Archive for June, 2011

Tasting Single-origin Coffee at Cafés Estrella

Wednesday, June 8th, 2011
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Jean-Claude Lesage, Proprietor
Cafés Estrella
(c) Discover Paris!

Cafés Estrella is a coffee-roasting facility located at 34, rue Saint-Sulpice, right across the street from Saint-Sulpice church. I have often passed it by without paying too much attention until, just recently, I noticed that the store received a mention in the book Les Meilleurs Commerces de Bouche de Paris (Impalla Editions, 2011). And so, I decided to drop in and purchase some fresh-roasted coffee.

The proprietor, Jean-Claude Lesage, was busy filling orders when I walked into the store. At the same time, the blade in the cooling tray of his coffee-roasting machine was churning freshly-roasted beans to bring them down to room temperature.

I spotted Rwanda coffee among the coffees that he was selling and purchased a 250-gram bag of the medium-roast, whole-bean product for 6€. After taking it home, grinding it, and brewing it in my French press, I tasted it and imagined that its rich flavor was similar to bitter chocolate. So, on the very next occasion I went by the Michel Cluizel chocolate shop on rue Saint-Honoré and purchased a 30-gram tablet of “Noir Infini 99%” chocolate. Back home again, I brewed another batch of Rwanda coffee and compared its taste to the dark chocolate from Michel Cluizel. To my mind, they have a similar bitter, robust taste. Though neither of these products will please those who require sweetness in their coffee and chocolate, I find their flavors quite agreeable.

As well as a dozen varieties of coffee, Cafés Estrella also sells tea, honey, confections, artisanal spice bread, and cookies. The store is open Tuesday to Saturday from 10:00 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. and from 2:30 p.m. to 7:00 p.m.

Bonne dégustation!

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Discover Paris! Goes a-Drumming

Tuesday, June 7th, 2011
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Last Tuesday, Discover Paris! participated in a communal drumming session in the beautiful auditorium of the Dapper Museum.

The organization that led the session is called Drum Planet. They were there to demonstrate how their program of interactive drumming promotes team building among staff and management of corporations. The program helps employees release stress, lift their spirits, and improve relationships so that they work more efficiently together.

After the session, we were convinced that the program really works!

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Moussa l’Africain

Wednesday, June 1st, 2011
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Tiep bou dienn and Riz Wolof
(c) Discover Paris!

To prepare our monthly restaurant review for this month’s newsletter, we dined at the restaurant Moussa l’Africain, where we enjoyed Tiep bou dienn, riz wolof and Poulet directeur général. We returned on another day to meet Chef Madi Niakaté and talk with him about his restaurant and the food that he serves there.

Learn about these delicious dishes and read about Chef Niakaté in our extensive review, “Le Bon Goût.” It appears today in the June issue of our newsletter Paris Insights. Access to the newsletter is by paid subscription.

Click here to read brief summary of the June issue, and here to enter a subscription.

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We participate in Wanderfood Wednesdays. Head over there to explore food from around the world!

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