Post by GitteK on Jun 20, 2007 11:46:36 GMT -5
DANE GOES TO FANCY DINNER AND EATS HER SPINACH
So after having posted my thread from yesterday (please read correction posted today), I went out to a late dinner. The pavement cafés in Rue des Abbesses are always filled with young people drinking and smoking and chatting, so I thought that I would go to a nice place, you know: with tablecloths and not-made-out-of-paper napkins.
Le Basilic is a small resto at the top of Rue d.A. - you may have seen it, white halftimbered house, little terrace, old wooden beams in the ceiling, cozy look.
OK, todays menu was sold out; except for the dessert. So I ordered côte d'agneau with haricots verts, and I specifically told the nice waitress that I wanted it well done. Pink Panther: yes, Pink Lamb: absolutely not.
Not surprisingly the lamb was totally raw when it came in, I could still hear the echos of it's baaaahhhing from the kitchen, poor creature. What came as a big surprise was that this lamb was arranged on a BIG pile of spinach
OK, I am a tolerant person, so I chose to focus on getting the nice waitress to bring my lamb back to the chef to be properly killed.
Forgot to mention, that she only got cutlery out for me on request - do I look fat in those pants ? and I might also look a bit alcoholized, because she was also very reluctant to bring my wine
Crozes-Hermitage, not cheap, but it my book it should be served at 16-18 C, not at a temperature that would be more fitting for "vin rouge à la canelle".....
OK, back comes the lamb. I must add that it was a first class, superdelicious piece of meat, very tender even when cooked "properly". BUT I still had this big pile of spinach to deal with, just tossed in the casserole from the freezer, heated and served....... Maybe it was some punishment for coming in so late ??
Called for nice waitress and asked why, oh why, Mademoiselle, is there spinach where there should have been haricots ? "Ahhhhh, Madame, forgot to tell you....... we are out of haricots." period.
After a while she came back to me and asked if I instead would like some "Pureé de la Maison" ?? Mais oui, merci - that sounds delicious. Anything to make that spinach slide down easier.... In comes bowl of mashed potatoes.......
Did I tell you that the poor departed lamb might have been a wee bit on the chubby side ? Because when I had cut off all the fat, there was the smallest portion of meat I have had for a long time !
So on to the dessert. I had set my eyes on the dessert of today, being:
Soufflé craquant saveur fraises
Very disappointing.
L'addition s'il vous plâit = 51 euros........
WEDNESDAY IS OUT OF TOWN - IF YOU CAN GET THERE
Still depressed from my spinach trauma, I woke up at 06:00 and couldn't sleep, so I started to think about what to do. Sun was shining, air fresh and cool, so I decided to take a ride out to Saint-Germain-en-Laye to see the old king's residence. In my textbook it was a must-do, because of Henri II, Catharine of Medici, Le Bon Roi Henri IV and many others having trodden their silk pantoufles out there. Also I had read so many reports on TA that the view from the garden down over Paris was magnificent.
First thing that happened: La ligne 2 that would take me to Etoile was suffering from delays because of an accident. OK, but I hadn't really calculated into my "itinerary" that it was rushhour (8:30) and the wagons would be stuffed to the point of bursting. It took some departures before I dared go on.
Arrived at Etoile, went down to the RER. Also that ligne suffered from some indigestion, so there were hundreds of people waiting at the quai and all the overhead signs said "delai" - and St. Germain was not scheduled for the next 30 mins.
The RER problem was over, so I bought myself a new ticket, and was on my way to St.Germain. You cannot miss the chateau, as it is right next to the RER. You should know that the chateau is home to the national museum of ancient history - bronze age and stuff.
The elderly lady at security was delighted to see me - and sent me in the direction of the ticket office. Another lady who was delighted to see me, until I asked: "Est-ce que vous avez un plan sur le chateau". The before-so-kind lady patiently explained to me that this is a MUSEUM, Madame - and I would find very clearly marked directions as to how to visit the exhibitions.
The chapelle was lovely and you can clearly see that it is the same design as the one in Paris.
To be serious: I must add that the collections were remarkable and very beautifully laid out.
Walked down through the garden (designed by Le Notre, same guy as Versailles). No flowers, just grass and trees, orderly, but dull. And finally arrived at the Petite Terrasse from where Paris is said to be laid out under your feet.
The view was nice enough of the valley and the river - but you could not see Paris.
So after having posted my thread from yesterday (please read correction posted today), I went out to a late dinner. The pavement cafés in Rue des Abbesses are always filled with young people drinking and smoking and chatting, so I thought that I would go to a nice place, you know: with tablecloths and not-made-out-of-paper napkins.
Le Basilic is a small resto at the top of Rue d.A. - you may have seen it, white halftimbered house, little terrace, old wooden beams in the ceiling, cozy look.
OK, todays menu was sold out; except for the dessert. So I ordered côte d'agneau with haricots verts, and I specifically told the nice waitress that I wanted it well done. Pink Panther: yes, Pink Lamb: absolutely not.
Not surprisingly the lamb was totally raw when it came in, I could still hear the echos of it's baaaahhhing from the kitchen, poor creature. What came as a big surprise was that this lamb was arranged on a BIG pile of spinach
OK, I am a tolerant person, so I chose to focus on getting the nice waitress to bring my lamb back to the chef to be properly killed.
Forgot to mention, that she only got cutlery out for me on request - do I look fat in those pants ? and I might also look a bit alcoholized, because she was also very reluctant to bring my wine
Crozes-Hermitage, not cheap, but it my book it should be served at 16-18 C, not at a temperature that would be more fitting for "vin rouge à la canelle".....
OK, back comes the lamb. I must add that it was a first class, superdelicious piece of meat, very tender even when cooked "properly". BUT I still had this big pile of spinach to deal with, just tossed in the casserole from the freezer, heated and served....... Maybe it was some punishment for coming in so late ??
Called for nice waitress and asked why, oh why, Mademoiselle, is there spinach where there should have been haricots ? "Ahhhhh, Madame, forgot to tell you....... we are out of haricots." period.
After a while she came back to me and asked if I instead would like some "Pureé de la Maison" ?? Mais oui, merci - that sounds delicious. Anything to make that spinach slide down easier.... In comes bowl of mashed potatoes.......
Did I tell you that the poor departed lamb might have been a wee bit on the chubby side ? Because when I had cut off all the fat, there was the smallest portion of meat I have had for a long time !
So on to the dessert. I had set my eyes on the dessert of today, being:
Soufflé craquant saveur fraises
Very disappointing.
L'addition s'il vous plâit = 51 euros........
WEDNESDAY IS OUT OF TOWN - IF YOU CAN GET THERE
Still depressed from my spinach trauma, I woke up at 06:00 and couldn't sleep, so I started to think about what to do. Sun was shining, air fresh and cool, so I decided to take a ride out to Saint-Germain-en-Laye to see the old king's residence. In my textbook it was a must-do, because of Henri II, Catharine of Medici, Le Bon Roi Henri IV and many others having trodden their silk pantoufles out there. Also I had read so many reports on TA that the view from the garden down over Paris was magnificent.
First thing that happened: La ligne 2 that would take me to Etoile was suffering from delays because of an accident. OK, but I hadn't really calculated into my "itinerary" that it was rushhour (8:30) and the wagons would be stuffed to the point of bursting. It took some departures before I dared go on.
Arrived at Etoile, went down to the RER. Also that ligne suffered from some indigestion, so there were hundreds of people waiting at the quai and all the overhead signs said "delai" - and St. Germain was not scheduled for the next 30 mins.
The RER problem was over, so I bought myself a new ticket, and was on my way to St.Germain. You cannot miss the chateau, as it is right next to the RER. You should know that the chateau is home to the national museum of ancient history - bronze age and stuff.
The elderly lady at security was delighted to see me - and sent me in the direction of the ticket office. Another lady who was delighted to see me, until I asked: "Est-ce que vous avez un plan sur le chateau". The before-so-kind lady patiently explained to me that this is a MUSEUM, Madame - and I would find very clearly marked directions as to how to visit the exhibitions.
The chapelle was lovely and you can clearly see that it is the same design as the one in Paris.
To be serious: I must add that the collections were remarkable and very beautifully laid out.
Walked down through the garden (designed by Le Notre, same guy as Versailles). No flowers, just grass and trees, orderly, but dull. And finally arrived at the Petite Terrasse from where Paris is said to be laid out under your feet.
The view was nice enough of the valley and the river - but you could not see Paris.