Monday, August 16, 2010

Fast food à la Paris and the rue du Mail

When I go to Paris by myself, it is usually for a day trip, which means that time is luxury. Economizing on the lunch hour is a great way to save time..

I nearly caved in when walking past this charming little restaurant near the Bourse, the outdoor tables waiting for customers, laid with crisp, white tablecloths and starched napkins. A place DH and I would have stopped for lunch, if we were in the city of lights together..

..but I had plenty of errands to run, and so on I went. After a while of course, I began to feel a pang of hunger, which was when this beautiful, old fashioned boulangerie came to my rescue..

They had a few tables outside on the pavement, where customers could eat, and inside a wonderful selection of artisan bread, made into delicious sandwiches. Drinks, salads and the most scrumptions looking patisseries rounded up the offer.

Boulangerie Vavasseur
10 Place des Petits Pères
75002 Paris
Tel 01 42 60 90 23
A short time later, I was ready to go, checking out the beautiful fabric shops in the nearby Rue du Mail.. among them Pierre Frey, Brunschwig et Fils and one of my favorites, Chelsea Textiles, who make beautiful hand embroidered curtains, cushios and upholstery fabrics. Here is one of their floral cushions, which I bought years ago in their charming little London shop on Walton street

Chelsea Textiles
13 Walton street
London SW3 2HX
T: +44 20 7584 5544

Chelsea Textiles Paris
13-15 rue du Mail
75002 Paris
T: +33 1 40 26 50 11

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PS. I am running late with catching up on everyones lovely comments on the previous posts, but will do so very soon. See you then, ladies :-)

17 comments:

  1. I love Pierre Frey's fabrics and Walton St is one of my favourite haunts. Paris for me in December, can't wait, I'm going to try out the train station bar ( prosaic, can't recall it's name!) I read about on your blog.

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  2. OMG those shops look heaven MaiTai I will be sure to try and at least see the patisserie when I am in Paris in a few days time(airport strike here allowing!). Thank you for sharing your delightful trip through Paris, wonderful!

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  3. I so love it when you take us along with you to the city of lights!
    Your photos and prose transport me to these beautiful streets and cafes.
    What a delight to pop in at the end of a long day and take this journey with you! The only problem is that I am starving...must not let the lure of the pastries distract me!
    Big hug,
    T xxo

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  4. Oh, I miss Paris terribly and I always love hearing about people's finds and faves in the city of lights. Like you, whenever I am there I try and cram as much in as I can and end up eating lunch on the run, and this little boulangerie looks fabulous. I am in London in three weeks so will add that shop to my list!

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  5. How lovely!! Cannot wait to check this out when I'm in Paris this Sept. It would be so nice, if we could visit this place or two once if we're in Paris together, wonderful week to you <3

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  6. These photos are divine! What a lovely day. You are lucky to live so close to Paris.

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  7. What a charming post MaiTai. Thank you for sharing your recent journey through Paris.... it was nice to enjoy it-- even from a distance.

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  8. Again, you managed to make us feel, as if we were walking right along with you throuh the streets of beautiful Paris! Thank you so much for sharing those special places with us. Hugs and best wishes, Macs

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  9. Dearest MaiTai, I discovered your blog very recently and have become completely enamoured of Hermes scarves! And may I say, you are really very lovely.

    I'm planning to pick up a couple of scarves in the duty-free section of the airport (struggling student, you understand) and am so, so excited about it. I've been obsessively trying colours next to my face :-) I blame you totally.

    In your expert opinion, is it worth spending a little bit more to purchase a scarf at the actual Parisian boutique? I'll be heading to Paris next year and was considering that option.

    Thanks for such a wonderful blog!

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  10. Makes me want to hop on a plane and visit Paris ASAP!
    Your cushion reminds me of a pillow I embroidered many years ago. The crewel work is beautiful on the fabrics.
    Thanks for taking the time to give us a little travelogue!

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  11. Thx for taking us along on your daytrip to Paris. I can't think of a more stylish host.

    The little cafe looks like a perfect spot to practice one of my favorite things to do while in Paris - spend an afternoon taking in the daily life of Paris and Parisians.

    Enjoy your vacation!!

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  12. Tabitha dear, have a wonderful time in Paris in December! The train station bar is called ‘Train Bleu’ and it’s located in the Gare the Lyon. Love Walton street too!

    Have fun in the city of lights, dear Scarf Addict, and fingers crossed that the strike will have ended before. Happy you enjoyed the post, thank you x

    Aww Trudye, and you were there right along with me, comme d’habitude! Starving too now, must not read my blog before dinner time, lol.

    Oh how I miss London, dear Miss Kitty-Cat! Wishing you the most fabulous time there. Walton street is a gem, it starts right were Conran and Josephs are located on the Fulham Road, and it ends at Harrods. Have fun!

    How I wish we could go to these places together one day, dear DD! Two people, twice the fun! One day we will... I hope!

    Thank you, dear FF! Thank heavens for the TGV, which makes it all possible, it is a true blessing.

    So happy you liked coming with me on the trip, dear SMR, thank you <3

    My dear hair-mess, like I said to the others, it always feels as if you were there right with me, and it adds so much extra fun. Hugs!

    A warm welcome to my blog, dear Frances, and to the orange silky side! A good bargain at the duty free is definitely something worth going for, and if it is a scarf you love, go go go! A visit to FSH is always fun of course, but can be enjoyed just as much if you bought your scarf elsewhere. Try to avoid Friday and Saturday though, it can get very crowded then.

    Thank you, dear gracekelly, and hop over quick! Please don’t forget to bring one of your beautiful cushions with you, I adore embroidery and would love to see yours x

    You got your priorities right, dear Valencia, and I would love to join you ‘sur la terrace’! Thank you for your lovely comment and good wishes <3

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  13. Thanks for posting these pictures. Takes me back to my recent trip to Paris. So wish I could make it just a day trip...

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  14. Hi liness, so nice to see you here. I hope you had a fabulous time in Paris, it very much sounds like it! Happy you liked the pics, thank you x

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  15. Hello again Mai Tai. Thank you for the very gracious welcome. You have inspired me to go University 2 days in a row, in capsule wardrobes "a la Mai Tai", yesterday with a 70 x 70 H scarf, today with a Twilly. AND two H bracelets I discovered in the archives.
    You have no idea how many compliments I received.
    (Perhaps because until yesterday I have been trundling out to the Uni wearing shorts and t shirts, no make up, no jewellery, and comfortable shoes to celebrate the arrival of the menopause, and act like all the other students.)
    You and Faux Fuchsia have truly inspired me to "lift my game", paint my nails and wear my H collection.

    I must sincerely compliment both of you for being inspirational, kind and thoughtful and generous.

    Arnie has modelled several "Mai Tai looks" for the camera, I'll try to send some photos to you. Arnie is also running a campaign to get Mr Blighty to buy Mrs B a Cashmere Hermes Scarf for Christmas.

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  16. I wish I had visit those beautiful places last week when I was in Paris. I miss that city so much already!!!Thank you, dear MaiTai, for all the useful information that your blog contains. It contributed to make my trip a wonderful one!!! Hug.

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  17. Dear Louise, your kind comments and lovely story made my day! Wonderful to hear that the beautiful things you've added to ‘la vie quotidian’ made you happy, and it’s double the joy when appreciated by others too. Hooray for getting the H out, and I hope you will continue to have fun ‘H-ing up’ Uni life. Looking very much forward to seeing photos of Arnie in his splendour, and please count me in as a supporter of his Blighty H scarf xmas campaign!

    There is always a next time, dearest Manuela, and in the meantime, there is something lovely to dream about! So happy to hear that your last trip was special and wonderful. Hugs!

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