Thierry Marx moves to Paris

Thierry Marx at the Mandarin Oriental Paris next year.

Buddha Bar World Backpacker Domination

Finally the Buddha Bar people have found their niche. Unfortunately, the (formerly) trendy Parisian restaurant , which at last check was cool about ten years ago has decided to cash in on their biggest crossection of clientele: namely, The Backpacker. Those pour souls, who, in following their sadly outdated guidebooks and their hopelessly clueless friends (who last visited the town a decade ago in the BB's heyday), congregate in the Buddha bosom, eying hungrily the tourist trap gift shop CD collection before sharing a Japanese beer at the bar. The genius of it all is that they have opened Prague's "trendiest" hotel, and will be capitalizing on this easily impressionable , and easy to fool clientele. Bravo!

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