New Michelin Red Guide Editor

Change finally? The Michelin Red Guide announces that its new editor is a 38 year old German woman who favours experimental and creative cuisine. Sounds like a good start for me, although the Frogs are gonna hate it....

Let's hear it for the culinary outsiders!

...and what will this mean for promotion of restaurants owned by Germans..... ;)

Ultimate Oeuf Mayo ?

Nice to see Le Comptoir hasn't lost the Camdeborde touch. Dishes bien ficellé, like the 5€ oeuf mayo pictured above. Fresh, smooth and inexpensive. The daily special onglet de boeuf with wok style vegetables was a little hard to cut, but this was probably due more to the dull knife provided than the quality of the meat. Predictably good cheese and creme chocolat. rounded off an excellent lunch

And the chef wasn't even in the kitchen! His "non- French" backup team did a splendid job, and I can't wait to come back when he's in the kitchen

Yer Mama likes Shelter

This Alain Senderens (he staffed the kitchen and pays the salary, so not a cuisine telecommandé as some say..) hotel-restaurant located in a God-forbidden edge of Paris was a nice surprise. Despite a few hicks with the service (largely manic) - long waiting time to order, glass of wine brought instead of bottle, butter forgot, no changing of covers, all this could be forgiven by the fact that they've only been open a little while, and the staff is obviously hard working and friendly. The starter of pastrami and potatoes was tasty, though the spuds were cold, the entrecote (frites just okay) and hachis parmentier de confit de canard were very correct, well served and copious. The restaurant is cosy, although the spot light shining on our table seemed to be shining directly ito our eyes, and a funky Cyril le philosophe seemed more concerned with hanging with the DJ, although Mr. Trigano was omnipresent, observing and making the rounds.

Breakfast was a quiet affair, with the whole dining area transformed into a casual space where people seemed to be nursing hangovers from their nomadic urban night in Paris. English tourists, French bobo families, and young, cool medias types made up the crowd. Continental 10€, breakfast buffet (bacon, eggs, sausages, pastries, juice, hot drink) - 15€



Mama Shelter

L'Orangerie closed? **Scoop**

Their telephone lines have been tied up for days with no apparent reason- and no response to e-mails leads one to believe that former Taillevent chef Michel del Burgo's Orangerie has closed its doors...

Chefs behaving badly

It's always refreshing to see that a hot bistronomic chef has as much fire in him out of the kitchen as devant les fourneaux . Witness: very recently, in a Grand Hotel Parisien, a much respected chef cuistot did what Baudelaire expounded in his prose poems and "beat someone with the enthusiasm of a butcher tenderizing a beefsteak", and then proceded to try to do the same to a member of the hotel staff, while at the same time grabbing a passerby's tender thigh! Ah....there still is passion in the Parisan food world!

Laperouse secret club by Le Fooding

Clandestine ambience, free cognac cocktails and langoustine nems, great company, chats with celeb chefs. What could be better?

Thanks to Arnaud and Alex!

Bangers and Mash at The Bitter End

Another in the English comfort food series. Bangers and Mash, that quintissentially English dish, found here in good form (completely par hasard) at The Bitter End, Saint Germain en Laye

Perfect English Breakfast?

Sunday. Rose Bakery III

Istanbul

Kofte at the Pudding Shop, a lively place not far from the touristy, but well-located Sultanahmet neighborhood. The food, while not at all sophisticated was cheap and satisfying, and the mix of people frequenting the place made it a lot of fun. FYI - this used to be the HQ of stoner hippies on their way to Nepal, etc, and nowadays draws wi-fi warriors...

Buttermilk pancakes with raspberry coulis and cinnamon whipped cream at the Four Seasons Sultanahmet. Top.

Exclusive! Le Fooding 2009 guide!

I was lucky enough to be the first to purchase the new Le Fooding 2009 guide on sale exclusively this morning at Colette.

When I arrived, I braved a huge crowd of people waiting in front of the boutique who turned out to be there to purchase a hot new pair of trainers..... I was the only one there for the guide (which had to be asked for, and was hidden away in a storage room....)

The 218 page guide is certain to turn heads, as it is printed in exactly the same format, on the same paper, and with the same typeface as the cutting edge MONOCLE magazine.......

The selection of restaurants is very similar to the past eight years, with additions of all the restaurants you'd find on the fooding website or Figaroscope since, such as :Le 21, Guilo Guilo, La Bigarrade, Max y Jérémy, Itinéraires, Grannie, Le Cul de Poule, Supernature, NapoliParis, Urbane, Zoé Bouillon, Cha Cha, Pizza Chic, Les Parisiennes, Mama Shelter, Quedubon,La Bulle, Les Petites Sorcières, ETC, Miroir, La Table d'Eugène, Sobane, Le Floors, La Pizzetta, Coco & Co,

Rose Bakery 3

Quiet street in the arty Upper Marais. Glass fronted, industrial chic building filled with a mix of arty types, wealthy locals, cross Channel veggies and young, stylish Lolita-like waitstaff. Organic and British veggies, pastries, salads and omelets. Clean, modern vibe, and one of the greatest and friendliest food concepts around.




Rose Bakery
30 rue Debelleyme, 3rd
+33 1 49 96 54 01

Thoumieux taken over by Costes and Piege ??!

"Oui!", according to Le Fooding

Transversal at the 104

******* NEWSFLASH Patty the Cookie says that a new outpost of Tokyo Eat will open at the 104*********




Scoop

Could the toujours not announced restaurant at Paris' new 104 art centre be another outpost of the TRANSVERSAL? They have a history of integrating cutting edge art houses (Vitry, Maison Rouge), and they are doing an event for the opening of SLICK at the 104 on October 23rd, so seems a natural progression. But we won't know for sure until 2009...

Sushi Shop by Cyril Lignac

Spicy tuna spring rolls, fried chicken rolls, chili crab rolls..... not bad! Lignac's greatest achievement? Or not...

Order here!

French Love - The New (Better) Mathis

This tiny bar de nuit located on the rue de Ponthieu just behind the Champs will be the place to go before you know it (and in another year or two for the international crowd when various Condé Nast style magazines catch on eventually...). Opened a couple weeks ago by the best elements of the Hotel Costes bar (including resident DJ!) , with the benediction of Jean-Louis. Great selection of fine spirits. Funky, undecided and downright bizarre (ghostly faces in the sous-sol) in spots décor. Eclectic crowd. Coolest fumoir in Paris. It's like a friendly, professional Mathis, riding on the nouveau speakeasy trend. What's not to like? Only downside - one toilet.




French Love
37, bis rue de Ponthieu, Paris
No telephone

Positano Urban Feline Resort?

Either Alfredo Positano has closed down, or it's diversified and opened a cat hotel.....




On another note, Et Dans Mon Coeur Il y A closed down to become the fourth outpost of the Madame Shawn Thai resto empire ..

The Coolest Place In Paris Today

Attended the opening of the new Paris art center, Le 104. Streams of people of all type and persuasion (including the entire art student population of the City of Lights) made the pilgrimage from the Stalingrad metro, past African epiceries, North African tea houses and ethnic hair salons to the former municipal funeral home now turned biggest art center in Europe. The center"s restaurant, an ephemeral affair located in the former basement stables , although serving substandard hot dogs, ham and cheese sandwiches, tepid lasagna and a small selection of drinks and beer, was actually today the hottest place to eat in the city, so much buzz there was in the air. Even along the rue d'Aubervilliers, the normally skanky bars and cafés, thronged with a new clientelle, on their way to or from the 104. Chairs of all size and form made makeshift terraces to satisy the demand. It's rare to have the opportunity to see instant gentrification in action.

Miroir

Best brunch in Paris? .Lofty dining room on the upper end of the rue des Martyrs. 26€ menu with lots to eat: poached egg in chicken stock with floating salad, fruit salad with raspberries and litchi, cheese, homemade bread, "ceviche de bar", riz au lait de coco, filet de porc, Milliat juice a volonté, coffee or tea, madeleines. Friendly chef, asking if everything's allright from the window in his tiny kitchen, great place to go when the Rose is full...

Le Miroir
94 rue des Martyrs
+33 1 46 06 50 73

Au Coin des Gourmets

The best Vietnamese ravioli I've ever had?

Tofu

Amok, a classic Khmer dish- curried fish with coconut milk cooked in a banana leaf

Da Mimmo

"A little corner of Naples in the center of Paris" is what they say - I'd heard it was an Italo-starfuck heaven (Bellucci et al) in the middle of the congested boulevard Magenta, probably one of my least favorite streets in the City of Lights. The restaurant was mostly empty except for a few families/old people/locals, and I couldn't imagine any of them ponying up 40€ for the truffles tagllione pasta, or any of the other overpriced specialities (spaghetti volgole for 25€?? or a simple tomato spaghetti for 19€...) .The starter was forgettable, a 17.50€ beef carpaccio with too much oil, lemon, and not enough parmesan, although the beef quality was relatively decent. I reckon most people come for the pizza. Perfectly cooked by an obese chef who did his rounds after the shift, kissing babies, shaking hands.... the Mimmo with pork shoulder, mozza, parmesan, egg and peppers was as good as it gets in Paris, and the rosé wine at 8€ a 50cl pitcher more than reasonable.

Sinorama

A night to remember. Undisclosed location frequented by the Hong Kong super-wealthy looking for an authentic Cantonese meal in Paris. Three billionaires. A former French PM's son, a hot yoga teacher, former Consul to Hong Kong, watch tycoon, all incognito, Grands vins delivered from Le Cinq (!). Spring rolls, fried zucchini, marinated beef, scallops, scrambled eggs with tomato, duck sausages, spiced tripe, hake, crispy skinned chicken, soft-shell crab, pork, and charming company, followed by drinks at the Murano (not my choice) and Bloody Bullshots at the Hemingway.










Sinorama
135 avenue Choisy
+33 1 44 24 27 81

A week of eating: Cefalu, Sicily

Cefalu, proclaimed as "The Pearl of the Mediterranean" by locals (more like the "Bodrum of Sicily") , made this recent week of eating and drinking an enjoyable (although caloric) marathon. This ancient town, perched along the sea under a massive rocky geography , has both in its medieval neighborhood and along the main beach some excellent restaurants at good value. Predictably, eateries make use of the great local produce as well as the natural beauty of the surroundings. Sicilian tomatoes, lemons and seafood are some of the best in the Med, and dishes such as spaghetti vongole, sardine tagliatelli, pizzas in various forms, thinly cut beefsteaks, seafood carpaccio, grilled fish of all types (especially swordfish) , shellfish, etc. are present on nearly every menu. The local wine and beers are all reasonably priced so you may slake your thirst without breaking the bank.


Terrace seating at the Osteria del Duomo (steps lead to the 1150 Arab-Norman cathedral)


Caprese salad


Fish and shellfish carpaccio (apparently the best in town)


Sardine pasta, a local specialty


Roast gambas


The view from the terrace of Al Grabbiano


Heaven in a glass

Spaghetti vongole (the best in Cefalu IMHO)

Roast swordfish (another local favourite)

The best pizza we tried in Cefalu


L'Antica Corte

...located in a charming medieval courtyard


Relatively correct pasta with ham and mushrooms

Ditto for the steak , but , hey , the 15€ three course menu was a bargain






These are the addresses we tried out- unfortunately only one, L'Osteria, figures in the Michelin guide, the one place we were the least impressed with, although their terrace is the best in town (although infested by agressive wasps.....)

Osteria del Duomo, via Seminario 3, Cefalu, +390921421838

Al Grabbiano, via Lungomare Giardina 17, Cefalu, +390921421495

L'Antica Corte, Off Corso Ruggero, Cefalu, +390921423228

Al Porticciolo, Via Carlo Ortolani di Bordonaro 66, Cefalu, +390921921981