Further proof that I have no class

So here I am, back in the land of Brie, Camembert, Comté, Emmental, Chèvre...and yet what am I craving?You can take a girl out of the US...

tags: grub

My favorite creperies

A while back I listed my favorite crêpe stands, and a comment inquired about my favorite crêperies. Nutella crêpes are the solution to any bad day, but the full crêperie experience is also a treat. Almost always, crêperies will provide a relatively cheap and quick meal, but this doesn't mean you will walk out any less stuffed or satisfied. Again, I haven't been to them all, and even the ones that I didn't include here aren't bad, just not my favorite for whatever reason. To be perfectly honest, I can't recall ever having a bad experience at a crêperie, and I have only felt like I paid too much if I go for lunch and they don't have a lunch menu. I just remembered. There are two crêperies that I would not recommend: an expensive one near BHV (rue des archives?) and one near Parmentier where the owner was very wierd and aggressive.

On to those with most favored crêperie status:

La Crêpe Rit du Clown
I like this place because they have a choose your own salad option with tons of toppings, which is great if you don't have a crêpe-lover dining with you. Believe it or not, there are some people who prefer salads to crêpes. I have even met someone who doesn't like chocolate, but that is a whole 'nother story. They also have a dinner menu, which they recently increased to ~15€ from only ~11€ (grr): cocktail + galette + dessert crêpe + cider. The only drawback is if you get relegated to the windowless basement, which can be drafty, means slower service, and just isn't as cute as the main floor.
www.lacreperitduclown.com
6, Rue des Canettes
75006 Paris
01 46 34 01 02
M: Mabillon or Saint-Germain-des-Prés

Crêperie Saint-Germain
I have a fondness for this place because I used to lunch there quite frequently. It has a bright artsy decor, and a ~9€ lunch menu: galette + dessert crêpe + a glass of cider. No dinner menu. Cool upstairs alcove. Nothing really sets it apart from the other crêperies flanking it (the boat one and the art one - both just fine) except for the interior, but I guess this is as valid a reason as any to prefer it over them.
33, rue Saint-André-des-Arts
75006 Paris
01 43 54 24 41
M: St-Michel

Chez Imogène
This place is right across the street from one of my favorite cafés, La Pharmacie. It has multiple menus, with varying options and courses, but I can't recall the prices or the details. I believe the lunch menu is also around 9€, and the most expensive dinner menu is 15€. The menus might finally be up on the website by the time you are reading this so check it out. The seating can be cramped but the service is friendly and they also have daily specials that are more elaborate than one might expect from a crêperie.
http://chez-imogene.monsite.wanadoo.fr/
25, rue JP Timbaud
75011 Paris
01 48 07 14 59
M: Oberkampf
Open everyday except Monday lunch

I also feel obligated to mention somewhere I have never been, Crêperie Ty near Montparnasse, because I have gotten outstanding recommendations for it from multiple sources. The bar owner around the corner from where I live swears by their salted caramel crêpes.

Anyone else have any recommendations?

tags: grub

Carambars

Carambars satisfy my sweet tooth like nothing else. Similar to a Sugar Daddy, these have the same teeth-pulling stickiness with the added bonuses of cheesy jokes printed on the wrappers and a point-collecting system to get your very own Carambar paraphernalia. For the record, I have obtained the Carambar T-shirt, though I would never admit it to my dentist! Today I had this joke:
Qu'est-il écrit dans les bus italiens?
Ne parlez pas au chauffeur, il a besoin de ses mains.

What is written in Italian buses?
Don't speak to the driver, he needs his hands.

and this question (which made me think of Trezeguet):
C'est quoi le pire?
Rater un penalty en finale de coupe du monde
OU battre le record du monde du 100 mètres sans que ça se sache?

Which is worse?
Missing a penalty in the final of the World Cup, or beating the world record in the 100m sprint without anyone knowing?

My favorite carambars are the original caramel ones, though the fruit ones and the Orangina ones aren't so bad. Also, at L'epi Dupin in the 6th I once had a Carambar tarte. While it was an interesting idea, I prefer Carambars in their original form.

If you want to read some more of their cheesy jokes without having to worry about cavities, check out the "Blag-o-matic" on the official Carambar site [FR].

As a side note, I felt less ashamed of my Carambar addiction when I noticed that in the film l'Ivresse du Pouvoir, Isabelle Huppert's character, a judge nicknamed "the piranha" (based on the real Eva Joly), was constantly chewing on Carambars as she unraveled a web of corruption. See, Carambars aren't just for kids, AND even serious important characters in movies eat them. Neener-neener-neener.

tags: grub

This is a photo of...

a) my apartment
b) my boyfriend's grandfather's bachelor pad
c) a dive in the 14th

We had reservations at Monsieur Lapin, just next door, but with time to kill, and the only other bar on the corner closed, we decided to try Artists'Pub. It feels more like an abandoned attic than a bar, and in the US would be a lawsuit waiting to happen - underneath the chair across from us was an open rusting canister of kerosene! But the owner was very attentive (well, we were the only customers), and when she found out she was dealing with an American, raved on and on about the US (she has family there) and how it is the regret of her life to have stayed in France instead of moving there. It's a piano bar on the weekends, she said to call ahead to find out the theme of the evening. Even though it took me a while to get over the layer of cigarette ash that had settled over every surfance, I thought the whole interior was hilarious; I have never been anywhere like this before.

Artists'Pub
9, rue Raymond Losserand
75014 Paris
06 12 39 90 65
M: Gaîté
17h - 2h; closed Sunday

tags: grub