Au Petit Versailles du Marais - Marais, Paris

God did I struggle to find a good, genuine Parisian cafe to show my husband what it’s all about (he doesn’t get the big deal about Paris café culture so I was eager to show him). We went to several, none of which were good enough. I wasn’t looking for a bar or a place to get frites. All I wanted was a patisserie serving great cakes and equally good savoury things. After talking to a friend’s mum, a local, we finally got close with Au Petit Versailles.

My husband Eddy has a mighty sweet tooth so his pupils dilated at the sight of the cakes on offer. I on the other hand am more savoury, so I was hit with elation at the sight of the wonderful sandwiches, generously filled quiches etc… I finally decided to be Croqued.

Over indulgence ensued with Eddy getting 2 cakes: a Millefeuille filled with custard and a Chocolate Éclair. Unbeknown to us both, in France éclairs aren’t filled with cream, but a custard known as crème patissière. When you come to know something and love it, even it’s not technically the ‘right’ way then eating it differently can be a let down. So as much as it was good it wasn’t the cream filled éclair he was accustomed to. He thought the Millefeuille was a tad dry too. We’re nitpicking here. It had faults but overall was good.

My Croque Monsieur was delicious. Oozy from the cheese, creamy from the béchamel and salty from the ham. A few sprinkles of black pepper and I was happy as Larry.

On our way out I bought 4 more cakes to take back to London on the Eurostar we were catching later that day. They came to €18. All were good, only 3 made it back though, as cake number 4 called to us while we waited at Paddington Station.

Sitting outside a boulangerie eating cakes and a croque monsieur in a nice part of Paris was what I wanted to show him and I think I delivered.

Au Petit Versailles du Marais

9/10

Rue Tiron

75004, Paris France

Tel: +33 9 71 47 61 89

La Station Rambuteau - Le Marais, Paris

We were hungry. It was close to midnight. La Station was the only thing open. A bistro like every other on the corner of a road that offered nothing of great interest. Places like this are my favourite discoveries. The unassuming, un-publicised little gems you find by accident because you’e desperately searching for food at a late hour.

We sat outside next to an old English couple that looked liked they’d been together for more years than I’ve been alive. That was a sweet little touch and I guess added to the romance of the place.

We had the Charcuterie slash Fromage board to share. It was lovely. There was salami, coppa, serrano and a good mixture of soft and hard cheeses. It came with bread and a healthy dollop of creamy butter. It was a steal at 9 euros for the amount we got.

Our first night in Paris, our first stop for sustenance and our first culinary success. 

La Station Rambuteau

9/10

20 Rue Beaubourg

75004 Paris

Tel: +33 1 42 72 80 85

Le Villaret - Paris

Le Villaret is a beautiful Parisian Bistro located on a quiet yet albeit iffy part of the 11th arrondissment. The food was delicious, although the menu was quite difficult to understand and the price was steep. The bill came to around 60 euros a head, and so needless to say it is not somewhere you could go on a regular basis.

There is a 6 course tasting menu which costs 50 euros a head. This included such things as Cauliflower Soup (sounds uninteresting but was very good). The seabass was also worthy of note.

I suspect that this restaurant is going to gain a great many accolades in time to come and I'm happy that I caught it before it rises to fame, and the prices undoubtedly rise too.

Towards the end of the meal waiters brought round a tall box filled with very intricate desserts. This allowed us to pick what took our fancy. A nice way to end the meal I must say.

Le Villaret
7/10

13, Rue Ternaux
75011 Paris, France
+33 1 43 57 89 76

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