Tag: paris

On Gerhard Richter at the Fondation Louis Vuitton

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I was blessed recently not only to be in Paris, but to be there when the Fondation Louis Vuitton had on display a major exhibit of the works of Gerhard Richter. To say “major” is an understatement: it had dozens and dozens of work from every era he has been making art, from the 1960s until now. As a big fan of Richter, I could hardly believe the paintings that they had on display, from Tisch, 1962 to Birkenau, 2014 (seen above). It was incredible.

If you can get to Paris by 02.03.2026, you owe it to yourself to go. You can read more about the exhibit, here. Of course the building itself is fantastic, thanks for Frank Gehry:

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There’s so much great art to see in Paris, but I’d recommend you check out what the good folks at Louis Vuitton have on display. Before this they had a big David Hockney show too. Have some champagne and cake in the dining area after the show: you’ll be glad you did.

P.S. Here’s a good review of the show with many more images from it too.

My guide on how to use Michelin Guides to causally dine

You may think of Michelin guides in terms of deciding the best places to dine in a particular city or place. That is one way to think of them. If you aim to eat in the finest of establishments, their guides to 2 and 3 star restaurants can help you there.

On the other hand, if you want have a relaxing meal that doesn’t cost too much, you can still use their guides. Here’s two ways to do that:

  1. Go to restaurants with Bib Gourmand awards. As Michelin says, these are places with good quality, good value cooking. That’s how I ended up eating recently at Bao in London. It was delicious and super inexpensive. Same goes for Brutto, which I stopped at on my previous visit. If you were visiting Toronto, you would do well to eat at such places as Sunny’s Chinese or Bar Raval, all places with Bib Gourmands. Same goes for Russ and Daughters and Katz’s in New York, to name just a few more places.
  2. Go with restaurants with a price point rating of $ or $$. You likely won’t get fancy tablecloths or candlelight, but you will get really good food. Two examples of that in Toronto are PAI and CÀ PHÊ RANG, while in New York you get great meals at place like Via Carota and Momofuku Noodle Bar. Are you in London? Check out Barrafina or the Pig and Butcher.

Now, you can still causally dine in places that don’t meet the criteria above. I had a fantastic meal at Parcelles in Paris, but it is €€€, even though it feels casual there. Likewise I love St. JOHN in London, and it too feels like a casual place, but again, it is £££. But over all my guide holds, especially if you have no idea how to proceed and you don’t want to spend too much while still eating well.

Michelin is not the be all and end of all of where to dine in a city. Anyone who knows a city well can tell you that they pass over places that should be included, and underrate places you should check out. But you would do well to lean into their guides if you are aiming to eat well and eat causally in a city.

Three good lists to help you dine well in Paris (plus some other good sources)


It can be overwhelming trying to decide where to eat in Paris. You need a guide. Here’s some I recently used for a trip to Paris that I found were very helpful.

First up, I highly recommend David Lebovitz’s list of favorite Paris restaurants, not just for the list itself, but for the many tips to dining out in Paris at the end of the list. (He also has this older link, but it’s very old.)

We also took advantage Alison Roman’s list of places she hit up in Paris, although you may need to be a subscriber to see it. She is a big fan of the many great wine bars in Paris, as well as places like Les Enfants du Marché.

If you have to choose one source, then of course you want to go with Michelin, which obviously is a great guide for dining in Paris.  There are literally hundreds of restaurants you can choose from at all price points. There’s really no excuse to dine poorly with so many options.

To all those I would add Laura Calder, who is living in Paris now. Check out her substack to see where she has been in Paris. Years ago I asked her for advice on dining in that city and she pointed me to David Lebovitz. Now I do the same for you.

Before I forget, consider checking out the New York Times: do a search for “Paris”. I heard about Parcelles through this piece on Paris bistros and I knew I had to go.

As for the places we ate on our last trip, here’s my list of places we had good dinners:

The first three were three different sort of bistros, which I love. And the last two were bars with more casual fare.

For lunch we had lovely avocado toast sandwich with egg and watercress at Used Book Cafe in the Marais: highly recommend that spot. Another day we grabbed a jambon beurre from Caractère de Cochon and ate in while sitting in a park. Lovely.

What do Paris and London and Detroit have in common?

What they all have in common is they are included in the links below (plus something on Venice and Budapest too).

Here’s a story on the secret vineyard in the middle of Paris where the wine has ‘an air of mystery’.

Fans of Parisian cafes will want to read this: Parisian cafés are a cherished part of French culture. Here’s why they might be in trouble.

I once wanted to go here very badly, but I no longer do. For those that feel otherwise, here’s an old piece in Vanity Fair on L’Ami Louis.

I would not mind checking out Paris’ Hôtel Balzac, which has reopened its doors following a 1930s-inspired renovation.

For the less rich – of which I am one – here’s a good piece on where to eat in Paris on a budget.

Finally, as a Torontonian, my first thought was, “was that all it costs??”: Karl Lagerfeld’s futuristic paris apartment sells for 10m euros.

Swtiching from Paris to London, here’s a good run down on London’s Smithfield meat market which will close after 850 years in operation.

Meanwhile, over in Milan, we have this detailed story on the famed La scala opera opening night.

As for Venice, Budapest and Detroit, here’s three guides from the New York Times on….

You are going to Paris. You’re going to be thirsty. This can help

If you are going to Paris, you’re going to want to hit a wine bar at some point. Need recommendations? Here’s Food &Wine’s favorite wine bars in Paris. Decanter also has a good list of wine bars in Paris. Aim for something on those lists.

Prefer coffee instead? No problem. Food & Wine also has a list of iconic Paris cafes you can stop by.

Sure, you can drink water. But don’t pass on the wine and coffee.

 

Paris bistros are resurging, and that’s great to see

I love Paris and I really love bistros and those two things go well together. But while Paris seems eternal, there was often reason to fear their bistros would die off. Well, according to this, I think I can allay my fears for now: 6 Paris Bistros to Try Now in The New York Times.  According to the Times:

Paris has recovered its scents, and the city is suddenly ravenous. The whiffs of shallots sautéing in butter, bread baking, meat roasting and bouillon simmering that invisibly punctuate any stroll in this food-loving city are back. In fact, the French capital is in the midst of a restaurant boom.

“I think it’s a carpe diem thing,” said Ezéchiel Zérah, the Paris-based editor of two popular French food publications. “After Covid, everyone has a keen appetite and wants a good time.”

Encouraged by pent-up local demand and a dramatic revival of the city’s tourist trade, young chefs and restaurateurs are hanging out their first shingles in Paris, and the most popular idiom is the beloved Parisian bistro. Some of them are pointedly traditional — the delightful Bistrot des Tournelles in the Marais, for example — while others offer a refined contemporary take on bistro cooking, notably the just opened Géosmine in the 11th Arrondissement.

Sounds superb! Also

What all of them have in common is chefs with a refreshingly simple culinary style. “No wants tweezer cooking anymore,” said Thibault Sizun, the owner of Janine, an excellent new modern bistro in Les Batignolles, a neighborhood in the 17th Arrondissement.

I have to say, the dish below looks pretty tweezerish to me, but I quibble.

All the places look fine, and the food looks fantastic. It makes me happy to hear that bistros are doing well. To see for yourself, check out the article.

(The above photos are from Joann Pai for The New York Times, who took some other great photos in the article too.)

The Louvre’s Mona Lisa problem

The Louvre has two problems with the Mona Lisa. 1) It’s too hard to see:
Looking for Elbow Room, Louvre Limits Daily Visitors to 30,000 and 2) it’s too delicate to take out of the museum: The Mona Lisa Will Not Be Going on Tour After All, the Louvre Says.

Sadly you could paint a fake Mona Lisa and no one would know, since it is so hard to see it if you are in the Louvre. Maybe that’s what they should do! Seriously I don’t know what the solution is: people have it on their bucket list of things to so (and I can only imagine it is worse now in the heyday of social media).

Needless to say, billionaires like the fictitious one in Knives Out: Glass Onion could not do what was portrayed there. 🙂 Want to see the painting: take your chances and battle the crowds in Paris.

Emily is in Paris…why aren’t you?


Let’s agree: we should all be like Emily and go to Paris. If you nod your head yes but wonder where to go when you get there, then Food & Wine has the answers. Well, answers to your questions about food and wine, such as which Paris wine bars you need to see or what are the best Paris cafes for experiencing the city’s history, or even what are the most iconic Paris restaurants to visit on your next trip. You may have other questions, like where to stay or what to see, but if you are like me, you want to figure out the food first. 🙂

As for poor Emily, many American expatriates in Paris wish Emily Cooper Would Go Home. I say leave that show to those young and outside of Paris who harbour fantasies about living her life. It’s a fairy tale of a show and best watched as one.

Virtual Travelling: Sinner hotel, in Paris

I won’t be going anywhere any time soon, but if I could, I might go and stay at this boutique hotel in Paris, just to stay in that bed.

The hotel, in the Marais district of Paris, is a stunner. You can find out more about it, here, or by visiting their website, here.

Once the pandemic is over, I think there will be an orgy of travel. And what better place to stay than a place called Sinner? 🙂

P.S. This suite is nice, too.

The limits of wine bars in North America cities as compared to Paris and why this is interesting


We have tons of upscale coffee shops, and wine is more popular than ever in North America, so Eater asks what seems to be a simple question: Natural Wine Is Everywhere in America. Where Are the Wine Bars?

I say “seems” because the answer is long and fascinating for a number of reasons: economic, cultural, and gastronomical. It’s a smart piece. I highly recommend it.

Here’s a snippet of what I mean:

It’s sad to see something so ostensibly simple become another exclusive pleasure, so I keep looking for the neighborhood wine bar of my dreams — which is honestly just a cramped room with bottles of interesting, affordable wine on the wall and, like, a cheese plate? Yet this seemingly simple thing is stupidly hard to find. It’d be sort of funny that cosseted American wine bars struggle to attain the loose charm of Paris, given that France is stereotyped as the place that’s snooty, rules-bound, and tradition-obsessed, if the result wasn’t such a bummer. While yes, there are a lot of rules, France also has a more open culture of public life; you don’t need to make plans to go out to drink wine. And though wine signifies many things in French culture, an air of sophistication because you drink it is not one of them. The appeal of enjoying wine in France, at least as the kind of person who’s moved by wine but still needs bolds on the list, is that French wine culture feels so much less precious than in America.

The fascinating story of Paris Green, a tint that literally was drop dead gorgeous

I love stories about colours and their origins, but this one on Paris Green is especially good: This Trendy But Toxic Shade of Green Left Thousands Dead in the Victorian Era.

Turns out 19th century patrons loved this tint that was produced using…arsenic. You can imagine how this turns out, but save your imagination and read the story.

Image and story from Town and Country, of all things. Not sure how I came across it, but I am glad I did.

The diversity of I.M. Pei, shown in six buildings

Like many, I am well aware of Pei’s work at the Louvre. I was not aware he designed the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland. I liked this piece,  Six of I.M. Pei’s Most Important Buildings – The New York Times, because it showed the diversity of Pei’s work and touched a little on how he approached new projects.

A good way to remember a great architect.

Are Paris bistros dying? Some thoughts…

bistro
According to this piece, they are. A key indicator/quote pulled from it:

Around 30 years ago, bistros represented about half of all restaurants in Paris…Today…that figure has dropped to 14%.

Bistros are challenged because the cost of providing that type of establishment in Paris is limited by such things as rent — a problem not limited to Paris — as well as international threats like fast food joints.

At one time bistros were fast food joints. But there’s more to bistros than fast food. I agree with that article that says a good bistro should be

open continuously morning to night, serves French comfort foods at moderate prices, and houses an active bar where locals can gather for a drink and some lively conversation

That seems right to me. McDonald’s in Paris will never be a bistro, no matter how fast the food or how French they make the decor.

Paris will always have low cost places to eat (e.g. cafes), but it would be a shame if they lost their bistros. (It would also be a shame if the ones that remain are expensive museum pieces and less casual places to dine.) Best to get yourself to them now while you still can.

Best way to host a dinner party? Like a Parisian

Paris food
The wise David Lebovitz has great tips on how to host a dinner party in the manner that  Parisians do. If that sounds daunting to you, it shouldn’t. It’s filled with such smart advice such as “Keep it Simple” and “Finish with chocolates”. If you have a dinner party hosting coming up, drop everything  and read and follow this: How to Entertain Like a Parisian Tips – David Lebovitz. . From the good people at Food52.com.

(Photo from here)

Paris travel tips from the New York Times, if you have no time and no money

Paris Hotel
If you want to go to Paris and have little money or little time, then the New York Times has two pages of information that might help:

  1. 36 Hours on the Left Bank, Paris – The New York Times
  2. Hotels in Paris for Under $150 – The New York Times

If you go after reading this, send me a postcard. 🙂

P.S. If you are in the mood for dreaming about going to France, here’s a bonus link from Decanter magazine: Château accommodation in Bordeaux: Living the dream

(Photo, by Ed Alcock, via a link to the page of The New York Times)

A math lover’s post

I knew that Paris had streets named after politicians and historical figures, but I didn’t know how many Paris streets are named after mathmaticians. Apparently quite a few! Amazing. One more reason to love Paris.

Dover publishers have the best books when it comes to math. If you want to see some of their better ones, see this list.

Good stuff.

Published on 9/29 at 9:29 🙂

 

It’s Monday. You are stuck on conference calls. Here’s some Paris hotels to fantasize about


For people who love Paris and fine hotels, NOW Toronto Magazine offers up 5 Paris hotels for design junkies you want to see. Perfect if you are needing a break from work, real or imaginary. After you read the article and gaze over the photos, your next tab on your browser may be linking to google.com/hotels or google.com/flights. Bon voyage!

Would you live in an 8 square meter apartment that you had to walk up 7 floors to get to?

The answer seems obvious: no, right? Well, what if it were this apartment in a beautiful building in Paris?

You can see a sleeping area, a bathroom and a window. But there’s alot more hidden under the bed and the countertops .It’s really a gem of an apartment, and ingeniously designed.

For more on this place, including a video, go to this link.

Some of the best things in Paris are free


And the Guardian has a list of them.  If you are going to Paris, take a quick peek and take notes. Yes, many you may have heard of, as I had. One I hadn’t is pictured above and is relatively new:

Opened in 1993, six years before New York’s similar High Line project, La Promenade Plantee is a tree-lined walkway on an old elevated railway line in east Paris. The 4.5km trail is a wonderful way to explore the city, taking you up and down staircases, across viaducts, above the streets and offering the occasional chance to wave back at the lucky Parisians whose apartments overlook it. The walkway also runs over the Viaduc des Arts, a bridge in which the arches are now occupied by galleries.

• 12th arrondissemen, promenade-plantee.org

For more from the list, see 10 best free things to do in Paris | Travel | theguardian.com.

Bonus: here’s a piece from the Globe and Mail how to eat like a Parisian. Since you’ll be enjoying all these free things in Paris, you’ll have more money for food.