October 24, 2011 by Steve Brenner
Erica Berman was lucky enough to spend a couple months in gorgeous Genoa, Italy, this summer. She met up with HiP Paris friend and contributor Steve Brenner for a leisurely lunch in the historic town of Montepulciano before touring some villas in Tuscany. After reading his mouth-watering account of their meal, we couldn’t keep ourselves from sharing it with you here! -Geneviève
Yesterday I drove up to Montepulciano to meet (in person) Erica Berman of Haven in Paris and her friend Mattia after literally years of email and skype exchanges. I’ve guest blogged on her popular HIP Paris blog, and we list a few of her flats on Cross-Pollinate, but we’d never actually met in person.
Bagno Vignoni near Montepulciano where Erica was staying for a night (Elena Vataga)
She was coming from Genova to Bagno Vignoni (above) to see some flats in Tuscany for her site, so we decided to meet nearby. I checked my trusted Osterie d’Italia published by Slow Food Italia, which has NEVER let me down, and we placed our bet on Acquacheta in Montepulciano.
They were very insistent on us being there at 12:30 sharp. They will only accept reservations at 12:30 or 2pm, and they were passionate about giving us only one glass per person for both wine and water (per tradizione, apparently). The food was good – started with some amazing pecorino cheeses, one aged in walnut leaves, one with black truffles. Without a doubt, the closer you get to Pienza, in Tuscany, the better the pecorino. Continue Reading »
Posted in Food, Italy tips & suggestions | 7 Comments »
September 9, 2011 by Erica Berman
Coffee and focaccia – Breakfast in Genoa
In Italy, coffee is delicious, quick, and to the point.
You arrive, you order, you drink, you go. Now, your day can start or your afternoon can continue.
Your barrista probably knows your name, the name of first born child, where you live and, most importantly, what kind of coffee you want and how you want it.
Small and quick, the morning coffee fix
Your coffee will be served velocemente…. you will stand at the bar, you will chat about the weather, your vacation, your work, your kids, your partner, your pet …. Continue Reading »
Posted in Food, Italy tips & suggestions | 11 Comments »
August 10, 2011 by Erica Berman
August. An ideal time to be in Paris, as long as you don’t expect endless days of sunny hot weather or being able to work on the perfect tan. Yes, as the current season has shown, Parisian summer weather can be unpredictable! Being in Paris in August is still fabulous (and my favorite month of the year by far), as long as you don’t need to:
• Receive medical attention of any kind…
• Get a haircut
• Order furniture
• Perform administrative tasks
• Renovate your apartment or fix a small leak
Picnicing at La Villette before a movie
As of July 1, the French are either on vacation, planning vacation or dreaming of vacation. When August 1 rolls around, they are pretty much all truly en vacances (if not physically, at least mentally). Nothing serious is possible in Paris before September and la rentrée. One must know this and plan accordingly.
You can forget about ordering the new couch you’ve been coveting anytime between July 1 and Sept 1. “Oh là là Madame… the factory where the couches are manufactured is closed until the end of August! Zut, alors the 6-8 week delay will bring you to at least mid- October before delivery can be made.”
You can try to get to the dentist to repair the filling that inconsiderately fell out over dinner. Another chorus of “Oh là là Madame, ze dentist is on vacation and will be back September 1.” Continue Reading »
Posted in Events, Parisian Living | 7 Comments »
August 8, 2011 by Kim Laidlaw Adrey
Pétrelle is a small French restaurant tucked away in a quiet corner of the 9th arrondissement. It’s not new – indeed it’s been around for 18 years – and it’s not easy to stumble upon, yet it has enjoyed continued success among discerning locals and tourists alike for almost two decades. Erica Berman from Haven in Paris, Forest Collins (52 Martinis), Kasia Dietz (Love in the City of Lights ) and I (I Heart Paris ) decided to go and check it out to find out just why just why this unassuming but charming restaurant is such a perennial success.
So, first thing’s first. What did we think of the food?
Erica: The meal was tasty, fresh, honest and uncomplicated with pleasing portions and lovely artistic touches. It felt like a French ‘potager’ had come to my plate since I, unfortunately, could not go to it. The vegetables were perfectly cooked, the fish tender and juicy, and the desserts rich and sinful.
Kasia: Beginning with a courgette and girolle appetizer, the meal was very ‘fresh from the farm’ in flavor and artistic in composition – Basquiat, if I had to pick an artist. My Saint-Pierrefillet was a small but flavorsome portion complemented with a mélange of vegetables and herbs – this dish more a Kandinsky. The rich chocolate mousse left little room for the complimentary meringues eyeing us all evening. Hard to resist!
Forest: Well-prepared fish and proteins were dressed up with pretty veggies and garnishes like fancy hats on racing day. Cheese was served the way it should be: in big chunks on a plate allowing guests to cut off their own portions.
Kim: A very French menu with classics such as ris de veau, beef tournedos and a seasonal fish of the day featured on the hand-written menu. The focus is on simplicity and letting the quality of each ingredient shine through. I chose the fish of the day – a fillet of John Dory, cooked to perfection and served with a selection of seasonal vegetables – followed by a pudding of raspberries in a fluffy creamy mouse and with a crunchy mille-feuille style biscuit. Continue Reading »
Posted in Food, Restaurant Reviews | 6 Comments »
July 8, 2011 by Erica Berman
Eco House Tremeoc Brittany
Summer is here and the crowds are starting to flee Paris for the coast. As I tend to do things in reverse and will be staying in Paris this July to enjoy all of the amazing summer festivals and events, I hit Brittany for a two-week jaunt in May, just before the summer throngs descended upon its lovely shores.
Canal Nantes – Brest
After searching long and hard, mere days before our departure, for last minute lodging that would be not only earth-friendly and green, but appealing and available, I stumbled upon two different eco-homes in Brittany that were, amazingly, available for our dates. Note to self: Planning in advance can be helpful, but if you are willing to chance it, great places that are still available are often ready to discount in the spring. Plus the weather is fabulous and the beaches are empty!
Ground House – Mellionec, Brittany
Our first week was spent in the Ground House , located in the center of Brittany’s rolling green farmland in the town of Mellionnec, one hour from the ocean. This completely self-sustaining eco home, built into the earth on one side and full of huge windows overlooking the garden on the other, was just the thing we were looking for. Built by its English owners and featured on the famous UK show ‘Grand Designs‘, this passive solar house was built with salvaged materials and features an organic garden, a compost heap, dry/composting toilets, and solar heated rainwater for hot water.
Canal Nantes Brest / Farm Centre Bretagne
Not well known, the center of Brittany (Centre Bretagne) offers an abundance of hiking, walking and biking options. Additionally, we were pleased to discover that the area immediately surrounding the Ground House is a serious haven for bio (the French word for organic) fans, with an organic grocery store, a couple of organic restaurants, local artisans, organic shops, and markets where local farmers sell their produce, meat and dairy directly. Continue Reading »
Posted in Green, Homes, Travel | 6 Comments »
May 9, 2011 by Lindsey Tramuta
Having lived in Paris for five years, I have experienced a full spectrum of highs (euphoria) and lows (disillusionment) of expat life. And throughout those emotional dips I’ve observed the local evolutions – the highs and lows – of the city itself.
Kedgeree – typical British dish
Perhaps the most noticeable evolution has been in food and drink with the warmly welcomed arrival of foreign talent. Ethnic fare and American diners and burger joints aside, the Anglo food curve has largely been dominated by the reigning hipster brunch institution, Rose Bakery, which opened back in 2002. But Rose is no longer the only canteen on the Paris food scene cooking up high-quality, authentic English dishes, as evidenced by the recent spate of Anglo-inspired eateries. Continue Reading »
Posted in Food, Restaurant Reviews | 6 Comments »
April 15, 2011 by Erica Berman
Erica Berman is a serious coffee drinker. No joke. Long frustrated by Paris’ less-than-stellar coffee scene, she is overjoyed to see that some serious brewsters are finally taking hold of Paris. Be sure to check in next week for our review of Frog Fight, the buzz-worthy (and caffeinated!) competition where Paris’ best baristas battle it out. – Geneviève
Cappuccino from Kooka Boora – Erica Berman
I don’t drink coffee in Paris. Why should I? It’s expensive and mostly bad and the waiters are often surly and unfriendly. No self-respecting coffee drinker should have to subject themselves to overpriced Parisian sludge served with a sneer.
I long ago gave up on the idea of great coffee in a sunny café by the Seine, and content myself to home brewed beans, leaving cappuccinos and friendly cafes for Italy.
Le Bal Café – Erica Berman
Happily, changes are taking place in Paris. Just as the artisanal baguette was reborn after a long period of low quality bread on the Parisian bakery scene and interesting types of non Lipton tea are popping up in shops and cafes around the city, all of a sudden good, even great, coffee has arrived and a pro-artisanal coffee movement is on the rise, albeit only in a select few Parisian spots. Continue Reading »
Posted in Food, Parisian Living | 44 Comments »
December 15, 2010 by Jack Dancy
When my friend Jack, co-founder of Trufflepig, and I went out for a night on the town, I should have known absolutely anything could happen! Everything from snooty hipster bartenders, gigantic mushrooms and famous people citings were on the menu. Jack described the night in perfect detail below, and I look forward to our next perfectly Parisian rendezvous. -Erica
Julien Hausherr – Hotel Amour
Paris is an ever-changing city of contrasts, and many people who come here on vacation looking for a fixed, romantic idea of Paris based on a book or a film or a dream end up being surprised that it’s a real place, not a movie set. Not all the buildings are beautiful, the sun doesn’t glint permanently off the slate roofs, and not everyone who lives here is a charming Gallic man with a bristling moustache and a well-trained aquiline nose.
Julien Hausherr – Hotel Amour
But every now and then an evening unfolds in such a way that comes straight off the Paris song sheet. I had just such an evening on a recent night on the town with Erica Berman of Haven in Paris. If the evening followed a script, it would have been one written by a combination of the tourist board and the comedy council, rather than Disney. For a start, we were up in the 9th arrondissement rather than strolling on the boulevards in the more obvious parts of town, but by the end of the evening we were in stitches at quite how perfectly Paris the night turned out to be.
Continue Reading »
Posted in Parisian Living, Restaurant Reviews | 9 Comments »
June 16, 2010 by Rosa Jackson
Rosa Jackson, the fabulous food writer and chef, is based in Nice where she conducts market tours and succulent Provençal cooking classes. She travels to Paris frequently (as one must) in order to keep up with the restaurant scene. Last year, she stayed at Haven in Paris’ very own Houdon flat. This lovely write-up ensued on her blog…
I have a vision of my perfect Paris apartment. It would be high up – stairs don’t scare me – with a small balcony and a sweeping view over the zinc rooftops, punctuated here and there with church spires and glimmering domes. There would be parquet floors, big windows on both sides (east and west, ideally) and a sunny kitchen that opens onto the living space. Oh, and it would have central heating.
When I first laid eyes on Erica Berman’s apartment just south of Abbesses Métro station, I felt slightly breathless. That might have had something to do with the five flights of stairs required to reach it, but it also came from the certainty that this was my dream apartment. I loved the antique table and mismatched chairs, I loved the contemporary paintings and well-tended plants, and I especially loved the vintage wooden pâtisserie sign above the kitchen, which Erica found at a market in Provence.
It’s no surprise that Erica’s flat should seem so effortlessly tasteful, given that she is the owner of the hippest apartment rental agency around: Haven in Paris. I first met Erica when she came to do one of my food tours in Nice, and I immediately realized that we had many things in common: our love of Paris, Provence and Italy (especially Liguria), our fondness for off-the-beaten track bed-and-breakfasts, and our insatiable curiosity about new Paris restaurants.
When I dropped by her Paris apartment before a meal at the nearby bistro Le Cul de Poule (here is a report on the Haven in Paris blog), she beckoned me onto the balcony for a glass of Italian wine. Erica has lived in Paris for 17 years and there is almost nothing she doesn’t know about the city, as proved by her frequently updated blog. We chatted about good and not-so-good meals she has had in the Pigalle and Montmartre area: her current favorites are Le Miroir (94 rue des Martyrs, 18th) and Guilo Guilo (8 rue Garreau, 18th), the second run by a renowned chef from Kyoto.
Continue Reading »
Posted in Homes, Parisian Living, Travel | 8 Comments »
May 17, 2010 by Claudia Strasser
When I heard that the lovely Lily of Context Travel was organizing a dinner at Hidden Kitchen hosted by David Lebovitz and Meg Zimbeck, I jumped at the occasion. I was lucky enough to attend Hidden Kitchen over a year ago and was itching for the chance to return and experience Braden’s cooking again … The problem? It’s always sold out! This particular dinner was to be a combination gourmet meal and chance to get to know David, Meg, and Context travel in an intimate setting (there are only 16 guests at a time at Hidden Kitchen).
The lucky guests were to hear all about David’s decadent new dessert cookbook and the inevitable trials and tribulations of his life amongst the frenchies. We also got to learn about Meg and her culinary adventures. Meg is a Paris food writer and is currently in the final stages of developing (along with quite an impressive team) a new Paris foodie website, “Paris by Mouth” to be unveiled on June 1…..more on that soon on the HiP Paris Blog! As my friend Claudia from Miami is in town doing decorating wonders for a client, I invited her to join in the fun. It was an evening of fabulous food and conversation galore – one to remember and hopefully repeat. Below Claudia reminisces about this unique Parisian experience. Enjoy! – Erica
Bonsoir everyone!
Friday night was truly one I will never forget and feel privileged to have been invited to such a soiree magnifique. It felt like we stepped back in time to a salon gathering of some of the great young minds and talents residing and making their marks in Paris.
From the moment we walked into the foyer and were handed champagne, the night was pure magic. As the 16 guests arrived, we mingled and chatted and the air was palpable with what our palettes were about to experience!
If you’re in Paris, I highly suggest you make a reservation at hidden kitchen. Our host and hostess, Braden and Laura are the most charming and talented American couple you could hope to meet on your trip, and the exquisite beauty of everything from the decor of their apartment to every morsel served was sublime! Continue Reading »
Posted in Events, Food, Parisian Living, Restaurant Reviews, Tours and Classes | 10 Comments »
A square in Montepulciano (Stefano Piemonte)
Giulio Ciolfi, owner of Osteria Acquacheta
