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Published: February 18th 2008
Bordeaux was lovely. (I was going to finish with that, but Jess suggested I elaborate..) Our first night (Valentine's day, no less) ended with my first experience ordering at a restaurant with 0% communication; but dumbfounded pointing got us Belgian beers and pasta. Disappointed but not defeated, the next day we walked down the street to what was touted as the "Best Wine and Cheese Restaurant" in Bordeaux. Ooo La La, they had quite a reputation to live up to for these two hedonists!
Jessie ordered a salad (with four cheeses) and Duck Leg Confit as her main; while I stuck with my dumb pointed, and fingered "le Cheese Buffet". Smuggly content, i waited for the young skinny waitress to bring me my sampling. Instead, she returned with two salads:the four cheese one for Jessie and a simple melange with vinaigarette for me. She then waved for me to follow (she spoke no english, and when i pointed at the wine list, insinuating a question, she shrugged and said in french "It's for you"). Alright, i thought. We walked downstairs (where i thought le toilettes were). At their base was a glass walk-in refridgerator. She opened the door, we walked in. Wooden shelves were lined with rounds of cheese on straw mats. Water dripped from the ceiling onto a cold stone floor. With a wave of her arm and a smile she looked at me and said "Le Buffet". She pointed at plates and walked upstairs.
I emerged from le buffet some 10 minutes later with a 10" plate mounded from edge to edge (not rim to rim, mind you) with wedges of fromage. Jessie, and the two Frenchmen lunching at the table next to us, unabashedly stared. Even I was surprised at the appetite of my eyes. I think i heard my stomach (saying with much attitude) "oh hayell no". But i ate it (most of it anyway, halfway through i gave up on the rinds). Then Jessie had sorbet and we walked around town, then took a nap. But not before making a reservation for dinner at a fancy Brasserie where we were turned down the night before because we didn't have a reservation and it was Valentine's day.
Bordeaux is a lovely city, and so is Paris, for that matter. Both have a style of architechture that looks like an impressionist's painting (probably because that's what they were painting). The city cleans the downtown buildings regularly, so they are still gleaming white stone with square blue roofs. Where the city doesn't clean, the stones turn black (looking like Old London's sooty buildings) from pollution. Most comes from Napolean's time.
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Patrick
non-member comment
Have fun in France!!!
Finally got a minute to go through ur blog. This is great! Cheese orgy in Bordeaux, mmmmmmhh!!! ca a l'air vachement bon, et tout a fait a mon gout :) How about your French? Got some improvement action on that subject, lol? Keep posting please, and keep the pix coming too. Manal says hello too. Ttyl