Saturday, November 30, 2013

Philippe Apeloig - Les Arts Décoratifs

Take a deep breath of relief PBers. NO desserts in this post. Invited to the opening of TYPORAMA - Philippe Apeloig at Des Arts Decoratifs. 41 rue de Rivoli

Des Arts Decoratifs is my all-time favorite Paris musee. I would never say no to any exhibition there.

Plus they have one of the best gift shops in town full if toys! Anyway Philippe Apeloig has worked with all of Paris' top musee and everybody else whose anybody.

Remember I took you behind the scenes at SAUT HERMES at the Grand Palais? Apeloig did the smashing graphics.

He not only worked with YSL in his heyday.

But did all the graphics for the YSL retrospective at the Petit Palace a few years back.

If you've been to le Louvre you already know Apeloig's work.

Walls of sketches and preparatory drawings show you how Apeloig dreams up concepts.


He's designed endless type faces, some made up of just punctuation marks.

They gave us gorgeous posters in black and white natch. There was a mad scramble.

What to wear to TYPORAMA. Black of course + a graphic hqndbag to liven things up.

You can't go wrong with Marimekko ever in the design world.

A petite bouchée of color here

Apeloig was getting congratulatory bisous right and left.

We go off for our 'dinapoire' at Les Climats. That's what you call an apero mini-tasting btw. We passed a little hole-in-the-wall building that  Apeloig would have loved to go to town with don't you think?

Friday, November 29, 2013

Les Fees Patissieres

Some weeks in Paris are full of lovely culinary surprises...OK most weeks. Here's an amuse-buche aquarelle of today's sweeties.
Une petite bouchee perhaps?
These little darlings are called "bouchee"
This one has THREE kinds of vanilla; Madagascar, Tahiti and Indian. Perfection for those of us trying to get a grip on French vanilla.
Did I say they are made by, Les Fees Patissieres
21, rue Rambuteau 75004 Open every day 11 - 8 pm
Two girls, Deborah Levy et Sarah Harb became obsessed with creating the perfect little bite(bouchee). You're gazing at a mini version of a religieuse in café and chocolat.
A mini Paris Brest (praline et pomme vert) on the left and a mini Fraisier on the right with a touch of pistache.
Tarte au Citron is an incontournable/a must-have in any patisserie. This one has a divine touch of Yuzu
I asked owner-creator Sarah how do you eat these gems? Are they like a 1-bite sushi? Not at all. They entail a 3-steps. She  demonstrates.
Ecstasy!
This Nutella-noisette bouchee requires you to eat the bobble on top first (looking much like all the bobble knit hats everyone is wearing in Paris right now).
Get ready. Set. Go!
The décor of this tiny shop is decidedly girly. I was smitten.
Top pastry chef Eddie Benghanem of the Trianon Palace at Versailles has made these girls dreams come true, They had the concept and he did the creating in the cuisine so they are perfect.  There are 12 designs in all for the winter collection.
Le Bonhomme de Neige is Benghanem's Holiday buche de Noel filled with vanilla mousse, poire, noisette biscuit and milk chocolate.
Lovely caramels for another mini bite in an array of flavors.
I got a mange-passion caramel I planned to save but forget about that happening.
More minis - these perfect tiny pain d'epice bites definitely made by fairy pastry chefs - very hard to stop eating these.
There is also guimave in the much-loved kid's candy flavor  fraise Tagada
With a matching bouchee to boot...
Les Fees Patissieres is on a street (rue Rambuteau in the Marais) loaded with tres delish pastry shops. Everyone was peering in with envy watching us tasting bite after bite. Do drop in.

Wednesday, November 27, 2013

Le144 Petrossian


When life wants to give you caviar.
 
Go to Petrossian.  Restaurant Le 144 Petrossian has a new chef Julien Violet, new décor and a new menu.
Last night was bloggers tasting night at Le 144 Petrossian.
New York was never like this.
Les oeufs de saumon sauvage, buratta, floeurs et feuilles.
Le Crabe Imperial.
L'Oeuf caviar. Oeuf de poule, fleurette au celery, caviar Alverta.
Miam Miam!
Meet Parisian blogger Caroline of The Wanderer..click click
Though no longer a vegetarian I'm not ready to venture into le boeuf tartare even if dotted generously with caviar..
Desserts? No problem. On the far left we have a mini-Pavlova meringue filled with chocolat Guanaja, perfume de the plus a fraise. In the middle a mini-Napoleon. And far right a mini fig-quince tartelette inside spun sugar with a bergamote (?) coulis.
Truth be told Petrossian and I are joined at the hip (read that however you want) from way back. Café Petrossian on 7th avenue in New York was my go-to place for real French pastry. It's where the French in New York come for tea so it must be la vrais chose non?
 
A favorite pastime was tea and a tarte and sketching on site.
 
Et voila
 
And back in 2006 I even had a watercolor exhibit of their desserts in the café. Ah remembrances of desserts past...
Last night Caroline, Sollie and I walked home after the grand tasting at Petrossian on 144 rue l'Universite 75007.
Three Cinderellas returning to our tiny Paris pumpkins.
Have a wonderful pumpkin pie tomorrow PBers!