Paris Journal 2007

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This little guy, who resembles one of Katie Gardenia’s dolls, was created by an artist who supplies all kinds of strange curiosities to a shop called Madame des Vosges, located just off the Place des Vosges at 14, rue de Birague. This shop was lots of fun. Don’t miss it when you are in the Marais. Pictures from the Musée Cognacq-Jay Meissen porcelain. Beamed ceiling in the Hôtel Donon, now the Musée Cognacq-Jay. The 16^th Century Hôtel Donon.

Wednesday, August 8 We went to the Marais yesterday to see the Musée Cognacq-Jay, one of the city owned museums that is dedicated mostly to 18^th Century art. The collection was bequeathed to the city by Ernest Cognacq in 1928. Ernest and his wife, Marie-Louise Jay, came from very modest backgrounds. They founded the Samaritaine department store in Paris (which is now closed). Because of their rise from modest beginnings to a life of wealth, philanthropy, and comfort, the French like to point to their case as evidence of the potential of upward mobility in French society. Ernest and Marie-Louise began collecting art in 1895. They bought paintings, graphic arts, sculpture, furniture, rugs, tapestries, and objets d’arts, mostly focusing on the 18^th Century, but also including some 17^th Century and 19^th Century items. They put the collection in a building next to (or part of?) the Samaritaine de Luxe store they had established on boulevard des Capucines (the original, main store is on the Seine near Pont Neuf, on the right bank). The boulevard des Capucines building was sold in 1985, and a little after that the City of Paris moved the Cognacq-Jay collections to the Hôtel Donon, a 16^th Century hôtel particulier which had been renovated. The Donon family lived there from 1575 to 1640. In the 19^th and 20^th centuries, the great house fell into disrepair, and the city of Paris acquired it in 1974. The museum includes well-known paintings by Chardin, Watteau, Boucher, Drouais,Tiepolo, Wright of Derby, Reynolds, Lawrence, Fragonard, Canelletto, and Latour. There is a great collection of tables made by ébénistes, Meissen porcelain, some Sevres porcelain, entire rooms of carved paneling from 18^th century homes, and some original 17^th century paneling of the Donon home. Everything is beautifully displayed, the home itself is fascinating, and the museum is cool and uncrowded. And oh yes, admission is free. You are NOT allowed to use a flash (or a tripod) in the museum, but you can take photos. Info: Musée Cognacq-Jay, 8 rue Elzévir, 3^rd arrondissement, telephone 01.40.27.07.21. Nearby Métro stops: Saint-Paul, Chemin-Vert, Rambuteau. Bus : 29, 69, 76, 96 Open from 10AM to 6PM Tuesday through Sunday. Closed Mondays and holidays. Last admission is at 5:30PM. After spending a enough hours in the museum to attract the curiosity of the staff, Tom and I walked over to the Place des Vosges and enjoyed foie gras and an apricot tarte, specialties made in the house, at Café Hugo. You’d think this would be one of those high-volume tourist locations where prices would be high and service not so great. That has never been our experience at Café Hugo. The prices are extremely reasonable, the quality of the food is excellent, and the service is warm and friendly. And you sure can’t beat the setting – the very historic and picturesque Place des Vosges. We had the foie gras (made there, and one order is enough for two people), a basket of bread, a divine home-made apricot tarte (keeping in mind that apricots are in season and are excellent right now), a double coffee, a large 25-centiliter glass of chardonnay, a large bottle of Badoit, and a carafe of water, all for €30 (tax and tip included, as always). We were eating at an odd time, 3:30PM, when most places have stopped serving lunch. But Café Hugo is open 7 days a week, from 8AM to 2AM, with non-stop food service. Café Hugo is at 22, Place des Vosges, 4^th arrondissement, telephone 01-42-72-64-04. Then last night Guy and Sheila took us out to dinner at Le Tire Bouchon (62, rue des Entrepreneurs, 15^th arr., telephone 01-40-59-09-27). It was excellent, as always. We were very impressed with Guy. He ordered, and ate in its entirety, the gourmand menu, which includes starter course, two main courses (one fish and one meat) and the assorted dessert plate. He and I (mostly he) consumed a bottle of Beaujolais as well, and he had a coffee after dinner. Plus we were all served hors d’oeuvres (on the house) before the meal. My starter course was very interesting. It was called a “céviche de dorade.” I had no idea what a “céviche” was (it is not in the French dictionary or the gastronomique dictionary), but I certainly know dorade. It is a fish, called sea bream by the Brits, that is found in the Mediterranean and the Gulf of Gascony, so we don’t get it in the U.S. It is a fine, mild, delicately textured fish. I’ve usually had it served to me cooked, but this one was cold, raw and marinated, like sushi. It came with seaweed on one side, and a tomato coulis on the other. The finishing touch was a huge spoonful of crème fraiche. My main course was a very delicious plate of lamb morsels in a delicious sauce. Alas, Isabelle and Laurent, the proprieters of Le Tire Bouchon, are going on vacation starting Sunday, and they won’t be open again until early September. Laurent came out to talk with us at the end of the evening. I told him about the Ratatouille exhibit we had just seen earlier in the day, as we happened upon a gallery featuring it on the Ile St. Louis. The exhibit included fascinating concept drawings of the various rat characters, plus photos of the Paris skyline as it is, and as it is imaginatively re-created in the animated film. Clips from the film are also shown on a TV in the first room of the gallery. We were fascinated and greatly amused by the clips. Tom said he wants to see Ratatouille here, but I explained to him that an animated film like that will not be shown in English (version originale) because all sound is dubbed in with an animated film, so that means all the Ratatouille films shown in France will be in French (no subtitles required). That’s the electronic and digital nature of the beast when it comes to modern animated films. Tom told Laurent about the Deratiseur (rat exterminator) boutique featured in the film – that it is actually based on a real such boutique in Paris on the rue des Halles. Laurent did not know that, but he explained in detail why such boutiques and services are very much needed and are very important in Paris. I can imagine how important it is to him; he certainly wouldn’t want any rats in his kitchen, even if it were a rat de gout (rat of good taste, such as Rémy in Ratatouille, but a pun on the French rat d’égout, meaning sewer rat). ←Previous Next→

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