hoteliere's Profile
SEB Pressure Cookers
I went through a similar search a year ago for a SEB. I could not find a source for one in the US. I did find some online sources in the UK but the shipping to the US was expensive due to weight. I ended up buying one in Paris and hauling it home. I found mine in one of the department stores.
Paris Terroir Shops
A year or two ago, there was a thread posted that listed regional food shops in Paris. I have tried to find it again without success. Can anyone help me out? Thanks.
Vineyard & Wine Tasting Day Trips from Paris
Viator.com has day trips from Paris. We have not used them for teh Champagne tour but we have used them in several countries.
Budapest Report
Great info. Wish I had it before my trip. Oh well, next trip to Budapest.
Budapest Report
Just returned from Budapest. Our second trip there. Highly recommend the succeeding:
Fulemule
Kofarago Ut 5
phone 266-7947
Had dinner of homemade matzo ball soup with goose broth, roasted bone marrow, pork steak with paprika sauerkraut (the best we have ever had), fried goose liver on mashed potatoes with berry sauce and Nodli (wonderful) for dessert.
Klassz
Andrassy Ut 41
Had lunch of Goulash Soup, Beet soup with sour cream, Venison stew with plums and dumplings, Goose giblet risotto, quince tarte tatin. Wine selection excellent.
Central Market- great shopping for food items to take home. Stocked up on the sweet and hot Paprika pepper flakes- I have never found any to equal these. Only a few vendors have them, had to look around to find them this time. Brought home a bottle of paprika/herb meat marinade- was told it is good on all meats. Tried the pickles in the basement- bell peppers stuffed with sauerkraut, small hot peppers stuffed with garlic and gherkin stuffed with sauerkraut (our favorite).
Christmas Market at Vorosmarty Ter 7- tried as many of the food items as we could. All were good. Stuffed cabbage rolls, chicken paprikash with paprika potatoes, blood sausage, red cabbage with apples, smoked pork knuckle (excellent), chimmey cake - three types- vanilla suger, cinnamon and walnut, and hot mulled wine with everything.
Paris in December -- where to make reservations?
Great cheap places:
In December, the Christmas Markets will be open. Good place for lunch. Fun to explore. The one at La Defense is our favorite.
Budapest food blog?
My favorite food blog for Budapest is chew.hu.
It has a food dictionary, restaurant reviews, food festival news and many other food related topics.
Montpellier and surrounding areas - Seafood?
I was in Montpellier in May. Had a wonderful lunch of oysters, Navarin (lobster and shrimp with white asparagus, carrot and zuchinni), and fig tart with cinnamon ice cream. Unfortunately, do not know the name of the restaurant. It was going from Place de la Comedie to Av Clemenceau on the left side of the street. They had a lovely outside courtyard as well as inside seating.
Has anyone traveled to Arcachon Bay near Bordeaux to eat oysters?
Was there last winter. We had a fabulous lunch at:
L'Endroit
184 Avenue du Marechal de Lattre de Tassigny
33470 Gujan Mestras
They had raw Aracachon oysters by the platter. Warm oysters stuffed with foie gras, onion jam, cheese, poppy seed and bordeaux wine. Plus other seafood dishes. I would go back anytime in the area.
Eating and Drinking Under the Radar in Budapest, Hungary
Scrumptiouschef,
Please report after your trip. We are planning on visting Budapest in late November and December for the Christmas Markets and Holiday food finds. I would love to know your favorite restaurants/pastry shops.
We visited Budapest five years ago, I am sure our restaurant finds from then may have changed. However, the food was fabulous. I dream of visiting the Central Market again. I brought back tubes of goulash spice for everyone from the market. They have all requested it again.
Have you reviewed the different types of paprika?
Avignon Report
We had an excellent dinner in Avignon at L'Orangeraie, 3 Pl Jerusalem. Dinner consisted of appetizers of 1) frog legs w/ garlic & parsley and 2) foie gras w/fig jam. Entrees were 1) duck breast with balsamic reduction sauce, potatoes w/shallots and green beans with mushrooms and 2) scallops with ratatouille and mashed potatoes. Dessert was Faiselle with red fruit sauce. Enjoyed a bottle of white Chateauneuf du Pape. All for the reasonable cost of 115 E.
Southwest of Toulouse?
We all have those moments.
Market Day in Saint Girons is Saturday.
Cheeses to try in the Ariege region: Bethmale, Moulis, Rogalle, Saint-Lary and La Calabasse.
One restaurant that looked nice but we did not have time to try was L'Auberge d'Antan. Web site link is on www.ariege.com.
The Eychenne is the base for Lance Armstrong's cycling team while training in the Pyrenees each year. If you want a list of menu items from last October, let me know.
If you would like some ideas on things to see and do in the area, email me off the board at mdemayo@san.rr.com.
Southwest of Toulouse?
We have stayed at the Hotel Eychenne twice for five or six days each stay. Wonderful menu and wine list. We tried to eat our way through the menu, need to go a third time.
See my posting from January for more details and other area suggestions.
Looking for recommendations in the Toulouse area
We have been to the area several times. We have not found anything exceptional in Toulouse.
However, to the South (1.5 hours drive) is Saint Girons. We usually base there at a family run hotel/restaurant, Hotel Eychenne. We have tried to eat our way through the menu in two trips. We need to go back again. I highly recommend the food and the wine. Their website is www.ariege.com/hotel-eychenne.
Also, there are two croustade (similar to a tart) shops in Foix and Saint Girons. The croustades are fabulous. They have choices of savory or sweet. My favorite last time was the TOC-tomato, onion and zucchinni. However, the questche was a close second. We have taken them on many picnics. The location in Foix has a small seating area- run by a British couple. Their website is www.croustade.com (Martine Crespo).
These are the best discoveries we have for the area.
Le Gastroquet, Paris
Le Gastroquet at 10, rue Desnouettes?
If so, it is wonderful. We go every year on our annual vacation. It is owned by a husband/wife, Dany and Madeleine Bulot. He is the chef. Everything we have had has been excellent.
The menu is in French. If you do not know menu French bring a menu translator. Dany does speak some English.
The prices are not inexpensive. But for the quality of the food, it is worth it.
Searching for mirabelles
Thanks for the reply. I am off to Claire de Lorraine today.
Searching for mirabelles
I am in Paris. I am looking for mirabelles in liquor or sirop. I have been to Grand Epicerie and Fauchon. Any suggestions to find them?
Restaurants in Strasbourg
We had two lovely lunches at Chez Yvonne in Strasbourg. I would recommend it. The appetizer of saurkraut, warm munster and kirsch in puff pastry was very different.
Florida visitors to Ile Saint Louis, Paris
One of our favorite restaurants is on Ille St. Louis. Le Tastevin is located at 46 rue Saint-Louis-en-I'lle. It is small. Reservations are recommended. Phone 01-43-54-17-31. They also take reservations on the Internet . Open Sunday. We were there last in November. The Flaming Steak with rosemary and bone marrow is especially good.
How much for dinner at Le Violon d'Ingres?
We ate at Le Violon in November. It was a very pleasant meal. We each had an appetizer, entree, dessert and espresso. We shared two bottles of wine between three of us. Cost per person averaged 83 euro. I would definately recommend it.
French Menu Reader
We have used both of those Menu readers. I recommend The A - Z of French Food. It is more comprehensive. It is available from Amazon. It is pocket/purse size. I plan on putting mine to good use for our upcoming three week trip in November.
