09/10/15 by Paris-Travel | 75011, Blog, Restaurants, Website, What to eat, Where to eat in Paris | Comments Off on Le Chat Gourmand patisserie and lunch bar in 75011 Paris
UPDATE 27 Aug 2022 – a Google search shows Le Chat Gourmand – this cute little lunch bar as “permanently closed”.
Don’t despair – thre will be other new places I haven’t had the good fortune to find yet, as I haven’t been in Paris for a few years due to COVID
Today (10 Sept 2015) I popped into a little patisserie/lunch bar in Rue Saint Maur in the 11th arrondissement, which is owned by chef Alain (who loves cats, hence the name “The Greedy Cat” / Le Chat Gourmand).
This is not a café or restaurant – it’s where you can buy sandwiches and tasty treats, then walk to the nearest park and have a picnic :-)
Everything is made fresh by Alain, from baguette sandwiches with delicious fillings, to home-made quiches, fresh salads (carrottes rapées = shredded carrot, epinards – spinach, etc), tasty pasta and much more).
If you’d like your quiche etc heated, not a problem.
The menu is a “Formule” (a “set menu”):
- 1 x dish, 1 x salad, 1 x dessert or drink = 9,00 €
The prices are very reasonable, the food is fresh and delicious — eat in, or take away — yum!
If you’re in the 11th on or near Rue Saint Maur, do pop in and say Teena sent you :-)
Alain is a charming guy with a great personality, singing along to great songs on the radio, dancing a bit when and if required, always welcomes you with a big smile and a friendly “Hello!” :-)
PS — ask for a Carte de Fidélité (a Loyalty Card) – after 10 purchases you get ONE MEAL FREE!
Cafe/Restaurant: Le Chat Gourmand (The Greedy Cat)
63 Rue Saint Maur, 75011 Paris, France
Tel: 01 48 06 18 94
Metro: Rue Saint-Maur / Saint-Ambroise
For other cafe/restaurant reviews, pop over here >>
09/09/15 by Paris-Travel | 75011, Blog, Restaurants, What to eat, Where to eat in Paris | Comments Off on West Country Girl Crepes in Paris 75011
West Country Girl creperie is a local restaurant in Paris
There are so many great eateries in the 11th arrondissement, and I decided to try out this one for dinner.
In a little side street called Passage Saint-Ambroise, this is the only foodie place in the entire street, making it easy to find. The menu is small, but boasts all quality local ingredients, and it looked very warm and inviting.
If you’re nervous about speaking French, don’t be — the servers also speak English :-)
I ordered a mixed salad (which generally means a green salad of lettuces and a dressing) for €3.
For a main course, I decided to try the Champignon, Chevre et ciboulette crepe, which is a Mushroom, creamy Goat’s cheese and chives for around €8.
Normally crepes are served with cider, but this little resto has all kinds of alcohol available. I went with a traditional cider for €3 a glass, which was delicious — the choices were a sweet cider or a very, very dry one. After tasting the dry one, I opted for the more regular sweeter one – t turned out to be an excellent choice.
Everything was tasty, and perfect for a very light meal; you may need a few more crepes to fill you up for dinner :-)
Ambiance was great, lots of laughter from the guests, great music, terrific vibe. If you’re in the area, it’s worth a visit.
Cafe/Restaurant: West Country Girl
6 Passage Saint-Ambroise, 75011 Paris, France
Metro: Rue Saint-Maur / Saint-Ambroise
For other cafe/restaurant reviews, pop over here >>
03/02/14 by Paris-Travel | 75017, Restaurants, Website, What to eat, Where to eat in Paris | Comments Off on Le Relais de Venise Restaurant in Paris 75017
In the mood for a very tasty steak and fries (“chips” and the French “frites“)? Pop over to Le Relais de Venise.
I love a good steak and I really love Chateaubriand, but if you’re not looking for something so rich, you might enjoy this great resto (and the great news is they’re also in London (x 3!) and New York!)
- head on over to Porte-Maillot metro in the 17th arrondissement
- no reservation is necessary
- when ordering your how your steak will be cooked, you’ll only have TWO choices — rare or well-done, so please don’t ask for anything else :-)
This restaurant has also become known by the name of L’Entrecôte and you can ask for directions and everyone will know which restaurant you mean.
Once you’re seated at your table, your waitress will ask you: “Saignant?” (rare), or “Bien cuit? (well done)”.
That’s it — no other choices, no “medium” or “medium rare” — so knowing that up-front will make it easier to choose. The steak is thin so it can really only be cooked in two ways. Easy, non?
When your steak arrives it will be thinly sliced and covered with an amazing sauce (and it’s a secret recipe handed down through the generations), paired with delicious “frites” (or fries, also known as “hot chips” in the UK, Australia and New Zealand).
When you’re ready for dessert you’ll have many wonderful delicacies to choose from, so go ahead and enjoy!
Your Say
If you do visit this restaurant, I’d love to hear what you think about it – just send a Comment below, or a voicemail (click the button on the right of the website) or tell me about it on my Facebook page, Twitter etc — thanks in advance!
http://www.relaisdevenise.com
271 Boulevard Pereire
Porte-Maillot 75017
Tel: 0145 74 27 97
Map to Le Relais de Venise Restaurant
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For other great famous French food to eat, pop over here >>
07/16/12 by Paris-Travel | 75011, Restaurants, Where to eat in Paris | Comments Off on Les Mandibules restaurant in Paris 75011
PLEASE NOTE: in Sept 2015 – New resto called “FACE B” is at this address
In July 2012, we found Les Mandibules restaurant in Paris whilst wandering around the 11th arrondissement, and I really wanted to check it out.
We were there relatively early at 7pm and were the only customers for a short while. The decor was super cool, old album covers, an old portable record player in the front window, Rolling Stones album in prime position. Lost of memorabilia around the place and great music on the sound system set the mood for a great evening.
The Menu at les Mandibules restaurant
- offered some delicious options and after choosing champagne as an aperitif, we decided on the duck and salmon for main courses.
Please note that “Entrée” in French is the “starter” course (as it is in many other countries apart from USA).
The duck was served with thinly sliced carrots cooked with cumin, absolutely delicious.
The salmon was servcd with wild rice and looked fantastic.
Our dessert of profiteroles was delicious – a small cup of chocolate was provided to pour over the profiteroles, which immediately hardened and provided plenty of crunch to go with the icecream inside the choux pastry.
If you find yourself anywhere near rue St Maur and rue St Ambroise, check out this delightful restaurant. The Patron was absolutely charming and quite a character, who ensured our visit was fabulous. (View the Where to Eat in Paris page and also the Famous French Food page.)
Prices:
- champagne 12,0 euro per glass
- entrées / starters 8,0 to 10,0 euro
- mains 18,0 to 22,0 euro
- desserts 8,0 to 9,0 euro
Map to les Mandibules restaurant
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Les Mandibules
5 rue Guillaume Bertrand
75011 Paris
Metro: St Ambroise / rue St Maur
07/13/12 by Paris-Travel | 75011, Restaurants, Where to eat in Paris | Comments Off on A Deux Pas traditional French restaurant in Paris 75011
Finding a traditional French restaurant in Paris is great!
On a drizzly evening when I was looking for something delicious for dinner, I wandered around a little quartier I wasn’t familiar with. There was a Lebanese restaurant and French bistrots, and then nestled – almost hidden – between some shops I found A Deux Pas.
I shook the rain off the umbrella and stepped inside this cute little place. I was disappointed to see “Reservé” (“Reserved”) signs on the tables, but I asked if there was room for one more. When the lady told me that they had one table left I was really pleased, and got settled at the first small table just inside the door on the left.
After reading the menu I could certainly agree that this traditional French restaurant in Paris had some marvellous options, and as soon as I saw “it” I knew what I was going to order.
While I waited to place my order, I took in the cool artwork on the walls, and had a good look around. There were 5 small tables along each of the two available walls, and the whole place was about 10′ or 3 metres wide. Each table could accommodate two people, so a maximum of 20 people in the entire restaurant. At the end of the room was the cash register and an open window into the kitchen where I could see the Chef.
I decided not to have a starter course, as I didn’t want to fill up before my steak with Bernaise sauce arrived (filet de boeuf avec sauce Bernaise is one of my all-time favourites from when I lived in Paris). I asked the delightful owner to recommend a glass of red wine (I think it was Corbierre) and I settled back to savour the thought of my dinner about to be prepared in the kitchen. My tastebuds were salivating with anticipation :-)
The owner returned and placed a gorgeous little bowl in front of me, and said it was a little “amuse bouche” to prepare my mouth for the first course. It was a small amount of soft white cheese, almost like ricotta, with hot bacon pieces sprinkled on top. A drizzle of honey had been added which made this a delicious and very interesting little taste sensation – what a lovely gesture!
When my dinner arrived, it looked absolutely fabulous. And it tasted delicious!
In fact I can remember the taste as I type this … the sign of an excellent meal. The filet de boeuf (fillet of steak) was resting in the centre of a platter, with a small bowl of Sauce Bernaise, and a larger bowl filled with small roasted potatoes drizzled with garlic and onion confit. Oh my! I’m in heaven :-)
The restaurant filled up very quickly with other diners, and I thoroughly enjoyed my little adventure here. I can highly recommend this restaurant if you’re in the area.
A Deux Pas
Traditional French restaurant in Paris
55 rue Saint Maur
75011 Paris
Ouvert du mardi au samedi midi et soir le dimanche midi / Open from Tuesday to Saturday lunch & dinner, & Sunday lunch
Réservations : 01 43 55 67 52
Metro: Rue St-Maur / St Ambroise
Prices:
- wine approximately 4,50 euro per glass
- main meals approximately 14,00 to 19,00 euro
You might also enjoy the Where to Eat in Paris page and also the Famous French Food page.
Map to this traditional French restaurant in Paris
[mappress mapid=”30″]
07/12/12 by Paris-Travel | 75003, Restaurants, Where to eat in Paris | Comments Off on Candelaria Mexican restaurant in Paris 75003
Is Candelaria Mexican restaurant authentic?
Absolutely! Margaritas to knock your socks off, real guacamole to tingle your tastebuds :-)
A couple of new friends invited me to meet them at this little place at 7:0pm without any explainations of what it was like, so I took the Metro to Filles du Calvair (Boulevard du Temple exit) and headed north, ambling along until I came to rue de Saintonge on my left.
Turning into this street, I discovered all kinds of cute and interesting shops and almost had to drag myself along the street until I found the restaurant.
About as big as a postage stamp, there was one table just inside the door which seated about 7 people. Further inside there were a couple of high stools where people could sit at the counter and eat. The counter had a great old icy drink machine which was chilling a margarita mix and I was anxiously awaiting the result (haven’t had a good margarita in years!)
While I waited for my friends, I ordered Guacamole to nibble on with excellent corn chips (none of those crumbly packet varieties), and before I knew it the margarita was ready for me to sip.
Oh how delicious it was! A small glass with a red-crusted rim, it tasted divine, and was just what I needed after a busy day exploring Paris. Slowly the hungry hordes started to arrive, and I was lucky to be able to hang on to only one spare stool for my friends to sit on. The place got quite busy, very quickly, and everyone lusted over the table — I was hanging on with both hands :-)
When my friends arrived 40 minutes later, we managed to grab two extra stools as another party got up from the table, and the four of us perched around the Guacamole and Mexican beers while we all caught up on our news, told stories, and talked about what we might order. By now the place was really buzzing, and as a few bodies left they were replaced by more from the crowd outside. My tip – get here at 7pm if you really want to grab a seat at the table.
The items on the menu started from about 3,50 euro so between us we ordered a few of each item – soft tacos, hard tacos – which came in a variety of colours with enough sauces to satisfy any hungry crowd looking for delicious spicy Mexican food.
The beers flowed, the food fed our hungry stomachs, laughter followed and a great night was had by all. We eventually left closer to 10pm than 9:30, because the demand for the table was still high :-)
If you’re looking for authentic flavour, check out the Candelaria Mexican restaurant – I think you’ll be glad you did!
Candelaria Mexican restaurant
52 rue de Saintonge
75003 Paris
Metro: Filles du Calvaire
Have you also seen my Where to Eat in Paris page and also the Famous French Food page yet?
Map to Candelaria Mexican restaurant
[mappress mapid=”31″]
07/26/09 by Paris-France | 75005, Blog, Restaurants, Where to eat in Paris | Comments Off on Vegetarian La Fourmi Ailee
Well ok – La Fourmi Ailee is NOT a vegetarian restaurant
Although it’s not strictly vegetarian La Fourmi Ailee has some meals that any vegetarian would enjoy.
If you are a vegetarian visiting Paris I recommend having a meal there, even though I haven’t been there myself, but I have friends who’ve recommended it highly.
They tell me it’s a charming and informal “writer’s haven” filled with bookshelves of books – sounds great! It used to be a library, so it has lots of history and a real “bookish” feel to it, for those who love the written word like I do.
There’s a non-smoking section upstairs, something still very rare in Paris.
My friends said, “La Fourmi Ailée features a wonderful, varied menu including several delicious vegetarian items. One is a tofu lasagna with just enough cheese and Roma tomatoes to hold the ample noodles together.”
La Fourmi Ailee
8, rue du Fouarre (between Notre Dame and the entrance to the Latin Quarter neighborhood)
Paris 75005
Metro: Maubert-Mutualite
You might also like to view the Where to Eat in Paris page and also the Famous French Food page.
Map to La Fourmi Ailee
[mappress mapid=”14″]
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