Gourmet Food Tour // St. Germain, Paris
I’ve been SO excited to share this post since returning from Paris. We went on my absolute favorite tour ever, a gourmet food tasting tour in St. Germain via Hidden Paris Tours. Our guide Eglantine was wonderful – her passion for Parisian food is contagious. We walked around St. Germain district for nearly 3 hours eating our hearts out on some of the best food I’ve ever had. St. Germain itself is a gorgeous little neighborhood so it was nearly a sensory overlook of wonderful tastes and lovely sights.
Our first stop at Pierre Hermes, the macaroon king, words cannot describe how amazing this place is. I can honestly say this is one of the top 3 sweets I’ve ever had. It’s so perfect, so yummy, so… gah. The macaroons are soft with wonderful exotic sweet flavors. My favorite was the Mogador with milk chocolate and passion fruit. I expected a crumbly cookie but instead it was like biting into a soft buttery wafer bursting with flavor. Pierre Herme gained his macaroon skills while working in Japan and mastered the art of using spices in his sweet concoctions. This is place is must on any Paris visit.
Attempting to capture ‘the bite’…
This croissant caused a childish fight between Dan and I. Never try to share something so tasty.
Off to the market! First stop, frog legs. Eww..
Vegetarians look away!! Eglantine explained that having the head on means that the chicken is fresh from today. It was a little much for me, but interesting nonetheless.
Quiches galore. I bought a slice of the lovely mushroom/sausage delight below. Served hot, Dan, Lyn, Mike and I quickly devoured it sharing just one fork. At one point I commented that we were like animals.
We stopped in Maison Georges Larnicol to satisfy our chocolate fix. Recently this shop was awarded the ‘Meillur Ouvrier de France’ for their chocolates, a incredibly prestigious French award. Just go. Buy chocolate, buy caramels, buy everything.
Eglantine pointed out that if a restaurant is selling french onion soup and escargot it’s a sure fire way to identify a tourist trap. Parisians don’t eat those things regularly.
And then Dan found his little peace of heaven, Mariage Freres a beautiful tea shop.
Eglantine explained that in former times, the number of windows a building had determined the amount of taxes applied. When this calculation was ruled, some Parisians opted to ‘fill in’ their windows to avoid the higher taxes.
Then we headed to La Maison du Chou for the French version of a cream puff. A heavenly sugary delight filled with either coffee, vanilla or chocolate filling, it’s definitely worth a taste.
Saying farewell to Eglantine! Our Christmas smiles in full swing.
Following the tour we joined in the cafe culture, a little expresso and fancy pinky.
Well, we quickly broke Eglantine’s cardinal rule about the French Onion soup but it was so worth it.
There are times when I wonder about our choice to move abroad – leaving friends, family, and native English speakers – but it’s mornings like this one that makes me feel so incredibly blessed. Cheers to great friends and wonderful food!