Le Bon Marché + la Grande Épicerie de Paris + Ladurée

Today I hung out with Julie. First place we went was Le Bon Marché.

It's a grand magasin (department store) and one of the best in Paris. Everything is chic, classy, elegant and e x p e n s i v e. It is very very very Parisian.

In the lower level there is la Grande Epicerie de Paris (the great grocery store of Paris) - total understatement. It's as if If Whole Foods + Bristol Farms had a very distant rich international cousin.

The store is packed with:

• really expensive exoctic items
• hard-to-find items
• items from far away lands
• fromagerie (cheese station)
• boucherie (meat/butcher station)
• boulangerie (bakery station)
• patisserie (pastry/dessert station)
• looseleaf tea counter
• spices counter
• organic produce
• e v e r y t h i n g

It's incredible. I wanted to take photos but I got yelled at. Twice. Everyone is so strict about taking photos indoors....I don't get it. I'm really discrete too, I don't use flash, I'm really fast....oh well. I'm definitely going back to look at everything again so I'll try and sneak some photos without getting thrown out of the place.

Afterwards we went to the original Laudree. Again I got yelled at for trying to take photos inside, so check the website to see what it looks like inside. Here is Julie in front of the delicious shop:

I'm on a mission to figure out which one(s) are my favorite flavors. So I'm sampling them all, one macaroon at a time.

From left to right:

Chocolat

Pétales de Rose (rose petals)

Pistache (pistachio)

Cassis violette (blackcurrant)

Café

Chocolat

Consensus:

Chocolat - simple and delicious

Pétales de Roses - sounds enticing, interesting flavor profile.

Pistache - sort of a let down, the taste wasn't that intense

When I got home I poured myself a goblet of milk - wait correction, I poured myself a goblet of lait demi-écrémé, which translates to half-creamed milk. I only drink whole milk in the States and this is sooo creamy, it tastes like I'm drinking straight up cream. It's demi-ridiculous.

Cassis violette - my favorite thus far, the jam in the middle is exquisite.

Café - strong espresso flavor that kicks you in the mouth

Chocolat - standard and magnificent.