The best little chocolate shops in Paris

So many chocolate shops -- and patisseries -- in Paris, so little time. (Seriously, there must be a chocolate shop and/or pastry shop on every block.) That's why I highly recommend doing a Chocolate Walk and/or Taste of Paris walking tour next time you find yourself in the City of Lights and Chocolate.

We did a Chocolate Walk (with Paris Walks) on our last trip to Paris, in November 2009. So this time we did a Taste of Paris walking tour (again with Paris Walks) -- and made sure to visit a few chocolatiers and patisseries we didn't get to our last visit. My insulin is still recovering. But in the words of Edith Piaf, je ne regrette rien.

Following are some of my favorite sweet destinations in Paris.

With a name like La Maison du Chocolat, it's gotta be good, oui? Oui. And as per usual the truffles, and the chocolate eclairs, did not disappoint. (Bonus: La Maison du Chocolat has three shops in New York City!)














Another must-sample chocolate/pastry shop, Patisserie Stohrer, the oldest patisserie in Paris.


















However, my now favorite chocolate shop in Paris is L'Atelier du Chocolat, whose Feuillants d'or (dark chocolate covered in crushed pralines... shudder)... I have no words for (but my mother is seriously going to score major mom points if she brings me back a bag).


















And if you like your fine chocolates paired with a fine wine, look no farther (or further) than Saint-Honoré Paris Chocolats & Vins at 37-39 rue Saint-Honoré, the first chocolate and wine bar in Paris. (Quick, someone, get this business a website!) It was only because we had been gorging ourselves for two hours on fine cheese, fois gras, and chocolates that I could not choke down more than a couple of pieces of their delicious-looking chocolates and wash them down with a bit of red wine.














Finally, what can I say about the macarons and pastries of Ladurée (without sighing)? They are simply... heavenly. Sigh. (I lovingly carried back a box of two dozen assorted macarons on the airplane, which lasted but a few days.)














Honorable mentions: Jean-Paul Hévin (see my previous Paris chocolate post) and Pierre Hermé (though we prefer Ladurée's macarons).

[Amazingly, despite gorging myself on rich food and pastries and chocolates for eight days, I managed to lose a pound. Must be something about France.]

Sinkhole de Mayo... Green puppies... Blog or chocolate?

It is always entertaining (well, mostly entertaining) watching MSNBC. You just never know what the cable news network will feature as "news." This morning, I got an unexpected two-fer. Apparently, down in Daisetta, Texas, there is a 260-foot-deep sinkhole that grew to the length of three football fields over just two days -- literally swallowing (or attempting to swallow) the town of Daisetta. (No mention of any giant worms.)

While I am sure this is no laughing matter to the good citizens of Daisetta, it is pretty awe inspiring. The funny part? Due to the fact that the sinkhole occurred in May, the locals refer to it as... wait for it... Sinkhole de Mayo. Get it?! Sinkhole de Mayo?!

Moving right along...

Also in the news (and I'm not talking "News of the World" or "The Star" but once again MSNBC), last week a golden retriever gave birth to a bright green puppy in New Orleans. Animal experts do not believe the pup, named Wasabi, will grow up to be a Teenage Mutant Ninja Dog, but you never know.

UPDATE: According to sharp-eyed blog reader and blogger Betty Cracker, there were TWO green puppies born last week. Shocking but true. I apparently conflated the stories. The New Orleans green puppy, which I link to, was born to a boxer or boxer mix; the golden retriever and its green pup -- the one named Wasabi -- hail from California. Btw, if the owners of the other green pup have not come up with a name yet, I propose Quiche Lorraine.

Finally, a colleague of mine sent me this fascinating bit of research regarding women and blogging. (Thanks Dan!) According to the research brief, titled "Women Would Sacrifice Almost Anything But Chocolate For Blogging," which is based on a survey of more than 6,000 women conducted by BlogHer and Compass Partners, "36.2 million women actively participate in the blogosphere every week, with 15.1 million publishing and 21.1 million reading and commenting." And I'm one of them! Fascinating.

Even more interesting, according to the survey women are so passionate about blogging that they would be willing to give up something near and dear to them in order to keep blogging. Among the items included:

- 55% would give up alcohol
- 50% would give up their PDAs
- 42% would give up their i-Pod
- 43% would give up reading the newspaper or magazines
- But only 20% would give up chocolate

I find it interesting that sex was not included among the choices (though will keep my snarky comments to myself).

For the record, you can have my chocolate; just keep your paws off my blog.