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03/23/2003 Entry: "Just another weekend"

69 degrees today. Beautiful. Reminded me of San Francisco. Couples were out walking with their babies, guys were wearing their Birkenstock sandals and shorts, and I was finally able to go out without my thick winter jacket. Nice. I can finally look like a girl instead of a funky snowboarder.

Last week we had a guest working with us in the kitchen. She was tasting everything, asking questions, helping us out here and there. After she left I asked Michel who she was, and he said that she was a confiseur (maker of jams and jellies) from Alsace. I asked what her name was – it was Christine Ferber, the great confiseur, the ‘Queen of Jams’, and I didn’t even say a word to her! I spent weeks going all over Paris to look for her jams, and I spread her confiture (green tomato and vanilla jam) on my baguette everyday! That’s what I get for being too shy -- nothing.

Checked off another patisserie off my list this weekend. I went to visit Arnaud Larher’s (voted best pastry chef in 2000) patisserie in Montmarte yesterday. Boarded a really crowded bus for 40 min just to get there. I wasn’t too happy because the salesperson was quite rude to me. She charged me 30 euros, and I knew she calculated things wrong because it was too pricey. I told her there must have been some error, and she sorta snapped at me and said: “No, there’s no error.” I read somewhere that the French never want to admit their mistakes. Well apparently it’s true. She walked off and asked another girl to redo it, and it turns out she overcharged me by 13 euros! But no one apologized or acknowledged the mistake, and I went out of there feeling really disappointed with the place even before I took a bite of anything I bought.

Arnaud Larher's Patisserie in Montmarte	Macarons and Cakes from Larher

Replies: 2 comments

Hi Yvonne! I've seen that book before, but I haven't read it -- will definitely check it out. :) Can't wait to visit Eva when I get back. Garry says she's really cute!

Posted by Karen @ 03/31/2003 06:41 AM PST

Hi, Karen. I really enjoy reading your site, ever since Garry told us about it. All the sweets look so good, makes me want to eat 100 of them and get really fat. I am reading this book "Paris to the moon". I am not sure if you have heard about it, or read it. It is a wonderful book. I totally love it. Keith got it for me for Christmas, because it's about a couple taking their infant son to live in Paris for 5 years. Don't worry. There is only little on the baby. Instead, there are a lot on food and French culture. I totally love the book. Maybe you want to check it out. There is a chapter about hanging out with Alice Waters in Paris. That's cool. Right? The Hippo chain is also mentioned. Any way, he mentions a brasserie in the Fifth Arrondissement called Balzar. It is on the rue des Ecoles. According to the writer, it is a great place to eat, not only the food. If you have a chance, maybe you could check it out. See if it is still there, or if it has turned into a Hippo already. Have fun in Paris. I am jealous of you.

Posted by Yvonne @ 03/27/2003 10:03 AM PST