Places I Will Always LOVE…
•Les Petrelles, in the 9th,  one chef one little kitchen that is the size of a closet, ancient books, rose petals on the table, totally romantic.
•Gagnaire– what is not to love about his wonderful intellectual take on us and what we eat. ($$$$)
•LʼAmi  Louis– if you have never been, you should go ($$$$)
•L’Ami Jean– 7th, on rue Malar * bistro (steak and meats)
•LʼAffriole– also on rue  Malar (very nice, not too expensive, somewhat innovative and good chocolate trio dessert)
•Chez George– rue du mail near bourse, really delicious turbot, wonderful atmosphere, old fashioned, perfect wines, real bistro French food  as we still wished it to be!  Great waitresses, lunch is perfect.
•Allard– another great old bistro, but is coming back with better than ever food, everyone knows it, but they do make a great cucumber salad.

Our Very Newest Places… good value, delicious food…
•LʼAgrume –5 Rue des Fossés Saint-Marcel, Paris – 01 43 31 86 48 about 35 euros,
•La Ferrandaise, open Mondays, refers to a type of cattle, very tasty, also has fish and veggie entrees, prix fixe, fyi- 3 courses, about 32 euros, 8 rue de Vaugirard, 01-43-26-36-36, near Luxembourg gardens (and itʼs open on Monday nights!) 32 euros prix fixe

Highly Recommended…
•Yam’Tcha, 4 rue Sauval, 1st, Tel. 01-40-26-08-07. Metro: Louvre-Rivoli (Asian foods)
•Le 404—  very good for Moroccan food
•Chez Omar, if you like the atmosphere of noise  and bustle (note:  Omar  always makes you wait, even if you have made a reservation!)

Multi-Star Restaurants (trés cher $250-$300 plus wine, pp)
•2010 : Z kitchen Gallerie:  (exceptional price: $ 100 pp w/out wine) least expensive but highly rated, casual, and Carl and I liked it very much, slightly rushed service. Asian touches 6th arr. just off the quays of the 6th Astrance, in 8th, rue Washington,  good for lunch or dinner, hard to get a reservation
•Guy Savoy,  always delicious and probably open for NYʼs Eve, near Arc de Triomphe
•LʼAmbrosie, Place des Vosges, romantic, traditional and delicious
•Gagnaire: 8th, rue Balzac, in Hotel Balzac where I used to stay in the 60s when I was airline stewardess (TWA). I have eaten there 2x’s, intellectual food, interesting ingredients, quite modern dining room, but not a business atmosphere, more foodies here for sure.
•Restaurant Le Grand Véfour: umm, hanky panky upstairs rooms originally used by many famous people of history, one of oldest  restaurants in Paris. I had a lunch downstairs with Marie Risley, lots of fun, beautiful room, in the Palais Royale, (lunch was $400 each, but Mary and I had champagne and a bottle of very good wine).
•Helene Darroze– it must be better  than when I was there or it must have great publicity writers. What I remember was a  fairly sterile upstairs dining room on rue d”assas. Food was not  special, but what was really special was a beautiful woman seated near us, must have been a model, with two men with her. She was elegant, 30-ish, and was wearing an evening hat with a veil and a cerise rose, the hat of course, was rakishly tilted over one eye.
•Eric Freechonʼs The Bristol– formal inside, restaurant inside was a small theater originally. When I was there, the food was good, not great and it was filled with business men doing business,  of course, even during the evening. However, in the summer time, outside is gorgeous!  (desserts to ignore , usually). I have been a fan of Eric Freechon for several years, even when he was out on Ave. General Brunet in the 19th!
(He was doing Spanish ham then too.)

I look forward to hearing about your own discoveries in this most beautiful of cities!

With wishes for Happy Holidays, Happy New Year and Happy Travels to Paris.
Bon Voyage and Bon Appetite!
~Betty

Here are a few photos of Paris from last yearʼs trip. I thought I would share with you just why Paris is called the “City of Light”. Over 4 million blue led lights were used on the chestnut trees that lined the Champs Elysee. In the deep December darkness, keep your spirits light, your decor & food simple and remember to spread your own bit of joy to everyone.

And donʼt forget the oysters!

Les Grands Magasins are also practicing ”Le Recyclage”.  They are using the same decor and window displays as in 2009.

Betty Zlatchin Catering is now a certified “Green” Caterer.  We here at BZC do our best to reduce the impact and foot prints we make on our earth.  I snapped this photo last year at Christmas when I was in Paris.  Paris & “Le Recyclage” has been ahead of the game (see photo) but thatʼs for many reasons, some of which have to do with smaller refrigerators, “bagging” and providing oneʼs own grocery bags at food stores, and of course French frugality.

So, David and I began to put together the dreams of her special day.

AVA’ S BIRTHDAY MENU

Sushi Maki Rolls,
with cucumber and avocado

Chicken Nuggets
made with Goldfish bunnies and ranch dressing

Mini Beef Burgers & Tuna Burgers

David’s Special Asian Three Color Slaw

“Bugs on a Log”
(cream cheese or peanut butter filled celery sticks topped with raisins or with chocolate chips)

Long stemmed Strawberries
dipped in warm dark chocolate
&
The Birthday Cup Cakes
36 Chocolate Cup Cakes,
decorated by all the girls, with 10 beautiful colors
of buttercream icing , in piping bags for the girls to use
&
One Very Special Large Cupcake with 8 candles,
decorated by Mom, Tiana.

*

The Nitty Gritty
We divided the kitchen into station sections to handle the various tasks. We invited family members to supervise the girls and assist if needed. We gave instructions on kitchen safety procedures ( no running in a kitchen, pick up and clean up all spills to avoid slippage, sharp objects are pointed down toward the floor when walking to the dishwashing station, our chefs will handle all knives and cutting, and we will show you how to safely cut a piece of celery or sushi, using the back side of fork tines — any variation of the above rules and you are on KP duty .

Each little girl got to dress in white chef coats, aprons and “work” each station , rotating around as they wanted. Due top popular demand, we saved the dessert station until the end…

What was amazing to us was our group of girls really got into doing their jobs, so much so that they wanted to keep on doing the sushi rolls, to perfect them, or forming the burgers “ just so,” or crush with the rolling pins the cheddar goldfish duckies and bunnies to fine crumbs, or dipping the strawberries into warm chocolate so that the chocolate was smooth and only half way onto the berries.

At long last, the cupcakes were decorated. They placed them on the three-tier etagere
and Ava’s special cupcake was placed at the very top.

We gathered the girls, applauded our new chefs,
and everyone chowed down, loving the buffet created by Ava and her friends.

It will be a birthday for sure that we will always remember. I think Ava and her lucky friends will remember it too!

***

RECIPE FOR CHICKEN NUGGETS

2 chicken breasts, boneless, skinless
1 package Goldfish bunnies or duckies
1 bottle storebought Ranch dressing

Directions: preheat oven to 400 degrees
crush goldfish into cracker meal,
cut chicken breasts into 6-8 slices each, depending on size of chicken breast
pound chicken breast pieces to thin slices ( about 3/8 inch thick ) between 2 pieces of wax paper
dip pounded chicken into ranch dressing, then into the goldfish cracker meal.

place chicken pieces on sheet pan or baking sheet lined with parchment.
bake 8-10 minutes until cooked through

That’s it : Kids and adults loved it . The moms & dads present asked for the recipe, which could be simpler. Be sure to offer a favorite vegetable or salad with this dish, as you will feel better about serving it and maybe the kids will surprise you and eat their broccoli or spinach…yah right!

Many of you have asked for some of my favorite restaurants or bistros in Paris, since I have spent so many years exploring this wonderful city. I have dined at Pierre Gagnaire, Guy Savoy, Apicius, Arpege, Astrance, Le Carre de Feuillants, The Bristol with Eric Freechon & Le Grand Vefour, where I feasted with Mary Risley from (Tante Marie Cooking School) for 3 hours over lunch and a glass or two of champagne . These gastronomic temples are delicious and merit the stars and accolades they have earned.

However, there are some special contemporary bistros that are cropping up around Paris that are less well known.

My number one favorite of this new crop is L’itineraires, 5, rue de Pontoise. A warm and friendly husband and wife team runs the place with panache and modernity. Last summer while in Paris for the French Open, I delved into a fresh salad of asparagus with borage flowers and marinated salmon, followed by pink rack of lamb with risotto of petits pois . The salads were gorgeous, the entree perfect and the atmosphere terrific, very French. However, it has now been written up by the NY Times, so you may need to make a reservation. Please do. 01-46-33-00 11.

L'itineraires Dining Room

Menu at L'itineraires

Last year in May and June, I was introduced to La Gazzetta, a quirky reasonably priced neighborhood bistro in the 12th, # 29 rue de Cotte . It features simple but modern food, lively atmosphere, with a local crowd. It’s also near the Marché d’Aligre so in case you don’t get into the Baron Rouge; you can go there for lunch or dinner. I had langoustines and pied de cochon with spring radishes and young turnips– but do remember that the chef is Swedish and the food is slightly quirky and the publicity is rampant for this spot.

Some other places in Paris I love for varying reasons:

Les Papilles , on Gay Lussac. You get a prix fixe dinner; you pick your wine from the bins right in front of you at a small 10% mark up over retail. One of the owners was the pastry chef at Taillevent. It is simple meal, usually a satisfying soup to begin, then a copper chafing dish entree, followed by a crème caramel or chocolate mousse, nothing too special there in description, but the food is perfect for that first night of arrival when you want to feel that you are really in Paris, but jet lag is making you wish for bed.

Brasserie Balzaar, 5th arrondisment, has come back, back with a flourish and st

ill has the great old bistro feel. The waiters however are young! The chicken is still moist, the steak tartare is perfect, the frites, are well, just frites, but the atmosphere, it does not get better than this for feeling that you are in a true old fashioned bistro.

Other favorites: This Christmas I dined at Les Petrelles, rue de petrelle, in the 9th. It is a gem of set design and staging. The chef is both a magician with design and with cooking. The space is filled with baskets of produce being used for the evening’s meal, old cookbooks, and rose petals on the tables, candles. In winter I dined on farm fresh eggs with truffles, his breast of pheasant and my husband has the Scotch grouse over winter lacinato kale. This is a special place for special occasions.

Le Petrelle's Egg Souffle with Truffle Shavings

Le Petrelle's Dining Room

Quick lunches:

Try the great wine bar (no, not Willy’s, which I love too) called Le Grand Fils , in the Galerie Vivienne. Sit at the bar; order a charcuterie platter and / or the “chica pica” of sardines. A glass of cornas is perfect.

If you are near the Jardin de Luxembourg at lunch, don’t miss going to Jean Paul Hevin’s patisserie on Notre Dame d’Assas, 6th arr. Simply the best chocolate tart in Paris, I think. And they have fabulous presents to take home to those who deserve a little a bite of Paris. I always bring the dark bittersweet cocoa powder and the hand finished chocolate candies.

Other favorites with no real descriptions just go and enjoy:

L’ami Jean, on rue Malar, 7th; when you are in the mood for grilled steak, frites.

L’Affriole, rue Malar; if they are making the chocolate trio dessert, don’t miss it. My husband loves the headcheese and I love the sardines.

Jadis, (I ate there this past Christmas, 2009) in the 15th. It has a very good blanquette de veau, which you spoon out.

Jadis' water bottle--very bistro, non?

L’Atelier de Joel Robuchon (again, dined with Mary Risley, just superb, especially the sole ) note it is open on Sunday nights!

Claude Colliot, 40 rue des Blancs Manteaux, 4^th arr.

Le Glou, 3rd, 101 vielle du temple; simple and young in clientele.

Chez la Vieille-Adrienne, Michel del Burgo is now the chef! (1st arr, near rue de l’arbre Sec).

Chez George, rue du Mail (a perennial old bistro favorite) Avoid Allard at all costs, it was really poor this January 2010. Don’t miss the turbot and lunch is the best time to go.

L’Oulette, 13th, near Parc Bercy, has a wonderful onion confit to match with a perfect housemade duck paté. Often makes wine pairings for you to match with your meal. Prices run about 35- 50 euros, without wine.

Le 122, Rue de Grenelle , when you want to dine with the ministers of France and the politicians, lunch is the best time, has excellent food quality & presentation .

Le Cafe Beauvau, rue de Saussies, near Elysses Palace, 8th (very chic).

Table 128: good luck getting a reservation, it opens this spring, after his restaurant Spring just closed in fall, 2009.( note I have not yet eaten here , but it is run by an American, who loves cooking in Paris, just market availability at his first restaurant, it was a kind of cult almost for many foodies)

I can no longer recommend Le Comptoir, at the Odeon and St. Germaine intersection. At Christmas this year, the food was tired, the staff rushed and it was filled with Americans like me, it was almost like sitting at Cafe Flore or Les Deux Magots. That is not the worst thing but –” been there and done that.”

Asparagus

March, the harbinger of Spring, comes in like a lion, so the saying goes, and leaves as gentle as a baby lamb, even here in San Francisco.

At this time of year, my food memories turn naturally to my grandfather’s house in Atlanta where I spent my early childhood. Grandfather had a field of narcissus off the dining room, two hundred rose bushes to prune and of course, asparagus that grew by the side of the old clay tennis court.

We dutifully measured the pale green tips appearing in the wet ground in the morning and once again in the evening to see if the tender spears had grown enough to cut and quickly blanch for our dinner. The butter we used was pale and sweet, not salted. Just a little drizzle of melted butter and that was the perfect first course. Spring leg of lamb often followed and we ended the meal with strawberry rhubarb crisp. The sweet promise of spring existed in that meal for me.

To get that surge of spring taste in your mouth, just go down to The Ferry Plaza market on Saturdays when Zuckerman brings in his local crop of asparagus and you will have the real thing! Of course, you may have to wait in line with the early morning chefs filling their bags for the day.

Asparagus should be picked early, with the ends tightly closed. I like the plumper spears, but the pencil are good too. If you are at the supermarket, ask the green grocer where they came from, when they came in, and of course, check the bottoms of the spears for any woodiness or dryness. Feel free, as I do, to reject the bundles the markets offer you. I prefer to hand select just the ones I want for my table.

Below are two of the many ways we recently incorporated Asparagus:

· Asparagus soup with asparagus flan

· Asparagus tempura with shiso and shiso aioli

Our placement of the band’s stage and dance floor in the middle of the room with the guest tables centered around them made for a communal and intimate feel.  Note the side “lounge” with the white ottomans and blue light up bar we set up in the corridor which had a fun photo booth by Denon and Doyle.

The black and white theme really made this event classy.  No need for specialty linens on this one. Once the lights were dimmed and the tables are pin-spotted, the less formal white duck linens disappear and the table settings glistened with candlelight.  We loved the tiered candleabras by Floramor Studios. Instead of the old fashioned large wedding cake (so many of our wedding clients seem to moving away from nowadays) this couple decided on small individualized wedding cakes as table centerpieces by Cake Coquette (delicious and so stylish).  Later, the cakes were removed and set up at a cake station with coffee.

Mac and cheese, a Bride and Groom favorite, made it’s way onto our menu as a special amuse course. We added gorgonzola, toasted walnuts and grannysmith apple to make a delicious gourmet version. Enjoy the photos!

We loved the way our lounge design and Cabanas turned out.  Michael Diagan did a fun and tropical design with the small cocktail arrangements.

Suckling pigs with Asian steamed buns with hoisin, cilantro and fresh mango salsa, peking duck salad, pineapple fried rice, Lomi Lomi salmon and lot’s of other delicious savories were on the evening’s menu.  For dessert, our new staff favorite, pineapple upside down cake with berry coulis, individual coconut cream pies and banana cream pies, and of course macadamia nut chocolate fudge bites. Yum.