I decided to travel to Paris last week to secure a few special ingredients for the forthcoming National Lemon Chiffon Cake Day holiday in the U.S., which is very popular and happens to coincide with my father's birthday - March 29th. I no longer speak to my father, but I do love lemon chiffon cake.
I love Paris, as well. There's a small leather goods shop in the 3rd Arrondissement that secured a highly sought after batch of vintage Aunt Jemima maple syrup in the original problematic bottle from the late eighties. The guy online told me that it has aged sublimely with a darkened hue and deep rich flavor. It can apparently be used as a condiment, a complement to fine baked goods, and as an all-purpose adhesive. He also insisted that I pay in advance.
Since I was a child, I've always been a Francophile. Each visit has been a thrill. I'm a wine lover, too. I've been an oenophile for many years and Paris is full of great wines of all types. Most of all, I love walking... I like to walk, that's all.
While walking through central Paris to retrieve my vintage 'Haute Jemima Reserve', I happened upon a wonderful bistro in the 2nd called Les Petits Carreaux. It's in the Montorgueil area and is named after the street it sits on - Rue des Petits Carreaux. It serves wonderful traditional French fare, and they have the decency to pretend that you're not butchering the French language with the few phrases that you managed to memorize incorrectly and out of context from a discontinued high school French textbook you found in a thrift shop some years ago. They even have an English only menu that's quickly and discreetly provided without any judgment, hesitation or patronizing attitude.
Les Petits Carreaux serves breakfast, lunch and dinner, and the quality of the food is consistently wonderful. I had breakfast and dinner more than once during my stay and each item was executed perfectly. It's surprises like Les Petits Carreaux that make a visit to Paris so enchanting.
Je suis Gregoire est merci Les Petits Carreaux.
Cinq étoiles. read more