paris | Sugared & Spiced

2013/05/032015/08/05

[Paris] Ralph’s

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Ralph’s

Add: 173 Boulevard Saint-Germain, 75006 Paris
Tel: +33 1 44 77 76 00
Hours: 12~5pm, 7~11pm (open daily)
Website: ralphlaurenstgermain.com
Price: [salads] €16~35 [burgers] €25~38 [steaks] €41~62
Tasted on: Apr 2013

Ralph Lauren’s restaurant, located inside its flagship store on Boulevard Saint Germain. The menu is stereotypically American – crab cakes, Cobb salad, club sandwiches, burgers, and steaks – but go not for the food, but for the pretty open-air courtyard garden.

Ralph’s Burger (€29) with onions, pickles, heirloom tomatoes, lettuce, cheddar cheese, crispy bacon, served with American Farmstead garden slaw and ranch style fries.

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2013/05/012015/08/05

[Paris] Sanukiya (2)

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Sanukiya

Add: 9 Rue d’Argenteuil, 75001 Paris
Tel: 01 42 60 52 61
Hours: 11:30am~10pm (open daily)
Price: €13~20/person
Visited on: Apr 2013

When looking for simple and comforting food (especially something soupy when it’s cold outside), Sanukiya always comes to mind. I first blogged about this udon specialty restaurant almost 6 months ago, and have gone back quite a few times since then.

My favorite at the moment is 肉おろしぶっかけうどん nikku osroshi bukkake udon (€14), which is udon with beef, half-cooked egg, and grated white radish. The dry udon is served with a dashi broth on the side. Pour and mix, simply delicious.

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2013/04/292015/08/05

[Paris] Birthday Celebrations

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My birthday week came and went. It was an amazing few days filled with lovely people and unforgettable moments. First of all, a few delicious pastries from Pierre Hermé (details here).

And presents from friends near and far.

The day before my birthday, my roommate cooked up a delicious meal for me to be enjoyed at the comfort of our cozy Parisian apartment. To start, a mullet roe/chèvres/red currant tartine, accompanied with a mache/comté salad dressed in balsamic vinegar and truffle olive oil.

Followed by pesto chicken linguini, with plenty of garlic and a hint of white wine in the sauce.

And what is a birthday celebration without champagne? Moët & Chandon Rosé Impérial it was. Yes I know, I really do have the best roommate in the world.

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2013/04/292015/08/05

[Paris] Pierre Hermé – Recent Tastings

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Pierre Hermé

Add: 72 rue Bonaparte 75006 Paris
Tel: +33 (0)1 43 54 47 77
Hours: 10am~7pm (7:30pm on Thu-Fri, 8pm on Sat)
Website: www.pierreherme.com
Price: €4.50~7.30/individual dessert
Visited on: Apr 2013

If you’ve been following my blog for the past few months, you know that I go to Pierre Hermé almost every other week, if not more often. Here are a few recent tastings that I need to share with you…

Tarte Miraflorès (€6.90): caramelized puff pastry, mascarpone cream spiced with Peruvian peppercorns, topped with fresh strawberries and fresh mangoes. Yes, the mascarpone cream is spiced with Peruvian peppercorns, but don’t be scared – it’s absolutely delightful. The peppercorn taste is subtle but evident, a unlikely yet brilliant accompaniment for the fresh fruits.

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2013/04/262015/08/05

[Paris] Cafe Pinson

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Cafe Pinson

Add: 6 Rue du Forez, 75003 Pari
Tel: +33 9 83 82 53 53
Hours: [Mon-Fri] 9am~7pm [Sat] 10am~7pm [Sun] 10am~6pm
Website: www.cafepinson.fr
Price: [lunch] €12.50 [drinks] €2.50~6 [food] €4~9
Tasted on: Apr 2013

Dropped by Cafe Pinson on a quiet Monday for a 100% organic and vegetarian afternoon. Even if you don’t care much about healthy eating, you will surely fall in love with the light and airy space.

With a table by the window like this, I could sit here all afternoon.

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2013/04/212015/08/05

[Paris] Sebastien Gaudard

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Sebastien Gaudard

Add: 22 rue des Martyrs, 75009 Paris
Tel: 01 71 18 24 70
Hours: [Tue-Fri] 10am~8pm [Sat] 9am~8pm [Sun] 9am~7pm
Website: www.sebastiengaudard.fr
Price: €4~5/pastry
Tasted on: Apr 2013

Sebastien Gaudard revisits the classics and keeps them classy. The second-generation pâtissier previously worked under (and subsequently succeeded) Pierre Hermé at Fauchon before launching Délicabar at Le Bon Marché and eventually his own boutique on Rue des Martyrs. The shop is super cute, but unfortunately photos are not allowed inside…you will have to go see it for yourself.

And here’s what I went home with.

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2013/04/192015/10/17

[Paris] Comptoir de la Gastronomie

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Comptoir de la Gastronomie

Add: 34 Rue Montmartre, 75001 Paris
Tel: +33 1 42 33 31 32
Hours: [Mon-Thu] 12~11pm [Fri-Sat] 12pm~12am (closed on Sun)
Website: www.comptoirdelagastronomie.com
Price: €35~45/person
Visited: Jan 2013

Comptoir de la Gastronomie comes in two parts. The deli/boutique side is lined with gastronomic ingredients like fresh foie gras d’oie (fresh goose liver), andouillette (chitterling sausage), tapenade (olive spread) etc., while the restaurant side cooks up dishes featuring these ingredients. Gastronomic, indeed.

The menu includes a page of “classics”, from which we chose this simply yet deliciously-prepared panfried foie gras with ginger bread (€16). There were a few other foie gras-themed dishes that sounded particularly appealing, like the house platter of duck foie gras with chutney and toast, or foie gras carpaccio with honey sauce and sea salt.

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2013/04/162015/08/05

[Paris] Mori Yoshida

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Mori Yoshida

Add: 65 avenue de Breteuil 75007 Paris
Tel: +33 (0)1 47 34 29 74
Hours: [Tue-Sun] 10am~7:15pm
Website: moriyoshida.fr
Price: €3.40~5.80/patisserie
Tasted on: May 2013

I’ve always loved clean, minimalistic shop designs, and Mori Yoshida was exactly that. Opened just one week ago by Japanese pastry chef Morihide Yoshida, who has honed his skills in both Japan (Park Hyatt Tokyo and his own patisserie) and France (La Pâtisserie des Rêves and Jacques Genin), the shop has an exceedingly purest design. The attention, naturally, is drawn to the beautiful pastries on display.

Through the floor-to-ceiling window…

Bare walls, plain wood, light grey floor.

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2013/04/142015/08/05

[Paris] Le Relais de l’Entrecôte

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Le Relais de l’Entrecôte

Add*: 15 Rue Marbeuf, 75008 Paris
Tel: +33 1 49 52 07 17
Hours: 12~2pm, 7~11:30pm (open daily)
Website: www.relaisentrecote.fr
Price: €25.80/entrecôte
Tasted on: Apr 2013

Everyday, a queue forms outside each of Le Relais de l’Entrecôte’s locations 30 minutes before they open, and those in line are there for only one thing – steak frites. Intrigued? Here’s the rundown. Step 1: Arrive at the restaurant 30 minutes before it opens (12pm for lunch, 7pm for dinner), and get in the queue.

*3 locations available in Paris, check website for detail.

Step 2: Get seated. No menu will be presented, simply make your choice when the waitress asks you: “medium or well done?”

Step 3: Start the meal with a lettuce walnut salad (included with the steak).

Step 4: Dig in to your steak frites (€25.80), which will be presented in two servings – the second will be automatically put on your plate as you finish the first.

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2013/04/082015/08/05

[Paris] La Pâtisserie des Rêves (2)

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La Pâtisserie des Rêves

Add: 93 rue du Bac, 75007 Paris
Tel: 01 42 84 00 82
Hours: [Tue-Sat] 9am-8pm [Sun] 9am-4pm (closed on Mon)
Website: www.lapatisseriedesreves.com
Price: [individual desserts] €5.50~6.90
Visited on: Apr 2013

It’s been a while since I last visited La Pâtisserie des Rêves, so I decided to drop by the shop to see what Philippe Conticini has been up to lately. Of course, I went home with a little more than I intended to buy…

First of all, tarte tatin (€5.50). I’m usually not a big fan of tarte tatin, but I heard La Pâtisserie des Rêves’s reinvention of this classic dessert is really worth a try. What differentiates Conticini’s tarte tatin is the way the apples are cooked – instead of in chunks, Conticini slices his apples paper-thin, then layer them in a mold to be cooked with vanilla syrup. The end result is a texture that literally melts in the mouth, a wonderful contrast with the flaky puff pastry and crunchy hazelnut streusel.