it just nice for small meals and I use it a lot.

And now we really have to take a break from blogging, there are tons of stuff left to do for the weekend and the coming holiday. Bonne weekend à tous!

Les Pâtes Vivantes

             

Updated 21 March 2008 with images.

When I first read in Simon~says* about Les Pâtes Vivantes, a restaurant specialising in handpulled noodles, I wanted to go immediately but we couldn't reach the restaurant by telephone. The next morning, a Sunday, we still couldn't get through the telephone line but we decided to go anyway. To our disappointment it was not open for lunch. While pondering our next move we went over to Rue Cail where I stocked up on murruku, Twisties in 'original' cheese flavour, Indian spices and vegetables. Lunch turned out to be an excellent Korean meal at Restaurant Séoul in the other side of town, at 165 rue  de Javel (15th arr). The owner also runs the Korean grocery store Hana in nearby rue Letellier (15), opposite Odori. 

* Simon says is the blog of Francois Simon, he is a well-respected food critic. His blog is written mainly in French. I love the videos, it is amazing how he gets away with filming his entire meals in so many of the restaurants.

             

             

Anyway I was still determined to eat some handpulled noodles so this afternoon I took the 32 bus over to no 46, rue du fg Montmartre in the 9th arrondissement. Happily the restaurant is operating on all cylinders. The first thing one notices is their steamed up windows, then on the left side of the entrance one can see a Chinese lady physically pulling the noodles. The menu is short- a noodle soup Lanzhou style, a dry version Chajiang style, appetisers like potstickers and cold five-spiced beef, about five dishes that will go with rice e.g. aubergines in fragrant sauce or sauteed pork ribs, and some offhand sweets. I ordered a Chajiang noodle, some potstickers and potatoes sauteed in vinegar.

The tiny restaurant was very busy, they have been opened for only 21 days and because of the exposure from such a well-regarded source such as Simon their business is very good. Today their phoneline was finally connected, they can now be reached at 01 45 23 10 21.

Back to my meal. The potstickers were not great, let's get that out of the way first. The noodles though, were absolutely fabulous, thicker than all the ones I've ever tried, as thick as electrical cords, and pulled in a single, long continuous strand. They were chewy-tender with a snappy bite, just the way I like them. The sauce was delicious too, meaty and mildly spiced, the whole thing is topped off with some scallions, chopped garlic and pickles. At 9 euros a bowl it is also very good value. Also very good was their sauteed potatoes, I ordered some for takeaway, it will make husband happy.

After lunch, Madam Coutin (or Madame Duan according to her Chinese name), the noodle-chef, came over to talk to me. She and her son makes the noodles but she is the expert. It's hard work she admits, requiring precision and muscular strength to get the texture just right. Too much salt and the noodles seize up and break off, too little and it is all flabby. She has hired another noodle-expert who can make all sorts of other amazing pulled noodles but he is waiting for his working papers, but when he starts his job we have more to look forward to as well. Oh, on Sundays, they do open for dinner.

This weekend C comes to town and next week we go for a holiday in Istanbul. The blog will therefore be idle for a while. Cheers!

Update 21 March 2008: Visited a second time with C and husband. Their appetiser of pickled cabbage was a big hit- fresh crunchy vegetables yummified with hot pepper oil and cilantro with a sweet-sour dressing- we ordered a second portion. The soup noodles were compared with dried noodles: the dried version won hands down for flavour and variety of ingredients while the soup was thought to be rather bland.