Today was a nice simple day, starting with our Montmartre Food & Wine Tour, yes we made it to this one … and it was worth the wait. There was one other couple on the tour with us, from guess where …. Long Beach. Talk about a small world. Our tour guide was a young French gentleman, Arnold, who was extremely knowledgeable and a lover of food. He took us all around the little town telling us the history of the area and taking us to some of the best food places in the area. Montmartre was founded years ago by artists such as Van Gogh, Picasso and Renoir to name a few who wanted to get out of the heart of Paris because it was to conservative. So they would go to Montmartre.. today it’s still has a trendy bohemian vibe.
We learned the difference between a patisserie – they sell and make all the pastries in house and a boulangerie – they sell and make all the bread in house, why the French are famous for their wines and that the stores and most restaurants are closed on Sundays. We learned that the places that sell only one item (cream puffs, chocolates or macrons) are the best places to go to, because they only specialize in that one thing, making it the best.
We had some cheese and wine at the same restaurant that Van Gogh painted in years ago and enjoyed the company of our fellow tour mates. After lunch we Saw where Renoir painted some of his works and went to a patisserie famous for its madelines. Then we said our good byes and took the metro back.
Later in the evening we went to a higher end seafood restaurant walking distance from our hotel, and the seafood was some of the best we’d ever had. It was a perfect end to a great food-filled day.
