Me and the girls packed our bags and headed off to Paris for
a weekend of culture, food and wine (lots of.)
We were staying in the Montmarte district (loosely translated as The Mountain
of the Martyr – Saint Denis was decapitated on the hill around 250 AD for being
stubborn it seems….) The district is full to bursting with artists and their
studios and once upon a time, Dali, Monet and Picasso roamed these streets.
That’s a bit good, no?
Anyway, back to the point – the nosh. Let’s just say that
the idea of French food, never really fills me with joy. I don’t eat meat (just
fish) and I run for the hills at the sight of buerre blanc or any creamy
sauces. I like cream on strawberries, not slathered all over my main course.
It’s fair to say, my experiences with French food haven’t
been great to far, so I was game for trying some new things and getting
involved with some of the local treats.
First up…
Le Progrès
A classic
French bistro a hop, skip and a jump from the Sacré-Cœur
in Montmartre. The restaurant is cosy and very classic, serving a range of
French food. I opted for fish soup with a side of Escargot (we had to try it!)
The soup was hearty, pungent and making everyone in the room gawk at it as it
left the kitchen. It was a bit on the large side (there must have been a
minimum equivalent of 3-4 cans in the bowl) but it came served with large
crunchy croutons and a little pot of Gruyère cheese on the side. Perfect.
The Snails were done to death in garlic (as you
would expect) so I couldn’t really tell you what the snail itself tasted like,
but in all honesty, I think that’s for the best. It was very similar to a
mussel and was very pleasant.
Good for: All day dining, relaxed long dinners or a
quick bite at lunch.
Where
to find it: 7 rue des Trios Freres, 75018 Paris (Nearest Metro is Abesses)
£: Major bang for your buck - I think we spent 30 Euros each on 2 courses and a couple of bottles of wine.
Eye candy behind the bar: Ladies, just trust me.
Next
up and this weeks winner!
L’Annexe
Tucked
away on the hills of Montmarte, among a plethora of restaurants, bars and
bistros, is a little shop front, painted red.
We had passed a ton of places,
all either suspiciously empty or so full we would have had to sit on top of
each other.
We
went in, and there is probably only 30 covers in the entire place. It’s very
cosy and intimate, with tables that are almost joined they are so close.
(Myself and my best friend like a bit of space and privacy when we go out to
eat, so we were feeling a bit claustrophobic at first, wedged between two other
tables…..)
Once
we had sunk a bottle or two of wine though, we were best mates with the people
on either side so we soon forgot how close together we all were.
So,
let’s talk food. For my starter I opted for poached egg on leeks with sesame
vinaigrette. Not much to write home about, you might think? This was easily one
of the nicest starters I have had in a very long time. Simple and fresh with a
sesame twist. It was served on a huge slab of slate too, which looked
fantastic.
Next
up – the main course. Now, I was a bit naughty here as the menu wasn’t very
vegetarian friendly (apart from risotto, but I’d rather eat wall paper paste!)
I had back of cod, orange marmalade and chorizo sauce served with quinoa.
Annoyingly, I was so taken with it, I forgot to take a picture. I’m not going
to lie, the mix of flavours wasn't exciting me much and the idea of removing
one element (the meat!) didn’t seem like the right thing to do when it seemed like
such a strange concoction. It arrived, presented beautifully on a circle of
quinoa. The fish, lovingly placed on top and with a little blobs of the orange
and chorizo marmalade on either side of the plate…but wait, what was that thing
on top? No. It can’t be? Is that…is that SQUIRTY CREAM plonked on top! Now, I
know I have an issue with the French and their love of cream, but this was
taking the biscuit. Just so we are clear, there is only one use for squirty cream, and that is THIS:
Really, you should only sink to these lows if you've been dumped, Bridget Jones style....or in my case, just your average Friday night.
“I’m
going in…” – it turns out, this ‘squirty cream’ was homemade, not from a can
and was in fact some sort of peppery savoury wonder. All was forgiven...
The
fish and quinoa was cooked perfectly and was full of flavour. I tasted a couple
of slithers of the chorizo (just for good measure, you understand!) and even
though the idea of orange and fish was a bit alien to me, it was absolutely
delicious. I cleared my plate, which to anyone who knows me, knows is rare.
For
dessert we got one of everything to have a taste. There was crème brulee,
coffee mousse with a surprise spoon and chocolate foam with a ‘taste
explosion’.
The
crème brulee was perfect and had a secret layer of hazelnut praline at the
bottom. The
chocolate foam was served in gorgeous little jam jars, on a chalkboard tray.
The explosion was popping candy – which to four wine drunk women, was basically
the best thing that had ever happened to us.
The
coffee mousse was the only one I was slightly disappointed with. It had formed
some sort of skin on top which wasn’t
easy to eat and the ‘surprise’ was what can only be described as sugar puffs –
it tasted ok, but if I didn’t know, I wouldn’t have thought coffee was the main
player!
All
in all, a fabulous evening, amazing wine, friendly staff and some of the most
beautifully presented food I’ve had in a long time. Hats off to you L’Annexe - you're our top bite in Paris!
Good for: Dinner and drinks
Where to find it: 13 Rude des 3 Freres 75018 Paris
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