Favorite Spots in Paris - Part Four

  Île Saint-Louis and The Café St. Regis

Well, I'm going to squeeze three different things into my Part Four of favorite spots in Paris.

❤  ❤  ❤

You can't visit Paris and not spend time in cafés, bistros, and brasseries.

You can't read a book, or see a movie about Paris, without spending time in cafés, bistros, and brasseries.

And there's a very good reason for all that.

Several excellent reasons.   The food, the ambience, the history, the architecture, etc.

However.

Not all cafés, bistros, and brasseries have great food, or great coffee, or even serve cocktails.  Not all of them are beautiful.  

But.

Speaking only for myself, there is a bit of magic in each and every one.

And yes, there ARE differences between a bistro and a café.

 And Annie André is here to explain those differences -

https://www.annieandre.com/cafe-vs-bistro-vs-brasserie-french-restaurants/

I have had only one bad experience in any of these.  It was in Montmartre.   I have also had lovely experiences in Montmartre, so that was certainly not meant as a blanket criticism.

One of my very most favorite bistros is The Café St. Regis.  The fact that it is located in my most very favorite area in Paris only adds to its charm. 

❤   Île Saint-Louis ❤

My first visit to Café St. Regis was during my first trip to Paris in 2017 with Lesa Holstine, Vickie Smith, and Lisa Butler.

To say I fell in love with Paris almost immediately upon landing at Charles de Gaulle airport is no exaggeration.  You'd be a happy woman too if a handsome gentleman asked very politely if he could carry your suitcase down a steep flight of stairs.

It just kept getting better and better from there.  

Of all of Paris, I fell completely and totally head over heels in love with  Île Saint-Louis. 

I stopped in a gallery, Carré d’artistes, on Île Saint-Louis and bought a piece by a mixed media collage artist I had discovered on-line, Karine Romanelli.

This particular piece completely encapsulates Paris and I love it.

Within days of returning home I knew I was far from finished with Paris.

It didn't take long before I had convinced Donald to go to Paris with me, and plans were in the works within the week.

Including finding a very small studio apartment to rent on the Île Saint-Louis.

We arrived back in Paris almost a year to the day after my first trip.

The apartment was tiny and adorable and shared a courtyard with a boulangerie where we woke up in the mornings to the fragrance of baking croissants.

Café St. Regis was a couple blocks away.

We would stop there in the mornings for our coffee before wandering the city.  (It just so happens they have excellent Eggs Benedict).

And we would usually stop there again in the evenings.

So.

There you have it (them).

Three favorite things from Paris.

Île Saint-Louis

Café St. Regis

And another favorite piece capturing those two favorite things painted by a favorite artist, Karine Romanelli

This hangs in our bedroom. 

 I can look at it and almost feel like Donald and I are right back there on the Île Saint-Louis, sitting at a small table in front of the Café St. Regis enjoying a Café Crème, or an evening cocktail, while we gaze at Notre Dame and do a little people watching while a young musician entertains us playing some sultry slow jazz on his saxaphone.

Almost.

j'espère que vous reviendrez