my favourite city

Coucou mes chéris!

I loooooove Paris. Truly and utterly, I’m obsessed. Every time I visit, it feels new all over again. Which keeps me wanting to go and forking out more money for the Eurostar… but it’s a problem I’m happy with. Completely fine with it, in fact. My first trip to Paris was with my Dad when I was fourteen, and it was he who kicked off my love for this city, because the one person who loves Paris more than I do is my Dad. My Dad lived in Paris for a year when he was seventeen. He worked at the Four Seasons on George V, learning traditional French cooking techniques before returning to London to finish culinary school. In just a year, he learned to speak French fluently, so well in fact that whenever we go to Paris, people ask if he’s Parisian, and his love for the city never died. I love visiting Paris with my Dad because it means a whirlwind few days of us running around trying new restaurants, bakeries, wine bars and museums. But it turns out that in Saint-Tropez, I met a girl who loves Paris just as much as I do: Rachael. After she wrapped-up the summer season in the South, she moved to the capital for the winter months, along with Megan and Maël, who were returning home.

And this was by far one of my favourite trips. And I don’t just mean my trips to Paris, I mean one of my favourite holidays ever. I stayed with Rachael in the 11th (down the street from the Smash burger spot, Junk, which is worth the hype), and she was the best host. Matcha lattes every morning, espresso martinis (her secret recipe) at night, the comfiest bed, and her radiant smile always. I arrived Thursday afternoon, and our first stop was lunch at her favourite dim sum place, Raviolis Nord-Est, which had the best lunch deal: 10 dumplings (steamed or pan-fried) and a cold dish each for just 11 euros. It was so yummy and the best comfort food while we caught up on the six months since we’d last seen one another. We wandered around, popped into some thrift stores, and tested where you could find the best cookie in the city before getting ready for the night ahead.

That night was the big reunion. Rachael, Megan, Maël and I would all be together for the first time since August. Rachael and I spent the evening getting ready to Zara Larsson (both our latest obsession) and her signature espresso martinis. They were so sweet and smooth that it was almost dangerous. We then headed to Le Mary-Celeste in Le Marais, where we would meet for a little apéro. We shared a bottle of champagne and some snacks as we chatted and laughed away at each other’s anecdotes. Megan had booked us in at Margaux for dinner, where we had a view of the Eiffel Tower shimmering in the distance (the best accompaniment to delicious French food). Megan and Maël described the food at Margaux as the comfort food your grandmother cooks, which had Rachael's and my mouths watering. And they were right, it did not disappoint. I finally tried snails, and they weren’t as revolting as I’d imagined. They were actually tasty. Megan did all the ordering, we left it entirely in her hands, while Maël selected the wines. The foie gras, terrine and vol-au-vent were my favourites and all dishes I’d never tried before. But my favourite part of all French restaurants is the bread served with every course, so you can savour all the sauces. For a final drink after the round of tequila shots with the dessert and our waiter, the group decided to head to Candelaria. Candelaria is this cave-like cocktail bar behind a Mexican restaurant in Le Marais that, it turns out, Megan and Rachael frequent so often that the bartender remembered them, recalled their favourite drinks, and helped Maël and me select one.

Friday was super chill. Rachael and I began the morning with breakfast at Holybelly, the best cure for any hangover, and pastries from Mamiche (their chocolate chip cookie was a definite contender for best cookie in the city). Rachael then went for a rock climbing session at her gym before her shift, while I headed to the Musée d’Orsay. This museum is beautiful, and also huge. I mainly perused the Impressionist and Post-Impressionist galleries since Degas and Monet are two of my favourite artists, and it felt appropriate to admire their beautiful paintings in the heart of Paris. I didn’t stay for too long, frankly, I was exhausted, since this weekend was my first one off from both university and my job since June. By the time I got back to Rachael’s apartment, she had left for work, so for my dinner I picked up a burger, some fries and a cookie from Junk, and watched the Paris episodes of Gossip Girl.

I was awakened Saturday morning by the sweet smell of butter and sugar as Rachael had bought us some pastries, a pain suisse and a vanilla custard tart. Unfortunately, Rachael was working a double that day, but we had plans to meet later while she was on her break. So, that afternoon, I took myself on the hunt for a Louise Carmen notebook. As expected, there was a queue outside the shop, but it moved fast, and the shopping experience was well worth the wait. I have always been a big lover of stationery, and this is the ultimate gift for anyone like me in that regard. You get to handpick the exact piece of leather for your journal, any charms you’d like, if you’d like it engraved, and so many other decisions that I never would have thought about. While I waited to collect my beautiful new notebook, I browsed all the vintage stores in the area. I ended up right in the heart of Le Marais, and that weekend was Fashion Week, so there were events, displays and huddles of extremely well-dressed people aplenty, which made for great people-watching. I also somehow found myself surrounded by the much more designer and curated vintage stores, which proved to be very expensive and a little out of my budget, but as a fashion lover it was fun to play dress-up, until it got to the painful task of having to put all the funky pieces back on the shelf, especially these PERFECT red Dior boots that fit like a glove. However, literally in the last store I planned to visit, I found a vintage Roberto Cavalli dress, which not only was my size, but the most flattering silhouette and the perfect little black dress. Also, for vintage Cavalli in perfect condition, 200 euros wasn’t too bad. I couldn’t resist. I did buy it. After my very successful shopping afternoon, I wandered to the bar where Rachael works for a cocktail and to detail my shopping spree before we went for a little walk during her break.

My last night in Paris could not have been more fun. Megan had booked us in at ChoCho, a modern French restaurant with a seasonal menu in the Bonne-Nouvelle neighbourhood, which was around the corner from one of her favourite cocktail bars in the city, Divine, where we had a drink to kick off the night. Megan and I spent the evening catching up, over-sharing, laughing and eating scrumptious food. My favourite dishes we had were the roasted celeriac and their “plate of the day”, which, as the name suggests, changes daily. Everything on the menu sounded somewhat strange, like beer tempura with a coffee mousse, but the dishes were excellent and weird in the best possible way. I also tried chartreuse for the first time, and as much as I’m glad I tried something new, I won’t be having it again. It was just too sweet. The night then took a turn. Megan has a friend who had put her name on the guest list for a fashion week after-party at Le Bristol, so of course, we had to check it out. And I have to say, no club will ever compare to this one. The entrance to Le Bristol After Dark is the official hotel entrance, which is an entirely marble lobby, befitting the 4 Michelin-star reputation of this 5-star hotel, and soooo many staff around to direct you to the dance floor. Plus, a free cloakroom and marble bathrooms with warm hand towels, even at two in the morning. Megan and I danced until our feet literally hurt, we met many crazy people, admired everyone’s designer outfits and had a great time people-watching.

These were the best three days I have had in a very long time. Not only did I get to come back to one of my favourite cities, but I got to do it surrounded by the most amazing, warm, funny people I know, who have also shown me some of my new favourite spots in Paris. The summer we spent together in Saint-Tropez was such a unique and special situation, working together six days per week, plus spending our one day off and living together. So it was so good to see each other essentially back in our normal lives, having a wonderful time, and still getting to know each other.

Bisou bisou <3