Paris Food Tour - Part 3

It's my last day in Paris. A bit of a bittersweet day. One I tend to take a little slower. I like to spend the day exploring with no time constraints or schedules. It usually involves hitting a market where I really get a chance to immerse myself with the locals, practice a little of my French, and taste some incredibly fresh and unusual foods. It also most likely includes a walk along the Seine, which gives me plenty of time to enjoy the beauty of Paris as well as reflect on my time here. To end the evening, dinner at one of my favorite bistros for some classic French fare, and then over to the Eiffel Tower to join everyone else that's gathered for the magical show of lights. It was the perfect day. We are in Trocadéro, the 16th arrondissement, which is one of the best districts to stay in if you're looking for authentic Paris. And we are going to start first by exploring an open-air market, Marché Wilson. Let's check it out. There are a myriad of colors and textiles, foods and flavors. Ah, yum! You'll find vendors selling everything from silk scarves to fresh meats, sandwiches, and bakery. You can even buy socks and underwear here. Bonjour! I quickly was drawn to a merchant selling the most beautiful scarves. Oh, with the skulls! And of course I had to have one. We are in Paris after all, and it is the look. What I loved was the diversity in people and culture at the market. That you can literally taste. This is cheese, we have spinach. Within seconds, I was drawn to the savory and robust smells of a Lebanese food stand. We can put it on the floor, like oven. Okay. Okay. That both opened my eyes and taste buds to some really incredible flavors. This is Lebanese. I tried the manakish, a flatbread and classic Lebanese food. One I have to try to make at home. In Arabic, manakish means to sculpt or carve out, meaning after the dough has been rolled flat, it's pressed by fingertips to create little dips for the toppings to lie in. This is fantastic how the doughs are cooking all around the dome of this heat. Okay. I think it's okay. Okay. Manakish can be sliced or folded, and it's usually simply prepared with thyme, olive oil, a little sea salt, and some wheat seeds. That is exactly what I had. My manakish was cooked on the dome of a hot gas oven. Beautiful. Oh, that's so cool. With all the little blue flames. Yeah. And you could see the dough bubbling beautifully. This was one of those moments where I found myself counting down the seconds before I got to eat it. I had to try another, and this time I got the one with cheese. It's very delicious when it is fresh. So good. And it didn't stop there. I can make sandwich with the chicken. Okay. You can. Look at this. You can choose this a lot like that. Okay. Okay. With the chicken. All right. This is sandwich. It's very, very delicious. Let's do it. Okay. Let's do it. Okay. I then tried the most incredible chicken kebab, wrapped in flatbread and seasoned with paprika and spices. Accompanied by some hummus, a little tabbouleh, tomatoes, onions, and parsley, and some eggplant salad and topped with feta, chicken kebab. Delicious. This takes the classic Euro to a whole new level. It was then onto a stand for some classic French food. The veal sausage and ham had my name all over it. It was so moist and so delicious. You just cannot get this food anywhere else. It is seasoned with all kinds of French herbs and spices, and it's shaved extremely paper thin. So it's going to be very moist, very juicy, because that ham was just sitting in all that juice. Look at that. I also snagged some mortadella, which is, by the way, my absolute favorite deli meat, containing large chunks of fat, peppercorns, and pistachio. It's similar to bologna, but so much better. It was then time to get something a little sweet. So I headed to a nearby stand that had some beautiful pastry. A chocolate almond croissant dusted with a little powdered sugar. Excellent. Then I tried chouquettes, a choux pastry. So think cream puff with pearl sugar. The result was an explosion of a moist, sugary donut in my mouth. Donut in my mouth. Donut in my mouth. It is so good. Marche President Wilson is a market you cannot miss when coming to Paris. It's only open on Wednesdays and Saturdays from the morning until early afternoon. And don't forget to bring some cash because most of the merchants deal only in cash. This is heaven. When I'm in Paris and need to get anywhere, I usually take the metro, and so do most Parisians for that matter. Whether you're trying to get across the city or out of it or simply around the corner, the metro is the way to go. It's easy to use. It's convenient. Entrances to stations are located on what seems like every corner. And if you're lucky, you'll get some quality entertainment as you make your way through the tunnels. Short for Metropolitan, the metro got its name from the Paris Metropolitan Railway Company, which operated much of the rail network when it opened on July 19, 1900, during the World's Fair. Today, the metro is second only to Moscow as the busiest urban transit system in Europe and the 10th busiest in the world, carrying over 4 million passengers a day. It's one of the densest metro systems in the world, boasting over 245 stations within a 34 square mile radius of the city. And in 2016, it was ranked as the best public transport system in the world, ahead of both London and New York. While the metro is one of the best ways to get around the city, walking is by far the most rewarding. I like to start my walk from Trocadero in the 16th, walking along the river all the way to Hotel de Ville in the 4th arrondissement. There is so much to see that you would otherwise miss by taking the train. If you're worried about getting lost, don't be. An easy rule of thumb is stick to the Walking along the river is a natural compass to navigate the heart of the city. It's also an absolute must-do experience. One tradition I enjoy when I travel is saving a really special dinner for my last night in the city. This is the quintessential French bistro. Tables are simply dressed in white linens, the atmosphere is cozy, and the dining room reminds me of something between a speakeasy and eating in the comfort of your own home. Now when you come to Chez Du Monet, it's important to keep in mind that this is truly a local establishment. From the menu to the staff, don't expect to see or hear much English. While it helps to speak a bit of French, don't let that keep you from coming, because the old trick of point and smile works just fine. The wine I selected was a 2015 Croze Hermitage by Etienne Guigal, or E. Guigal, in the Rhône Valley. Very dark and rich in color. E. Guigal is one of my favorite French producers. Founded at the end of World War II, this vineyard is in the Côte Rôtie, Appalachian, and has been exploited for over 2,400 years, making this estate one of the very first estates in the Rhône Valley. And believe it or not, this wine is not hard to find in the States, and it's quite affordable at just 14 to 16 dollars a bottle. To the nose, it has hints of cherry, strawberry, and wood. And in the finish, black currant and vanilla. The wine's perfect. Quelle surprise! What a surprise! An amuse-bouche from the chef. Literally meaning mouth amuser, the amuse-bouche is often served in fine French restaurants to prepare guests for the meal, and to offer insight into the chef's approach to the cuisine. This savory green pea soup, with just a little bit of oil and crispy crumbled croutons, made for a perfect start to the meal. So when you're having your next dinner party, think about serving something different, like soup. But soup can often be a little cumbersome, right? It's heavy, and it's hot, and it comes out in a big bowl. But think about serving it in a cute little glass like this, and think about keeping it cold, or room temperature. It makes for great presentation, and a very unique hors d'oeuvre. My first appetizer has arrived. A luxurious and classically prepared foie gras, simply seasoned with salt and cracked black pepper, served alongside toasted bread. Foie gras, meaning fat liver, is prepared using the liver of either a duck or goose that has been extremely fattened. According to French law, to be considered foie gras, the liver must be fattened by force-feeding corn to the duck or goose through a feeding tube, a process known as gavage. Gavage actually dates back to 2500 BC, where ancient Egyptians kept birds for food and intentionally fattened them through force-feeding. Though controversial, the production of gavage-based foie gras is protected under French law as part of the protected culture and gastronomical heritage of France. The key to eating foie gras is to enjoy it with the wine at the exact same time, because the wine helps the foie gras take on a completely different complexity. It's fabulous. I then try the house-made terrine, a rich composition of pork, white wine, and spices, topped with fresh cracked black peppercorns, roasted garlic, some more crispy crumbled croutons, a sprig of thyme, and a light green salad. So you can see how beautiful it is and how jiggly the terrine is. The more jiggle, the more flavor. Dinner has arrived. The first dish I tried was a chateaubriand, which, by the way, is one of the fanciest dishes around. You'll see it's very much a filet, roasted and served alongside potatoes and a chateaubriand sauce made with shallots, a beef or veal stock, white wine, tarragon, and a In Paris, when you order a beef like a chateaubriand or filet, the tenderloin, what you'll have, especially in some of the best, most authentic bistros, is you'll have only two options of how you would like to order the bouffe, the beef. You can order it bleu, which is blue or absolutely not cooked, or you can order it seignon, which is traditional rare. Other than that, you're not getting the beef unless it's one of the two. Legend has it that chateaubriand was named after a French aristocrat, François-René de Chateaubriand, whose chef invented a method of cooking a large boneless cut of beef by wrapping it in low-quality steaks, then tying it up, grilling it until charred, and then tossing away the outside steaks. The perfectly cooked inner roast was deemed the chateaubriand. As you can imagine, this opulent dish was exiled during the French Revolution. My next dish, because one can never have enough duck, was the house specialty of Chez Du Monet, the duck confit. The duck confit is the dark piece of meat of the duck. We have the leg here and the thigh, and of course my favorite part, the crispy skin. Duck confit is made by melting duck fat and pouring it over the seasoned duck leg or quarter in a large Dutch oven and then cooking it low and slow for several hours until the duck is tender. The best part about it is that you can store it in the refrigerator in its fat for three months. The longer you let it sit, the more flavorful it becomes, and the best part about this is it is an instant dinner when you're Simply take it out of the fridge, let it come to room temperature and or melt over the stove, and then all I have to do is sear it in a pan and you have instant voila. Merci. I saved the best for last, my favorite dish at Chez Du Monet, the beef bourguignon. Tender chunks of beef, usually a rump roast, braised low and slow in a rich dark espresso colored beef and mushroom sauce. It was so rich, served over buttered noodles. The meat just fell apart at the touch of the fork and simply melted in my mouth. I think classic French is a classic yes. This is a dish I will not dare attempt to recreate at home. I'll come back to Paris simply for this. Although I was on the verge of needing a timeout, I could not pass up dessert, the grand barnier souffle. Wow, the heat just is radiating off of the top of this souffle. Look at how beautiful and high. Lightly dusted with powdered sugar, this fluffy and pillow-like souffle rose to perfection. A shot of grand marnier served on the side, and to eat it, you break open the souffle and pour in the shot. It was heavenly. Vanilla, hints of orange, and grand marnier made this my all-time favorite dessert. It's back to Trocadero to watch the Eiffel Tower twinkle one last time. At night, Trocadero Gardens is electric. There are literally people everywhere gathered to watch the Eiffel Tower's magical display of lights. Music and dancing, an array of light and color, vendors selling trinkets, toys, and souvenirs, and concession stands for a late night sweet crepe or ice cream. It's a bit of a mixed bag that has something for everyone. What Paris captures most beautifully is community, togetherness, people from all walks of life sharing in a moment, creating a memory. I found myself in this moment reflecting on the magic of the city, the people that I've met, the experiences I've had and shared, the incredible food and wine, the places I've explored, and the things I've learned. From rooftops and fashion, to markets and secret bars, this has been the adventure of a lifetime. Thank you, Paris.