Aux Gourmet des Ternes

MrsW and I discovered a rather good and quite relaxed neighborhood restaurant, just around the corner from our little flat -- Aux Gourmet des Ternes (87, Boulevard de Courcelles at Place des Ternes, tel: 1.42.27.43.04). The reviews were mixed but the place was packed with locals dining on pate (at least three different kinds brought out to the table in the terrine, so that you could help yourself), steak frites, navarin d'agneau, tomato salad, leeks vinaigrette, perfect salade verte and general bistro fare. The bread was good, the house wine was good, and the waiter was predictably & amusingly rude. But the owner threw his arms around our shoulders and asked if we were happy, and was generally charming. The paper tablecloths were imprinted with drunken scrawls from people like Carla Bruni, Oliver Stone and Sean Penn, effusively praising the the place.

One of the best things about visiting Paris with my mother, who has to walk with a stick (something that frustrates her enormously although she never complains, having once been an incredibly active and athletic woman) is that we can stop and sit down for a cafe au lait or a glass of rose in between our destinations, rather a nice & civilized way to watch the world go by. Plus, damn! her French is good!