Le Chocolate bar of Jean Paul Hévin
  • 27
  • Feb
  • 2012

Read in DoitinParis.com :

Le Chocolate Bar, trendy place for fashionistas looking for a light and gourmet lunch
Here, it’s a little like at Colette, food and chocolate version, the Chocolate bar of Jean Paul Hévin, located on the first floor of the great chocolate couturier’s boutique on rue du Faubourg Saint Honoré.

Who goes there? Incognito, Victoria Beckham between two boutiques, Eva Longoria a cocoa fan, ecstatic kawais, Vogue editors at lunch time.

No panic for twigs on a diet. Light plates and even lighter prices, quite rare in the area: a diet salad (a combo of salads with herbs, lemon, olive oil, warm chicken whites, curry carrots) at 13,90 € or the diet plate at 14,90 € of the sea (salads with herbs, lemon, olive oil, house marinated fish, parmesan shavings, potato.)

We’re wild about: the Mazaltov, a 0% cheese-cake unmatched say the purists, and better than the real ones that are fatty and caloric , even for purists. Less dietetic, but furiously delicious : frappé chocolates

Le Chocolate Bar,231, rue Saint-Honoré, 75001 Paris, tel: 01 55 35 35 96, open Monday-Saterday from noon till 19 h. 

Best vintage clothing in the Marais
  • 25
  • Feb
  • 2012

Read in an article on Fodor’s newsletter by Jennifer Ladonne

To spend your time wisely shopping in Paris’s Marais, pass over the French-brand chains you can find elsewhere in the city—at locations that are often larger and less crowded—in favor of vintage shopping at a friperie. What you’ll find at these second-hand boutiques is anything but second-rate: some carry a mix of well-priced items to give your wardrobe a euro-touch, while others specialize in rare and exceptional stand-outs that would make a statement in Paris’s chicest wardrobes. We hit all the charming side streets in the hood to suss out the top shops. Your best bet is to visit them Tuesday through Saturday, between 2 p.m. and 7 p.m.

Best for Vintage Basics

The owners of Pretty Box scour Europe for unique pieces from the 20s through the 80s. Fashionistas love the super-stylish belts, shoes, and bags—many in reptile—for a fraction of what they’d cost new. A recent stop-in turned up a few finds in their varied men’s collection, such as French military coats ($90), and ’70s-era Pierre Cardin shirts.

Best for Haute Couture

The scintillating La Jolie Garde-Robe (15 rue Commines, 3e, 01-42-72-13-90), channels the spirits of Belle du Jour and Holly Golightly in a choice collection of ready-to-wear and haute couture from the ’50s to the ’90s. To give you an idea of the caliber of pieces they stock, we recently spotted a Madame Grès full-length black organdy gown from her ’50s heyday, priced at $2,000.

Best for Sweet 70s Finds

If you’re missing the heady days of Studio 54, sashay over to Studio W (21 rue du Pont aux Choux, 3e, 01-44-78-05-02), where a rare Loris Azzaro gold-chain top or a Guy Laroche beaded couture gown in red mousseline will satisfy even the most persnickety diva. This shop is also notable for its well-curated selection of jewelry, gloves, shoes, and bags to match.

Best for Budget-Savvy Fashionistas

Don’t let the chaos at Free ‘P’ Star (8 rue Sainte Croix de la Bretonnerie, 4e, 01-42-76-03-72) discourage you—there’s gold to be found in bins and on racks. Determined seekers on a budget can reap rewards—at least according to the young hipsters that flock here. Our best recent find: a 70s calf leather and macramé skirt and top set ($40). For more leisurely hunting, check out the rue de la Verrerie branch (61 rue de la Verrerie, 4e, 01-42-78-00-75).

Best for Big-Name Designers

It’s worth the detour to the Marais’ outer limits in the 11th arrondissement to drop by Vintage Clothing Paris (10 rue de Crussol, 11e, 01-48-07-16-40), especially if the legendary designers—Yves St. Laurent, Hermès, Valentino, Lagerfeld, Mugler—speak to you. Come for the A-list clothes, but don’t leave without taking a quick look at the handful of accessories. On a recent visit, we spotted an Azzedine Alaïa suede skirt, circa 1985, with peek-a-boo grommets, and a zip-up front ($200).

Candelaria
  • 20
  • Feb
  • 2012

In the newletter of Do it Paris I read about Candeleria and it seems great.

“Candeleria, the bar to go to on our evening out
When it comes to a trendy night on the town, la Candelaria is the absolute must with the huge advantage of mixing price and baba-glam spirit. It’s just like being in a hot spot of Los Angeles .

The idea? Sipping a Margarita and other great cocktails lounging in organic wool armchairs, by candle light.

The must ? Tasting the collective punch with cachaça, sloe gin, rosemary, lemon, grapefruit and champagne. (48 €)

We adore… The « clandestine » side of the place just like in New-York. The bar is hidden behind the tacos canteen that gives onto the street.

Impossible to guess from the street that you are in front of ‘the spot to be ». You need to be like the other trendies here, an insider night owl.

Candelaria, 52 rue de Saintonge 75003 Paris,tel 01 42 74 41 28

Dary’s
  • 10
  • Feb
  • 2012

Dary’s brings to realization the best of a Paris shopping experience—a wonderful, family-run, Ali Baba-ish cavern teeming with artists, actors, models, and jewelry lovers. You’ll need to take your time though, because the walls are filled with row upon row of antique jewels from every era, more modern secondhand jewelry, and drawer upon drawer of vintage one-of-a-kinds.

Dary’s,362 rue St-Honoré, 75001 Paris, tel 01 42 60 95 23 M° Tuileries