Monday, October 19, 2009

Wandering through the Weekend



You may not believe this, but one can get tired of croissants.  Not that I have yet, but it's possible, I understand.  And so ex-pat Americans are always in search of the perfect bagel. You can find bagels in Paris and some of them are reputed to be not bad, but the search continues.

On Saturday night I went to a book signing for Marc Grossman's new cookbook "Bagels*like in New York" at the charming little food-specialized bookstore La Cocotte on rue Paul Bert.



Marc is a New Yorker who runs Bob's Juice Bar (why Bob? I guess Marc sounds too French) and the Kitchen in Paris, both foodie favorites.  Bagels is his third American cookbook (in French) after Smoothies and Muffins.  You get the idea.  Alisa's Cupcakes is part of this series for French publisher Marabout and she'll get her book signing date soon.

Unfortunately Marc says that making good bagels in enough quantity to sell profitably is too difficult a project and he won't be offering them at his shops.  The search continues.  What, you thought I was going to bake them myself?

Gene had come down with a cold so I took the Métro over to meet Alisa, her boyfriend Jeff, and her two adorable girls at La Cocotte and for a drink after at Pure Café.  I'm not a fan of children as a rule, but these two are worth hanging out with. When we got to the café I realized it was the one from the movie Before Sunset, with Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy, a gorgeous tour of Paris in the guise of a love story. 

On the way over to La Cocotte I came across one of the ubiquitous Métro musical offerings, which include American hippie guitarists, Scots bagpipers (oh gawd!) and others.  This little orchestra was worth listening to though.



Suitably uplifted I went on and found continung uplift at the other end of the trip.  The end of the day sun had turned these buildings into pure gold.



Sunday morning was time for the market once again and we did our usual rounds.  We've now identified our favorite vendors: the pretty Italian woman who recommends different pastas each time, the woman who takes the time to explain the different types of apples, pear, tomatoes, etc. to clueless Americans, the fishmonger with the longest line and freshest fish, and the stand with the incredible array of mushrooms.  Winter vegetables are all over; I'll have to find a recipe for pumpkin soup.



It was a glorious fall day and the crowds in the Marais were taking full advantage of it.  The streets were closed off to cars and the Place des Vosges lawns were covered with basking adults and running children.


 

I took a bus across the river to say goodbye to some friends leaving town and couldn't resist taking pictures out the window.  I have a feeling these blue skies won't be with us for very much longer.

 



And walking home I found myself kicking through piles of leaves.  The season has definitely changed.

 

3 comments:

Karin B (Looking for Ballast) said...

"When we got to the café I realized it was the one from the movie Before Sunset, with Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy, a gorgeous tour of Paris in the guise of a love story."

Very cool! I remember that from the movie!

My friend Tess and I had bagels *somewhere* here in the city last spring. I know we were over in the Parc Monceau area; I will have to ask her if she remembers the name of the place. This was before I stopped eating gluten, and we had bagel sandwiches there. They were okay -- not too fantastic but good enough if you need a fix.

I was just thinking today that I bet I could make some pumpkin soup or roast pumpkin. It's nice to see winter veggies out, but I cannot get used to the early hour at which the sun sets, and it's about to get worse with the time change this weekend! Argh! Fall is quickly passing us by...

Parisbreakfasts said...

Wasn't Sunday heaven!
Thanks for capturing it again for me..
I've always meant to go to Cocotte and somehow..
Next trip for sure and I would have loved to go to Pure Cafe from one of my fav movies..
Merci encore
Carolg now in NYC

patrick said...

Hey Guys,

Am loving the blog. Seems like I think about you more while you’re in Paris than I did when you were in Berkeley...go figure. We are so saturated with all things French here....movies, fashion, food, architecture - they all serve as reminders that you are actually there and living it. The whole concept of really living the day-to-day has such appeal. People do it here too, but somehow its not so interesting....

We just saw a new movie Paris with Juliette Binoche...one of those typical French films where nothing much happens...but its set in the Paris of the real world...the Eifel Tower is barely more than a landmark on a distant horizon. Anyway, its an interesting film and yet another reminder of your adventure.

I’m loving the pix too, although there’s a little glitch: if you open a picture for a larger view, you can’t get back to the Blog, except by starting over. Anyway, don’t obsess about it...its worth a few clicks more to look at the images on my large monitor...almost like being there....

Looks like the real test is ahead as the weather cools...but you guys are such hardy types (princess trappings notwithstanding) so I’m sure you’ll use the weather well. Hope the new digs are as cool as the current ones.

Things here are much the same...involvement with the museum, the preservation foundation, the architectural advisory committee...all interesting and making sure I continue to exercise the mind; and of course the body gets exercised regularly too. Robert is....the same as he ever was....

So keep on Blogging...its an enrichment for all your friends.

As always,

-Patrick