The Paris-Sharing Blog

Israeli-style fallafel, photo R.Harbus for NYTimes

Why would you settle for Middle-Eastern street food when you are in the culinary capital of the world ? For a start: because you’re on a tight budget, or you’re on the go, and/or you don’t dig McDonald’s (we at Paris-Sharing don’t dig McDonald’s). Yet, these reasons all seem sullied by constraint. Have you ever considered that simply enjoying a falafel-style sandwich on a park bench in Paris might actually be the very thing you’ve always wanted and have never had?

It has been recorded that on June 24th 2005, an English tourist by the name of Jane Campbell felt a sudden surge of unprecedented bliss while diving her tongue into the warm hummus of an Israeli-style falafel. This occurred while she sat upon a sun-warmed bench in the Square George-Cain, facing the bronze nude sculpted by Aristide Maillot. The unique moment in the life of Jane is memorialized by a tiny but highly ornamented “F” engraved on the trunk of the Square’s most prominent fig tree. It is not known whether she ordered her falafel with extra harissa or not.

Such bliss is not accessible through just any sandwich. That’s why it’s worth the trouble to present you with the best Paris has to offer, in several variants. The first is the undisputed king , “L’As du Fallafel” located on the rue des Rosiers in the Marais. As reported by the New York Times, this authentic Jewish middle-east style falafel “contains the requisite super-crisp, garlicky chickpea fritters, with creamy hummus, lightly pickled red cabbage (something between slaw and kraut), salted cucumbers, fried eggplant and just-hot-enough harissa. This is all piled into a pita in such quantities that eating it is an adventure in napkin management.”

Lebanese fallafel, Bastille market

The next step in the falafel journey brings us to Lebanon, or rather the Bastille market, where you can enjoy the cheapest fallafel in town at 3,50€. At that price you would have to be pure Parisian to gripe, but my modest suggestion to the chef would be to add a bit more sauce so as to lessen the chance of having to resort to a heimlich maneuver on the public market place–potentially very embarrasing. Frankly, they’re good (some days better than others–I’ve been back over 10 times). Using the same fried vegetarian chickpea balls as the starting point, the sandwich includes garlic sauce, tabbouleh (parsley, tomato, onion), pickled “I’m not sure exactly what”, and comes fully wrapped in pita bread, making it somewhat more practical to eat while riding a Vélib in heavy traffic than the Israeli version. That being said, the French government has recently passed a law against munching falafels when crossing busy intersections (such as the place de la Bastille). The law is applicable to cyclists , pedestrians, and poodles.

Rolling back the years, I enjoyed my first  falafel-style sandwich in 1994 at a mom and pop Greek delicatessen called Appolon, located 64 rue Raymond Losserand in the 14th. Basking in the late-autumn sun in the nearby Square du Cardinal-Wyszinski, I also experienced an epiphany of sorts, though not as historically significant as Jane’s. I returned to this place 16 years later to find the same Greek owner with his meek but friendly manners, but considerably more “salt” than pepper in his well-groomed mustache. The inflation-defying (4.20€) sandwiches were every bit as delicious, their distinctive feature being the fresh tzatziki and tabbouleh. For the purists, a Greek sandwich cannot of course be classified as a falafel. Too bad this delicatessen is somewhat off the beaten track, but maybe you’ll be lucky enough to find a Paris-Sharing.com apartment nearby.

The final stage of our journey brings us to a strikingly contemporary break with tradition, and a subtle transition from falafel-style to kebab sandwiches. Paris is eternally modern, even when it comes to street-food, and this joint is destined to revolutionize the Paris fast-food scene. On top of it, the owner is a Facebook buddy (you should become Damien’s fan immediately after becoming a fan of Paris-Sharing). I’m happy to make a humble contribution to the massive media coverage he has already received for his clever “chic kebabs”.

Glam-OUR kebab

Located in the very stomach of Paris (95, rue Rambuteau, in the Forum des Halles), a district notorious for mediocre street food, the restaurant OUR has hired an acclaimed chef, Philippe Genelettiais,  to re-invent the kebab as a chic, imaginative, healthy, and efficiently replicable dish. Here we showcase the “Glamour kebab” composed of lemon-grass chicken, fennel, ginger herb sauce.

Whatever your Parisian street-food preference may be, and wherever in Paris you may choose to enjoy it, consider at that very moment… you may have found what you’ve always been looking for.

Just ask the French dog!

The French have many expressions that include seemingly arbitrary numbers, such as:

- “les 400 coups” — refers to the number of pranks kids normally play while growing up.

- “il n’y a pas 36 façons de s’y prendre”  – there aren’t 36 ways to go about it.

- “je reviens dans 2 minutes” — I’ll be back in 2 minutes, translated “I’ll be back in a minute” except that you should rather expect the person will be back in 5 to 10 minutes. When the persons is still not back after 10 minute, then you can say :

- “on ne va pas attendre 107 ans”  meaning we’re not going to wait forever (107 years to be precise!)

- “ça coute 3 fois rien” — it costs three times nothing.

Many English speakers have the impression that the French don’t have much of a sense of humor.  In fact, the context in which humor is used differs considerably. The French language is lavishly endowed with funny expressions. One of the most hilarious of these is the expression for pretending to be in a league above your own: “péter plus haut que son cul”. This is the first time I have actually written this slang expression, which can be literally translated (vulgarity removed) “to expel intestinal gas at a level above that of one’s rear-end.”

Money, in particular, provides a “wealth” of slang : “un sac” for 10 euros, “une brique” for 10 000, “une thune” for 5, “un rond” for 1, “un sou” for 0,10. Not to mention the unquantified terms such as “flouze” and “blé”.  Of course, in whatever terms you may choose to count, you’ll be saving on Paris-Sharing.com.

French humor is so embedded into the language itself that it is difficult to experience it in a different language. One stand-up comedian at least gave it a try here in English. When it comes to humor at least, my preference still goes to the British style, a comparative example of which you can watch here.  As you know, the 100 year war was fought over who had the best sense of humor!

It was an idea waiting to happen: a place to eat in Paris where  kids could be kids without being frowned upon. A place also where both kids and parents would approve of each other’s  menu. Finally, a place that would be nothing like MaDonald’s!

More than a restaurant, “les 400 coups” is a place for families with kids to hang out. There is a play room, a reading room, and a workshop room where kids can participate (upon reservation) in activities organized by special guests. A cooking workshop just for kids, for example. There are also weekly jazz or classical music concerts and storytelling sessions.

There’s something both Scandinavian and Bohemian about the place, founded (as you might expect) by two Parisian moms. To discover it, you will have to leave behind the plush quarters of Paris and venture into one of those east-side districts where the future is being invented. The restaurant is located 12 bis, rue de la Villette in the 19th arrondissement,  not far from the Buttes-Chaumont (a must-see park for your kids). Easy access by the metro stop “Jordain”. See more on www.les400coups.eu.

Another recommended place to eat with kids in Paris is the Marché des Enfants Rouge, that we blogged about several months ago. If you are in the 2nd arrondissement, you should take advantage of the authentic Japanese noodle (called “Lamen”) eateries, such as Hokkaïdo located 14 rue Chabannais. For other ideas on places to go with kids in Paris, check out a blog called Bayccino.

Are you left wondering what in the world is meant by “les 400 coups”? The answer is here.

Don’t forget the Paris-Sharing way : save on your accommodations and enjoy more of Paris ! See our many apartments available on the east side of Paris.

Swimming on the Seine - Piscine Josephine Baker

Up until 1913, Paris was actually classified as a thermal site. Parisians bathed in the Seine until 1923. Those days are long gone, but maybe they will return. In the mean time, Paris offers some alternatives that will serve as surrogates.

Did you know you can swim “on the Seine” all year round in the Josephine Baker pool that actually floats on the river? If you are not accustomed to French swimming pools, here are a few things you need to know before jumping in.

For French pools in general, you must wear a bathing cap (regardless of how much hair you have!) and you must (if you are man) wear a “real” bathing suite. Beach shorts or any other kind of shorts are not allowed. At the Josephine Baker pool, you will most likely have to wait 30 min in line (in the summer). The entry fee is about 5€ for two hours. The most up-to-date information can be found on the city of Paris website.

During the summer period, you can also swim in the make-shift pool offered by Paris-Plage. Or, simply enjoy your sunbathing on the banks of the Seine. You won’t be alone, of course!

Paris plage - Pool side

Paris-Plage sunbathing

Outside of the summer months, there are other pools in Paris worth discovering if only for their architectural originality. Among these, you might consider the piscine Pontoise located in the 5th arrondissement just off the Boulevard St. Germain, as well as the piscine des Buttes aux Cailles, a historical monument located in the 13th arrondissement.

This is not just an ordinary helicopter ride over the world’s most visited city, it is a stunning production that squeezes out ever more emotion from those same monuments we have seen a hundred times. Yann Arthus-Bertrand, the world-renowned photographer who has already published a book on Paris seen from the sky, offers you spectacular takes in this most recent video. Mostly filmed at dawn and dusk, the lighting effects are magical. Paris is, among other things, living geometry. Don’t tune out before you make it to the Château de Versailles at the end !

Paris vu du Ciel de Yann Arthus-Bertrand
envoyé par mairiedeparis. – L’info internationale vidéo.