Europe 2013: Dining in Paris (Day 5)

Alas, readers and fellow travel bees! We have finally arrived at my family's fifth and final day in Paris. Parting is always filled with sweet sorrow but these past entries have been extremely enjoyable and helpful in reliving what were the best traveling memories of 2013. I hope that you have also found these posts enjoyable reading. I will try to be brief. :)

Over the past four days, we had had the extreme pleasure of thinking with Auguste Rodin, jumping alongside Tour Eiffel, living like royals in Versailles, and sharing secrets with the Mona Lisa. However, we remained "hungry": although the past four days had been enjoyable, no real dining experience stood out, which is extremely surprisingly while visiting a city known for its exquisite food and gastronomy. In order to satisfy our craving for the authentic French dining experience, my family and I chose to have lunch at Les Bouquinistes from my aunt Carla's list of restaurants to dine in while in Paris. 

We chose the daily set menu (appetizer, main, and dessert) and I ordered the Zucchini Cream Soup with Goat Cheese Mousse, the Beef Parmentier, and the Berry Crumble (featured below).

Creme de Courguette Mousse au Chèvre

I may sound like a woman in love, who only sees through rose-coloured glasses, but the food at Les Bouquinistes was undeniably delicious. It was certainly love at first whiff from the appetizer alone, which had just enough of my favourite cheese in mousse form to compliment the rich and creamy puree of zucchini.

Parmentier de queue de Boeuf, Salade Mesclun

The gorgeous soup was followed by the mouthwatering sight and taste of beef parmentier. After having this entree, I only had one complaint and that was that there was not more of it. 

Crumble aux Fruits Rouges

We ended our meal with dessert -- the berry crumble. Although it may not be number one on my list of best desserts (the blueberry cobbler from the CN Tower is still way up there), it definitely places in the top ten best desserts at the least.

Hmm! Coffee! Coffee! Coffee!

 Of course, a meal in France would not be complete without an espresso and a piece of dark chocolate. This is certainly one French tradition I would like to take back to Canada with me. :D
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After a satisfying meal at Les Boquinistes, we returned to Champs-Elysees for last-minute shopping and dessert at Ladurée -- le maison de macarons et douceurs ("the house of macarons and sweets").

The storefront

I kid you not--everyone who has ever visited Paris and every travel guide I have read about the city has always told me to visit the queen of all macaron places. So, we did.

Macaron Mania!

The first thought I could perhaps share with you was "wow, what a long line!": there was a line from the entrance all the way to the end of the corridor, which only marked the beginning of the displays of macarons, cakes, and chocolates galore! I do not think I had ever seen so many desserts so intricately and beautiful displayed in so large a quantity in my entire life as I had done that afternoon.

Mamma mia!

In spite of the long line-up, it moved pretty quickly and, soon enough, we had walked away from Ladurée with hands full of croissants, pain au chocolat with pistachio, macarons, and chocolates.
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By the time we had left Champs-Elysees, it was time for dinner and we traveled by metro to Rue Royale to dine at the famous Maxim's Paris. We arrived at the restaurant shortly after getting on the metro only to find out that they were closed for a function. We were thus left scrambling for a dinner reservation and settled for Le P'tit Fernand in St-Germain de Pres which was, again, on my aunt Carla's list of top Paris restaurants.

As a side story, traveling in Paris had been an adventure but making a reservation in French was a feat on its own. However, that is another story for another post. ;)

With the assistance of a nice English-speaking gentleman by the metro and the directions provided to us by the restaurant, we made it to Le P'tit Fernand in what felt like no time. Immediately after entering the restaurant, we were treated to amazing service, unmatched by the other restaurants we tried in Paris. Our server, in particular, was very kind and took the time to explain their extremely large menu to my family and I. With his help, we ordered four distinct dishes. My dad, my mom, and my sister ordered steak, fish, and chicken dishes, respectively. I, on the other hand, ordered traditional French fare, tartare de boeuf.

Tartare de Boeuf

For someone who has not had tartare de boeuf before, this was definitely a great way to start. Le P'tit Fernand provided us with a hefty serving of the tartare accompanied by adequately seasoned potatoes and greens.

The perfect ending

Our mains were followed by dessert in the form of creme brulee and fondant au chocolat like cake and they were heavenly. The latter, in particular, was the perfect combination of caramel, chocolate, almond, and mint. I would not mind eating this dessert everyday.

Following two amazing meals in Paris, we had finally found the last puzzle piece of the French experience and we were overjoyed.

Au Revoir, ma cherie! 
All in all, it has been a pleasure, Paris. I have grown to love you as so many others before me have. Your beauty, charm, and kindness was more than what we could have imagined. I can only hope that we see each other again! xoxo