Act Casual

Photo: HILARY FRANKLIN

I must admit - sun, fashion, and celebrity sightings simultaneously made my Tuesday afternoon unbeatable. I left my house for school just like I do every morning, but today was different. I stepped outside and felt warm wearing only a light coat. Those of you reading from other places cannot understand how thrilling it is to see grey skies suddenly disappear. The sun transformed the city today. Couples, kids, and old ladies with their dogs crowded the streets. I saw people lay back in green lawn chairs, noses pointed skyward in the Luxembourg Gardens and around the Tuileries fountains.

After class I met up with Grace and Emily for lunch at our favorite healthy eatery in the 3rd arrondissement called Bob's Kitchen, aka "BK." It's a small restaurant and usually crowded at 1pm so we were sitting three in a row on bar stools. All of the sudden Grace started whispering and motioning about a man literally standing behind us. It was Joe Zee, Creative Director for Elle. Zee and I ate the same meal - veggie stew. I know I sound silly, but it was exciting to see an American insider during Paris Fashion Week. He wore a grey v-neck sweater and a crackberry. Magazine and shades on table. Grace and Emily insisted it would be a faux pas to say anything, so I obliged.

Post lunch we stormed through the metro to get to the Tuileries where Valentino show started at 2:30. We found the white carpet leading into the white tent. Photographers, beautiful people, and wannabes like me scattered everywhere. By the time we got near the entrance, most people had already entered the tent. But it wasn't too long until the show ended so we were able to see everyone parade out. We stood right on the edge of the white carpet, close enough to brush shoulders. All of the sudden Emily casually says, "It's Kanye." Just like that. There's Kanye West with a pair of huge bodyguards on either side of him walking right past me. It was nuts. We kept watching in awe of the models and everyone's outfits. Then, I saw a flash of wild red hair and immediately recognized it from the documentary, "The September Issue." It was former model and creative director for Vogue, Grace Coddington. NBD. 

Just when I was getting ready to leave for my late afternoon class, Emily spotted Scott, the blogger/photographer known as "The Sartorialist." I have a link to his blog here. I would have never recognized him myself. We dropped the rules and approached him when he walked past us. Yes, it was a bit awkward saying, "Hi, Are you the Sartorialist?!" But, he shook our hands and was actually very friendly. He said today's show was better than recent Valentino shows. It was a brief exchange, but still cool. Unfortunately I didn't have my camera with me, but a few people from my program may have some good shots.

Photos: PARKER MULLINS

Le Petrelle

The area surrounding the Anvers metro stop in the 9th arrondissement near the Sacre Coeur is not the loveliest of neighborhoods to hang out in at night. I held my bag tightly, passing some shady characters on the five-minute walk to Le Petrelle. I let myself in through a glass door and heavy velvet curtain hiding the interior from the street. I immediately felt comfortable. I spotted Grace and Emily at our table through a bookcase and display of fresh produce at the entrance. The intimate dining room was casually elegant with a whimsical decor. 'Paris meets Brooklyn' according to Grace. On each table there were a few neat books, small flowers, a candle, and an odd ceramic bird with a removable head. Linear scenes in black, white, and red covered the entire back wall. The print looked like it came straight from a Dr. Seuss book with the winding staircase and curious objects lining the bookcase. Our waiter with the charming British-English accent brought our menus promptly. The cursive writing inside was beautiful, but we could hardly decipher our options. Luckily, he explained everything. Grace and Emily started with an artichoke salad and I chose the special. My poached egg came in a small white ramekin with cream, mushrooms, and black truffles. There were greens on the side and long strips of toast for dipping. For our main courses, Grace and I ordered steak medium rare. Emily had the fish of the day. The steak was perfectly cooked, not too big, not too small. It's not often that I order non-chocolate desserts at a restaurant and last night was no exception. I had the gateau au chocolate. It was both rich and light. Grace had the same and Emily ordered a lavender infused cream. The atmosphere, service, conversation, and of course food was just perfect. Who knows, maybe I will meet a suave Frenchman who will take me back.

There was a dog in the restaurant too. 

Petrelle 
34, rue petrelle
75009
Paris
Telephone 01 42 82 11 02

A Touch of Spring

I must have told Emily how beautiful it was outside a dozen times today like I'd never felt sunlight in my life. I've now been in Paris almost a month and it's been gray most days, so walking around in a sleeveless shift dress was wonderful. Post lunch, we just sat by the Seine for awhile and people watched. There were tons of people on the river boat cruises and on bus tours. In the late afternoon we went to a wine tasting at Spring Restaurant. I read great reviews of the restaurant and wine shop on some blogs so I thought it would be worth a visit. The Spring Boutique is just down the street from the restaurant in the 1st arrondissement near the Louvre. There were six other people in the group. While we were waiting for the tasting to begin Emily heard one of the women say "y'all." We immediately asked where she and her husband were from..Texas! The couple now lives in Huntsville, but used to live blocks from my house in Houston. Small world. Another one of the women is in Paris for business. She works in the textile industry buying fabric for Gap. It sounded like a very neat job. She travels to Paris often for trade shows and trend forecasting, then goes to Asia where Gap's mills are located. She said the price of cotton has quadrupled and we will be seeing more synthetics. The last woman to arrive, Meg Zimbeck, turned out to be the editor of a blog called Paris By Mouth. http://parisbymouth.com/ I've been reading it here so it was neat to meet her. She brought her American intern who is completing her masters in Gastronomic Sciences. Très cool. 

Spring's owners discovered three floors below the main restaurant while doing renovations. In Paris the law requires you to preserve historic architecture. So, the wine tasting was in Spring's 16th century cellar. In an hour and a half span we tried seven different wines; two blanc, three rouge, and two dessert wines. All of the wines came from small artisanal producers in France. One point the Spring wine expert stressed is the importance of the producer rather than the production year. He said many people are caught up with vintages, but you should really look for passionate wine makers who pay great attention to each step in the winemaking process. I'm certainly not a wino, but I enjoy learning about wine. We started with a 2008 Sauvignon Blanc from Menetou-Salon, Loire. The producer is Philippe Gilbert. I actually bought this bottle afterwards. I learned to describe it as a dry, balanced, acidic white wine. It's fragrant and fresh. I liked it better than the Chardonnay that had more of an oaky taste. I also liked the Pinot Noir - Volnay Brouillards Premier Cru. Emily bought the Malbec from Cahors made by Jeremie Illouz. The man that taught us is originally from San Francisco. He was extremely knowledgeable and entertaining as well. We're going back for a meal in March.

Pictures from the day:

Le Chateaubriand

My Wednesday night dinner friends and I had yet another great meal. We ate at Le Chateaubriand in the 11th. We didn't have a reservation, but were able to snag a table without waiting just after 9:00. The restaurant had a set 5 course menu plus amuses bouche. I thought each dish was very creative. I enjoyed the scallops most, but the two mini desserts were great as well. Our waiter was part French, part British and his looks reminded us of Orlando Bloom. The restaurant was packed all night. They seated a new table next to us after 10:00 and people were still waiting at the bar.

Here's what we ate:

Amuse,  Ceviche 'Shooter'

Amuse, Crab and Radish

Morue d'Alcorta, pil-pil, pommes de terre (Cod)

Saint-Jacques, oignons des Cevennes, herbes, tea matcha

Magret, chou pourpre, tamarin, Kalamata (Duck)

Endive, orange, olive

Chocolat, celeri

I walked around Luxembourg Gardens (Jardin du Luxembourg) the other day and will probably go today if the weather clears up by the afternoon. It's the second largest public park in Paris so it's a great place to exercise and people watch. Plus, it only takes about 10 minutes to walk from my house. It's not quite like walking up to Rice University like I do in Houston. There are sculptures, fountains, and chairs for people to sit and relax. Last time I saw a group of old men playing bocce ball together. The park even has a metal coat rack next to the paved gravel area for players to hang their coats! I wonder if they all knew each other or if random people join. I do have some bocce experience...

'Tom Collins' s’il vous plaît

Wednesday at W&L is a party night, so why not make it one here? One of my friends loved Harry's Bar in Venice, so she suggested we go to the one in Paris. I went with three other girls went last night before going out to dinner. It was in the 2nd arrondissement near the Opera house. We sat at a round table downstairs right next to the piano. It really did have a New Yorky feel. There were lots of business types and couples. The atmosphere wasn't great, but we all enjoyed our cocktails and I'd go back. I had a Tom Collins: gin, perrier, lemon, and sugar. I may be taking after my father choosing gin.

After Harry's, we went to a casual bistro called Le Mesturet. We all had un plat and dessert. Oddly, entree in French is an appetizer and plat is entree. The food was great especially for the price. I had the coq au vin for my main course. Two of my friends got a dessert called Paris Brest maison, crème pralinée (petit appétit s’abstenir). The menu translated on the side (not for small appetites)! It came dusted with powdered sugar and drizzled with caramel. We've learned that at restaurants in Paris, you really have to flag down the waiter and deliberately ask for the check (l'addition) or they'll let you sit for an hour after you've finished a meal. Just about every server speaks English back to me when I attempt speaking French. Oh well. However, a man on the street stopped me this week and started talking to me in French. When I said I didn't understand he said, "You're not from France?! But you look Parisian." It totally made my day. Clearly, I'm fooling some people. 

Small appetites, refrain.

Cool wine bottle light fixture

I'm going to visit a W&L friend in London this weekend. I'm only a pile of French worksheets away. I still haven't gotten into a routine as far as schoolwork goes. My host family requested I bring back some Marmite from the UK. I can't forget! I am looking forward to hearing English!

Blue Skies

After two straight weeks of gray clouds, the sun finally came out in today. I was beginning to worry I'd never see light again! Everyday I have a moment when I can't believe I'm actually living in Paris until May. Sometimes that moment comes walking in Ladurée or while riding the metro, but today it came crouched in my tiny Euro shower. What I love most so far is not knowing what to expect the next day. I learn and see something new every single day. I love walking everywhere and constantly finding new shops and restaurants to visit. So far I've been to roughly 6 percent of the restaurants in Hungry for Paris by Alexander Lobrano and haven't had a bad meal yet. I took a friend to the Breizh Cafe in Marais after I went the first time and she loved the nutella banana crepe. They have an extensive cider list, so we tried some. It was interesting...not like cider I've had at home. By mid pitcher we started thinking it may have been alcoholic. Who knows. 


Saturday, the whole group went on a bus trip to visit Versailles. I've seen the Hall of Mirrors in so many people's Paris photo albums, so it was great to see it in person. It was all pretty incredible. However, the château doesn't have much furniture because it was sold during the French Revolution and most of what it does have are replicas. My camera died two pictures in, but I'll go back. I'd like to go in the spring to see more of the gardens when the weather is nicer anyways. A group of us went dinner afterwards and I had my first bowl of French Onion Soup here. I asked my host mother if we could make some this week and she found a recipe with lots of Gruyere cheese for the top. She told me we'll cry a lot in the process. 


Living with a family has been such a wonderful experience. The other night my family had a going away party for their daughter with all of her friends. Her 72 year old godmother came too. She was the life of the party, in my eyes anyways. She arrived monochromatic. Purple sweater, purple leggings, and purple suede boots. She held her dog Lilo in a pink carryall bag. We were all enjoying wine and snacks upstairs before the meal. All of the sudden I look down and Lilo was licking foie gras from a leopard print dog plate. The godmother said, "Oh Lilo loves liver." But wait, it gets better. After dinner she started smoking pot at the table in front of everyone. I kid you not. The mother warned me this would happen ahead of time, but I was still shocked. Apparently she had a calm night too. At any rate she was a riot. Aside from the godmother, some members of my French family remind me of Cancelmo's at home. Prosper = Peter. He is sturdy with a certain swagger and when he walks into the kitchen he doesn't talk to anyone. He just eats. Bernard = Duke. He does floor exercises at the house in the morning, reads the paper, and likes cheese. 


All of my classes start this week. Tomorrow I have two art history classes back to back. Tuesdays and Thursdays I have French and Marketing. My French is barely coming along and I keep wanting to say words in Spanish like, lo siento and donde. Nearly all of the people I've met here know at least a little bit of English, so I must get going with French!

Ceiling in the chapel at Versailles

ZE KITCHEN GALERIE

Excellent lunch today with my fellow Texan friend Emily. Off to Versailles for the afternoon tomorrow.

Farcis de Saint Jacques, Crab & Crevette
Condiment Mangue-Citronelle
(Stuffed Scallops with Crab & Shrimp)

Agneau de lait confit - grille, gnocchi aux herbes, mostrada
(Lamb & Gnocchi)

Cappuccino Gianduja, Emulsion Cacahuette & Noisette, Glace Coco
(Delish)

A French Dinner

Tonight my host family invited three couples over for an intimate dinner party. I was happy to be included even though I couldn't communicate with anyone. I just observed and listened. We all began the night upstairs with wine, sausage, and sliced fresh horseradish Nancy called "organic sausage." There were two small dishes, one with a spice mix and the other black sesame seeds mixed with salt to dip the horseradish. As the guests arrived I managed to say bonsoir and introduce myself. I wasn't ready for the double kiss greeting from the women. 


After everyone conversed for awhile we all went downstairs to the kitchen. The kitchen is pretty big. There is a long dining table along and a concrete "island" (as I would call it in America) with bar stools. Lucy, Prosper, his friend, and I formed the kids table on the stools. Nancy dressed the main table beautifully with a white table cloth, silver trays, and candelabras. We began with foie gras, bread, and Sauternes (a sweet white wine). I learned that the French always put the bread on the table, not on plates even if there is not a tablecloth. Then we had pork with a tomato, onion sauce and potatoes au gratin. Following the main course we had cheese and more bread. This is something I am still getting used to. I knew before I came that cheese after the meal is very typical, but I didn't think families would really eat it everyday after dinner. I especially like how it's served on a round wooden block. 


For dessert we had a lemon cheesecake with a gingersnap crust. One of the guests said, "Kate would you like a piece of cake?" At least that is what I made out. All of a sudden the entire table burst out in hysteric laughter and started jabbering in French. I just smiled and carried on. I felt like I was in a nail salon at home where the ladies talk about you, but you can't understand what they are saying.

Luckily, Lucy talked to me in English some and we talked about her upcoming trip to New York. She she made a comment about needing to exercise when she gets to America because of all of the food and alcohol she'll consume. I found this so surprising that she would feel that way about the US when that is exactly how I feel about being in France.

The more wine everyone drank, the louder it got. It was a very lively, boisterous group. I love being a part of it. Tomorrow afternoon intensive French lessons begin. I am in Group A for extreme beginners. I desperately need to learn some new words and phrases to bring to the table.