It was 22C this afternoon! T-shirts and sunglasses were strongly present in today’s street fashion look. The catch of the day, collected at the Bastille market, certainly confirmed that summer is only a few steps away:
Menu suggestions for this week anyone?
Paris is great for many things but not for North Indian restaurants. This is not London. And I am suffering from this!
After visiting India three times, I find it harder and harder to eat North Indian food here. South Indian food is ok (see My love affair with Saravanaa Bhavan), but North Indian food is more difficult. I sometimes go to Nirvana Inde in the 8th but it is quite far away from where I. And there also is Le Palais de Raja Maharaja (in the 15th, bordering the 7th), but I don’t live nearby either.
Probably because of my recent posts about India, we really wanted to eat North Indian food yesterday. My husband searched Tripadvisor, Le Fooding and Michelin, and finally we opted for Jodhpur Palace in the 12th, recommended by Michelin. 
I guess we had a bit of bad luck because there was a crazy couple next to us, making scenes, but I liked the way the staff handled them.
Contrary to what many reviews say about Jodhpur Palace, the service was fast and our chutneys arrived promptly. The wine, Côtes Du Rhône Seigneurs De Laudun (2011) arrived a few minutes later, too. It paired well with the dishes we chose.
We ordered cheese nan, butter chicken, Hyderabad lamb, bartha and palak paneer. They looked delicious and were nicely presented. We preferred palak paneer, which was particularly tasty. It was made of real Indian cheese (and not of La vache qui rit cheese) and the taste was very refined. Our second-most favorite dish was butter chicken. A great dish with high-quality chicken. Bartha, the eggplant puree was loved by my husband, but I thought it had something missing. Lastly, Hyderabad lamb was not bad at all, but the mint taste was too strong. I do like mint a lot, but I think the beauty of Indian dishes is that they are so subtle and so harmonious that there isn’t just one flavor that becomes dominant. 
This said, our dinner was a delight and I think we will return to Jodhpur Palace. The bill came to 75€ and we thought it was very reasonable.
JODHPUR PALACE (http://www.jodhpurpalace.com/) : in the corner of 42 Allée Vivaldi and 16 rue Hénard, Paris 75012. Tel: 01-43407246.
PS They serve thalis during the lunch hour and I am interested in tasting them.
In case you missed it, Paris International Agricultural Show ended last Sunday. It is an annual, nine-day long exhibition that attracts nearly one million visitors from France and elsewhere. The president of the French Republic always pays a visit during the first day, and this year Holland spent seven hours inside the Show. This is how important the Show is to France. 
We decided to spend last Friday evening at the Show and very much enjoyed ourselves. In fact, I thought that the Show was extremely fascinating and well done. The offer is huge and diversified, focusing on four main sectors: livestock, nature, gastronomy and agriculture as a profession. One can taste milk, get free samples of cat and dog food, learn how to cook, watch animals competitions, change a career (schools and employers are present to recruit), explore food products from different parts of France, including wine, etc. In addition, there are restaurants serving regional specialties, making the Show an excellent way to learn about France’s rich gastronomy.
We spent most of the time admiring cows and beef, and believe me when I say that some of them were enormous. In fact the biggest animal (a bull) of the show was called Le Fêtard (Party Animal) and it weighed 1691kg. Le Fêtard was sleeping while we visited him, so we moved to my favorite cattle breed “Charolais”: I love their features and that curly white hair. 
As you may know, every year there is a showstopper at the Show. Two years ago when I first visited this Show it was Valentina, and this year it was Bella, a beautiful, elegant seven-year old cow from Tarentaise breed. It was no doubt that Bella was the star of the Show, because when we found her, she was surrounded by dozens of people calling her name and trying to catch the best shot of her. 
In fact, if you go to the website of the Show, you can find a lot of information on Bella and her breeder and daily life in the Savoy region of France, near the Alps. The website continues to reveal that “Bella has a very easy nature, and is gentle and curious” and “Bella has two jobs: producing milk for Beaufort cheese and maintaining the Savoy landscape”. It almost feels like reading someone’s CV…!
This time we did not stay to eat at the Show, simply because no-one was serving côte de boeuf. It was a pity, because two years ago we ate a really tasty steak at the Show. Well, maybe next year!
Even if it is too late for this year, do not miss the Show next year! It is worth a visit, for many reasons. There are many activities for children, too.
English website of the show: http://en.salon-agriculture.com/
Who is Bella? http://en.salon-agriculture.com/Discover-the-Show/Who-is-Bella
Note: I love animals but I also have a professional interest toward agriculture because I recently wrote for a publication related to agribusiness. The publication was not about France but we did a lot of comparative analysis and France came up several times. As many of you know, France is very proud of its gastronomic heritage and diversity, and agriculture is viewed as a sector of prestige. And as the Show shows, French agribusiness receives a lot of state-driven marketing support, which is fantastic. Image building is vital for growth, maybe even more than we realize. (I just realized myself that I don’t think I know the type of cheese Bella’s milk produces and I should go and buy some. See! Bella is not only the star of the Show, but also the best PR person along with President Holland of course…!)
PS Pearlspotting can be found on Facebook, too!
Doing groceries at the food market is exciting: you never know what you come home with! The weekly market supply for food products depends on the season, on the weather, on transport issues, on regulations, on trends, on political issues, etc. –you name it! And that is why it is so interesting (if you like unpredictability).
For example today, my husband asked for the price of mussels. The seller was in a hurry to return home and responded: “They were caught yesterday. I have tried to sell them for 6€ and nobody wants them, so if you like, take them home for free”. My husband offered him money anyway but the seller smiled and said no worries.
So, today’s (late) lunch is going to be mussels with parsley, celery, onions, white wine (Muscadet) and crème fraiche. And guacamole, grilled bell peppers, slow-roasted cherry tomatoes for the rest of the week. La vie est belle!
PS If you like this, why not to join Pearlspotting on Facebook?
Le Tipaza is located in the northern part of the 15th arrondissement, not far away from the Eiffel Tour and UNESCO. We used to go this Moorish restaurant a lot in the past and were always very pleased with food and service. And yesterday was not an exception! 
Le Tipaza serves classic North African specialties (couscous and tajine) and some French dishes. My husband always chooses couscous and I take tajine (which is gluten free because it comes without the semolina). The wines come from Algeria, Morocco and France. 
My husband’s couscous royal came with a large bowl of hearty vegetable stew, a plate of mixed grilled meats, small bowls of raisin and chic peas, and semolina of course. He absolutely loved the stew, beef and chicken. The rest (merquez and lamb) he found tasty, too, but a bit dry. Anyhow, it was an excellent couscous. 
I usually have tajine with lamb but changed my mind and ordered chicken. The tajine I chose came with preserved lemons, onions and olives. Some potatoes were included in the dish, too. It was delicious!! Such a delight! 
We drunk Château Mansourah, Côteaux de Tlemcen (Algeria) and it was a perfect choice: aromatic, slightly maderized red wine made of grapes that grew under that strong African sun. On previous occasions when drinking North African wines we have noticed that they make us really tired –maybe it is the sun effect? Yesterday again we felt the same and in the end of the meal we could have fallen asleep right way. The dinner was very enjoyable and we were happy customers, but indeed the only thing we could have wanted more was a magic carpet to fly us home over Paris!
Lastly, the bill was 51€ for a couscous, a tajine and a bottle of wine. Excellent price-quality ratio!
Le Tipaza: 150 Avenue Emile Zola, 75015 Paris. Tel: 01 45 79 22 25. Metro: Avenue Emile Zola.
***
Previous posts about eating North African food in Paris are:
L’Alcôve: finest meat of Paris (also serves couscous and tajine, but house specialty is grilled meat)
Algerian restaurant l’Atlantide in Paris (excellent couscous and tajine)
L’Homme Bleu: Berber hospitality in the center of Paris (reputable couscous and tajine restaurant but I was disappointed during my last visit)
As I was returning home this afternoon I stopped to take photos of this building, located right next to our metro station. The station has three exits but this is my favorite sortie. I get out of the tunnel, see the sun light and these elaborate statues salute me, time after time. One of those moments that makes one’s day. Hence this photo, a tribute to the 19th century architects and workers. Bravo.
That blue hour before it gets dark. When the lights turn on and the boats go to sleep. Paris tonight.
PS Summer is definitely not far away (or at least spring). Such a lovely, sunny day.
It has been a long time since we had a full-blown cheese platter for dinner. Last Saturday it happened again, and this is what we did: seafood for the first course (What is a whelk?) and cheese with salad for the second course. It does not get better than this, does it?
This time we did a bit of experimenting and did not stick exclusively to French cheese. 
Clockwise from the top right:
As there are hundreds of cheeses in France (some say 500 different types), I guess I will be posting many cheese platter photos!
PS What is your favorite French cheese?
“If It’s Chili, It’s Personal” runs the title of a recent article by The New York Times. And this is exactly what I was thinking last Thursday when I was home alone, preparing Chili con carne at 10 pm. Make it personal, use your imagination.
My chili con carne:
1. Saute two large sliced onions until they get nice brown color. Add garlic, cumin-coriander powder, Indian chili powder, lots of dried marjoram, paprika powder and Jamaica pepper (also called “allspice”). Add minced beef meat (about 600g). Keep stirring.
2. Add slices of raw carrot (I used two medium-size carrots).
3. Add slices of celery (I used an entire celery stalk, about 20cm, not forgetting the leaves).
4. Add 2dl of tomato purée.
5. Add about 2dl of Slow-roasted cherry tomatoes.
6. Add two large cans of red beans and one can of white beans. 
7. If you are in a hurry, the meal is ready. If you can wait, let it simmer for 30 more minutes. Add salt to your taste, if necessary.
8. I added one glass of Cahors red wine in the end.
Lastly, serve hot with crème fraîche.
And as a meal like this would not be complete without a glass of wine, I had some very lovely red Bordeaux 2006 from Château Thieuley. Recommended in the 10€+ category!
The NY Times article: http://www.nytimes.com/2014/02/12/dining/if-its-chili-its-personal.html?_r=0
The wine: http://www.thieuley.com
A whelk looks strange. It is slimy. It smells like sea and mud. Some call it ugly. Just look at this photo!
But a whelk is also delicious! Especially with homemade mayonnaise! Moreover, it is rich in protein: around 20g of protein per 100g, which is more than what lamb contains. Would you have believed? In addition, a whelk is rich in vitamin B12, copper and zinc, making whelks more than ten times richer in B12 than beef. Impressive how good these slimy creatures are for us!
You can buy raw whelks and boil them for a few minutes with salt and black pepper, but supermarkets in France sell them ready-cooked. This is what we did yesterday: we purchased shrimps and whelks and ate them with mayonnaise. Afterwards we had a cheese platter with salas. Such a perfect dinner. Easy (no cooking needed), affordable, tasty, healthy. And as a bonus, gluten free. 
If you are interested in whelks, maybe you would like to read this article by the New York Times: http://www.nytimes.com/2012/12/19/dining/whelks-are-coming-out-of-their-shell-and-onto-your-plate.html (December 2012). Apparently the whelk has surfaced on cutting-edge menus in the US, and chefs are creating some very interesting-sounding dishes of them. Why not to try when you next time see them on the menu?
Tip number 1: The only thing you really need to be aware of when eating whelks is that little tiny “lid”. It is the thin top part of the whelk, and should be removed by your fingers and thrown away.
Tip number 2: You need special equipment to eat whelks with. A normal fork won’t do it. Tiny forks or pins are the only efficient ways to pull the whelk from its shell, believe me.
PS Have you already tasted a whelk? What was your impression? How was it prepared and eaten? Did you have red or white wine with it? We had biodynamic red (Côtes du Roussillon, Marie Gabrielle Cazes, Languedoc), creating a nice match.
If you haven’t yet tasted the whelks, do you think you will one day?
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