Category Archives: Paris

Mama Shelter

Mama Shelter – we had a birthday dinner in their restaurant just the evening before I went back to Copenhagen. I’m not a big fan of stiff restaurants and the restaurant at Mama Shelter is the opposite, Philipe Starck has made a great job turning the restaurant into something that looks like someone’s cozy living room. Speaking of Philippe Starck, one year ago he designed the restaurant Ma Cocotte located in the flea market of Saint-Ouen just outside Paris and a couple of months ago the new restaurant in Paris called Miss Kō. Miss Kō is an Asian fusion restaurant and it’s on my list for my upcoming trip to Paris.

Now back to Mama Shelter, as a starter I had fresh marinated salmon, tartare-style avocado..surprised? Hopefully not anymore ;-) As a maincourse I had delicious ravioles d’aubergines et champignons, vinaigrette tièdes, piments et sésame (ravioli with eggplant and mushrooms, warm vinaigrette, peppers and sesame).

Since we were celebrating my friend’s birthday we decided to order something big and asked for the “de-structured Vacherin choclate Dame Blanche style”, which is based on vanilla ice cream, chocolate sauce, meringues, whipped cream and roasted almonds. Forget about having some scoops of ice cream, you get the whole ice cream bucket! How wonderful isn’t that? We were three persons sharing this dessert and I think we had three servings each…and still almost half of everything was left. Homemade ice cream, chocolate sauce and meringues..what more can I say? I was in heaven, that’s for sure. I have to admit, not many minutes later I was trapped in a sugarcoma deluxe… The side effects of living on the sweet side ;-)

Mama Shelter – 109 Rue de Bagnolet, 75020 Paris

Having dinner at the restaurant at Mama Shelter

Ravioles d’aubergines et champignons, vinaigrette tièdes, piments et sésame at Mama Shelter

Fresh marinated salmon, tartare-style avocado, my favourite starter at Mama Shelter

“De-structured Vacherin choclate Dame Blanche style”, one of my favourite desserts.

Homemade vanilla ice cream in an ice cream bucket, very yummie!

Delicious cocktail!

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Paris in June

Paris in June – that’s something that definately puts a smile on my face :-) After my latest trip to Paris it didn’t take long until I bought new tickets to visit the wonderful city again. This time I will be there for a week and my childhood friend will join me for a weekend, how great isn’t that? I will show her my Paris and I’m so looking forward it. One good thing is that there is no Fashion Week, so no fashion shows to attend…only pure pleasure which means eating delicious food, yummie pastries…ice creams at GROM…walk around in the city..enjoy the magical sunsets…oh..I’m already counting down the days. Two weeks to go and then I will sit on a plane to Paris <3

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Cire Trudon

Cire Trudon – the oldest French manufacturer that produces the world’s most prestigious candles of the highest quality. During my latest trip to Paris I visited the charming boutique of Cire Trudon at 78 Rue de Seine. I love having candles in my home just to add a cozy atmosphere and each time I’m in Paris I always bring at least one Cire Trudon candle with me back home.

I’m not the only one beeing addicted to Cire Trudon’s candles, some of the clients in the past was acctually Napoleon and Marie Antoinette. The Trudon company also supplied the court of Louis XIV with their scented candles and also many palaces and large churches in France. If you visit their website you can find lot’s of interesting facts and the history behind the brand.

I’ve been a loyal client to Cire Trudon for years and besides the appealing fragrances, elegant glasses emblazoned with the Cire Trudon gold crest the candles comes in I buy them because they are all made of vegetal ingredients, 100% cotton wicks and free from petrol derivates with other words, they are safe for users. If you, like me, love scented candles, I want you to be aware and always check the ingredients when buying candles. Unfortunately many candles on the market are made of paraffin, the final byproduct in the petroleum refining chain. The burning of paraffin contaminates the air with toxic particles, so be aware and avoid all the toxic candles made of paraffin.

There are two Cire Trudon stores in the world, the one I visited in Paris and one in London. It is possible to buy the candles online, but I prefer going to the boutique in Paris, it’s an experience in itself and I get to smell the different candles before buying one. The staff are very service minded, if you ask them for help they would kindly assist you. In the photos I’ve taken below you can see that every candle is under a dome. Instead of smelling right on the candle (which often are too strong) the staff will lift the dome while allowing you to smell the inside of it. That way you can feel how the candle smells like and if you want to know the essential ingredients the staff know them by heart. I did buy a new candle during my latest visit to Cire Trudon and I will show it here in another blogpost.

Cire Trudon – 78 Rue De Seine, 75006 Paris

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La Maison Deyrolle

La Maison Deyrolle – a famous taxidermy boutique in Paris, I must confess I had no clue of it’s existence until I saw the movie Midnight In Paris and got curious about some of the places where the scenes took place. And that is the story behind how I discovered Deyrolle, thanks to Woody Allen who chose to shoot one of the scenes for his move Midnight In Paris there :-)

During my last trip to Paris a visit to La Maison Deyrolle was therefore on my list and it was truly an adventure seeing all those wild animals in all different sizes, from small butterflies, to a giant bear, elephant, birds and beautiful swans in a beautiful typical Parisian saloon.

I like taxidermy (as long as I know the animal haven’t been haunted and killed for that purpose) and there were so many animals I wanted to buy and bring with my to my home in Copenhagen. But I had to be realistic, none of them would have fitted in my suitcases…so I was pleased by just wandering around, studying them from close and taking photos to share with you.

The store was established in 1831 by the entomologist Jean-Baptiste Deyrolle and a part from having taxidermy they were famous for their educational posters that were translated into many different languages. Nowadays La Maison Deyrolle is owned by the Prince Louis Albert de Broglie, also called the Prince Jardinier (The Gardener Prince). Unfortunately a larger part of the collection and 90 % of the interior was destroyed during a fire in February 2008. With the help from the French Army, Hèrmes, Christie’s and numerous artists around the world it has been possible to restore some objects and they also recieved taxidermies from different contributors from around the world.

According to their website most of taxidermies in La Maison Deyrolle have died a natural death in circuses and zoological reserves and many of them come from Deyrolle’s vintage collection.

I let the photos speak for themselves and if you are in Paris you should definately stop by and visit the store.

La Maison Deyrolle – 46 rue du Bac, 75007 Paris

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Dinner at Mama Shelter

Dinner at Mama Shelter in Paris with my friend Jo. We arrived just before 11 pm but that’s never a problem at Mama Shelter’s restaurant since their kitchen doesn’t close until midnight…which is perfect for us who enjoys late night dinners ;-)

I couldn’t resist their salmon with avocado and pickled radish, my favourite starter at Mama Shelter and always delicious! Perfect mix and the salmon melts in your mouth….it used to be my “Swedish treat” when I was living in Paris…since salmon reminded me of Sweden :-) For dessert we both went for something including lot’s of chocolate, as in my case mousse au chocolat with whipped cream while Jo had their molten chocolate cake with a heart of Carambar. I always use to finish my dessert….but this one totally knocked me out. Chocolatecoma deluxe and I had to leave my dessert unfinished…..I know, never happens! We had plenty of cocktails I started with a very fresh one called Absynthe minded (Gin Hendicks, absynthe, chatreuse verte, cordial de citronelle, verveine citronnée, citron jaune)…..and then I couldn’t say no to their candy shot with schtroumpf, tagada, carambar and banana. We also had several different wines….life at it’s best in Paris, enjoying great company with good food and wine.

Our waitress was superkind, very helpful and service-minded and that is why I go to Mama Shelter very often. The relaxed and familiar atmosphere, the cozy interior and together with the great service makes you feel like home :-)

Mama Shelter – 109 Rue de Bagnolet, 75020 Paris

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Le Petit Marché

Le Petit Marché is a restaurant I used to have dinners at quite often back in the days when I was living in Paris. It’s a hidden gem, with a local clientele, great and service-minded staff and delicious food! They serve food from the French country cuisine with an Asian twist and they have lot’s of delicious dishes on their menu which makes it always hard to decide…..

I went there on my latest trip to Paris and was positively surprised they were still having their croustillants de gambas on their menu. Must be one of their signature appetizers because I was having it almost everytime I went there during my years in Paris. With other words, it was an easy choice when ordering my food at Le Petit Marché, and since I wasn’t that hungry I went for two appetizers and started with a delicious, fresh salmon tartlette with avocado and mango. As a main dish I went for my favourite croustillants de gambas with sweet chilli sauce. I totally love them…they are crispy with basil and dangeriously addictive…. For dessert I had a heavenly crème brûlée served with passionfruit. Loved the mix of the sweetness from the vanilla in the crème brûlée together with the sourness of the passionfruit – a delicate combination!

God, this is not easy writing a review on food I’ve been enjoying a while ago and definately mouthwatering when I look on the photos. I need my dose of Le Petit Marché soon and if that means a trip to Paris then be it :-)

Le Petit Marché is situated not far away from the beautiful square Place des Vosges in Le Marais and I would recommend the restaurant if you are looking for a genuine French bistro with great quality food and service minded staff. The atmosphere is cozy, familiar and very typical French and if you’re lucky you might be sitting next to a French actor, like I did last time when Romain Duris was there enjoying his dinner ;-)

Le Petit Marché – 9 Rue du Béarn, 75003 Paris

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Très Honoré

Très Honoré is a quite new restaurant, situated at the square of Marché Saint-Honoré in Paris. During my last trip to Paris I joined my friend Jo and her brother for a dinner at Très Honoré.

We started with a cocktail I’ve unfortunately forgotten the name of, I know, shame on me. But it was very fresh…and I’m quite sure there was some fresh mint, lime…in short, a very green cocktail as you can see on my photo ;-)

For starter we shared some “petit calamars sauce tartare et sweet chili” ( fried small squid with tartare sauce and sweet chili) which were very crispy and delicate, perfectly prepared. As a maindish I had a typical French course, “La Blanquette de veau en cocotte, carottes et champignons” (a French veal ragout/stew with carrots and mushrooms) which tasted heavenly! The veal was perfectly done, almost melting in my mouth and with the sauce it was just delicious.

We were quite full after our dinner but there were still some room for dessert and what couldn’t be more suitable than having the restaurants signature dessert, Le Saint Honoré? I’ve had many Saint Honoré’s in France…but this one was one of the most delicious I’ve ever tasted. Cream puff dough filled with yummie pastry cream and dipped in caramelized sugar….heavenly delicious!

So how about the restaurant itself? The interior was very art deco and an atmosphere with a mix of the worlds of Tim Burton and Alice in Wonderland, cool giant mirrored wall mural and glass chandeliers handing from the ceiling. The service was great, our waitress was honest in her recommendations and the food was very good. Still not my type of restaurant, I prefer a bit more intime and relaxed atmosphere, but it is always nice to try other places :-)

Restaurant Très Honoré – 35, place du Marché Saint-Honoré, 75001 Paris

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GROM

GROM – it doesn’t matter whether I’m in Paris during wintertime or summertime, a visit to GROM is ALWAYS on my list…and beeing in Paris without endulging myself with ice creams from GROM is a big no, no.

So you might wonder why I have this big crush on GROM‘s ice creams? Well, it’s easy, they make ice cream with organic ingreients…no artificials or preservatives…only natural flavors and colors which make the ice cream taste delicious. A big plus is that they are running an eco-friendly waste management and respecting the environment by making eco friendly spoons, retail and garbage bags etc

How I discovered GROM? Well, it turned out I was a close neighbor to their shop in Paris without knowing it. Had passed it by without noticing it until my Italian friend who was working as a chef in the cuisine at Ladurée Bonaparte took me there and said, this, this is REAL ice cream. After having my first taste I could nothing but agree. Ever since I stopped by several times a week…and sometimes it happened I had ice cream from GROM several times a day too. They were open until midnight so it was easy fulfilling my ice cream cravings, no doubt. During wintertime I usually have their rich hot chocolate with a scoop of ice cream and during hot summer days I prefer their cool and fresh sorbets and sometimes when I’ve had big cravings I go for a triple size ;-)

There is something else I like about GROM and it’s their Panna Montata – whipped cream. How can whipped cream be so special? Well, there are two different ways of obtaining whipped cream, either you whip in a machine or electrical batter where the cream incorporates air which makes the whipped cream inconsistent in it’s texture and full of air…AND there is another way, having it whipped in a machine where the air is incorporated through circular movement of a mixer that is inside a cold steel container. The last alternative gives a result where the texture of the whipped cream is thicker, and it’s much more tastier and richer than “regular” whipped cream.

Last time I was in Paris I went to GROM several times and on these photos you can see I was having pistacchio and marron glacé (candied chestnuts) with panna montata on the top. Pleasure at it’s best!

GROM – Rue de Seine, 81, 75006 Paris

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A total disappointment

A total disappointment occurred when I tasted the pistachio orange éclair from L’Éclair de Génie. God knows how much I had waited to have a bite of the green high glossy éclair when I was carrying my box home.

So what happened? Well, the pâte à choux was too soft and not crispy on the outside, the icing was too sticky and the filling didn’t have that typical thick creamy texture…it was slightly sweet, but I couldn’t tell any distinct pistachio or orange flavor. I’ve had many éclairs in France and even though they haven’t looked as divine as the ones at L’Éclair de Génie they have been very delicious in their own simple way….and that scores much higher on my rating scale. The éclair I had from L’Éclair de Génie was simply too articifial for my taste buds.

It’s not often I get disappointed with things I eat…but I was very surprised I didn’t have a better experience with this éclair since most of the reviews of L’Éclair de Génie brings their éclairs to the sky. BUT we all have different tastes, and what tastes good for me doesn’t always have to taste good for others. I had too high expectations of this éclair and I enjoyed it far more by looking at it than having a bite. That can also happen. In any case, be your own judge, you will find the éclairs here:

L’éclair de Génie – 14 rue Pavée, 75004 Paris

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L’Eclair de Génie

L’Eclair de Génie is a éclaire concept store I visited during my last stay in Paris. Just have a look on the amazing loooking creations…is it possible to just pass by a vitrina filled up with those? Not if you’re name is Solli and got a sweet tooth!

For those who are unfamiliar with what an éclair is – it’s a choux dough pastry filled with cream/custard with different flavorings and topped with icing. As you can see on the photos below…different flavorings…colors..icing…the only limit is your imagination! No chance I would go out empty handed from the store – stay tuned to read my review of the éclair I brought home with me…..

L’éclair de Génie – 14 rue Pavée, 75004 Paris