Again the Patisserie AOKI below our apartment gets the highest marks: Patisserie Sadaharu AOKI 35 rue de Vaugirard 75006 PARIS. €16 for 12 macarons approx AUD$2.60 each. ... They were a bit too crispy on the day we bought them, but by the time they travelled home to Australia – they were pretty perfect texture-wise. ... It’s around the corner from Pierre Hermé so we went there at about 10:30, but all I got was a photo of the outside of the shop. ... Luckily, we ended up back in the 6th later on in the day and I was able to pop in for my fix. I was told off for trying to take photographs in the shop though so you’ll have to trust me when I say that it was full of beautiful chocolates and dainties.
Not really my thing, but LOUIS COMFORT TIFFANY COULEURS ET LUMIÈRE at the Musée du Luxembourg 16 septembre 2009 – 17 janvier 2010
October 5, 2009
His look as a painter in terms of color and composition, his passion for exoticism and his innovations in the glass field make him, from1900, becoming a leader of the American design whose reputation goes until the great European capitals: he will compete with the great European glass makers of the end of the 19th century. The splendid ornamentation, the careful work, the spectacular effects and original in their lights and colors which are the main characteristics of his glass production (blown glass vases, stained glass windows, lamps and items) put him in the heart of numerous artistic movements of his time, from the Arts & Crafts and the American Aesthetic Movement to New Art and Symbolism. The exhibition will gather about 160 works (stained-glass windows, vases, lamps, items, jewels and mosaics, drawings, watercolors and photos of the time) which reveal the noteworthy contribution of this creator to the glass industry such as the whole of the decorative arts.
Hotel Villa Madame and the provenance of Rue Madame
September 4, 2009
I just learned of the provenance of the fabled street, rue Madame, that crosses rue de Vaugirard, where our apartment is located. It was named after Marie-Joseph-Louise, "Madame" de Savoie, the wife of Xavier-Stanilas "Monsieur" de Bourbon, Count of Provence and the future Louis XVIII. In 1790, "Monsieur," the current owner of the Luxembourg Palace, honoured "Madame" by naming the…read more
Une femme/une fille d’un certain age
September 1, 2009
This dressing your age thing is tricky, for myself and for my daughter. My daughter, who is nine, has grown too old for the 'kids' clothes at Du Pareil au Meme, Jacadi, or BonPoint, but still too young to wear truly teen age fashion. One thing is for sure, her feet has grown so much that she must wear Women's…read more
Hemingway, the “portable picnic,” and the rue de Vaugirard
August 31, 2009
You got very hungry when you did not eat enough in Paris because all the baker shops had such good things in the windows and people ate outside at tables on the sidewalk so that you saw and smelled the food. When you were skipping meals at a time when you had given up journalism and were writing nothing that anyone in America would buy, explaining at home that you were lunching out with someone, the best place to do it was the Luxembourg gardens where you saw and smelled nothing to eat all the way from the Place de l'Observatoire to the rue de Vaugirard.
...I certainly have memories of it, and things I crave when I'm away, but, justement , I keep coming back to Paris because I can't replicate the feelings I have when we're here.
Tarte du Soleil and other perfect plats
August 29, 2009
We always see our friend/proprietor Sophie Clavié and her gracious husband Philippe when we're in Paris. Her neighborhood bistro is Closerie des Lilas, the world famous magnet for the avant-garde for generations. Their book shows all those who have passed through the place, from Bernard Kouchner, Gertrude Stein and Alice B. Toklas, Ingres, Henry James, and even Sarah Jessica Parker!…read more
Chocolatiers Abound
August 26, 2009
Two more chocolatiers opened in the neighborhood, giving competition to Pierre Hérme. Patrick Roger, voted the best chocolatier in 2000, seems to be guided by the seasons and his whimsies, as my daughter Hadley and I saw the largest 6' chocolate pencils to commemorate the start of the school. Down the street, on rue de Rennes, is another contender, L'Atelier…read more
A few new (and old) recommendations
August 19, 2009
Friends are just back from Paris and here are their quick recommendations and (very) short comments: Lots of Amarino ice cream (they keep opening new locations beyond Rue du Buci)
... La Petite Cour for dinner (8, rue Mabillon 6th) -- we really like this one too We, including and especially the kids, LOVE Amarino ice cream, but eschew the rue de Buci location for other less touristy spots because the lines go down the block. ... We love the decor, which allows us to bask in a fantasy that we are a truly bilingual French-American editor at Gallimard having yet another intellectual tête-a-tête with the real denizens of the 6th.
5 Off-beat Museums in Paris
August 3, 2009
Some days we don't leave the apartment at all, bathing in the Buddhistic calm that comes with knowing that it's all outside the door if were just to open that door. ... Here are five museums (including one X-rated) that we haven't been to, but will add to our "maybe today" list when we inevitably have to leave the apartment for coffee and orange juice at some point. ... Address : 4, rue de la Montagne Sainte-Geneviève 75005 Opening Times : 09:00 – 17:00 Monday to Friday, Saturday: 10:00 – 17:00; Closed on Sundays Price: Free Website: http://www.prefecture-police-paris.interieur.gouv.fr/connaitre/musee/musee.htm 4.
Gourmet Paris, the Remix « ArtsÉtoile
July 9, 2009
Here's another good round-up of food feasts in Paris, many in our neighborhood, and old favorites like Pierre Hermé and La Durée (though we've soured on the last given prices and crowds). ... Stop by Pierre Hermé on rue Cambon on the right bank or rue Vaugirard or Bonaparte locations on the left bank for mouth watering macarons – these are the best in Paris, seconded, perhaps by Ladurée (skip the macarons at Paul). Another worthwhile stop for an afternoon pause gourmande is the Grande Epicerie du Bon Marché, where you can sample many top shelf products, from cheeses, to meats, to a shellfish bar, more types of water than you have ever seen, and speciality products from Fauchon and Hediard.
