Papa Poule
Homestyle, but Better
It is almost never a good idea to wander around the streets of Paris looking at menus in windows in hopes of finding a good restaurant – you usually end up with a mediocre meal. We lucked out the other … Read More
Archive
Grayson Perry: Vanity, Identity, Sexuality
A New Man
I remember the shock of seeing Grayson Perry’s work for the first time at an exhibition in London. What appeared to be beautiful, classically made vases turned out, upon closer inspection, to be decorated with images of abused and neglected children. … Read More
L’Innocence Restaurant
Springboard to Success
THIS RESTAURANT IS NOW CLOSED Note: L’Innocence was awarded one star in the 2020 Michelin Guide. This tiny (18-cover) restaurant in the ninth arrondissement was originally the springboard for the great Daniel Rose, whose wonderful restaurant Spring, once my favorite … Read More
Double Dragon Restaurant
Sister Act Goes Asian
Double Dragon’s reputation – both positive and negative – preceded it. I had heard that while the food was fantastic at this new Asian restaurant, the noise levels were extreme. The first turned out to be absolutely true, and the second, … Read More
A Dream of Italy: The Marquis Campana’s Collection
Citizen Kane’s Italian Predecessor
It’s a story of acquisitiveness comparable to that of William Randolph Hearst, who is said to have owned a quarter of the world’s art at one point and whose life was immortalized in Orson Welles’s film Citizen Kane. A fascinating … Read More
JR: Momentum
Visual Messages Writ Large
Anyone who has seen the moving film Visages Villages by director Agnès Varda and photographer JR was probably especially touched, as I was, by the sweet-natured and talented JR. This young (now 35) Frenchman became famous for his guerrilla wheatpasting … Read More
La Traversée Restaurant
Upstairs, Downstairs: Same Good Food
Montmartre is home to many, many restaurants, but rare are those that are truly worth eating in. La Traversée, a local favorite for my friends who live in Montmartre, is a bit off the beaten track, but it’s worth the … Read More
Photographier Paris: Nouveaux Regards sur la Ville
A Fresh Look at Paris
The city of Paris, which claims to be the photography capital of the world, is hosting a show called “Photographier Paris,” a free exhibition at the Hôtel de Ville, with the intention of avoiding clichés about the city and showing … Read More
Cubism
Academic Treatment for 'Little Cubes'
Why did painted images start to crack up, as if seen in a broken mirror, under the hands of Pablo Picasso and Georges Braque in 1907? As you will learn if you visit the exhaustive exhibition “Cubism,” covering the period … Read More
Chez Phung
Ladies in the Kitchen
THIS RESTAURANT IS NOW CLOSED There was no room at the restaurant where I had reserved a table for two for lunch because I had screwed up the date, so my friend and I went off in search of a … Read More