I love to travel and eat, and I always stuff my suitcase with food souvenirs to take back home. Paris is a food lover's paradise, so I didn't hesitate much to shout out "oui, merci!" when the invitation came to see what the town had to offer.
The occasion was the awarding of the 100 best new modern bistros in Paris. The ceremony took place the at the absolutely stunning city hall (nothing like Norwegian government buildings I can tell you!).
The mayor of Paris, Anne Hidalgo, named the winners, chosen by a panel of the City of Paris led by the famous chef Alain Ducasse. The website of the awards has a nice map which can be used as an excellent starting point for a culinary discovery of the city. A lot is going on!
Of course there was plenty of delicious food to try out, from a few of the winning restaurants. I tried a lentil soil dish (which I would later meet again), a flavourful asparagus soup (not pictured) and a flowery cold brew.
After the ceremony we headed out on a food tour to sample even more tasty bites of Paris. Obviously there was lots of delicious cheese and sweets.
The marzipan seafood platter was not really up my alley but they certainly don't shy away from making creative foods in Parisian bakeries and chocolate shops - a lot of nice inspiration for a food artist.
That night we tried out a bistro on the winning 100 list, namely Anicia, which specializes in food from the Auvergne region in France. Here I met the lentil dish again, and I was happy about the reunion. Also, radishes hanging out to dry on a clothes line.
They had very vibrant food and good options for vegetarians, I got a supergreen pea soup and a roasted vegetable dish with leek foam. Yum!
For dessert, there was a lentil (yes, the legume) Créme Brûlée. Definitely innovative and quite enjoyable to eat but I'm not sure if I would order it the next time. Some cute treats to finished things up followed - all in all a very good meal.
No late night drinking on this trip, as we were up at 3.30am (!) to go the largest wholesale market in the world, called Rungis International Market. By the time we arrived (around 5am) the fish market was already almost finished (it starts at midnight).
But there was plenty more to see as the market is the size of a small village, covering 234 hectares of land. Halls upon halls are filled with fish, meat, cheese, fruits, vegetables and even flowers.
I was most excited about the fruits and vegetables of course, and did not end up disappointed. So many different varieties, bright and fresh colours to take in!
It's a market for sellers and buyers, so you cannot buy anything there as a private person sadly. But it's quite interesting to see it all, as you can on one of the guided tours on offer. Just be prepared to get up early!
No trip is complete without tracking down some good new wave coffee, this time I tried KB Cafeshop in South Pigalle area. They serve Aussie style brews, so I naturally tried the Flat White which was certainly decent.
Sweet treats for souvenirs this time, heading over to Kosak for a great selection of bean to bar chocolates and excellent service with lots of samples (very rare for Paris) and A l'Etoile d'Or (now in rue Pierre Fontaine) for French quality treats and the charming owner Denise (she doesn't really speak English but she will still make you buy more than you planned to).
That was it for my taste of Paris!
Love,
Ida
Sponsored: The trip was paid for by the City of Paris but the opinions are all my own of course.
