Rue Cortot

Erik Satie's Gnossiennes for piano were composed on this street in Montmartre where he lived for eight years.

Won't you be mine

 

This photo of a giant human skull inside a men's boutique window was taken on Valentine's Day 2020, which, I was to find out later, was the date of France's first death from the coronavirus - later re-named Covid-19.

Hôpital Bichat, Paris:

First death from the coronavirus in France February 14, 2020, an 80-year-old Chinese tourist.

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Today marks the first anniversary of what we consider the true date of departure of cherished friend Clement von Franckenstein -- Hollywood Reporter / Telegraph -- on Easter Sunday, the day he went into a coma. I will be commemorating him in a tribute on the official date of his passing, May 9th.

Who was that masked man

Home deliveries / Livraisons à domicile

Pizza isn't the only show in town when it comes to ready-to-indulge home food delivery in Paris. Who wants to rattle pots and pans day after day when you can answer the door to a pair of smiling eyes blinking above a mask, leaving you to return to that still-warm couch to catch up on the latest coronavirus developments? Besides Boulangerie Poilâne, here are three more favorites from before the lockdown that I was delighted to find had stepped up to the plate, so to speak. - BPJ

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La Maison Plisson (above) is keeping two of its shops open during the crise as well as offering products for sale online: fruit, prime ribs and meats, vegetables, baguettes, cheeses, Bordier butter, tasty spreads, seafood, organic eggs, granolas, organic champagne (!), alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages.

93 Boulevard Beaumarchais 75003
35 Place du Marché Saint-Honoré 75001


 

Flyin' Circus a new delivery service run by the popular Circus Bakery is taking orders for their superb sourdough bread, banana bread, and apple pie. The infamous cinnamon knots are also available, and they will deliver to every Paris arrondissement except the 12th and 13th. They make their own deliveries on bicycles, and orders placed before 4 p.m. will be (safely) dropped at your threshold the same day.

 

Eataly, the mega mercato in this Italian food hall in the Marais district, offers pre-packed baskets as well as baskets to order - wines and cheeses, fruits and vegetables; spaghetti, pasta, and brunch boxes, even a "family kit." Individual products such as charcuterie, olive oil, panettone, Moscato and a selection of taralli can be delivered within Paris starting at 8.50€ with a 50€ minimum.

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A new crop of web video platforms is being used as never before to meet up en groupe for tea, coffee, or an apéro, a fun way to stay connected with friends and family scattered all over the world.

May newsletter

Oven to table

Besides astonishing artisanal sourdough breads this revered Parisian bakery delivers granola, sablés, cookies, chocolates, confitures, flour, salt, bread baskets, more... to breakfast tables throughout the city.

Boulangerie Pain Poilâne

Monday: more livraison à domicile for the housebound

Fish Friday

Social distancing while shopping for fresh seafood.

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For many, the virus seems to have triggered a sort of "protective instinct" in our partners - some say the reason more men than women seem to be at all the food markets these days, insisting that we ladies stay home and let them brave masked shoppers, wait in lines and leave the eggplant squeezing to them. - BPJ

Corona nation

"Here, the young Louis XIII was coronated, one hour after the death of his father Henry IV."

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In today's Les Echos: "18 million people 'at risk' will remain confined after May 11th"

[To be cont'd....]

 

Spring in the air

The beauty of a Montmartre side street.