I headed off to the Marais the other day with friends Frank and Patricia, for a little indulgence. Our destination was the very talked-about very blogged-about Éclaire de Génie; a little concept store éclair shop, created by Christophe Adam, that is making the foodie scene turn their heads from the ever-famous over-instagramed (yes, I’m guilty) macaron. The éclairs are about twice the price of a single macaron, but they are at least twice as big, if not three times, and they are quite a bit more complex. With a whole slew of flavors to chose from, with eye-pleasing decorations and colors, these new sweet bites may very well take over the throne that the macaron has claimed for the past handful of years. Read more →
Move Over Macaron l’Éclair De Génie Has Appeared!
Paris Loves Tourists!
Parisians may grumble about them, but then tourists grumble about Parisians, so it’s only fair! 
But I’ll let you in on a little secret… Paris loves its tourists! Really??? you ask? Well, it’s only because they bring an enourmous amount of business to a country that is leaning more and more towards a services industry. Besides luxury, tourism is one of France’s big resources. +70% of the active populatin works in the service industry, which includes everything related to tourism. And Paris, being the most visited city in the world, really needs to open up its heart to tourists. We need them.
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Romantic Weekend at Fontainebleau
Chéri and I celebrated our two year wedding anniversary with a romantic weekend away…. not too far for lack of budget and time. But really, in France, you don’t need to go far to find a place for romance. We took the train from Gare de Lyon (mid-strike mind you) and a half an hour from the Paris arrived at the pretty town of Fontainebleau.
Our lodging was through airbnb, Pheobe’s place. A little two room apartment nestled off of the rue de France, in a quiet little courtyard. Our view was of the charming ancient building behind us and the lovely tile rooftop beside us.
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Sun In The City with eParisiennes
A couple of months ago, I helped out Kasia Dietz and presented her bags at a promotional soirée given by the PR agency Willina (run by two of the most fabulous Parisian bloggers around! Sheily of Paris Maman et Moi, and Nathalie of The Parisienne
The theme of this bash was Sun in the City, to celebrate the arrival of Summer, and promote a few select brands that can help us do just that! And this time Kasia Dietz was attending the soirée too!
Willina then creates a fun « estory » from all of our tweets and instagrams, which we get to browse through the next day. Impressive to say the least given the sheer amount of social media posts we all published. Enjoy it here.
Greeted with fun colored flower necklaces, we mingled until we were divided into groups, and went from one brand presentation back to the refreshment bar, then off to another brand presentation; all which were set up in lovely little scenes around the fabulous venue which double during the day as an art workshop.
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First Time Visit to Paris?
Dreamed of a trip to Paris for years?
So… It’s finally happening… Yaaaaaaay!
Now what do you do first?
Moi, I would make a list of all the things I wanted to do, plan all my outfits, probably create an elaborate Pinterest board, and then search for hotels. That’s part of the fun of planning a trip. What isn’t as fun is the tedious reserving of all of your activities. But, great news for you (first time Paris visitor), there is someone else who can take care of all those reservations for you!
PARIS City VISION allows you to visit Paris and enjoy the city of lights without feeling like you are your own baffled travel agent. Many people on their first trip to Paris leave it all un-planned and un-reserved until they get here, and then it is a fatiguing struggle to fit it all in and most of the time you don’t understand half of what is going on nor how to get to where you need to go. Right?
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Le Comptoir des Abbayes
In my search for quality food that isn’t hampered with by too much science and technology (aka : GMOs) Chéri and I found a fantastic boutique that sells products made by monks all over France. Le Comptoir des Abbayes regroups products from small workshops, farms and ateliers of the hundreds of monasteries scattered all over the countryside. These Abbeys, places where monks seclude themselves to practice their religion and to pray, also are places of production of high quality goods that are wholesome and healthy for us and the Earth. You can find anything from hand made candles, to wines and spirits, to jams and fruit conserves to honey, hams and even soaps.
Gab & Jo Boutique – Made in France
I met Alexis when I visited my ultimate dream apartment in Paris. He was the owner. He has since done away with luxury apartments and is now focusing his attention on something closer to his heart : all things made in France. Just a handful of months ago he opened up Gab & Jo (named after his two kids) where there is something made-in-France for everyone, EVEN for the FRENCH.
Alexis is incroyablement friendly and very enthusiastic. I met him at the boutique as he sauntered back from grabbing his lunch and a few macarons. He eagerly showed me around his boutique, excited about the smallest details and most delightful elements of his endeavor. Seriously, Arnaud Montebourg should come in to visit for inspiration. Read more →
A Seat On Top of Paris
There are certain sunsets that happen over the city of Paris where I wish I could have a view over the rooftops…
Well, I do. I have a seat, and so do you! On top of Le Printemps Haussman, on a café terrace with a beverage in hand, to enjoy the incredible panoramic view. Read more →
Two Spots for Tea
I love tea. I drink a whole pot of it in the morning. Some of you got an insight into breakfast chez Chéri & moi this past winter. I find that it wakes me up gently, quenches my thirst and offers me a delightful indulgence for the papilles (taste buds in French…it sounds better). I do like to indulge in Mariage Frères teas, as you may have read about here before. But with the amount of tea that I consume, that could quickly become quite expensive. So I have scouted out some address in the city where I get high quality teas at a slightly lower price, and then I don’t feel the need to skimp on dosage.
Guiraud Pascal Torréfaction
21 Boulevard de Reuilly, 75012 Paris
Farm to Plate in Paris
Or as my twin sister often says : Farm to Fork!
When you live in a big city, and time for good food is short, it is so nice to know that the good food can come to us. And it was quite by surprise that I saw a farm stand at my local train station in the middle of Paris, on my way home from work one recent evening in April.
The store Les Poireaux de Marguerite, has branched out their activity to offer their products to people who are well out of the vicinity of their store (which is located at 51 rue Saint-Maur, 75011 Paris). The gruff yet charming Frenchman with the friendliest attitude attracted several of us passengers as we exited the train station. 10€ for what they call the « Vegetarien » basket which is a heap of season fruits and veggies from the farms they work with. The in-store price seems to be 14€, and I am not sure why the slight price drop at the train station stand, but I am not going to protest!
There was also a « Gourmand » basket also for 10€. I remained reasonable and stuck to the leafy stuff. Read more →
