Paris, France

How do I even begin to summarize the gasto-experience that Paris was. From upscale, family owned restaurants to something as simple was bread, wine, and cheese in the park, there are few disappointments across the culinary landscape of the “City of Love”.

I could write about the open air markets or the cheese platter at the underground comedy club, but I’d like to focus on one restaurant in particular: Le Potager du Père Thierry. Located in the 18th arrondissement of the city, a stones throw from the Sacré-Cœur Basilica, this small but cozy hole in the wall offers some of the best French cooking we experienced in Paris. Squeezed into the hallway sized dining area, an incredibly friendly waitstaff moved around the tables to accommodate for us at peak dining time (there were about 10 people in the space including those employed). Once wedged in and post-first glass of wine, we ordered the lamb chop and duck confit as our main courses. I’m not going to pretend to be a food critic here - a food critic would know how to properly capture everything this meal was - but I can definitively say that there have been only a handful of times in my life that I have been absolutely floored by every part of a dining experience and this was one of them. From the atmosphere and experience to the food itself. Both dishes were everything you could have possibly wanted them to be and more.