SnackTime With Jen— A Week In Paris With The Mothership, January 15th

Never one to gatekeep a good idea, travel tip, beauty ritual, swoon worthy item or delectable dessert, I had a wonderfully nourishing experience witnessing my Mom have an extraordinary trip that I’m sure she will remember forever because I know I certainly will. Of course it was amazing for me too!

The Mothership was scheduled for a full week in Paris during my workation. Mom’s been to France a few times before so she’s already checked the boxes of visiting the Palace of Versailles, Louvre Museum, Centre Pompidou, Galeries Lafayette, and the Eiffel Tower. So I lined up a legendary new itinerary of cool shops, fun activities, amazing treats, and spectacular restaurants for us to try together. In fact, this was her second year visiting me so we were both fairly certain that it was going to be a blast, but it was even better than either of us expected, especially the snacks.

I kicked off her visit with a huge welcome carbfest from my favorite boulangerie Mamiche. I got her a still warm butter Croissant, a Cheese Stick, a Choux, and a Baguette with good French butter and she went bananas for everything. She said it was the best Croissant she had ever tasted and loved the indulgent crispy cheddar edges on the Cheese Stick. And she was blown away by the crème in the Choux of course! Yet another satisfied customer. Already a rave review and her visit had just begun.

After she unpacked and settled in, we walked around for a bit close to my flat in the 10th. Thanx God I’m A VIP was our first stop to view color coded vintage finds that span several connected rooms. She tried on a cool leather jacket and I was sampling hats but we left empty handed.

La Trésoreire around the corner was next and we each picked up a few knick knacks and knives. Centre Commercial owned by the Veja sneaker folks has a smattering of shoes, sunnies, sweaters and a perfume wall so we meandered there until her jet lag kicked in.

We hoofed it home after for some sweet treats including a Chocolate Scone with a hint of orange essence that she loved and a super moist Swirly Pound Cake both from Mamiche Traiteur and turned in super early.

The next day we were up with the sun to dine at Holybelly which serves a sensational American breakfast well known to moms, tourists, locals, and Expats. And for good reason. The food is inexpensive, they are family friendly and the menu hits.

We each ordered two perfectly poached eggs with toasted organic sourdough. I picked the super crispy hash brown patty and grilled halloumi cheese as my two sides and Mom opted for the savory sautéed mushrooms and the lightly dressed side salad. We literally gobbled up every bite!

Hours later after admiring haute couture history at La Galerie Dior and visiting the beautifully decorated Dior store, we walked miles and miles along the famed Avenue des Champs-Élysées popping into the gigantic Sephora, gargantuan Zara, glitzy Louis Vuitton, and multilevel Monoprix. I think we visited every single store on the strip!

Ready for an afternoon treat we made our way to L’Épicerie Ateliers du Bristol for a mini sweet brioche and a cup of their signature hot chocolate which we nibbled and sipped in their swanky lobby. It was the perfect pick me up to keep us going.

Before dinner that night we walked through the Marais, browsing at my favorite hat shop Headoniste to visit with the owner and designer Veronique and landing at Merci to peruse their housewares, clothes, scarves, socks, linens, and desk accessories.

Our evening reservations were at the new pizza hotspot called OOBATZ in the 11th. They are only open from 6-10pm four days a week and I was so lucky to score a primetime reservation. To say this meal was fantastic would be an understatement. The menu is small with just six kinds of pizza in numbered order, but the food is ridiculous.

We started with a Salad de Rougette with a homemade vinaigrette. We have no idea what they put in that dressing but the salad was perfectly composed and so delicious. (It reminded me of the Little Gem from Via Carota in the West Village. Wow.) I think it’s the first time in Mom’s life that she didn’t add salt or pepper to a salad someone else made. A revelation! She was such a happy camper.

And for our pizza course we shared the number Un that had sauce tomate, mozzarella di bufala and baslic. The crust was thin and crispy and the red sauce was sweet, tangy and perfect. We also got the number Cinq which was sauceless but covered in chanterelle mushrooms and mozzarella di bufala. It was one of those life changingly good bites that we are still talking about months later!

We finished up with the Pizzaookie, a sharable warm chocolate chip cookie with a melty scoop of glace vanille. The meal was a complete triumph and we can’t wait to return.

So full from the night before we skipped breakfast the next day and launched right into a day of activities including early bird tickets to Musée d’Orsay and a stroll over the Seine along the Pont Royal through the Jardin des Tuileries and onto the Right Bank to browse the 1st.

We found ourselves a little peckish after skipping meal one so we picked a random spot called Charly and sat inside to escape the chill. She ordered a Salmon Salad over greens with mango that looked incredible. The kid sitting next to us was having a tantrum under the table while his unbothered parents munched on his good looking Chicken Fingers and fries. So at the last minute I changed my healthy salad order and switched to the Kid’s Meal. PS– Mom was catfished! Hers looked so good but tasted awful– frozen mango and tasteless veggies, but mine was terrific thank goodness. No wonder the kid’s parents were unbothered! So we happily split mine.

Refueled we hit Morgan Bello for fancy jewelry browsing, Oh My Cream! for high end makeup, Per Lei Bijoux for affordable gems, and Foucher Chocolates to load up on my favorite Jellies for her to sample in Paris and take home too. She became an instant lover of these sweet snacks claiming that they put all Passover jellies to shame. But of course they do, Mom. Yay!

We finally broke stride late afternoon to Click & Collect the goodies I preordered at Cedric Grolet at Le Meurice. If you don’t know Cedric Grolet you should. He is probably the most famous pastry chef in Paris due to his huge Instagram following. His creations are gorgeous and very pricey and lines snake down the block. So I ordered ahead to skip the queue. I got the Lemon Tart and the Vanilla Beans and both were multi-layered artistry and supremely creamy and divine.

We also managed to visit the department store Printemps and had a blast at the Typology and Chanel counters where we picked up a few fun beauty items including Glow Drops, and Mascara from Typology and a handful of Chanel’s newest products.

Before dinner we walked a few more streets hitting the famous perfume store NOSE, 58M for shoes, Manoush for brilliant colored patterned clothes, Ba&sh to browse, Cos, and the Agnes B. flagship.

Dinner that night included a memorable walk on my favorite foodie street Rue Montorgueil. We landed at my go-to casual spot, Le Compas, where we of course had the Salmon Tartare with fries. It is always a sure thing. After a dinner of great comfort food and terrific hospitality we stopped into Venchi up the block for gelato and walked home. What a day!

Sunday was a little drizzly so we slept in a bit and then Metro’d to the famous flea market at Saint-Ouen. Out of the hundreds of stalls and booths and markets, we liked the Paul Bert Serpette section best. We found these special vintage Hermès bottle openers but sadly they were catastrophically out of our price range. (I hope they are there next year. I’m still in love!)

We also marveled at the furniture, art, lighting, collectibles, and jewelry. Mom decided she would like to redo her entire condo from all of the fabulous furnishings we saw and I was on board completely. When it was finally time, we hopped into an Uber and we were off to lunch.

Our reservations were at the sold out Le Coq et Fils in Montmartre known to serve the best roasted chicken in Paris. Growing up my Grandmother made an incredible roasted chicken on the spit and so of course she taught my my Mom to make an amazing roasted chicken with fabulous gravy, celery, carrots, and onions. The best. So to bring Mom to a restaurant that had comparably good chicken was a risk. But one that paid off. Whew. She loved it so much!

Especially their jus and fries. We both couldn’t stop dipping the salty fries into the hearty and flavorful golden jus. Every bite was incredible.

And the Île Flottante for dessert was a dreamy soft meringue island floating atop a bowl of sweet crème anglaise with shattered pink nuts scattered on top. A marvel of a dessert.

Smiling, we exited lunch into a massive crowd of people touring Montmartre. The foot traffic was crazy and our taxi could barely navigate the packed streets back down to the flat where we rested for a minute, changed footwear and then bounced back out bound for an intense visit to every floor of the glamorous department store La Samaritaine before dinner.

Our meal that evening was at the top of the gorgeous Cheval Blanc Hotel at the Michelin Starred Le Tout Paris overlooking the Seine. I wanted her to be blown away and the extravagant food and warm ambiance did not disappoint!

I started with a Bohemian Raspberry mocktail with raspberry syrup, lemon juice, and green tea. It was so foamy, sweet, and refreshing. Definitely the best drink I’ve ever had. Mom opted for a glass of Champagne and we toasted the night. Our amuse-bouche was a tiny vegetable cracker with some edible flowers. The complementary Gougeres sprinkled with cheese were warm and delicious! We were off to a great start.

For our first course we shared the Gravlax de Saint-Pierre frotté aux baies roses. This was John Dory gravlax with pink peppercorns, shaved grapefruit slices and charred broccoli in a grapefruit vinaigrette. It was immaculate.

We also shared this artfully arranged Tarte Champignons– a delicate mushroom tart with grilled ceps, chanterelles, and trumpets topped with a creamy yellow wine custard. This was as dreamy as it was stunning.

For our main course we shared the Saint-Jacques velours iodé de ses bardes– Scallops simply roasted with thyme and iodized salt. They were puffy perfection. We also ordered the flavorful Bar en portefeuille, vierge d’automne– grilled Sea Bass with an autumn sauce which was just exceptional.

Our sides were the magnificent Puréed Butter Mashed Potatoes with crispy fried capers and their breathtaking Butternut Squash Boulangère arranged like the most beautiful edible rosette.

Dessert was a sharable potion of their scrumptious crisp on the outside and tender on the inside Pain Perdu with vanilla ice cream. It was sensational. We also nibbled on the complementary mini choux and chocolate discs. The meal was extraordinary in every way. Certainly star-worthy in our book!

The next day we were up and out early to visit Xavier at Pret Pour Partir for coat shopping at his incredible showroom which was so much fun. See my full post at https://jenslittleblackbook.com/2025/01/08/ready-set-go-january-8th/ for all the deets.

We worked up quite an appetite trying on outerwear so we cruised by The Ritz Paris and stopped by their famed Le Comptoir to try a raspberry covered Madeleine which was like a fluffy cloud with a molten heart. It was tasty but their shatteringly good slim Chocolate Pain Au Chocolat stopped us in our tracks!

We had to head back to the flat to drop off the coats and then ventured out sans heavy packages to walk the Marais in it’s entirety. We hit Dover Market to see the edgy fashions, Officine Universelle Buly 1803 for combs and solid monogrammed perfumes, From Future for bright cashmere, Kujten for low key cashmere, Veja for sneakers, Bobbies for clothes, Satellite for costume jewelry, Trippin for more shoes, Miki Mialy for Japanese inspired fashions, Nuovo for vintage gems, and the H&M pop up. Mom got a kick out of trying on vintage sunnies and I scored a vintage pearl bracelet.

We walked for hours until we were tired and hungry. Enter Carette– arguably the best café on the Right Bank and it overlooks the scenic Place des Vosges. Mom ordered the Salmon with string beans and fries and I had my usual Chicken Club sando with the great cole slaw in the middle. And we of course shared their amazing Hot Chocolate with a mountain of whipped cream for dessert. Their presentation is just a wow.

Spent from the day, we brought in Sushi Shop for a late dinner and relaxed at home with chopsticks and a hearty spread.

A Left Bank shopping excursion was the perfect way to spend her last full day. We hit Le Prestic Ouiston for silk scarves and shirts, Manoush for clutches and shoes, Bac 117 for housewares, Sézane for French girl staples, Foucher for more take home Jellies, Le Grand Epicerie’s second floor for housewares and knives, and Le Bon Marché for gorgeous gloves, Violette FR lip balm, and cute zippy travel pouches. We both loved the signature scent Honorine Eau de Parfum at the trendy boutique Balzac so we both got the travel sized roll on. So good!

We had reservations for lunch at Café Varenne and sat comfortably inside, packages in tow. Mom was so excited to revisit this Barefoot Contessa approved bistro that she loved last year too. We both had the Warm Goat Cheese Salad with haricot vert and their amazing mustardy dressing and a side of addictive fries. Heavenly!

Packing her up was our next activity but we still had enough time before dinner to stroll into the jewelry store Yay for great peal earrings, and The Broken Arm to browse sneaker collabs and Prada shoes. Parcelles, the Michelin recommended gem in the Marais, was the cozy setting for our final meal together.

We started with their famous tender Roasted Scallops with spaghetti squash and grapefruit foam and the incredible Grilled Leeks with vadouvan sabayon, vinegar and brown butter breadcrumbs. The Scallops were small but sweet and the Leeks were insane! That sabayon was so light and savory– possibly the best veggie dish ever. We loved both.

For dinner Mom ordered the flowery Seared Monk Fish with grilled pointed cabbage, and celery purée in a beurre blanc sauce and I had the Homemade Gnocchi in a pool of sage butter and dappled with fried sage leaves. Divine!

We finished with a decadent slice of the Chocolate Tart that housed a caramelized pecan scatter and a side of fresh whipped cream. The Tart was fudgy and the whip was the perfect cool accent to offset the rich texture of the chocolate. Stuffed, we slowly walked home arm in arm in the chilly air back to the flat.

I was teary sending her off the next morning and packed her a generous baguette sandwich for the long flight home. And believe it or not her favorite salty crunch of the trip ended up being the sleeper hit– the Poulet Rôti flavored chips from Lay’s. I even snuck a bag into her suitcase before she left! They are tangy, salty and really taste like chicken. I too became a fan. Yummy!

We had such a great time together. These memories will last a lifetime… or until we do it again later this year with some old favorites and lots of new spots to try. We are already booked for 2025!