Wall Wednesday

"Spider spider on the wall..."

 

Above: an unexpected eight-legged visitor

 

Table Tuesday

 "A table just in front of the piano please."

Bar 228

Le Meurice Hôtel
228 rue de Rivoli 75001

 

Monumental Monday

 

Teaser view of La Caverne du Pont Neuf, a goliath temporary installation by French artist JR on Paris’s oldest bridge, from a bicycle.

 

June 6 til June 28, 2026

Out on a lamb

 

 

 

The confit d'agneau arrived topped with flaming thyme sprigs in a dramatic finish.

 

Chez L'Ami Jean

27 rue Malar 75007

 

***

 

My 5 favorite bistrots

 

June newsletter 

 

Floral Friday

 When flowers stop traffic on a drizzly afternoon.

Thursday throng

 

Fresh from the Louvre, hordes of tourists wander Place du Tertre looking for a crêpe.

Window Wednesday

 A lifetime of stories.... One rendezvous at a time.

Transcendent Tuesday

 

Colossal projections bring Renaissance works to life. 

Above: Michaelangelo's David w/heart-shaped pupils

 

Discover the Renaissance

Da Vinci, Raphael, Michaelangelo, more 

   

L'Atelier des Lumières

38 rue Saint-Maur 75011

 

Ends June 27, 2026

 

Mocha Monday

 

A light breakfast with café crème, chocolat chaud, golden chai.

 Les Cinq Marches.

 Café-Cantine 

12 rue Girardon 75018

 

 

 

Sit-down Sunday

 

Weekend downtime.

 

Les Cinq Marches

Café-Cantine

12 rue Girardon 75018

 

Streets of Paris

 Montmartre.

 

Floral Friday

 

Vibrant flowers and plants ready for passersby.

 

Thursday threesome

 

Deep in discussion outside a small coffee shop in the 2nd arrondissement.

 

Window Wednesday

Watercolors on a storybook street. 

 

Table Tuesday

 

 

Tables set out for tastings in the back of a small Left Bank wine shop.

 

Special Sunday

🌸 Happy Mother's Day 🌸 

 

Fête des Mères / Mother's Day in France 2026:

Sunday May 31

 

Above: spring blossoms light up the Latin Quarter
 

Sit-down Saturday

Suddenly this little photo booth just got a lot more interesting.

 

***

 

Vintage-style analog photo booths - fotoautomats/photomatons/fotomatons - have become very trendy in Paris. They produce classic black-and-white (sometimes color) photo strips, and the most iconic are operated or restored by Fotoautomat, which revives old machines (usually €4–6 per strip) 

 

Worth a detour: 

 

Most popular/most crowded: 53 Rue des Trois Frères, Montmartre 75018 (metro Abbesses): Go early. A color booth around the corner on Rue Androuet. Inspired by film “Le Fabuleux destin d'Amélie Poulain” (2001) 

 

Photo booth Palais de Tokyo 13 avenue du Président Wilson 75116 (metros Iéna/Alma-Marceau): No need to buy an admission ticket to access; just inside entry

 

Bonton (Marais) 5 Boulevard des Filles du Calvaire 75003 (metro Saint-Sébastien-Froissart): Inside a kids'/lifestyle store

 

Galeries Lafayette Champs-Élysées: 60 Avenue des Champs-Élysées 75008 (metro Franklin D. Roosevelt): 1st floor, near stairs. Central and easy to combine with other sights
 
Printemps Haussmann 64 Boulevard Haussmann 75009 (metros Havre-Caumartin/Chaussée d'Antin-La Fayette/Saint-Lazare): In the Opéra area 

La Samaritaine: 9 Rue de la Monnaie 75001 (metros Pont-Neuf/Châtelet - Rue de Rivoli entrance): Luxury department store setting in central Paris near L'Hôtel de Ville

Le Centquatre (104) 5 Rue Curial 75019 (metros Riquet/Crimée): In a vibrant cultural center

Pavillon Puebla / Parc des Buttes-Chaumont 75019 (metros Butte Chaumont/Botzaris): Scenic setting inside the park
 
Philharmonie de Paris / Cité de la Musique 221 Avenue Jean Jaurès 75019 (metro Porte de Pantin): Music/culture fans 

Citadium 56 Rue de Caumartin 75009 (metros Havre-Caumartin/Haussmann Saint-Lazare): Multi-level urban/streetwear store. Distinctive Memphis-style booth on 1st floor

 

- Sometimes machines are out of order

- Squeezing in as many as possible is ok

 

See:    

 Fotomaton Friday

  

Floral Friday

Charm on two wheels, Saint-Germain-des-Prés.

 

Streets of Paris

 

The Marais district

Window Wednesday

A retro hat a tiny shop a Montmartre side street.

*** 

In Paris, the period of roughly the late 19th to early 20th century is often called the golden age of millinery. Historians place it within the Belle Époque (1870-1914) when hats were an essential part of daily dress, and Paris the global center of fashion. A well-dressed Parisienne might change hats multiple times depending on her activities, which is why the trade flourished. Hats weren’t just accessories: they signaled class, occasion, and even time of day. Modistes specialized in high-fashion women's attire that often included custom dresses, gowns, and especially elaborate hats, bonnets, and trimmings.

Today chapellerie refers more broadly to hatmaking, the hat trade or a hat shop, and back in the day several hundred to over a thousand of these shops might have been operating at once, from small independent workshops to prestigious houses. Entire districts were dense with these shops and catered to both locals and international clients. But gradually lifestyles changed and demand dwindled, and with it the industry, as many skilled hatmakers went on to work with grand fashion houses. - BPJ

Tranquil Tuesday

 Place Émile Goudeau on a shady afternoon.

Mona Monday

 

 

Mona Lisa re-imagined in a favorite Left Bank corner.

 

Floral Friday

 Small pots of traditional muguets take center stage at a local primeur.

- Happy Fête du Travail weekend -

May 1, 2026

Window Wednesday

 Café life hums late into the night beneath a blushing window.

 

Tuesday treat

 

One last look from the top of the Centre Georges-Pompidou (a.k.a. Beaubourg) before it closed.

 Re-opening: 2030 

 

Music Monday

 

 

Golden notes drift across the cobblestones on Place des Abbesses.

Saturday séjour

Up and out early to the village market. But first, coffee.

Easy day/weekend trips from Paris

May newsletter 

Frites Friday

 Proof that happiness is hand-held... One frite at a time.

Above: fries topped w/house truffle mayo and parmesan shavings

PATATE

36 rue Saint-André des Arts 75006

 

 

 

Throwback Thursday

The Grand Palais sparkles through winter trees.

*** 

Exhibition: 

Henri Matisse

1941 - 1954

 

Ends July 26, 2026 

 

 

Wednesday whimsy

 

 

It's the second house on the right with a girl on an ostrich.

 

Tasting Tuesday

 

 

A very special evening with very special friends.

 

 💕

 

 Paris dining can be a gamble - even at revered Michelin-starred spots where atmosphere and reputation sometimes mask uneven execution. Their clientele, often made up of passing tourists, mostly from the U.S. and drawn in by rave reviews, can leave feeling shortchanged and unlikely to return. When complaints surface, the response is often swift but superficial: a polished, formulaic apology (typically in French - “Nous sommes désolés pour votre expérience, nous espérons vous revoir bientôt”) - followed by a bit of digital stagecraft. Suddenly, pristine photos of the very dishes in question appear online, looking nothing like what arrived at the table - or what showed up as an Instagram video when a celebrity chef just happened to have stopped by - paired with a fresh wave of glowing reviews ready to lure the next round of hopeful diners. - BPJ
 
May newsletter: Spotting the right spots

 

***

 

“If you have two stars or three stars in Michelin then you have a duty to your customers to be behind your stove. I was always behind my stove for every single service because that’s what you’re paying for. Why would I want to go to a three-star Michelin and the chef whose name is above the door is in America? I’m not paying for his sous-chefs. I want the individual. It’s as simple as that.” Marco Pierre White 

 

Mocha Monday

 L'Art de... Vivre. Coffee and fruit.

Soaring Saturday

The awe-inspiring nave of the Collège des Bernardins, founded in 1245.

***

If you like to bask in Gothic architecture as much as I do, then this little-known-to-outsiders collège, a former Cistercian college/monastery complex of the University of Paris, hits all the marks. It includes significant surviving Gothic elements from the original Cistercian monastic buildings and cloister area that were part of the dense cluster of religious and scholarly institutions in the medieval Latin Quarter. A vibrant cultural venue today, it regularly hosts a rich program of concerts (especially classical music, chamber music, and sacred music), along with many other activities. Its Gothic nave offers exceptional acoustics, which makes performances feel almost transcendent. - BPJ

Collège des Bernardins

20 rue de Poissy 75005

Floral Friday

 

Coffee and flowers... and iced matcha, pastries, more.

 Café les Artizans

64 rue de Seine 75006

  

Thursday therapy

Cellphones: the portable therapist.

 

Walking the dog Wednesday

 

A golden retriever illuminates Place de Furstemberg on a gray morning.

 

Tête-à-tête Tuesday

 A heart-to-heart as the towers of Notre Dame eavesdrop just beyond.

 

Mona Monday

The eyes have it.

Exhibition:

Discover the Renaissance

 

Da Vinci, Raphael, Michaelangelo...

   

L'Atelier des Lumières

38 rue Saint-Maur 75011

 

Ends June 27, 2026

 

Saturday sips

An early start.

 

Fragrant Friday

 

 

The scent of lavender fills the air at a Left Bank market.

 

Thoughtful Thursday

 

Food for thought.

 

Above: this Salade Nordique happens to be loaded with "brain-friendly" ingredients

***

For years, even the most modest cafés and bistros in Paris have been (unwittingly) serving up brain-boosting salads. Who hasn’t sat down expecting to see at least one of these in the usual lineup - Salade Niçoise, Salade de Chèvre Chaud, Assiette de Crudités, Salade Lyonnaise, or fatty fish variations - on the menu. Each of these salad classics rely on fresh, minimally processed ingredients and a simple olive-oil-based dressing, the very core of Mediterranean-style eating long associated with better brain (and heart) health.

With cognitive decline soaring worldwide and the use of trendy "smart drugs" on the rise - though studies are now showing they might be riskier than believed as they appear to work at first but may backfire with long-term use (6 months or more) - many are trading in their meds/supplements for mindful (pun intended) meals. - BPJ

*** 

What makes the above salad "brain-supportive": 

Smoked salmon (the "Nordic" element) - reduces neuroinflammation, improves blood flow to the brain, rich in omega-3 fatty acids which build and protect neuronal membranes. Linked to better memory and slower progression of cognitive issues

Avocado - provides monounsaturated fats and lutein to enhance cerebral blood flow, support neural efficiency and help combat oxidative stress

Poached egg - delivers high-quality complete protein, choline for vascular and neural support plus lutein and zeaxanthin to combat oxidative stress and promote healthy blood flow with zero added fats or oils 

Leafy greens / mixed raw veggies (base w/cucumber, beetroot, more) - packed with folate, vitamin K, lutein, and antioxidants

Seeds (pumpkin, sunflower etc. scattered generously) - supply magnesium, zinc, iron, vitamin E and key minerals and antioxidants that protect brain cells from damage

Fresh herbs and a light olive oil dressing - add anti-inflammatory polyphenols and healthy fats for better nutrient absorption

Bon Appétit!

Window Wednesday

 

The Pyramide du Louvre.

 

Tight Tuesday

A Citroën 2CV makes its way through a Montmartre alley with room to spare.