VINGT Paris Magazine

La Cave à Bulles

Text and images: Omid Tavallai

On a narrow cobblestone street in Paris' Beaubourg district, Simon Thillou is slowly fomenting revolution. Or fermenting, rather... Mild-mannered and extremely friendly, he explains in fluent English, "Paris is not a beer place. It's difficult for a beer lover to be in Paris for a long time. So that's the reason I'm here."

It's Simon's mission to turn Parisians on to - and supply them with - quality beer. And over the last four years (exactly four years, to the day of this writing, in fact) he has slowly but surely been fulfilling his mission. From his shop on Rue Quincampoix, he sells mostly French beers and dispenses useful knowledge and advice. But not only to beardy beer snobs.

"My customers are people who like good beers, not necessarily beer geeks. People who - once they've tasted good beer - don't want to go back to crappy supermarket beer," he says. "I also get foreign customers who visit Paris several times, and now whenever they visit, they come here. And I trade for overseas beer with them!"

Le Verre Volé

Text: Nick Forrester 

Le Verre Volé, on Rue de Lancry, has a rustic French charm, with relatively simple, but excellent quality food and a vast array of wine. This tiny restaurant doubles as a wine shop - and while you’re eating there is a steady flow of customers coming for take-away wine, selected from the stacks of empty bottles decorating the walls, priced in white Tippex.

The Jambonneau Pané Cuit 60 heurs, is a leg of ham slow cooked for 60 hours and taken of the bone, by which time it’s tender enough to eat with only a fork and nicely accompanied with mashed potato and salad. As I learned over dinner, Jambonneau is also is slang in French for ‘thunder-thighs’, but hopefully not as result of eating this hearty dish.

The ham, along with the Assiette de Fromages and the Saucisse de Toulouse, are staple main courses on the menu. On the plat du jour menu there are often fish dishes, such as the St. Pierre with a purée de pois cases (John Dory and smashed pea puree) or the Queue de Lotte (Monkfish). Each is perfectly cooked and neatly presented.

Au Petit Tonneau

Text: Brendan Seibel

Nestled amongst the glitz and glitter of the 7th Au Petit Tonneau brings the neighbourhood back to Earth. Walking inside this unassuming restaurant is like crossing the threshold of a family home. The small staff are welcoming, polite yet informal and attentive without smothering.

For over twenty-five years this restaurant has been headed by a female owner/chef who  believes in the importance of shopping daily for ingredients. Lovingly crafted provincial plates recreate home-cooked meals only grandmothers can make, whether starter soups and salads or heartier fare of duck, veal or scallops. For all the wholesomeness the food never descends into an arterial gamble which leaves plenty of room for dessert.

Amidst simple furnishings the small staff whirl and twist between tables and the tightly packed galley. There's no affectations of prim and proper service; conversation or menu corrections are called across the dining room. A good French vocabulary will help keep the waitress from becoming flustered, although she keeps her wits about her enough to warn Americans who order the andouillette in mustard sauce that it's not really sausage. Any critical breakdowns in communication are deferred to Madame, who often appears in her towering chef's hat, asking after her guests with a beaming smile.

Sous les Cerisiers: Franco-Japanese Fusion

Text: Brendan Seibel

Considering the West's proclivity toward drowning Asian dishes in salted sauces, the concept of Japanese-French fusion cuisine would probably drive many chefs to seppuku. Deftly ducking the perils of gastronomic disaster, Sous les Cerisiers sprinkles rather than smothers its lovingly prepared menu. While the delectable dishes may inspire the same empathy and sorrow of the fragile cherry blossom's short lifespan the restaurant will endure the highly competitive Parisian gourmet scene through a combination of culinary craftsmanship, innovation and flair.

This careful balance of tradition and influence comes courtesy of Sakura Franck, a Japanese expatriate who traveled working the kitchens of the world before landing in Paris. Years of teaching honed her creativity, an occupation she continues to employ at Sous les Cerisiers today. Her comfort, respect and understanding of both cuisines is revealed in the menu. Dishes carefully marry the tastes of east and west, adorning the bright and clean flavors of her homeland with the vibrant sauces and ingredients of her adopted country.

Chez Omar - Marais institution

Be sure to arrive with an empty stomach, bring cash and be prepared to queue (you can’t reserve in advance).

Rest assured its well worth the wait, nowhere does couscous, France’s favorite comfort food, in such quantity and quality, like Marais institution Chez Omar.

Omar was here long before the Bretagne branchés but don't be surprised if you catch a glimpse of a famous face or two - psst - is that Yoko and Sean?

Chez Omar
47 rue de Bretagne
Paris 3

Sheger

A "hole in the wall" Ethiopian restaurant in the 11th arrondissement with some outstanding flavors. The main course is served on a single large plate whether you order one or several dishes.

We had the Yebeug Tebses (grilled lamb), Ketffo (Ethiopian steak tartar), and Dorow Key Wot (spicy chicken) accompanied with grilled pepper and onion cooked in niter kibbeh, butter infused with ginger, garlic and several other spices.

And in Ethiopian tradition, all dishes are to be eaten atop injera, large sourdough flatbread, as no utensils are used.

20 Glaciers

1. Amorino 12 stores around Paris

2. Christian Constant 37, rue d'Assas, 6e 

3.  Mister Ice 6, Rue Descombes, 17e
4. Gelati d'Alberto 12, rue des Lombards 75004 and 45, rue Mouffetard, 5e
5. La Tropicale 180 Bd Vincent Auriol, 13e
6. Terre Adelice (BIO) At Alain Ducasse but also at GLOU, 101 r Vieille du Temple, 3e
7. Martine Lambert, 192, Rue Grenelle, 7e
8. Berthillon 29-31 rue saint Louis en l'ile, 4e
9. Gerard Mulot 76, rue de Seine, 6e, 93, rue de la Glaciere, 13e, corner of rue des Tournelles and rue du Pas de la Mule, 4e
10. La Marquisette 31-33, avenue de Saint-Ouen
11. Dammann's Glacier 20, rue Cardinal Lemoine, 5e
12. Angelina 226 rue de Rivoli, 1er
13. Scoop 154 rue St Honoré, 1er
14. Bac à Glaces 109, rue du Bac 7e
15. GROM  81, Rue de Seine,75006 and at MERCI, 11, Boulevard Beaumarchais, 3e
16. Glacier au marché des enfants rouges 30 Rue de Bretagne, 3e
17. ALPEREL on-line retail store
18. RAIMO 61 Boulevard Reuilly, 12e
19. Deliziefollie 7, Rue Montorgueil, 1er (in Japanese!)
20. Myberry 25 rue Vieille du Temple, 4e (diet ice cream)

Photo: ImaginaryGirl

20 Maisons de Chocolat

1. Pierre Hermé, 6e
2. Christian Constant, 6e
3. Patrice Chapon, 7e
4.Jean Paul Hévin, 1er
5. La Maison du Chocolat, 8e
6. Marquise de Sévigné, 8e
7. Fouquet, 9e
8. La Petite Chocolaterie, 17e
9. La Chocolaterie Jacques Genin, 3e
10. Malitourne, 16e
11. Sucrecacao, 20e
12. Arnaud Lahrer, 18e
13. A la Mère de Famille, 9e
14. Dalloyau, 8e
15. Michel Chaudun, 7e
16. Gérard Mulot, 6e
17. La Reine Astrid, 6e
18. Lenôtre, 16e
19. Charpentier, 17e
20. Cacao et Chocolat, 4e

Photo features chocolat creations by Jacques Genin, Les Gourmandises de Philippe

Pramil

Christiana Konstantinou writing for I V Y paris

Rue du Vertbois is one of those little-known parisian streets that hide their gastronomic secrets so well. Meat lovers have certainly visited at least once L' Ami Louis, cherished hideout of many American Presidents and home of the largest and possibly best "cote de boeuf" in town -consequently sized and priced.

Amateurs of the Southern Hemisphere's equivalent have pushed more than once Anahi's door -yes, the building is still standing, the rib eye equally good and the time it takes to travel from the kitchen to your table still reminds you that it came all the way from Argentina after all.

Fewer are those, though, who have noticed a discreet and elegant facade on the opposite side, half a block down the road.

Whitewashed beams, soft lights and blooming orchids introduce you to the universe of Alain Pramil, master of the establishment that simply carries his last name. A handful of tables up front, a second one -almost unnoticed- in the back, nothing really prepares you for the gastronomic experience that's about to follow.

Julien, caviste

This is a great cave to come to if you'd like some un-snobby direction on how to choose your wine.

Julien Caviste
50 rue Charlot
75003
Paris
Métro Filles du Calvaire