There are many neighborhoods of Paris, but our food tour was in Montmartre historically known for its artist conclaves and the white-domed Basilica of the Sacre-Coeur on its summit. Montmartre remained outside of the city limits of Paris until 1860 when it was annexed to the city along with other communities surrounding Paris. At that time, it became part of the 18th arrondissement.
Our tour guide (also chef and restauranteur), PJ, grew up in the neighborhood and now leads small group tours through the local shops and markets of the area, diving into growing, harvesting and market details so afterwards we could all ‘shop like a Parisian’. As you might guess seeing the photo below, he is quite a character and yes, he knows everyone.
We met at the top of the stairs at a specific metro stop and got a short history lesson of the area and where we would be walking. First stop, a boulangerie for a cafe and pastry.
The baker was considered a maitre artisan – or master of her art.
Next stop was cheese or fromage.
Sooooooooooo many to choose from. On the signs listing the price is a picture of the animal from where the cheese originated from. This way no question if it was a goat cheese, sheep or cow milk that made this final product.
What is cheese without wine – a boring meal indeed. Walking across the street was this wine shop.
PJ mentioned there were traditional wines here, but also, the younger generation were not afraid to do things differently when growing their wines or designing their labels.
One of our last stops before heading to PJs restaurant was the boucherie. Eric was in heaven. He could have stayed in the shop 1+ hours salivating over all of the meats presented.
This was another shop where he pointed out specific signage – which is a sign of distinction for this butcher shop.
Another point of conversaiton was the info that is posted within the shop. The French are fanatical about the origin of their products. This info was posted inside the boucherie, basically listing their pedigree. If there are any problems, they can trace exactly where the meat was grown, down to the farmer.
>spoiler alert – Karen, skip past the photo below<
It was obvious that PJ has a sense of pride about his neighborhood. He would stop and point out restaurants or shops along our path and share stories of the family that own those establishments.
Our group trooped into his restaurant (only open evenings) and our food education continued.
There were a few tables and bench seating when you first walked in and some individual tables on the second floor. I was able to grab a quick photo in-between our courses.
Wine and bread was quickly shared before our first course arrived – escargot. Okay I’ll admit, first time I have eaten them – not bad at all. In fact, there have been a few repeats of escargot since this meal. He showed the group how to remove the snails from the shells AND one of the best parts……….dip your bread into the juices left over from the pesto butter.
Our main course arrived, beef bourguignon and potatoes – so so tender and delicious! Another decadent broth to dip your bread into. 🙂
Our final course was the cheese course from some of the ones we picked up earlier during our walk. Can I say……….that’s one of the things I miss the most, the cheeses.
Afterwards we ambled outside for a little bit of bubbly.
A short walk down the street and we found dessert.
Little puffs of goodness.
Add in the champagne and it was a magical experience.
There was one last shop (sorry no photo) which included your choice of a chocolate (multiple types and ingredients) along with one macaron (again, multiple flavors).
It was a pleasant way to spend a day in Paris, exploring the Montmartre district. After the group dispersed, we stopped back at a number of the locations and picked up items, making our own chacuterie board.
Darden Travels 