A friend of mine from Washington, DC was driving to Maine for her best friend’s wedding. En route, she called the bride-to-be to remind her to gather “something old, something new, something borrowed, and something blue,” as the saying goes. “Yikes!” the bride exclaimed. She…
The past few weeks have been busy with changes. A big one is that my website has recently undergone a makeover. There’s a fresh design, a new tagline, “Exploring the World of Food, Antiques, and Crafts,“ and a scrollable gallery of some of my photos. I invite you…
Some people visit markets in Paris purely for the fun and cultural immersion, and maybe to pick up souvenirs that can be transported home in a suitcase. I often advise travelers to Paris that one doesn’t need to have a kitchen to enjoy the food…
Fall is the season for agricultural fairs. I remember attending the York Fair in Pennsylvania every September. What excited me then was spinning upside down on the Zipper ride and similarly dizzying effects from eating funnel cake coated with confectioner’s sugar. At this stage in life, I’m…
La rentrée is a big deal in France. Early September marks the re-entry of the local French after a long vacation period, which is often the full month of August. The term is mostly associated with students going back to school for the new academic…
The staccato tock-tock-tock of the high school marching band’s practice and the buzzing of cicadas are two of the surest sounds heralding the end of summer. They pinch me with a feeling of sadness. Summer is a lush and generous season with long hours of daylight and an abundance…
The Internet gives us the ability to connect with like-minded people around the world. Thanks to social media networks, I’ve met many market enthusiasts and have learned a great deal from them. One example is Askan, who lives in Bonn, Germany (the former capital of West Germany) and…
Others get psyched when big-name musicians come to town. I, on the other hand, get juiced up about food markets. And so I’m very excited about the opening of the Boston Public Market. The seeds were planted in 2001 when a group formed to create a public market near the Rose Fitzgerald Kennedy Greenway…
There are places where la douceur du climat (the mildness and sweetness of the climate) of France makes it possible to enjoy the good life year-round—and within an easy train ride of Paris. Take, for instance, Rouen especially on a Sunday morning when the city’s…
Somerville used to suffer the slurs of uppity residents in neighboring communities. But increasingly it’s being hailed as the Brooklyn of Massachusetts and one of the hottest ‘hoods around, especially for foodies. With artsy coffee houses, a popular ice cream parlor, donut shop, and restaurants that are turning out some of the best meals in the…
I’ve been hearing about Le District, the French market and food hall that recently opened in New York City, and finally had a chance to see it for myself. It’s an emporium of French delectables in the heart of Battery Park City. Close your eyes, inhale…
Friday is a sweet spot of a weekday to browse and shop the Paris markets. Vendors’ stalls are well stocked in anticipation of shoppers who want to lay in provisions before the weekend begins, and the aisles are easier to navigate than they will be on Saturday and Sunday when markets are more crowded….
As a market day in Paris, Sunday might be hard to beat. Many markets are open on Sunday morning, plus there’s tremendous variety in the different types. Whether your interests run toward antiques, flea items, food (including organic), crafts, books, or birds, you can find entire markets devoted to them on any given…
With the attention that’s being drawn to the heavy use of pesticides in French agriculture, it’s no surprise that more and more shoppers are seeking organic foods and wines. There are two main ways to buy organic, or bio (pronounced bee-oh), at the neighborhood markets in Paris. Nearly every outdoor…
One of the best gourmet food halls in Paris has a new look and location. Lafayette Gourmet, which is part of the Galeries Lafayette department store, moved its tantalizing delicacies across the street to 35, boulevard Haussmann last fall. It makes sense to locate Lafayette Gourmet in…
Quick, name one thing that goes exceptionally well with chocolate. My reflexive answer is peanut butter (yes, I’m one of those sweet and salty types), but Brian Pfeiffer makes a case for the answer being Paris. I’m delighted to publish his description of the annual Salon du Chocolat…
In case any of those twinkles represent the possibility of travel in the year ahead, I’d like to offer a few suggestions. If you’re thinking of making a trip to France, here are some suggestions to consider. Some are annual events and others are weekly or daily opportunities. All of…
On one trip to Paris–in fact, to celebrate the publication of Markets of Paris–the plane had no sooner landed and my husband and I dropped off our baggage that we headed to rue Cler. We hadn’t walked far when jet lag caught up with us, so we ducked into Le Petit Cler for…
(Text and photo by David Burns) The answer, for many, is the upcoming Salon des Vins des Vignerons Indépendants. The 2017 dates are November 3-December 4 at the Porte de Versailles Exhibition Hall. This marché du vin is impressive for its physical size as well as its…
