I recently went to a small café called Ten Belles, located in the 6th arrondissement, to purchase some roasted coffee beans.
I asked the barista which espressos they were preparing that day. She mentioned two single-origin and one blended coffee. When she said that the blend, called Le Mixtape, had notes of chocolate, I decided to order that.
Le Mixtape was a combination of beans from Brazil and Colombia, specifically, Rio Brilhante and Huitaca. The coffee is roasted at the company’s coffee roasting facility in the 20th arrondissement of Paris.
As it was lunchtime, I ordered a grilled cheese sandwich, called Veggie Toastie.
I ate the sandwich first. It consisted of grated Comté cheese prepared with parsley and sliced and cooked button mushrooms between two slices of grilled wheat bread. It was wonderfully flavorful and it satisfied my noontime hunger.
I then took a sip of water and tasted the espresso. It did indeed have chocolate flavor, just as the barista had proclaimed.
I purchased a 250g bag of the Mixtape blend, took it home, ground a portion, and then prepared an espresso that tasted much like the one that I had experienced at Ten Belles. I also noted that the brew was unctuous with rich, full-bodied flavor. The brewing process produced a robust crema.
The interior of Ten Belles is small, with seating available at four small tables. (There is additional sidewalk seating.) I was able to get an inside table at the window, with a view of the interior of the shop. I felt lucky to get a table at all, because there was a constant flow of customers coming in to place orders. I believe that most of them were there to order takeout, so the tables did not fill up quickly.
The personnel behind the counter were helpful and answered all of my questions. They did not serve customers at the tables. Rather, they called the customers to pick up the order at the counter once it was ready. I was called to the counter twice: once for the espresso and a second time for the grilled sandwich.
Ten Belles
53, rue du Cherche Midi
75006 Paris
