A Visit to the Delightful Rue Montorgueil Market Street

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An extremely popular 2nd Arrondissement destination for both tourists and locals is the Rue Montorgueil market street, a five-block long lane between Rue Etienne Marcel and Rue Reaumur. Home to more than two dozen specialty food shops, cafes and bistros, including a patisserie founded nearly 280 years ago by the head pastry chef to king Louis XV, Rue Montorgueil is a real treat even if you’re just window shopping (called faire du leche-vitrines in French, which oddly translates to “window licking). Continue Reading →

Remembering Celebrated Glacier Raymond Berthillon

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Sad, sad news for lovers of Paris and of the best ice cream available in the City of Light–and perhaps the entire world. Raymond Berthillon, the founder of the famed Ile Saint Louis ice cream shop and next-door ice cream parlor that bears his name has died, the company announced on its website. He was 90 years old. Continue Reading →

Who is Chocolatier Extraordinaire Josephine Vannier?

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Paris is heaven for chocolate lovers, and there are many boutiques run by world-class chocolatiers in the City of Light that should not be missed by sweets connoisseurs—Christian Constant, Michel Cluziel, Pierre Herme, Jean-Paul Hevin and Patrick Roger, to name just a few. But one of my favorites is a Marais shop that is a bit of an enigma—Josephine Vanier on the Rue du Pas de la Mule just steps from the elegant Place des Vosges. It’s not the delicious confections or the gorgeous edible sculptures that are puzzling; it’s exactly who is the never-seen namesake of this fantastic chocolaterie? Continue Reading →