Paris Insights - The Blog

A friend who was exhibiting her work of art at the Salon des Indépendants invited me to attend the grand opening. The exhibition was held at the Grand Palais, located just off the Champs-Elysées.

When I arrived, I was surprised by the number of people milling about on the sidewalk in front of the exhibition hall. There were hundreds of them! There were three exhibitions going on at the same time, but the entrance to the exhibit that I wanted to attend was not clearly marked. In listening to conversations around me, posing a question to one of the guards, and following some people who seemed to know where they were going, I was able to get into the grand hall.

Once I got into the Grand Palais, I had to figure out how to find my friend, the artist. The exhibition hall is vast!

To look for her, I decided to start from the northernmost side of the hall and work my way south. In my wanderings, I came upon a paper and cardboard sculpture of an astronaut by an artist identified as Bodoc (E).

Next to the sculpture of the astronaut was a sculpture of a swarm of sea jellies (jellyfish), but I forgot to note the title and the name of the artist.

I finally found my friend, Marites Van Vianen, on the south side of the building.  She was exhibiting at an art space bearing her name. Other artists from the Philippines were showing their works in that space.

Bong Canuel was there. I have met him several times at the Village Suisse exhibition space in Paris.

He is pictured in front of his works wearing a hat that he painted and holding the Philippine flag. The hat displays a carabao, the national animal (a water buffalo) of the Philippines.

Aurea Calanog lives in Belgium.

Chelony Mercado created a four-panel work of art to hang on the wall and a work of art to wear.

Marievic Beaune illustrated the harsh life of a little boy carrying a jerrican of fresh water.

She also created this intriguing image of Marianne superimposed on a Philippine flag.

Tei Leonardo holds a lovely bouquet of flowers in front of her paintings.

The artists posed for a group photo. Most of the women wore lovely dresses, as is customary for them to do at exhibitions.

The exhibit continues through Saturday, February 22, 2025.

Salon des Indépendants – Art Capital
Grand Palais
7, avenue Winston Churchill
75008 Paris

For information about many of the artists featured in this blog, click here:
https://www.facebook.com/GaleryaTess.

Located steps away from the southwestern corner of the Luxembourg Garden, Un Grain Décalé serves coffee and sells roasted single-origin coffee beans.

I stopped by to purchase a bag of roasted beans and inquired as to what espresso was being brewed that day. Coffee from Burundi was one of the two choices offered, and I requested a cup of that.

The coffee shop is narrow. There were a lot of customers, so I felt lucky to get the small table at the front, where I had a view of passersby on the sidewalk. I took small sips from the espresso and found it to be rather harsh to my taste, but I nonetheless ordered a 250-gram bag of the roasted bean to take home.

Back home, I ground the beans finely and brewed espressos with my 9Barista stove-top espresso machine. Try as I may, I could never detect the caramel note indicated on the bag. I still found, cup after cup, that the flavor was rather aggressive, and not at all soft (or sweet) as the note on the bag indicates.

I recall having purchased Burundi from another roasted coffee outlet a long time ago and I remember that my experience with the taste of the coffee was the same.

On another note, Un Grain Décalé has a warm atmosphere and I think that travelers who visit the Luxembourg Garden will enjoy stopping here for coffee, tea, or another beverage served with a pastry.

Un Grain Décalé
3, rue Vavin
75006 Paris

We were on avenue Victoria the other day when we spotted Kawa, a purveyor of roasted coffee beans.

We entered and saw that a bean called Indonesie – Frinsa Sarapan #1 was on the beverage list. I sat at the counter and ordered a cup. The barista told me that I could also buy a bag of the roasted beans to take home.

The espresso was served alongside a glass of light lemon-flavored micro-fizzy water. The coffee had a sweet, fruity taste. Sipping the beverage, I could not identify any of the tasting notes that were indicated on the bag: date, milk chocolate, or toffee. (My palate is still in training!)

After tasting the coffee, I purchased a 250-gram bag of the roasted bean, took it home, and brewed a cup with my 9Barista stove-top espresso machine. The machine produced a 40-gram shot of espresso that had an agreeably sweet, fruity taste. My partner declared that she could detect a fleeting chocolate aroma.

The coffee beans are roasted at Kawa’s coffee-roasting facility in Aubervilliers, a town located just outside of Paris.

Kawa
22, avenue Victoria
75001 Paris

On Saturday, I stopped by the Brûlerie des Gobelins, located at the intersection of avenue des Gobelins and rue des Gobelins, to see what espresso they were brewing that day. The establishment is not a coffee shop where one sits down at a table to while away the time with a cup of coffee. Rather, it is a coffee roasting facility that sells freshly roasted coffee beans.

They were brewing India Malabar and they offered to sell me a cup at 1.50€. I ordered this with the intent of purchasing a 250-gram bag of the bean.

The sales clerk told me that India Malabar is one of the least strong espresso beans of the house. I sipped the coffee he handed me and thought that it was plenty strong for my taste.

Back at my apartment, I brewed 18 grams of finely-ground India Malabar with my 9Barista stove-top espresso machine. The resulting 40-gram espresso had a decent crema, but I had trouble identifying the notes that the Brûlerie suggested were there: animal, woody, tobacco leaves, and iris (listed on the face of the storage container in the shop), and hazelnut and peanut (noted on the bag). I finally decided that the coffee was robust with a mild fruity, woody flavor. It tasted somewhat bitter, but that taste was balanced by a curious sweetness at the same time. No sugar, then, was necessary to sweeten this espresso.

Brûlerie des Gobelins
2, avenue des Gobelins
75005 Paris

During a recent visit to the town of Versailles, I decided to stop in at Terres de Café to see what espresso they were serving that day. I learned that they were serving an Ethiopian roast called Yeti. However, the barista told me that they had sold out of 250g bags, so I would need to purchase a 1 kg bag if I wanted to take beans home.

Because I did not want to purchase such a large quantity of coffee, I opted to forgo tasting the espresso of the day.

Instead, I decided to purchase and take home a 250g bag of Geisha Santa Maria that I saw on the display shelf.

The coffee is grown on a farm called Santa Maria in the Nariño Buesaco region in Colombia. I ground 18g of beans finely and brewed an espresso with my 9Barista stove-top machine. The result was a sweet, hearty coffee with intensely fruity notes, which I identified as clementine. As well as clementine, the tasting notes on the bag also indicate lemongrass, jasmine, red fruits, and cane sugar.

Terres de Café
6, rue des 2 Portes
78000 Versailles

Verlet has been selling roasted coffee on rue Saint-Honoré since 1880. The café exudes Old World charm with dark wood tables, chairs, and display shelves.

We passed by last week to try one of their espressos. They serve seven rare and seasonal coffees:

Blue Mountain from Jamaica
Bourbon Pointu from New Caledonia
Geisha from Panama
Galapagos San Cristobal from Equator
Kopi Luwak from Indonesia
Matari from Yemen
Napoléon from Saint Helena

I wanted to try Geisha from Panama, but they were out of stock. The waitress suggested that I try Blue Mountain from Jamaica, which she said has similar characteristics. I took her advice and ordered a cup.

A square of dark chocolate was served alongside.

Although I could not detect the tobacco, roasted almond, cedar, and black currant blossom aromas to which the information card alluded, I found the coffee to be satisfyingly sweet and smooth.

I purchased a 125-gram bag of roasted coffee beans and took them home to brew with my 9Barista stovetop espresso machine. There, I was able to detect the aroma of roasted almond in my first cup. I also observed that the coffee had a sweet fruity flavor, which I have been unable to identify. Black currant blossom, perhaps?

Verlet
256, rue Saint-Honoré
75001 Paris

Dose Café has been operating on rue Mouffetard for several years now. Selling coffees, teas, and pastries, it has an open window for take-out service, a sheltered sidewalk terrace, and a tiny space inside for sit-down service.

I entered recently to find out what espresso they were preparing for the day. The server at the counter told me that I could have L’Assemblage de Max, an espresso made with a blend of three grains, or Brésil – Ferme Rio Brilhante, an espresso made from a single-origin grain.

I selected the latter.

I also purchased a 250-gram bag of the roasted Brazilian coffee beans for 9.90€. The server told me that the coffee was roasted in Paris by The Beans on Fire, a coffee shop and roasting facility located in the 18th arrondissement.

When the espresso was served, I was pleased that a nice crema covered its surface. I tasted the beverage and thought I could detect the orange aroma to which the tasting notes printed on the bag referred. It is a pleasant-tasting coffee that does not require sweetening with sugar.

Taking the beans home, I prepared a brew with my 9Barista stove-top espresso machine. I was happy to be able to replicate the crema, the delightful orange aroma, and the agreeable robust flavor of the espresso that I experienced at the coffee shop.

Dose
73, rue Mouffetard
75005 Paris

Cofftea & Shop lies off the beaten tourist circuit on rue Berthollet in the 5th arrondissement. I entered the other day to taste the espresso served there.

At the left side of the room is a serving counter where one can find a selection of beverages and pastries as well as hot dishes for lunch. Customers order at the counter, pay, and then sit at a table to wait for the food and beverages to be prepared.

Overall, the shop is a pleasant place in which to relax. The staff is friendly. The main room has butcher-block style tables with a big family-style table in the middle. A long wooden wall bench stands against the wall to the right, where there are individual tables. Tall, wide windows admit ample natural light, but there is also spot lighting on the ceiling. Framed abstract art decorates the walls. There is a cozy little tea room in the back. The day that I entered, the music of Jimmy Reed was playing over the sound system.

The espresso served that day was Honduras – San Andrés Lempira.   It is supplied by Ivan Alfaro, a coffee roaster located in the 14th arrondissement. I looked up his name on the Internet and found that he has been in the coffee business since 1986. Caffea & Shop is one of the four enterprises listed on his website where his coffee can be purchased.

The espresso that I was served was aromatic with a honey-like sweetness. I purchased a 250-gram bag of roasted beans to take home to brew with my 9Barista stove-top espresso maker. Information printed on the bag indicates that the coffee expresses hazelnut, cacao, and honey notes. The espresso that my machine produced was full-bodied and naturally sweet.

Cafftea & Shop
8 rue Berthollet
75005 Paris

We entered the coffee. on rue Cardinal Lemoine last week to try their espresso and hot chocolate. This coffee shop is part of a world-wide franchise that, according to its website, has twelve coffee shops in Paris.

The manager told us that the coffee. was founded by two Portuguese brothers who were inspired by the severe decorative style that they saw in Japan. Indeed, the interior of this shop is stark, with bare walls and minimalist design.

The manager stated that the coffee bean used for the preparation of their espresso comes from Brazil. The bean is roasted in Portugal, then packaged in a white bag that is sold to customers who want to make their own espresso at home.

According to the company’s website, the bean is Amarillo Bourbon (Bourbon Yellow), produced in the Mantiqueira de Minas region of Brazil.

I ordered an espresso and my partner a hot chocolate. I found the espresso to be robust and slightly sweet with notes of chocolate. My partner enjoyed her hot chocolate but stated that it was not as rich (i.e., creamy) as she would have preferred.

I purchased a 250-gram bag of the whole-bean for 11.60€. I took it home, where I brewed a cup of espresso with my 9Barista stove-top espresso machine using 18 grams of finely ground coffee and 120 grams of low-calcium spring water. The resulting beverage was agreeably similar to the espresso that I tasted in the coffee shop.

the coffee.
77, rue du Cardinal Lemoine
75005 Paris

On November 11, a day when most roasted coffee distributors were closed, my partner and I went to L’Arbre à Café. Located on carrefour de l’Odeon in the 6th arrondissement, the establishment opened about two months ago.

The interior is handsome and spacious. My partner and I took a seat at a tall table while the manager prepared a cup of hot chocolate for my partner and an espresso for me. He was serving two types of coffee that day. One was a blend, the other a single-origin café. I ordered the latter, which is called Gédéo. It comes from Ethiopia.

The espresso had a fruity flavor and tasted slightly sweet. I was unable to detect other aromas. I did not add sugar.

I purchased a 250-gram bag of whole-bean coffee for 16.90€, took it home, ground 18 grams, and brewed an espresso with my 9Barista. The coffee that I pulled tasted much like the one that I had just experienced at L’Arbre à Café. The following day, when I ground the coffee to its maximum fineness, I tasted a more pronounced fruity flavor. The package indicates that it is slightly acidulous and characterized by aromas of red fruit, vanilla, and cane sugar.

L’Arbre à Café
15, carrefour de l’Odéon
75006 Paris