L'Eté en Pente Douce, Restaurant

L'Eté en Pente Douce is a nice restaurant in between sets of stairs to get to the Sacré Coeur. I like it a lot for its location: no cars, big trees, nice terrace and less bustle than la place du Tertre. There are less tourists there because generally everyone climb by the central stairs or the funicular so they miss it.
The menu is simple but very fresh. Lots of quiches, salads and simple French meals with meat. It's not gastronomy but the portion are pretty big. It's also a good place just to rest a little in the middle of a busy tourist afternoon. You can have a tea or coffee with a good desert.
For access, if you're uphill back to the Sacré Coeur looking at the view, take the stairs on your left. If you're down hill, looking up at the Sacré Coeur, go on your right. You'll be passing the museum of naive art. There are also two historical stores of fabric, Le Marché Saint Pierre and Reine. Go inside to feel the mood. I'll meet you in another post so I can give you more details about those two stores.

23 rue Muller, 75018 

Téléphone: 01.42.64.02.67.

Metro: Chateau-Rouge, Barbes-Rochechouart, Anvers

El Tonel, Bar a tapas

Right in the center of Paris, right next to the Louvre and Jardins des Tuileries, is Xavi's tapas bar, El Tonel. It opened in the fall of 2010. Quickly, it became very well known in the neighborhood because it's inexpensive, good and simple.
Xavi is originally from a tiny village in Catalonia, Espana. He's the most outspoken person I know. He will constantly take great care of his costumers. He's eager to welcome all and to share his love for his country, his food and culture.
The menu is tapas (4 to 8 euros). It's nothing fancy but it's very well served. The wine is ok, the sangria refreshing. 8 euros for cocktails which is very cheap for Paris. The mood natural and relaxed which is so hard to find in this "chic" area. The bar itself is small with a big tv for soccer and other sports, but mostly soccer. ;-) And you have a friendly terrace outside.

Go there and meet friends you don't know yet!

El Tonel, 5 rue des Pyramides, 75001. Métros: Tuileries, Palais Royal, Pyramides

https://www.facebook.com/eltonel.bar

Swann et Vincent - Restaurant italien

I will have only one word: TIRAMISU!!!

Here are more words though...

The day I tasted their tiramisu for the first time, sex became over rated. Yep! :-)

Other than this marvelous dessert, you have a very good real italian cuisine, no pizzas, real pasti. The ingredients are very fresh, the bread cooked on site, a very good list of wine. 

This is a real neighborhood restaurant. The view from the big windows is not interesting as the street is narrow and not very animated. But the decorum and what's in your plate will keep you busy. Anyway, it's less than 5 minutes of walking distance from all the nightly animated streets of Bastille area.
You have a lunch menu for 15 euros. For a complete meal with wine, prepare 30 to 40 euros per person. It's not the cheapest place of the area but definitely worth it.

Swann et Vincent, 7 rue Saint Nicolas, 75012. Métro Ledru Rollin, Bastille.

/http://www.swann-vincent.fr/

Introduction

I'm a real parisian, born and raised. Both my parents' families have been living there for generations. I love my city even more now that I live far away. From Los Angeles, I remember all what I miss about it.


This blog is an opportunity for me to share my favorite places, shops and restaurants to those of my friends who would spend some tourist time there. And also a few tips to have good experiences with those moody French waiters and taxi drivers ;-)


Enjoy!

La Petite Maroquinerie

I love to shop superb leather bags for cheap. Don't you? 

La Petite Maroquinerie

16 rue Houdon, 75018, Paris, phone # 01.42.62.10.42, Metro Pigalle.

All bags ≃ 60€, card holders 10€, wallets ≃15€, gloves (sorry, I don't remember their price range) are unique pieces. They buy recycled leather in Italy, make the design in Paris with whatever length and color of fabric they bought and assemble in Morocco.

The quality is splendid. I could spend hours in this little shop choosing what item I should not buy...

I've bought an orange bag more than 2 years ago for 60 euros. It didn't move since then. The color, the leather quality and the zippers are like new. I can't tell you how many women asked me where this bag was coming from. Well, now you know!
Last Christmas, I restrain myself to buy a MA-GNI-FIQUE blue bag... I'm sure there's a reason for frustration in life.

With a budget for it, it's also a good place to get very nice practical little gifts that are not heavy in a suitcase (wallets and card holders).

Share pictures of your purchases to make us all jealous!

L'Entracte

Traveling is to live the reality of a dream one had for a long time. 

L'Entracte 

1 rue Auber, 75009 

Phone # 01.47.42.26.25, Metro Opera.

L'Entracte is one of the numerous Brasserie you will find in Paris. The location of this restaurant is just splendid. At the second floor, you have a huge window with a direct view to the Opera Garnier right in front of you. The decorum is all wood and cosy. Come early. It gets busy because of day workers at lunch and the crowd for the Opera's shows at night. 

You will be allowed upstairs only if you're eating a full meal, especially when its crowded. The price that might seem expensive is really fair for the location and the quality of the food. The wine menu is tremendous but not cheap. 

As you're right in front of the Opera, you HAVE TO DO the guided visit tour. I did it several years ago and loved it. Not only the building is gorgeous inside and out, but knowing the details of its construction, what Garnier, the architect, had to go through, the richness of the materials used... you're not traveling back in time, you're right in the story. If there's no rehearsal while you're visiting, you might get inside the house.

Don't hesitate to look up for available seats for shows. Now, Garnier is dedicated to ballet performances. L'Opera Bastille, build in the 80's, is mainly dedicated to Operas. 

Here is the link to the official Opera website in English where you can reserve your seats for performances as well as guided tours.

http://www.operadeparis.fr/en/

Now you're starting to understand that Paris will nourish very well your soul as well as your stomach!

Where to find what to do

The "to do" list gets longer...

"L'Officiel des Spectacles" and "Pariscope"

 

Those two little weekly magazines are available in any press stands.
They gather all the shows, movies, events, museums, concerts with schedules, prices and directions,  for the current week in Paris and its nearby suburbs. It goes from Wednesday to Tuesday because the new movies open on Wednesdays in France. Both are very cheap. One of them has a section in English.


That should be your first purchase of your journey there. No need to walk all day long with your heavy tourist guides bought at Barnes and Noble. All you need is one of those two little parisian "bibles", a subway map you got for free in a subway station and a good pair of sneakers.