Spring in Paris - April 2009
Spring in Paris
by Georgio Klein
by Georgio Klein
Few cities in the world are as beautiful as Paris. And at no time is it more enchanting than during spring. As the last of the winter weather passes and the sun comes out, Paris opens up like a stunning flower. You can stroll down the city's wide boulevards, cruise along the Seine, picnic in a park or take in an open-air concert.
Every spring my wife and I take a few day's break in Paris, leaving the children at home with their grandparents. For three or four days we have the city to ourselves and it never fails to delight us. Over the years, we have done all the main tourist attractions, like the Louvre, the Eiffel Tower, Tuileries Gardens, the Notre Dame and Versailles.
Yet there is always something new for us in this ever-changing city. To spice up our visit, we choose a different "theme" each year. The previous year we had thrown ourselves into the art world, visiting scores of galleries and museums. I remain fascinated by the Middle East exhibition at the Louvre.
However, my favourite is the Pompidou Centre. Although it opened way more than 30 years, it still remains one of the most excitingly, contemporary buildings with the large coloured pipes covering the outside. After years of visiting, I had only discovered last year that the colours of the pipes signify their contents: yellow for electricity; red for heating; blue for air; and green for water.
We always tend to walk a lot in Paris (it's that kind of city), but this year we decided to take it easier and making dining out our 'thing". Relax, eat, relax...sounded good to me. By the time we arrived in Paris on a coolish Tuesday morning, all the restaurants had been selected and our itinerary for our four-night stay was set.
My wife, Liesl, seemed to have consulted every restaurant guide for Paris and had roped in the help of Diana, an American friend, to get reservations. For Liesl, battling for a booking is half of the fun. I always joke that she lives by the motto: "If you can easily get a table, it's not worth going", and there's some truth in that.
We love small, intimate hotels, so we chose to stay at Hotel Le A, a four-star boutique hotel with 25 rooms close to the Champs Elysees. We loved the modern art adorning the walls and the chic, clean feel. It was also perfectly placed for our forays into the city. Being so close to Paris's most famous boulevard, we spent much of our time rediscovering the Champs Elysees area.
Lined with cafes, cinemas and specialty shops, the street is the second-most expensive strip of real estate in the world, after New York's Fifth Avenue. Near the Place de la Concorde the street is bordered by a lovely park and the famous Lido nightclub. However, most people will know it as the end to the Tour de France cycle race. It is always packed with a cosmopolitan crowd, making people-watching a treat.
Close to this area was the first of our chosen restaurants, the Le Bristol at the Bristol Hotel in Rue Fauburg St. Honoré. On every gastronomic voyage, you need to experience one of the expensive, top-class eateries - and this restaurant, which has just been awarded its third Michelin star, was our choice for Paris. We opted for the more affordable lunch menu, but you still need to bargain on around 150 euros per head.
However, the summer dining room - a marble-floor pavilion overlooking the courtyard garden - provides the most elegant of settings and the service is excellent and helpful. With a choice of more than 30,000 bottles of wine and an extensive menu, you need a little help. We opted for hazelnut-crusted sole and chef Eric Frechon's trademark oxtail-and-marrow lasagna, both superb choices.
Two restaurants we considered for an evening out ended up being a little too "upmarket" for our purses. The Alain Ducasse au Plaza Athenee has everything going for it - the chef with the highest number of Michelin stars in France serving gourmet delights at the fabulous Plaza Athenee Hotel. However, with a winter fixed menu priced at over 300 euros and a portion of foie gras at 80 euros, you need deep pockets for this one.
Another star chef, Pierre Gagnaire, serves up a fixed menu in his 45-seat restaurant in the eighth arrondisement for around 225 euros, with main courses around 100 euros. Specialising in modern French cuisine, the restaurant has garnered three Michelin stars. But the prices seemed a little steep for our light wallets.
Instead of testing our credit cards, we opted for Gagnaire's more affordable Left Bank fish bistro, Gaya, which has more moderately priced fish dishes in a chic setting on Rue du Bac. Enjoy the chef's version of fish and chips or oysters with foie gras in a contemporary setting, secure in the knowledge this is one of the very fashionable spots around.
For our taste of Alain Ducasse, we headed for his reasonably priced bistro, Aux Lyonnais. On Rue St-Marc, it was going nowhere before Ducasse grabbed it and gave it a Lyonnais theme. It has the feel of a traditional bistro, with potted palms and etched glass, and the day's menu is based on the freshest produce in the markets that morning. Try pike dumplings or a deli meat plattered, but do end it off with a Grand Marnier souffle.
Probably the most memorable of the places we dined at was aptly named Spring (28 rue de la Tour d'Auvergne, but is busy moving to a new venue which has not yet been announced). A reservation here is like gold, as this tiny restaurant tucked away in the ninth arrondisement consists of one tiny room, with only 16 guests and an open kitchen.
Headed up by an American chef, there is no menu and no choice. All that is available is a four-course dinner at 42 euros per head. If it sounds rather military in approach, have no qualms. The food and atmosphere is fabulous, and you do feel privileged to be one of the chosen 16 that night.
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