How to wait in line in Paris and maybe get a bite to eat
It’s 13 degrees at 6:45 pm, quite cold for people from the Middle East. Six of us foodies are outside the Grand Palais des Champs-Élysées to attend the first day of Taste of Paris — a gorgeous event that brings the French capital together over four days of culinary delicacies, cookery shows, selfies with chefs, and LONG queues. Of the latter, we’re not complaining. VIP access to the festival has ensured us fast track entry to the grand venue, which means we’ve grinned our way to the long, meandering queues (outdoors) sans guilt. Apologies, folks. Of course, once inside we’re equals. Food doesn’t discriminate, right? And we like it that way.
The moment we’re in and the numbers hit us, we realise that we need a strategy to make the most of the hours we spend here. Ten restaurants, 50 ateliers and masterclasses, and 100 artisans and producers. Most importantly, an opportunity to sample creations from as many as 27 chefs — including the Michelin-starred, young and trendy. We deposit our coats and jackets and, with a map, get down to work, in pairs.
The food route starts with oohs and aahs, courtesy of the restaurant — Frenchie. Chef Greg Marchand earned the nickname from Jamie Oliver and it stuck. The boy from Nantes serves up Lobster Roll and Lobster Bisque. Meanwhile, another pair queues up at the restaurant Balagan, where Middle Eastern music is setting the mood. Khaled’s Didi plays at one point as well.
Love spices? You will drool over the Kebab Déstructuré with Tahini created by chef Dan Yosha. On TripAdvisor, you might have come across posts raving about his meast preparation, supposedly the best in Paris. The queue to sample three Michelin star chef Frédéric Anton’s Saumon fumé au bois de cerisier, confit, crème de wasabi frais et caviar Prunier (smoked salmon with cherry wood, confit, cream of fresh wasabi and caviar) is long. Forty-seven minutes later, we inch closer to the finish line, but our victory dance is short-lived — the restaurant Le Pré Catelan has run out of the salmon. As ‘expected’, no one complains — not a sigh is heard. Anton’s earned the honour of Meilleur Ouvrier de France and we’re just happy to have clicked a hazy selfie with him — the red, white and blue collar shining through!
It is close to midnight when we say Au
Revoir to the over 100-year-old venue, still brimming with flavours and foodies.
Back in Dubai, as I try to mind map the hours spent there, I find us restaurant hopping from Denny Imbroisi’s Epoca to Key Kobayashi’s Key. Did I mention the sweet treats from Anne-Sophie Pic? I recall being overwhelmed by the talent around us, but also impressed with ourselves. What did we return with? A few simple lessons.
For starters, we’d never seen food look prettier in styrofoam plates than here. Read Instagram-worthy. To sample the best, one need not always sit at a table and be served. Some queues are worth it. Also, they present an excellent opportunity to people watch. Read: stand on your tippy toes, look over everyone’s heads to see how far you are, and stealthily click a few pictures of the chefs at work. But most importantly, the visit is a lesson to discover what kind of foodies we are.
As Dubai natives, we may be spoilt with food delivery apps complete with tracking, but in the end, we happen to be the kind of food enthusiasts who have a large appetite and respect for the crème de la crème of chefs. So, until we meet next, here’s us celebrating every U-turn (of the curvy queues) with a shriek and high-five, and relishing a slice of Parisian gastronomy.
P.S: The festival concluded on Sunday, May 20.
We’d never seen food look prettier in styrofoam plates than here. To sample the best, one need not sit at a table and be served. Some queues are so worth it