|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
The culinary attractions in Paris match anything else the city has to offer, and you don't have to spend a fortune to enjoy them. Street markets are in every neighborhood and contain as fine a selection of cheese and charcuterie as any high-priced restaurant. Gleaming pastry shops beckon you with croissants, tarts, éclairs, and elaborate cakes. Even a humble sandwich becomes a Parisian specialty when it's made with a crusty baguette or the dense, chewy Pain Pôilaine.
|
|
|
 | |
|
|
Le Bistro Maxim's by Mark St. John BUY THIS PRINT |
| |
|
|
|
|
Review: Zagat Survey - Paris Restaurants
The title of this handy publication is based on the fact that its reviews have been culled by surveying 1700 diners who ate a combined 330,000 meals in a year, covering 825 restaurants in Paris and its surroundings. Of those surveyed, 96% are French, 71% are male, and the breakdown by ages is as follows: 20's - 11%, 30's - 26%, 40's - 23%, 50's - 25%, 60's or above - 15%. The Zagat survey concept began 30 years ago, and guides are now published for over 40 cities throughout the world.
What makes this pocket-sized guide such an excellent value (List $11.95 US, 69.00FF, £7.99 UK, $15.95 Canada), is that it not only offers individual reviews for each restaurant, but provides ratings in every conceivable category. For example, the guide rates the top spots by various different criteria:
|
|
Following the pages of rankings is the alphabetical listing of all restaurants, including street address, arrondissement, métro stop, phone number, hours, credit cards accepted, numerical values for food / decor / service and price range, and summaries of the surveyors' own commentaries. In the back of the book, a comprehensive index lists all restaurants by arrondissement, nationality, category, and special features, including such helpful ones as:
|
|
|
|
|
| |
|
|
Bar de L'Entracte-Paris by George Bates BUY THIS PRINT |
| |
|
|
|
|
Review: Cafés of Paris
In which café did Robespierre play chess? Where was Napoleon forced to leave his hat in lieu of payment when he forgot his purse? In what establishment did Simone de Beauvoir find respite from loneliness after Sartre left for the Front? "The Cafés of Paris...a Guide" provides much more than the encyclopedic listing of establishments one might expect.
In rich detail, author Christine Graff has conjured up the kind of book no lover of Paris should be without. "In the 11th arrondissement, close to the Bastille on the rue Saint-Sabin is a real find: the Café de L'Industrie.... Here, in a café that looks as if it might have been Bogart's just before he went off to Casablanca, you can sip coffee for five francs standing or nine francs seated at the dark red banquettes next to old wood tables. Faded cream walls, the frosted Deco glass, old photos of French celebrities, Oriental rugs well past their first splendor, an artsy crowd, and strains of traditional French folksinging coming from the back create an ambiance of Old France."
Flavored with witticisms from Montesquieu to Henry Miller, The Cafés of Paris shines like the city itself. Chapter titles such as "The Ratman of Paris and Other Café Stories," "A Cheapskate's Guide to Cafes," and "Parisians Discuss Their Favorite Cafés" offer only a hint of the wealth of information to be found in this charming guide.
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|
| |||||||||||||||
