The first time I had a taste of Yoshiaki-san’s cuisine was on Rue de Longchamp in the 16th arrondissement at one Michelin-starred restaurant called Hiramatsu. Two years later, it was in his heaven on Rue de la Tour where Chef Yoshiaki Ito has poured his soul into his own restaurant, L’Archeste, another Michelin-starred restaurant.
Just a little recap for my gourmet followers, some of my favorite restaurants around the world!
The Korean-born Chef Hooni Kim was at some point in his life destined to be Dr. Hooni Kim! He indeed went to medical school when he realized that the title “Chef” was a better fit for him. He came back to New York City where he had grown up and studied at the French Culinary Institute, now called the International Culinary Center.
One of my last discoveries during my latest trip to Paris was Aux Plumes – a neighborhood little (literally little) restaurant in the 14th arrondissement, where you can taste the touch of the Japanese chef and sous-chef.
Lupa is my friend’s daughter’s boyfriend’s roommate’s favorite Italian restaurant in New York City! Even if you cannot follow all that, I must say I am glad it is because Lupa is actually an amazing restaurant. The aforementioned friend was visiting from Texas and I had not seen her since we both moved from Paris a year ago. Lupa seemed for whatever reason the perfect place for our reunion.
Woah! A three Michelin-starred restaurant is going vegetarian? This decision in 2001 by Alain Passard, owner of Arpège, sure must have raised some eyebrows – no more meat! Chef Alain Passard is not afraid to risk his stars to impose his views: he wants only seasonal organically grown vegetables to be the center of his menu – no more leeks in summer, no more tomatoes in winter!
Time for a new brunch ranking in NYC! As I said previously, Brunch on Sundays is a very convenient moment for my family to get together. It’s also a good time for the kids to invite friends, girlfriends… I’m not mentioning boyfriends because my daughter is only 13!
On a recent trip to Paris, my friends and I went to the newly opened and very buzz-y Balagan, located at rue d’Alger, by the hotel Renaissance, in the 1st arrondissement.
This is not your typical Parisian establishment, and we loved it all the more as a result! Its excellent service and inventive cuisine do not take itself too seriously, and that’s exactly what Paris needed!
Thank you to the Randazzo family for moving from Sicily to the Bronx in 1920 and opening this amazing seafood store! Thank you to the third generation of Randazzos to have kept the tradition and maintained the high quality of this store.
It took 25 years of marriage to finally travel to the region where my husband spent his childhood vacations: Hossegor. Not that I didn’t like it, or I thought it wasn’t interesting…and it was certainly not because I wanted to make him unhappy. Do I look like I’m a bad wife? But after hearing the same story over and over again, I felt like I myself spent my own vacations there.
