Paris - May 2022 Trip and Plans

Regional Dining Discussions France
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It is now getting to the time where I will be finalizing my Paris plans. This is a long delayed trip from 2020. Fitting that it was delayed 2 years.

Unless work rears its head, I will be flying out on May 13 to London and then heading via train to Paris. Will be in Paris from May 14-23.

It has been, up until now, incredibly early to make any reservations. I am staying at Le Roch in the 1st Arrondissement (my favorite hotel in Paris) and the Concierge team there is helping me with the following reservations:

Le Grand - Lunch
Septime - Dinner
Mosuke - Lunch
Pantagruel - Dinner

I am not sure of the dates yet (or even if I got them), but as soon as I do, will update the schedule.

The things I am certain about are as follows:

Saturday, May 14, Dinner - Restaurant Montee (this is and remains one of my favorite restaurants in Paris. I have written about my two previous trips there on my website - https://www.mlleshetravels.com/single-post/2019/09/16/mlleshetravels-restaurant-review-montée-in-two-parts-part-2). Apologies for the formatting. I need to sit down and fix a few things, but other things have taken priority!

Sunday, May 15, Dinner - Le Chardenoux

Other places that are on my list include a number of women owned/operated restaurants like Le Servan, Pouliche, Sadarnac, Coretta, and Le Truffaut.

Also looking into Granite and the new Michelin 3 star at the Cheval Blanc just for fun. Seeing if my friend who is joining me for the second weekend would be game for that one on Sunday night.

Will keep this updated as more plans solidify and then post reviews and thoughts.

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Sounds like an excellent trip, we look forward to your report.

Your comment about using the hotel concierge reminded me of a near disaster years ago. I used a concierge to book lunch at Jules Verne for an important proposal, and she faxed me the details. I went at the appointed time and the doors were locked. I pulled out the fax to confirm that the time was 2:30pm, but I noticed a crease in the fax. When stretched out it revealed a missing “1” before the 2.

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Good choice for both restaurants. Pantagruel review here.

Mosuke - the wait can be really long (months!) but excellent food. (Review post soon, had a meal sometime ago…)

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Granite is now booked for dinner on Friday, May 20th.

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Ooh! I’ll be in Paris at the end of May. I should probably start looking into dining options myself!

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My friend and I are requesting to see if we can get a table for May 22 at Plenitude. We shall see.

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Booked through July 17. On wait list. We shall see.

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Restaurant Montee for that first Saturday night booked. The trip is feeling more real now.

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Thursday, May 19 - a day in Reims. Taking the TGV out early, arriving at 8:30. Will walk to Veuve for a 9:30 AM cellar tour and tasting. Then it is off to Assiette Champenoise for lunch. Afterwards, a 2:30 tasting and tour at Ruinart. Then 2.5 to 3 hours to kill seeing the cathedral, etc… before catching a 7:15 train back to Paris. Looking forward to that day. I have stayet at Assiette Champenoise, but did not partake in the restaurant the last time I was there. Also, it was November, so all the caves were closed.

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Envious! Of the large houses, Veuve Cliquot is my favorite.

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Updated schedule:

May 14 - Dinner, Restaurant Montee
May 15 - Lunch, TBD; Dinner, Le Chardenoux (I am on the waitlist - thought I had grabbed a res, but I did not…oops).
May 16 - Lunch, TBD; Dinner, Septime (Concierge at hotel is on point to book. TBD).
May 17 - Lunch, TBD; Dinner, Pantagruel (confirmed)
May 18 - Lunch, Mosuke (confirmed); Dinner, TBD
May 19 - Lunch, Assiette Champenoise (confirmed); Dinner (most likely not needed! but if hungry, will be something light)
May 20 - Lunch, Le Grand (confirmed); Dinner, Granite (confirmed)
May 21 - Lunch, TBD; Dinner, Le Servan (TBD)
May 22 - Lunch, Somewhere at the Ouen Flea Markets; Dinner, On wait list at Plenitude, otherwise, TBD
May 23 - Back Home!

Am going to try and fit in a mixture of Pouliche, Sadarnac, Papillon, and La Condesa. Honestly, there are just WAY too many places.

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And now I am stuck. Do I really want to go to Septime? I went for lunch back in 2017. Since, it has been lauded as one of the best restaurants in Paris. Thoughts?

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I for one have no affection whatsoever for Septime. Just one of these subjective things.

The only thing I like about it is the location. But in this area, I much prefer the much more enjoyable Virtus for a 1-star.

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Yeah, you told me that over on Chowhound. I am still up in the air. They do not take reservations yet, so I have some time to make up my mind. I am pretty indifferent on location. I am staying in the 1st, so everywhere is relatively easy to get to and from.

I honestly wish I had a few more days. Who knew after all the time I have spent in Paris in the past that 9 nights wouldn’t be enough.

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Hitching a ride! ( I’m going in September).

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From St. Pellegrino’s 50 best list, this quip, " What’s the appeal? Septime is a super-cool place on a cool street run by cool people, frequented by cool customers."

Seriously…

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Super-cool? One of the reasons I don’t like it is because it’s now so un-cool. Just another stop on the tourist choo-choo.

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My sarcasm flew past you? It had become as you described five years ago.

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We went for dinner once – now quite a few years ago, but even then it was just becoming a “must” and we were, I admit, somewhat in FOMO mode.

We prioritize avoiding being surrounded by fellow Americans (even nice ones like those reading this) and so we’ve never gone again since.

I suspect there must be literally 100s of places in Paris of similar (or better) quality, vibe, and overall feel.

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Thanks, all. I think this makes my decision simple. I was lucky to go for lunch before it was too cool. It didn’t become one of my favorite places., so should probably knock more places off my list. I’ll let the hotel concierge know.