Heading to Paris this summer? Take a look at our list for lodging/hotels, eating, drinking (great wine), shopping and clubbing.
STAY: Mama Shelter, a hotel designed by Philippe Starck. Here, you can marvel at the details that Starck is so well known for, such as the anecdotes plastered on the elevator walls. It is located in the 20e arrondissement on 109 rue de Bagnolet.
STAY: Hotel Amour on 8 rue Navarin. In addition to staying here, it is known as a great people watching venue, particularly from their outside terrace.
SHOP: Located in the 3e arrondissement, Xuly.Bet is an urban boutique filled with fun things to buy from designer Lamine Badian Kouyate.
ART: Le Bal has two full floors of contemporary art and important historical works. There’s also a café in the Le Bal where you can taste their scrumptious sweet-potato gratin with sage.
BAKERY/BREADS: The Gontran Cherrier Bakery offers hot chocolate and croissants made with Montaigu hazelnut butter. They also have an over-the-top ceiling oozing with bright vivid colors. It is located on 22 rue Caulaincourt.
WINE: Quedubon, which is near the Buttes-Chamont, Gilles Benard only serves natural local wines together with creative and inventive bistro cuisines, perfect for a lighter dining evening. Try the sea bass carpaccio with citrus vinaigrette. It is located on 15 rue du Plateau.
LUNCH: Miroir is owned by Sebastien Guenard and Matthieu Buffet (formerly with Alain Ducasse’s Aux Lyonnais). Try the pan-fried Pollock and their fixe-prix lunch for less than 20 Euros including a glass of wine. Miroir is located 94 rue des Martyrs.
DINNER: Check out the Le Baratin in Belleville, which isn’t easy to get a reservation for, but worth doing in advance so you can experience their escabeche of quail served with almonds and grapes. Le Baratin is located on 3 rue Jouye-Rouve in Belleville.
CLUB: Favela Chic is a restaurant by day but later on, it converts itself to a night club. Located on 18 rue du Faubourg-du-Temple.
Renee Blodgett is the founder of We Blog the World. The site combines the magic of an online culture and travel magazine with a global blog network and has contributors from every continent in the world. Having lived in 10 countries and explored nearly 80, she is an avid traveler, and a lover, observer and participant in cultural diversity.
She is also the CEO and founder of Magic Sauce Media, a new media services consultancy focused on viral marketing, social media, branding, events and PR. For over 20 years, she has helped companies from 12 countries get traction in the market. Known for her global and organic approach to product and corporate launches, Renee practices what she pitches and as an active user of social media, she helps clients navigate digital waters from around the world. Renee has been blogging for over 16 years and regularly writes on her personal blog Down the Avenue, Huffington Post, BlogHer, We Blog the World and other sites. She was ranked #12 Social Media Influencer by Forbes Magazine and is listed as a new media influencer and game changer on various sites and books on the new media revolution. In 2013, she was listed as the 6th most influential woman in social media by Forbes Magazine on a Top 20 List.
Her passion for art, storytelling and photography led to the launch of Magic Sauce Photography, which is a visual extension of her writing, the result of which has led to producing six photo books: Galapagos Islands, London, South Africa, Rome, Urbanization and Ecuador.
Renee is also the co-founder of Traveling Geeks, an initiative that brings entrepreneurs, thought leaders, bloggers, creators, curators and influencers to other countries to share and learn from peers, governments, corporations, and the general public in order to educate, share, evaluate, and promote innovative technologies.
