Best of France This Weekend in NYC

This weekend, Times Square in Manhattan will be transformed into a huge French marketplace called Best of France.

The September 26 and 27 event is organized by the non-profit group of the same name, whose purpose is to promote the image of France and "French expertise and savoir-faire" abroad. The event is presented in conjunction with Atout France.

Entrance to Best of France is free, but tickets must be purchased for special events such as the VIP Opening Night Reception and the Grand Wine Tastings presented by top NYC sommeliers. 

Event exhibitors and programs are organized by themes: Cuisine, Lifestyle, Travel, Fashion, Culture, Technology and Innovation.  

The list of exhibitors and sponsors includes Air France, Back-Roads, Club Med, Clarins, Croisi Europe, Delta, Diptyque, Galeries Lafayette, Laguiole, Lancome, Le Boat, L'Oreal, Moulin Rouge, Parfums de France, RailEurope, Sofitel, Tartine et Chocolat, Valrhona, YSL and many more. The cities of Cannes, Lyon, Toulouse and Paris will be on hand, as will regional tourist offices (Bordeaux/Aquitaine, the Rhône Alpes the Midi-Pyrénées, Chamonix-Mont-Blanc, etc.) and the islands of Martinique, Guadeloupe and Saint Martin. The full exhibitor list is here.

At the Inauguration on Saturday at 11 am (Broadway between 46th and 47th Streets), 130 French and American kids will be unraveling huge US and French flags. Following the two national anthems, they'll also unravel the largest “marinière” (the iconic striped, knitted sweater) in the world. How large you ask? It's  22' long by 44' wide.

The show highlights are listed here. On the Culinary Stage all weekend, chefs--including Christian Tetedoie, Eric Kayser, Michel Bras and others--will be doing demos.

On the main stage (Times Square at 46th St.), Francophone singers and French artists (such as 16 Moulin Rouge dancers, a first in NYC) will perform. Other offerings include art exhibits, a French book store, book signings, fashion shows on a 45-foot runway, a kids fashion show casting call, live demos by French craftsmen making artisanal products, a French market and "bistro areas."

Volunteers are still needed and can compete to win a trip to Paris; info on volunteering is here. 

The public is invited to enter to win a week in luxury rental in Chamonix (with a six-day ski pass) and a week-long French river cruise. Anyone can enter...you don't have to attend the event to win...just fill out the form here.

For all the details, visit the Best of France website here...and follow them on Facebook, Twitter,  Instagram and Pinterest.

A French Mega Market in Lower Manhattan

Beverly Stephen, the former executive editor of Food Arts magazine, is a journalist and consultant specializing in food, travel and lifestyle. A lifelong Francophile, Bev lives in New York but jets off to France every chance she gets. She was thrilled when this new French food hall opened recently, not far from her lower-Manhattan home...so I asked her to tell us all about it. 

Can’t make it to France his year? Pas de probleme! Francophiles on the East Coast have a great new way to get their fix at a sprawling French market in lower Manhattan called Le District.

The just-opened 30,000-square-foot Gallic fantasy, located in Brookfield Place (the former World Financial Center, recently redone at a cost of $250 million), is divided into four "districts": restaurant, café, market and garden.  Within these districts, all culinary needs for eat-in or take-out can be met, from poisson to  patisserie and fleurs to fromage. Tourists seeking a respite from the somber 9/11 Memorial Museum nearby can happily sip a rosé from Provence, take a bite of ratatouille, and feel transported to the South of France...never mind that the sweeping views are New York Harbor and not the Mediterranean. Workers from nearby Goldman Sachs and Condé Nast are likely to eat-in at one of the restaurants, at one of the counter seats scattered throughout, or on the 7,000-square-foot plaza looking out to the Statue of Liberty. Everyone can buy plenty of ingredients to make dinner back at home...along with a chic bouquet for the table from fleuriste Yasmine Karrenberg.

Dessert  comes first at Le District.  Commanding attention at the entrance is the riotously colorful French  candy store La Cure Gourmande which offers an astonishing array of nougats, caramels, biscuits and even olives au chocolat (chocolate-covered almonds in disguise), all available in gift-worthy tins. This is the first U.S. outpost of the store that originated in the Languedoc-Roussillon and now has 45 locations around the world.

Across the aisle is a crêperie, a waffle station and a patisserie displaying jewel-like French pastries. And of course a coffee bar. 

Other temptations follow—freshly baked breads, cheese, charcuterie, salads and sandwiches (I chose a delectable roasted lamb sandwich with ras al hanout and hummus white sauce), brasserie-style meals, wine and beer. Packaged foods to take home include Provencal olive oils,  Les Comtes de Provence jams, argan oil, mustards, spices, salts and sausages.  If you prefer to avoid temptation, graze before 4 p.m., when the salad bar transforms itself into a chocolate mousse bar offering eight different varieties of white and dark with toppings such as orange confit and speculoos cookies.

Le District is the brainchild of restaurant impresario Peter Poulakakos of the HPH Group, a restaurant and development company, and his business partner Paul Lamas; together they pretty much have downtown Manhattan cornered with Harry’s Café and Steak, The Dead Rabbit, The Growler and Financier Patisserie among others. They took their inspiration from Parisian markets such as La Grande Epicerie and from other countries touched by French culture such as Morocco and Vietnam. Chef Jordi Valles, an El Bulli alum, was recruited to be culinary director of the whole project. Under him is an army of chefs and cheese mongers, butchers, bakers and sausage makers.

Poulakakos himself was standing in the aisle munching on a crêpe when I stopped him to ask about his vision. “I’ve always been thrilled with French cuisine,” he said. “It’s the backbone of precision.”  As for the customers. “I want to be there for everyone. People who live and work here love it.”  Of course, he’s not oblivious to the fact that 12.4 million visitors were counted in downtown Manhattan in 2014 with more expected this year.

Little more than a decade has passed since the area suffered the devastating 9/ll attacks. And then there were the angry flood waters of Hurricane Sandy. Now FiDi (the Financial District), arguably the hottest real estate in the overheated Manhattan market, has literally risen from the ashes. 

Comparisons to Eataly--the insanely popular Italian food hall on Fifth Avenue, with 26 other outposts worldwide--seem inescapable. Le District has already been dubbed the French Eataly. But who’s complaining?  Eataly has become one of the top tourist attractions in New York City behind the Statue of Liberty and the Empire State Building. Last year, seven million shoppers crowded its aisles while the cash registers rang up $85 million in sales. Should Le District be far behind? Mais non!

Le District at Brookfield Place
225 Liberty Street
New York, NY 10281
+1 212 981 8588
ledistrict.com
info@ledistrict.com

Photos:  (1) The Fromagerie at Le District features nearly 200 varieties of cheese, from France, Switzerland, Belgium, Quebec and American producers.  (2) The Pavilion is the "front door" of  Brookfield Place. The dramatic entry hall was created by Pelli Clarke Pelli Architects. (3) The layout. (4) Sweets from the patisserie section. (5) The dining room at Beaubourg, Le District’s flagship restaurant. (6) At the Boulangerie, at least 12 types of bread are baked fresh daily on site. (7) Catch of the day at La Poissonnerie. (8) A macaron tower in the Cafe District. (9) French mustards, jams, oils and condiments in the Market District. (9) Brookfield Place, formerly the World Financial Center, is just south of Tribeca, along the Hudson River waterfront. Originally built in 1985, the complex became Brookfield Place in 2012/2013 and is a five minute walk from the 9/11 Memorial.  (10) Click on map to enlarge. 

Photos by Jeff Thibodeau (1, 4) and Daniel Krieger (5, 6, 7, 9).

Beverly Stephen, who wrote this guest post, can be reached at bstephenwest@gmail.com. You can also find her on Facebook and Twitter.

A Luberon Tour for Foodies (By Bike or Car)

So a couple months ago I got a call from a woman coming to Provence with her husband and two daughters in July. She was looking at my list of Delicious Experiences and couldn't decide what to do. "We really want to do the Foodie Tour," she said, "but we also want to bike the Luberon with a guide. And we only have one free day left!"

You can probably guess where this is going, right?

So I got together with my bike-guide friend Jon and we mapped out a wonderful route, the idea being pretty similar to my St. Remy Tour for Foodies but this one designed for two wheels. Not only is Jon a professional bike guide, he's a professional chef too--with 15-plus years cooking experience in Provence and a shiny Michelin star for pastry on his resume. Let's just say that Jon knows a lot about Provencal gastronomy: the ingredients, the purveyors, the dishes and culinary traditions. I mean, how perfect is that? 

That's how this new tour came about... and it sounded like so much fun we thought other people might love doing it too. Et voila: A Luberon Bike Tour for Foodies!

Biking is hugely popular in the Luberon but not just because of the stunning scenery; many of the most-beautiful roads are often serenely, surprisingly traffic free. The region offers a wide range of terrific routes through rolling hills and lush valleys, with steep climbs up to medieval hilltowns and over pretty pine-covered mountains. Vineyards, olive groves and farms blanket the landscape left and right, their ancient stone farmhouses done up Elle Decor-fantastic or left tumbling literally into the fields. The produce grown in this department--the Vaucluse--is considered among the finest in France. 

Sound good? All you have to do is book your day (as much in advance as possible, please) and choose your bike--road bike, hybrid or electric--so it can be ready and waiting for you. Then off you'll go on a glorious full-day, food-fueled adventure. Depending on the day of the week and the season, your day might include a local outdoor market, an olive mill, a goat farm for a tasting of fresh goat cheeses, an ancient bread bakery still in use, a studio making superb confitures, the winery made famous in Peter Mayle's movie A Good Year, a tasting of truffle products and who knows what all else. 

Plus, you'll experience some of the top historic sites in the Luberon such the Chateau de Lacoste, the former home of that freaky Marquis de Sade (now owned by Pierre Cardin), the Abbaye de Senanques (home to silent honey bee-tending Cisturcian monks) and the hill towns of Gordes, Lacoste, Bonnieux, Menerbes and magical Oppede-le-Vieux. 

Since it's only you and your family or friends riding, you can go at whatever pace feels most perfect, but Jon expects to do 60 km (38 miles) or so. The day starts in Bonnieux around 8:30 am and ends about 5 pm. The cost is 350€ per person for two people or 250€ per person for three to six. For larger groups, please inquire. The price includes bike rental, helmets, market tastings, artisan visits, restaurant lunch and any museum entry fees. And if you love the food tour idea but the biking part not so much, we'll happily do the whole thing for you in a big comfy car for 300€ per person, including lunch and tastings.  The tour is available pretty much all summer and fall, with a couple weeks off here and there, when Jon is bike-touring groups around France or cheffing in private homes. 

For more info or to book, contact me: provenceblog@aol.com.

For more info about the Luberon, click here or here.

*Note: Since this story was written in 2014, we've added another version of this bike tour, in and around St. Remy, in the foothills of the Alpilles Mountains. Along the way you'll visit a few of our favorite local artisan food producers: a goat farm where they make delicious chevre and sometimes raise adorable baby pigs; the family-owned olive mill where they make 6 award-winning oils and a wide range of other delicious local products such as tapenade and confiture; a manade (ranch) where they raise bulls and make saucisson; a bee farm to taste the honeys; a beautiful and historic winery, etc. If you choose a full-day tour, we'll break for a casual picnic or have lunch in one of our favorite local cafes or bistros; the cost of lunch is extra. Half-day tours are normally 9 am to 1 pm or 2 pm to 6 pm but variations are possible. The half-day tour price includes electric bikes, helmets, bottled water, all tastings and your foodie guide. Half day: two people, 175€ pp. Then add 50€ per person. Kids prices depend on age. 

Photos:  (1-3) The village of Cucuron, fruit in the market at Gordes and goat cheeses in the market at Bonnieux, courtesy of Pamela Goode. (4, 5) The gorgeous winery Domaine de la Citadelle, and the adjacent corckscrew museum, are both owned by Yves Rousset-Rouard, the Mayor of Menerbes. (6-9). Grapes, olive oil, cheese and honey: the four food groups of the Luberon! Cheese and honey photos by Pamela Goode. (10, 11) And the bakery isn't bad either...(12) If there's time, you can pop into the Maison de la Truffe et du Vin, to learn all about two more of our favorite Luberon goodies. (13) When your guide Jon isn't in his biking gear, he's most likely wearing his chefs' jacket. (14) Pretty pinks, just waiting for you to taste. (15) Pull off the road to snap this view of Gordes; everyone does. (16, 17) The Abbaye de Senanques, inside and out. When the lavender is in bloom, this must be the most-popular photo-opp stop in Provence. (18) A splendid view of Bonnieux, courtesy of Linda Bailey Zimmerman. (19) Chateau la Canorgue, which stood in for the winery Le Coin Perdu in the movie "A Good Year." 

A St. Remy Tour for Foodies

Very quickly after I launched my new company Provence Post Travel---arranging amazing vacations in Provence for solo travelers, couples, families and groups of all sizes--I learned how much my clients love activities that get them up close and personal with real life in Provence…the special experiences I arrange for them with artists, farmers, winemakers, bread bakers, chefs, guides and more. Travelers these days definitely want to meet interesting locals who love to share their passions.

So to make these activities more accessible, I created a Menu of Delicious Provence Experiences: wonderful activities of all types that you can book and enjoy during your stay in Provence. You can see the menu here.

Having been a food writer for the past 30 years--the last 14 of them mostly in Provence--I'm often asked to arrange or lead foodie tours around the South of France. Some people want to work in restaurant kitchens and visit outdoor markets; others want to learn the secrets behind making the flakiest croissants or perfect crusty baguettes. Virtually all want to visit artisinal producers making food in traditional ways...and of course to taste the delicious results. Luckily, my village, St. Remy, has more than its share of these artisans, many of them third or fourth generation. 

My friend Philippe, one of the most-popular guides in the region, has been in St. Remy as long as I have and he knows all these producers well. So taking clients around to taste in their workshops has been a particular joy for him. And of all the different tours on my Menu of Delicious Experiences, this one day Tour for Foodies is our most-popular outing by far. 

Philippe will pick you up at your hotel or rental villa around 9 am…or rendezvous with you in St. Remy. And then you'll hit the rue running! First stop: a visit to the only olive mill in St. Remy, where fifth generation brother-and-sister farmers tend 5,000 trees and make a wide range of fantastic products. We’ll comparison taste the various olives and oils…plus tapenades, anchoiade, sun-dried tomato spreads, confitures and all sorts of other homemade goodies. Then we’ll head back to the village where we’ll roam from shop to shop, tasting artisan chocolates, cookies, candies, nougat, macarons, flavored salts from all over the world, honey from the region and more. 

After a break for lunch in one of our favorite local spots, you'll head over to an excellent local patissier for a two-hour hands-on class where you’ll learn to make popular French treats such as croissants, pain au chocolat, macarons, lemon tart or other goodies. Then we'll pop in at our favorite goat farm, the place where top local chefs buy their cheeses. We’ll meet the goats (three adorable babies were just born), possibly see them being milked and taste a few of the delicious award-winning cheeses; they make as many as 50 different types.

If there’s time, we’ll slip in a visit to a historic local winery, to learn a bit about the varietals and wines of the AOC Les Baux and be led in a short tasting, by the winemaker himself if possible. The day ends around 7 pm. 

Note: this fully escorted one-day food tour can be expanded to multiple days…or you can skip the baking class and we’ll replace it with other visits and tastings. It's available year round. The price is 300€ per person for adults, which includes lunch, a two-hour baking class and all tastings. Under 18s pay 150€ but the minimum age is 14, please. The maximum is six people per tour. Sorry, we can’t go out with fewer than two people but if your schedule is flexible, we’ll pair you with other fun foodies and knock 100€ per person off the price. In 2014 we may be doing this for groups (six max) on one set day per week...so check in if that interests you. For info or to book: provenceblog@aol.com.

Photos: My new best friend at our local goat farm, where they make some of the best chevre around. Your guide Philippe. A selection of Provence’s famous rosé wines. Yes, we'll taste olives, like these in our local market. Yes, we'll taste macarons...and maybe even make our own. And of course we'll taste chocolate...and bakery...and other goodies...and visit a store that sells salt and spices from all over the world. Somewhere in there, we'll break for lunch at a pretty restaurant like this one. At the Calanquet mill, we'll learn all about how olive oil is made and taste all their other homemade products. And maybe you'll even learn a few words of Provençal, the traditional language spoken here back in the day. All photos (except Calanquet exterior) copyright Julie Mautner.

Remembrance of Breakfasts Past

I've known the photographer and painter Carol Gillott for many years and have always loved her work.  When we first met in New York, she was a was doing a lot of portraits of chefs, which found their way into top food magazines and onto many restaurant walls. A passionate Francophile, Carol now travels to Paris three or four  times a year and is always always painting, her whimsical and lovely watercolors capturing everything from department store windows to street fashion to the macarons at Laduree. She's crazy about France...and French style...and dessert...and you'll see all of that and more on her blog called Paris Breakfasts and on her website as well. Carol had four shows this year and has two coming up: at the Alliance Francaise in Washington, D.C. next month and in Philadelphia in November. She's worked for big-name clients such as Champagne Mumm, Valrhona Chocolate, Campari and AT&T. And yet her captivating street scenes, still lifes, storefronts and portraits of colorful Parisians are still very affordable. 

So anyway, Carol used to have a little business painting portraits of people; you'd send her a photo or two and she'd capture you in watercolor, doing something you enjoy like walking the dog or window shopping or cafe sitting or whatever.  And now, her new thing is breakfast. You send her a photo of a recent breakfast or afternoon tea and she'll paint it. It sounds wacky but the results are graceful and lovely. Wouldn't this make a precious souvenir from your next trip to France...or any trip for that matter? Wouldn't one be pretty on your kitchen wall? Or be the perfect gift for you-know-who? 

What Carol has in mind, of course, is the perfectly flaking croissant on Bernardaud china, the tea in the Limoges cup, the silver ramekin of butter stamped with the Ritz Hotel logo or even a baguette and cafe au lait on a wobbly cafe table--just not your sloppy waffles at IHOP or Grand Slam at Denny's. Still if you loved it and have a photo of it, Carol's happy to paint it for you. 

Custom petit dejeuner still lifes are $85 each for a 9" x 11" watercolor, plus shipping. You provide the photos and Carol will send a sketch for your approval. Start to finish the process takes about two weeks. For more info or to order:  CarolGillott.com, carol.gillott@verizon.net

C'est Délicieux, Non?

I was poking around online, looking for a great photo of a macaron (don't ask), when I came across this mosaic and just had to share. It was made by a Dublin-based blogger who compiled it from photos found on Flickr.com (and she credits all the photographers, so I'm thinking I don't have to). I found it here: http://lopsideddimple.wordpress.com/