I was more or less resigned to the CE's plan for reducing our Paris visit's dining budget to the occasional gnawing on a crust of baguette with perhaps a sliver of cheese here and there. But then, thankfully, fate stepped in, in the personage of our travel agent.
Her exact words, accompanied by an arched eyebrow, were somewhat along the lines of "What? You're not planning to take your wife to lunch at Jules Verne for your anniversary?"
We'd actually dined there back in 2011, so I wasn't pushing my luck. But thanks to that divinely-timed intervention by Our Lady of the Travel Agency, we found ourselves strolling once again toward Le Tour Eiffel.
The world has changed since our last visit to Paris, and so has access to the Eiffel Tower.
There's no casual just striding up to it to crane your neck for the view. You are funneled through a series of stanchion-cordoned lines and checked through a metal detector, all the while wondering if you were going to be turned back for not having the billet in hand referenced by the multitude of signs along the queue.
It seems the ticket is an issue only for those planning to enter the tourist elevator for the tower. There was no ticket required to access the Champ de Mars, and our lunch reservation served as our ticket for tower entry via Jules Verne's private elevator.
Le Jules Verne is both a tourist destination (albeit a pricey one!) and a one Michelin-starred restaurant. The staff manages to juggle these seemingly disparate features in the most gracious possible way. Yes, most of the diners will have a much deeper appreciation of the view than the menu, but why not try to civilize their palates a bit while they stare out the window?
At 410 feet up, the view of the city beyond the gleaming girders of the tower is an impressive one:
And, of course, so is the food. We ordered the lesser a la carte menu rather than the tasting menu but it was special in its own right. After a tomato-themed amuse bouche and Zucchini broth with clam of enjoyed inventive courses like this Lemon Sorbet Cloud over crab:
Artichoke with Caviar:
and a most memorable Langoustine with Beet Cloak:
The chicken dish was all dressed up:
and the melted cheese with mashed potatoes covered with truffles was an enticement that will make me want to return (someday, hopefully) for a third visit.
There was, of course, chocolate:
And more sweet treasures and an anniversary wish to see us on our way back down to earth.
It was a thoroughly lovely and luxurious afternoon up in the clouds. And even if I don't end up remembering each lovely bite of Michelin-starred food, I will always remember walking back to our hotel along the Seine, cozy beneath an umbrella, the air perfumed by rain-scented horse chestnut leaves, and arm in arm with the CE as I've been lucky to be every time I've been in Paris. So blessed!
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