Day 2 of our Paris Match, and I’m despatched by Mrs RM to get the croissants, something you can only legally do in France.
This is the view from the Adagio at Montmartre.
That’s right; you can’t see a single micro pub.
Montmartre is the quirky heart of Paris, and more importantly has lots of steps,
which tend to defeat the electrified scooters.
Loads of art too, on the way up to the Sacre Coeur.
The view of the city is at its best at sunrise, though frankly it’s indistinguishable from any large industrial city from here.
A quick rummage through the bins reveals the craft beer preference of the average Parisian.
I thought I’d found the Brew Dog bar, but sadly it’s a bar which leads on Bud.
Chocolate croissants consumed, we set off on a fairly aimless wander east.
Mrs RM just shouted to me “Have you told them about the underpants yet ?”. Timely.
Yes, I’d miscalculated the number of days and arrived a pair short. To be fair I had brought three plug converters, none of which worked.
So just north of Gare du Nord we popped in Tati, a Grace Brothers style department store “rarely frequented by tourists“. Add it to your “essential Paris list”.
This was the entire choice of undergarments.
I won’t reveal what I chose; Mrs RM says they’re visible from space and she may be right. 2 euros well spent.
The walk along Saint Martin’s Canal takes in the worst McDonalds toilets on the planet (Stalingrad), some abandoned petrol pumps given over to art,
and this frankly scary bent candle in the Catholic shop.
“Show us the beer” I hear you shout, just as Mrs RM did as we weaved into the heart of Saint Denis towards the authentic-sounding Frog & Rosbif.
The Frog chain were around some 20-odd years ago; I’m sure they sold Bombardier on handpump. What can you get in more enlightened times ?
Pubmeister saw a Burton beer (of sorts) last year. A Chipotle Chocolate Porter on handpump would clearly tick all boxes, and I could vote it into the Guide on behalf of the Sark and Surrounds Branch.
Sadly (but inevitably) both that and Mrs RM’s choice weren’t on, confirmed by a Gallic shrug. There would have been complaints on Discourse about clips not turned round if French CAMRA was in existence (is it ?).
Still, the Black IPA, Blonde and particularly an American IPA were all tasty and only lightly carbonated. Sadly, the Chicago wings and loaded fries undid the good work of the morning’s exertions.
I was making notes labelling this place a café-bar when a young guy and Old Boy separately wandered in, sank pints in ten minutes, and left.
The Pale had a touch of the Brass Castle about it; perhaps it was. There was a brewery downstairs but their beer may be all brewed in Wolverhampton for all I know.
Anyway, decent French beer. It does exist. And I only had to be ridiculed publicly twice for my French by Mrs RM to get it.
retiredmartin 
More info on the “Chicago Wings” asks the man who grew up in Chicago!
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Thin crispy batter, thick BBQ sauce. Addictive but gross. They probably sell Parisian frogs legs in Chicago.
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Chicago isn’t that classy😀
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I just stumbled on this.
http://www.beerintheevening.com/user_profile.shtml?username=Snarling_Mallard
Is someone following you about, Martin?
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Looks like it. That’s a grumpy Old Boy, isn’t it ? Drinkable is a bit harsh on that American IPA.
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Maybe that’s him in your first pic.
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I wonder if the legendary Mrs RM could find some spare time in between her NHS duties,necking Punk IPA and chowing down on fried stuff to pop over to the Emerald Isle and sort out a teeny-weeny health service problem over here.
They’re building a new children’s hospital in Dublin and it’s costing a bit more than expected.
Well a lot more actually.
Originally costed at €983million pounds the bill is now at €1.7billion and tonight it’s reported that figure could rise to over €2billion.
For a single hospital.
And the Health Minister says he has no idea that costs have doubled.
You could pop over too.We have Premier Inns,Wetherspoons and Chinese restaurants here.
It would be like home from home for you.
The Prof.
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That’s what we accountants call “optimism bias”, Prof. Always add 100% to the cost of a public building project for optimism built into costings and you’ll be fine.
(NB Sadly Mrs RM has long left the NHS and touts her IT skills to the private sector in hellholes like Maidenhead).
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Aaaah think of the blogging potential as RM and Mrs RM hit town…..sorting out IT problems while RM attempts to keep pace with the redoubtable Prof’s, er socialising efforts!
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That photo of “the view from the Adagio” is glorious. And thanks for the street art pic, a very nice one indeed.
How Budweiser manages to succeed outside the US will always be a mystery to me; the importance of advertising, I suppose?
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I guess so, Mark. I had some Bud beer at Busch gardens in paper cups, but I’ve never had it from the bottle so hard to comment. It’s a design classic, not that that has helped Bass !
Montmartre has some high profile art installations but elsewhere in Paris there were slim pickings compared to a Berlin, Manchester or Bristol.
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You can’t beat Tati on a good day.
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Maybe refreshing and no taste in it to offend anyone ?
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“Scooters”
Is the Mrs RM ‘scooting’ away? 🙂
“Fags”
And a whole ‘loto’ them it would seem. 😉
“Tourist shot”
Not bad; the view from Montmartre is better. 🙂
“Famous, apparently”
I’ve heard that about sunsets.
“Russ will translate”
Something about wear undies with prints on them for Valentine’s I think. 😉
“Not cheap”
Agreed. But at least they give you a discount if you order the larger size.
“Palette preparation”
It’s like he’s preparing to paint the ceiling of the first photo with the ladder in it. 🙂
“After those 125cl samplers,”
125? Good lord. That’s more than two pints!
“I wouldn’t have wanted to be the parent who had to get up at 3am in the morning, but good on them.”
I bet they were surreptitiously slipping some to the newborn so there wouldn’t be a 3am wake up call. 😉
Cheers
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Blimey! My cut and pastes all went to the wrong post.
(and I’m still working on my first pint!) (insert blush icon here)
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Good translation.
I get confused with cl/ml. Stick to pints and you’re fine.
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“and I’m despatched by Mrs RM to get the croissants”
Funnily enough that was my job when we were in Paris.
“Montmartre is the quirky heart of Paris, and more importantly has lots of steps,”
That was our favourite part of our visit.
“though frankly it’s indistinguishable from any large industrial city from here.”
Now now. The Adagio shot was from that area too. 😉
“A quick rummage through the bins reveals the craft beer preference of the average Parisian.”
(sigh)
“To be fair I had brought three plug converters, none of which worked.”
I initially thought that was in reference as a substitute for underpants. 🙂
“Pint of Doom Bar for guessing what I bought”
Definitely the hot dog* ones (2nd row from the top, 2nd from the left).
* – makes for great ‘weiner’ jokes when undressing. 🙂
“Possible cask dispense”
Don’t go giving them any ideas!
“More café than pub”
Their website would beg to differ.
“Still, the Black IPA”
Was that their Tha-Wack?
(not to be confused with their Baba-Boom, Ker-Pow, Wham, Zonk and Ker-splat)
“And I only had to be ridiculed publicly twice for my French by Mrs RM to get it.”
Hang on. Then why did you need me to translate in your previous post? 😉
Cheers
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Marvellous blogging on your trip to Paris….amongst the Budweiser, hefty costs, underpants, chicken wings and croissants, one hopes that the mighty RM and even mightier Mrs RM are having a great time…. marvellous photos there…
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Many thanks Raymondo. We had a good time, walking 30-odd miles over a couple of days in search of the mythical Paris charm.
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“had” – so you’re on the way back to Blighty and some London Pride now ?
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There’s nothing quite like a freshly baked Croissant from a small independent bakery in France. The ones we get in the UK, even the best, do not come close. It’s the same with beer and I will appropriate the oenological term ‘terroir’ to sum up what I mean. It’s why Tetley’s brewed in Woverhampton can never be Tetley’s. You can substitute ‘any beer’ and brewed ‘somewhere else’ by ‘someone else’. It also explains why large companies can’t achieve what smaller independent ones can; even in France, a supermarket Croissant just doesn’t taste the same as the one you get from the local baker.
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The coffee I can get in Caffe Nero in the UK (probably brewed in Wolves) is better than the stuff I had in little cafes in Paris. And half the price.
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“Caffè Nero is a British European style coffee house brand headquartered in London, England. It was founded in 1990 by Ian Semp and the original branch was at 66 Old Brompton Road, South Kensington. The Caffè Nero philosophy is simple: Premium award winning Italian coffee, A warm and welcoming atmosphere, Good food and great personal service”.
The coffee might not be identical to that in Italy but a “warm and welcoming atmosphere” just might tempt me before the proper pubs open if there’s not a Stonegate or Wetherspoons venue thereabouts.
What I can’t stand is Starbucks which to me is no more proper coffee than Nescafe.
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Yes … but you put milk in it don’t you?
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NEVER.
I have not drunk milk or eaten cheese or butter since I was a child.
But if I did it would be proper raw milk and not that pasteurised homogenised stuff out of plastic bottles.
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And NO sugar, not even proper Demerara sugar.
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Great stuff and some super pics. The chocolate and chipotle porter presumably reaches pants other beers can’t. There are a few of those Frog & Rosbif- a sort of superior Brewhouse & Kitchen?
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A superior B&K is spot-on. Bit smaller and you aren’t forced to undergo a “brewery tour” !
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I’ve been put off B&Ks, by the house session ale in the one at Sophia Gardens. It had a distinct note of dead rat about it, and on more than one occasion. It really was one of the worst beers that I’ve ever tasted.
They’re got a novel idea for smokers though, of placing a number of garden sheds – beach huts maybe – with cosy seating around the outdoor area.
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The beers in B&Ks I’ve been to have ranged from undrinkable (Cheltenham) to very good (Wilmslow). In principle I always put that down to low or high turnover, but with B&K I’m prepared to accept it’s just rubbish homebrew.
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Etu,
Mention of “a distinct note of dead rat” reminds me that a live rat crossed my path as I was approaching Wolverhampton High Level railway station last Saturday.
Yes, I’ve seen several garden sheds behind the Bournemouth B & K. I thought sheds were where men could get a bit of peace and quiet but not there.
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Thanks for all the photos & interesting observations -enjoyed reading it all -If Mr Tyke tried to make me walk 15 miles there may be a divorce -a martyr to my feet I am .Hoping my exploration of Brussels is totted up in steps rather than miles (if /when we get there -some trains cancelled over next few days -oh the anxiety
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When do you go ? They cancelled the trains before and after our departure, and our return, but we came back on the earlier train. Didn’t see any bad weather below Maidstone so convinced it’s because the trains are half-full at the moment.
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Friday -heard cancellations were due to necessary repairs following last weeks “bad weather ” -presumably if we do get cancelled it is relatively easy to get on another ? I want my reserved seat !
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I shouldn’t worry. Our 6pm was cancelled, we could book 5pm or 7pm, turned up at 3.50 and got straight on. Plenty of space.
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