Paris Day 5
21 November 2007
We were sitting in Le Petit St. Paul, a small bistro south of Place de Vosges, after we had begun sipping wine from the small lunch time carafe that was our treat, but before lunch itself had arrived, when the waiter whisked up with salt and pepper shakers for our table. Minutes later, we watched him move the salt and pepper shakers from an adjacent table that had just been served lunch, to a table that had just arrived. And sure enough, shortly after our food arrived, he did the same thing again, taking our salt and pepper shakers and handing them off to another table. At first, we thought that maybe the restaurant was under-inventoried on salt & pepper shakers, but after watching a while we realized that in fact we were witnessing another part of the ballet that is French bistro table service!
One of the most unique aspects of French bistro dining is that the tables are soooo close together. In order to squeeze into a chair opposite the aisle, the waiter must literally pull the table away from the wall and into the aisle. After squeezing around the table, and trying oh so carefully not to sweep wine, water, bread, etc. from the neighboring table onto the floor, you plop down and the table is slid back into place, sealing you into your chair and leaving you especially happy to have made that stop to the WC before sitting down! By the time a restaurant really gets hopping, diners are literally elbow to elbow, walkways between tables have disappeared, and there isn’t a square inch of table visible anywhere below the plates, bottles, glasses, and food that form a continuous fabric beneath diner’s elbows.
At Le Petit St. Paul we concluded, while consuming a wonderful blanquette de veau (me) and quiche lorraine (Laura), that there just isn’t room on the table for lingering salt and pepper shakers. And so we returned to sipping our wine …
… For dessert, we had crepes with Nutella for Laura and with confiture de pommes (an apple spread) for me. Way good, and followed by an espresso, we were ready for the Musee Picasso a comfortable walk away. Following an afternoon of drifting through small Paris streets, and a Kronenbourg or two, we found ourselves at Tete Ailleurs, a Mediterranean inspired bistro on a narrow street near our hotel, that served, among other fine dishes, small prawns on caramelized eggplant, and a wonderful main dish of steamed artichokes that defies most other description. An excellent finale!
– Chris