Heidi Ellison
Emmanuelle Wittmann
Poetic Pottery One of my favorite Parisian ceramists, Emmanuelle Wittmann, is holding an exhibition called “Terres Hivernales” in her studio (13, rue des Récollets, 75010 Paris; tel.: 06 11 30 84 75) through Dec. 22. Her simple, poetic yet earthy … Read More
La Maison Bleue
Blue Bistro In Search of an Identity
La Maison Bleue is located on the Place Franz Liszt, a square I have never seen in all my years in Paris, even though it is only a 20-minute walk from where I live. Just goes to show how many surprises Paris holds even for longtime residents.
Scorsese: L’Exposition
The Making of Martin Scorsese
Robert De Niro’s line “You talkin’ to me?” from Martin Scorsese’s Taxi Driver has entered the language as a popular catchphrase. In “Scorsese: The Exhibition” at the Cinémathèque Française, visitors may well have the impression that Scorsese is talking directly … Read More
Le Mazenay
Good Food, Great Service: Pity About the Decor
Le Mazenay is one of those restaurants whose success you hope for because the people who own it are so adorable but that you worry about because of the large number of empty tables.
The reason for that is not that the food is bad. Au contraire! The food we had there recently was more than ordinarily good.
Francofonia: Le Louvre sous l’Occupation
Poetic Essay or Outmoded Ode to Art?
I wanted to see Alexandre Sokourov’s film Francofonia: Le Louvre sous l’Occupation because I am interested in the subject, especially after having read and reviewed the book Saving Mona Lisa: The Battle to Protect the Louvre and Its Treasures During … Read More
AG Les Halles
Renewed Hope for a Fast-Food Ghetto
Full disclosure: the friends who took me to the brand-new restaurant AG Les Halles know the chef, so we were treated like visiting royalty right from the welcoming coupe de champagne to the parade of extra treats that showed up on our table between courses.
Salt
A Magic Touch with Bread, Butter and Seafood
The first thing I saw when I arrived at the new fish restaurant Salt was a young man stacking up knobby baguettes on the counter of the open kitchen. “Do you make your own baguettes?” I asked him in French. He didn’t understand and asked me if I spoke English. That was a bit of a surprise in a Parisian restaurant. He turned out to be the chef, Daniel Morgan, originally from Sheffield, England, who once worked at the renowned Noma in Copenhagen. And yes, he does make his own baguettes, twice a day. And they are delicious, crispy on the outside and soft inside, with plenty of flavor.
Warhol Unlimited
The Appropriator Reappropriated
Some artists are so well known that it seems almost pointless to do yet another straight-forward exhibition of their work. But those big names bring in the bucks, so curators scrape around for new exhibition angles. For Picasso, the Grand … Read More
Picasso Mania
‘Sortoffabulous’ White Male Painter
Overheard at the exhibition “Picasso Mania” at the Grand Palais: American man to American woman as he points to an erotic etching: “Do you recognize this?” Woman (looking bored): “No.” Man: “It’s on your breakfast plate every morning.” The extent … Read More
Taxi Jaune, Pramil, Monjul
Not the Latest Thing, But Still the Best TAXI JAUNE, PRAMIL AND MONJUL ARE NOW CLOSED. It doesn’t seem fair that only new restaurants get reviews in the press, so last week I went back to three old favorites, all … Read More