When this interview was recorded I was seated at Les Editeurs in Paris’ 6eme arrondissement with a very pregnant author awaiting both the birth of her first child and first book. I am happy to report that mom and both her baby and book are doing well.
TG: When did you first come to Paris?
EB: My first trip to Paris was during my Jr. Year Abroad in Scotland – I came with my lactose intolerant, almost vegetarian best friend. We slept in one big bed with a hole in the middle and ate a lot of mango sorbet.
When and why did you come back (to stay?
I guess it’s a classic – but I came for “l’amour”– I had been dating a Frenchman (now my husband) for two years – and it was time to make a choice –back to my 5-year plan in New York or love nest in Paris. I chose Paris – the rest, as they say, is history.
TG: Where do you live (arrondissement?
EB: We live in the 10th arrondissement – by the Canal Saint Martin – on the same street where I visited my husband in his tiny student apartment 10 years ago. Back then, they called it the “rue des squatters” because of all the illegal inhabitants and drug dealers. 10 years later, it’s very “bobo” – bourgeois boheme – I guess that’s the Paris version of gentrification.
TG: Why?
EB: I love the neighborhood because it’s very mixed – there’s a great French butcher and boulangerie, and a great Turkish supermarket and a terrific Algerian bakery. Unlike more chic – and strictly “French” neighborhoods – there is always something open – it reminds me a bit of the Lower East Side in New York. And of course – the Canal is a fabulous– it’s wonderful to have the open space.
TG: What’s your favorite café?
EB: Le Carillon – on the corner of rue Alibert and rue Bichat – I love the chipped art deco mirrors and mismatched chairs – the servers know us for years – now, they welcomed our son like he was a member of the family. That said – I wrote most of Lunch in Paris is a variety of cafes in the neighborhood – so I have waiter friends a bit all over the place – they keep an eye out for me. It’s a bit like a village. Every time they see my husband with another woman – friend or colleague – no matter – they come up and say, “Where’s your wife?”
TG: What’s your favorite starred restaurant?
EB: Is it weird for a food lover to admit this? I’ve never been to a starred resto in France. The real discovery for me was the shopping and the cooking at home – the market became a real source of inspiration for me – and eventually for the book as well.
TG: What’s your favorite bistro du coin?
EB: We always end up taking friends who come to town either to L’Hermes in the 19th for Cassoulet, or to L’Homme Bleu for great tagine.
TG: What’s your favorite market?
EB: Boulevard de Belleville – Wed and Saturday mornings 8am-1pm. Whenever I travel, I use the local markets to get to know a place – this one has a great (bleach blond) cheese monger, a super fish monger and a wonderful stand from Auvergne selling saucisson and Saint Nectaire.
TG: What’s your favorite park or garden?
EB: The Buttes Chaumont – I’m a sucker for 19th century drama – I love the fake waterfall and the swans. My husband proposed there. And we had our wedding reception in a restaurant in the garden as well.
TG: What’s your favorite time of the year?
EB: Born in New York and having spent my high school years in New England – I’m partial to fall. I’m a back-to-school kind of girl. I love the possibilities of la rentrée – a crisp new year.
TG: How has Paris affected your work?
EB: I was a journalist and art critic when I arrived in Paris. I knew that I eventually wanted to write about the experience of living abroad and intercultural marriage, but it took me a long time – not only to adjust to life in France – but to pinpoint exactly what it was that helped me do this. In fact, most of what I’ve learned about France, I’ve learned “autour de la table” – around the table, so as soon as I started focusing on those food related experiences – the narrative and structure for Lunch in Paris became very clear.
TG: How has Paris affected your life?
