How to be Parisian in San Francisco Part 2
In part 1 guest poster Amy provided her tips on how to be Parisian in San Francisco, a place she used to call home until she met her French husband and moved to Paris. I get to thank her in person on October 15th when we meet at the Paris Blogger Meet-up!
For part 2 I am giving you my tips on how to get a little French in your life if you live in San Francisco (some of these can be extrapolated to your town as well).
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[1] Hang out on Bush Street where the French Consulate is. Have breakfast across the street at Cafe de la Presse and read Le Monde. Or a leisurely lunch catching up on your “presse people” (gossip) with a Paris Match. There is a complete French magazine, books and newspaper stand inside the cafe. They have good croissants and excellent coffee and great French bistro food for lunch.
[2] Eat at one of the many fabulous French restaurants. There is something for every price range and nearly every region. There's one of my favorites, Plouf! to the super deluxe Fleur de Lys, and excellent ones like Fringale in between, you cannot go wrong. You will imbibe French and leave the desire to shout “oh la la!”
[3] Take a macaron class. Places like Bonbini hold classes practically every weekend. You can learn to make this increasingly popular French treat, meet other francophones….and you can eat what you make!
[4] Participate in Bastille Day activities! Not only will you have a good time, but you will probably meet French people who can bring a little French to your life throughout the year. The restaurants on Belden Lane, which include Plouf (now closed) hold a party every year. Belden Lane is a pedestrian alley off of Bush Street (see above #1) which houses 8 restaurants. On Bastille Day it is a total party!
[5] Attend events held by French clubs or schools. In San Francisco, there is the French-American Chamber of Commerce that holds an annual soirée as well as events at the French-American high school. You will be surrounded by French people, food and wine, nothing bad about that!
Well, those are my tips. 2-5 seem doable in just about any medium-to-large sized city, so go out there and get your French on!
I may just take a trip to the little french bistro I was at a few weeks ago – they have everything you described including all the wonderful french magazines. I can pick out a few words but the photos are stunning too!! I can’t wait to hear about your parisian adventures – i fell in love with Paris a few weeks ago…Happy weekend, Andi! xxoo 🙂
@Cathi, sitting in a cafe that is not Paris is not quite the same, but sometimes if you close your eyes and pretend it is enough to get you by!
Ohhh, you’ve made me miss SF again! Can’t wait for my next trip back.