Let's start with a drink, always the best way to start IMO!
I always have lists going with places I want to check out in cities around the globe. I don't always know where I read about a place or who recommended it to me, as was the case when I suggested checking out the rooftop bar at Hotel Dame des Arts to my BFF Forest. But we thought it was odd that she wasn't familiar since she worked in the cocktail industry.
Off we went before dinner one night, and were told that the rooftop wasn't open since it was winter. We decided to stay anyway and have a drink in the cute restaurant/bar of the little hotel. As we sat there we both had the feeling that we had been here before. We started to search online for what the hotel had been before and found that it was the old Holiday Inn with incredible rooftop views of the Eiffel Tower where Forest had taken me years before!
The waiter invited us to take our cocktails up to the rooftop even though there wasn't anyone working up there, so we bundled up and enjoyed the entire terrace and views all to ourselves.
Next on my list was dinner of oysters at Huitrerie Regis. Again, I couldn't remember where I had read about it but Forest was game so we walked over to the 6th to find the address. When we came upon the TINY shop Forest laughed and told me that she had passed this place once and meant to come back to try it.
There are only about 6 tables and a small selection of the oysters they feel are the best at the time. We had a great dinner and great wine. The oysters here were served both with butter, as is pretty normal in France, and also Baume de Bouteville balsamic vinegar, made in French cognac barrels, standing in for the more typical mignonette. It was delicious!
After dinner, Forest took me to a little hotel, tucked back off the street and looking like it was from a Wes Anderson movie. Hotel de l'Abbaye had indeed been a home for nuns in the mid 17th century before being converted to a hotel in the 1990's.
We enjoyed a nightcap in the sweet little bar area, but be advised that normally this is only open to guests of the hotel. We just feigned innocence.
One afternoon we had lunch at a very traditional cafe near her place. There were no tourists at the L'Os à Moelle, and our meal started with lovely little amuse soups, served gratis, before my hearty main of duck. We finished with cheese bien sûr.
Late that afternoon, after some spa time at Hotel Crillon, Forest and I met our friend Matt at the hotel's uber ritzy Les Ambassadeurs Bar. This bar is such a stunner!
But it's not just for looks, the drinks are excellent. And spendy! The "Pear", their take on an Old Fashioned with Michter's bourbon, calvados, sauternes, and pear juice was delicious and €29!
That night we walked over to the restaurant Chez Rene in the 5th. I had first eaten here with my mom in 1999 while we were staying just blocks away. My mom liked it so much, and they treated us so well, that we went twice on our 10-day trip. Then a couple of years ago, my friend Albert posted about his dinner here! I was surprised as this isn't a trendy spot but he said it's on his semi-regular rotation. I really wanted to go back and Forest and our friend Cli said they would be up for it.
Well the girls thought it was great and that is high praise as they both live in the city and eat at MANY cafés. The restaurant was full and bustling and obviously very loved by its regulars. The food was still classic and wonderful and the service still kind. Cli's only complaint was that they brought the bill when we were done instead of asking if we wanted to order more wine. Which we did and then basically closed the place down! It was really a sweet trip down memory lane made even better by sharing it with friends.
Another afternoon I stopped into another neighborhood café, close by Forest's and a fave of another friend, A la Tour Eiffel. I enjoyed a simple lunch of duck confit and roast potatoes. What can I say? I love the classics!
Bar Nouveau had opened a few months before I was in town and was getting all the love so we went early one evening (there are only 8 seats upstairs so plan accordingly). The menu is also tiny with just 6 drinks listed. We had time for a couple of rounds and everything we had was wonderful. My favorite was their take on the Ramos Fizz made with vanilla yogurt and peated whiskey. They unapologetically use a milkshake machine to mix the cocktail for a full 3 minutes.
Dinner that evening was at Petrelle, my first time. The restaurant has been around for 20 years, and under its old chef was a favorite of celebs like Madonna and Mick Jagger. He sold it to sommelier Luca Danti and chef Lucie Boursier-Mougenot years ago and Forest and I were both excited to try it out.
They only serve a 4-course tasting menu, with an optional 5th choice, which is great for me, and the room is cozy and dim with lots of antiques and candles. When we were seated we were amongst the only one's in the room and I think we were both a little worried, but within an hour the restaurant was completely full.
We had such a fantastic meal and loved all our courses including a wonderful dish of amberjack in tigre de leche with Meyer lemon, pasta "candies" with roasted squash and bisque with saffron foam, a juicy cut of pork with candied leeks and a broth made of seaweed. A generous plate of cheese followed and then a small deconstructed apple tart. Everything was excellent. We also had a great conversation with Danti about a few of his wines and when we inquired about one he was pouring by the glass for another table he gifted us the remainder of the bottle. I really can't recommend Petrelle highly enough!
Without a doubt the highlight meal of this trip was lunch at the famed 1-Michelin star Tour d'Argent. Originally opened as an inn in 1582, during Henry III's reign, it evolved into a fine dining establishment late in the 16th century when Henry IV started using a fork to eat at the inn (forks having been used for serving only in France until then).
In the 1890s the restaurant was owned by Frédéric Delair who hosted the Wright Brothers for dinner! In 1911 the restaurant was purchased by André Terrail, and in 1947 he handed it over to his son Claude, and in 2006 after Claud's death, his son André took it over. The restaurant was closed in early 2022 for a huge renovation and had just reopened 6 months prior to our lunch. Part of the renovation included adding a lovely ground floor bar which is where we started.
Bar des Maillets d'Argent, named after Claude's polo team, welcomed us with complimentary mini cocktails and amuse bouche mini polo balls on a dish looking like polo turf. Then André came out and introduced himself to Forest and talked to her all about the bar and the concept. The bar area is also filled with cases holding all sorts of family and restaurant history. It's a great spot!
When it was time for our lunch we were led through a door disguised as a paneled wall, down a little hall, also with cases of memorabilia, and into an elevator waiting to take us to the 6th floor restaurant. The floor to ceiling windows have views of the Seine, Notre-Dame and the Ile Saint-Louis. It's fantastic!
Our table was set with a heavy glass duck paperweight, silver goblets and plate chargers. The entire restaurant seemed new and shiny! We started with perfectly poured rosé Champagne (by our possibly hungover young server) followed by some lovely amuse bouche.
At lunch they serve a wonderful 4-course menu so really the only thing we had to was pick a wine. Not so easy though with their famous cellar of nearly 300,000 bottles!!! Holy hell, the wine menu was the largest I have ever seen! We finally settled on a 2005 Saumur from Château de Villeneuve since we are both fans of Chenin Blanc from the Loire.
First course was a silky mushroom soup, poured directly into monogrammed china bowls. Second course was "Egg Mystery" a signature dish of sous vide egg, coated with breadcrumbs and then surrounded by sauce and shaved black truffles! Woah!
Third course was a perfectly cooked piece of bass with a foam sauce that was so airy! A sprinkling of various seeds lended great texture to contrast. And of course the fourth course was the dish the restaurant is most famous for, "Canard à la Presse".
The dish, created in 1890 by the owner at the time Frédéric Delair, uses a specific process for the pressed duck, and is served with sauces and garnishes based on the season. Delair also started getting the ducks from just one family farm, Maison Burgaud in Challans, on the west coast of France. And he started the tradition of numbering each duck served. Customers get a little card or certificate, mine was 1,182,459! That's a lot of ducks all still coming from the same family!
It was all fantastic; the food, the service, the people watching, the newly renovated room (google some photos of the old decor! Hello grandma!), and the million dollar views. We finished with a lovely selection of cheeses off of their cart, some more rosé Champagne, two dessert dishes (one a light sorbet and the other a chocolate & pear combo), then a small platter of chocolate mignardises.
We were almost the last ones in the dining room and when the bill finally arrived were were surprised and thrilled to see the hand written note from André letting us know it was on him! Incredibly generous! He was very excited that Forest was there and really valued her opinion.
One of the servers then took us on a tour of the rooftop, which has little tables and chairs, and looks like the perfect spot for a sunset cocktail. And on our way down in the elevator they also told us that there is an apartment for rent. So basically you don't ever have to leave the Tower! We chose to extend our stay with a few cognacs back in the bar (which they also comped).
Early the next morning I was in an Uber to CDG in A LOT of traffic (1 full hour on the road) but once at the airport I was checked into my biz class flight on Air France and thru security in 15 minutes total. The lounge in T2 is really basic, especially in the morning with not even Champagne on offer, so I did a bit of duty free shopping and then had a short flight to Heathrow. Even on this short hop, AF biz breakfast was a poached egg in tomato sauce, a wedge of Cantel, fromage blanc, croissants, and jam!
One thing about using points to fly is that a lot of time there isn't a direct flight available. And since I really try to only fly business when going international that makes picking slimmer. I would be having a 6-hour layover in LHR. Some might cringe but Heathrow is such a madhouse that as my friend Albert said, "I hope that gives you enough time to transfer!" ha!
I spent most of my time in the Virgin Atlantic Clubhouse Lounge, which is easily in my top 5 fave lounges in the world. I sat in the restaurant and enjoyed a full service lunch of a cute sausage roll and champagne.
After lunch I went to the bar area and relaxed with more champagne for a bit before also hitting the duty free shops on my way to my boarding gate. I flew Delta One back to Seattle on their A330-900. The Suite was very nice and had lots of room and lots of privacy with the door completely closed.
The service, food, and wine was all very good but they don't give you pajamas or put mattresses on the layflats like many other airlines do! So it was very good for me but not excellent. Bonus points for serving high tea before landing though!
My grand adventure on the Palace on Wheels started and ended in Delhi. As it was also a grand expense and a grand distance I was eager to make sure that I used points to fly business! I found a great price on Virgin from JFK connecting thru London for 85k + $1000 on one of the brand new A330neo. I bought a Premium class seat on Alaska Air from SEA to JFK for under $300 and that flight also earned me MVP status. Win win!
In JFK I headed to the Amex Centurion Lounge where I then located the speakeasy 1850. The small menu of cocktails was created by Jim Meehan and my Southside was very good. Luckily it wasn't too busy when I was there so I was able to get a table, but there isn't a lot of space here so best if you are just 1 or 2.
My suite on Virgin's "Queen of the Skies" was fantastic! There is a privacy door which goes up to about chest-high, an XL lay-flat seat, a cubby with a mirror to stash belongings, a side table, a mattress & PJs (but no slippers?), and a good sized tv w/ bluetooth pairing. There is also a social area at the back of Biz class called "The Loft" which has self service fridges and a long couch.
Sadly the food was not very good. I had ordered a lamb burger off their pre-flight menu and what arrived was a full size burger bun with a teeny lamb meatball & a similar size piece of haulumi. The flight attendant was visibly embarrassed.
In Heathrow I had a 3+ hour layover and since my arrival and departure were in the same terminal there was no rushing through all the construction there. I did accidently go thru passport control, so I had to go thru security again, but I got to use the private Clubhouse Lounge elevator which has their own security so it was super fast!
I love the Clubhouse Lounge so it was no problem hanging out for a few hours. I took a shower in one of the private rooms, ordered breakfast in the lounge restaurant, then moved to the bar and drank champagne.
My Virgin flight from LHR to DEL was an older A350. This also had a privacy door but the entire cabin was pretty worn and really needed an update. The lay-flat bed wasn't as comfy as others but it did have a mattress (but no PJs) and I was able to sleep most of the 8 hour flight.
At midnight, 30 hours after I left my home in Seattle, I landed in Delhi and was met by a rep with Palace on Wheels. They greeted me with my first of many marigold garlands and not only drove me to the Oberoi Hotel but escorted me inside and made sure I was all checked in. Very nice as it was 1am by this time.
I had booked the very elegant hotel, on the recommendation of friends who stay there often, thru my Amex Platinum Fine Hotels & Resorts program. This gave me a $200 Amex credit, $100 credit at the hotel, room upgrade, daily breakfast, and 4pm late check-out.
My upgraded Premier King room was very large, as was the bathroom complete with stand-alone tub and huge double shower. My luggage was placed in the walk-in closet and the bellman pointed out the butler button and told me to ring if I needed anything. Lovely.
I slept for about 5 hours and then went down to the breakfast buffet. Holy cow! There was an amazing spread of just about anything you could want, plus a menu full of made-to-order options. I had no idea what to do with the selection of 8 or 9 chutneys but I tried them all!
I spent the afternoon by the beautiful pool which was exactly what I needed after such a long trip! After the pool attendant set up my lounge chair he returned holding a tray with a cold washcloth, a bottle of cold water, frozen grapes, sunscreen, and a spritz bottle with refreshing scented water. Really a great touch!
My only option for lunch at the hotel was the Chinese restaurant Baoshuan and it ended up being a very good one. I ordered the thousand layer chicken roll, pork & prawn sui mai with XO sauce & pickles, and then the server brought me out an order of chung fun on the house, because he said its his favorite. Again, amazing service!
After lunch my friend's who I would be vacationing with arrived! We were all very excited!!
That evening we had drinks at Lair which is billed as a speakeasy but was pretty easy to find since the name is right on the outside of the building! The drinks were interesting and very good, the service so-so.
We had taken a private car, arranged through the hotel, so he was waiting when we finished. It's probably no surprise that traffic is even crazier than they say in this city of 33+ million and it took us 40 minutes to get to the restaurant!
Dinner was at Indian Accent, inside the Lodi hotel, and was wonderful! The menu is filled with traditional sounding flavors and dishes but the chefs employ global & contemporary techniques to elevate them. All of our dishes were super tasty and again the service was exceptional! There is also a branch in NYC & in London.
After dinner it was nice seeing the city buildings and memorials lit up as we headed back to the Oberoi for cocktails at the rooftop lounge.
The next day, after another round at the awesome breakfast buffet, Rachel and I treated ourselves at the spa. My massage was excellent but what really stood out was the massage oil that my masseuse used! I loved the smell and feel of it and when I asked her about it she said she would bring me a sample to take home. She returned with a small water bottle filled with it! Again, I can't say enough about the service in India!
I spent a bit more time relaxing by the pool before heading back to my room to finish packing. I had just been waiting on my laundry, which I had given to my butler, and it had been returned in style!
We all checked out and met at the lobby bar for champagne and snacks before we were picked up by the Palace on Wheels and taken to the train station for our 8-day adventure around Rajasthan.
As I mentioned in my post about the Palace on Wheels, when we returned to Delhi we did a ½ day tour mainly in Old Delhi. Even after all the forts and palaces we had seen, this was an excellent tour and I'd really encourage folks to not overlook the sights here!
Our first stop was the Red Fort built during the Mughal Empire and completed in April 1648. It was built as the palace fort in Shahjahanabad (Old Delhi) when the 5th Emperor of India, Shah Jahan, decided to move the capital from Agra. This fort was the primary residence of Shah Jahan and subsequent emperors. It was also the residence of the British colonial government during their rule into 1947.
The walled palace had 14 gates, numerous roads, canals, gardens, etc. The entrance at Lahore Gate takes you over a moat that use to be the Yamuna River and is one of only two gates remaining.
Inside the walls there is a market area with large arched bays, a performance hall for the drummers and musicians of the emperor, and a large public audience hall where the emperor sat on his throne and held court.
The private quarters and boat house were built next to the then there river, making it quick and easy for the emperor to get away if needed.
There were private hamamas and a mosque as well as gorgeous buildings just used for recreation. Gardens and fountains make up much of the center of the fort.
Some of the buildings look a little more modern as the British destroyed many buildings, including the kitchens and stables, and built barracks during their occupation. In 1947 the Indian Army was able to take back the fort and during the Partition the grounds were used as a Muslim refugee camp.
We left the fort and made our way (carefully!) across the busy street and into the Chandni Chowk area of Old Delhi.
Built in 1650, this area is one of the oldest and biggest market areas in India! The main way to get around the maze of hectic and narrow streets is by rickshaw and our guide negotiated 2 of them for us.
Spending time in this area was fascinating! I loved seeing all the different street vendors, temples, mosques, bakeries, and people going about their day to day business. Our guide explained that most of the shops in the area have been in business for 100 to 200 years! He stopped and bought us traditional chai tea served in small clay cups from a popular spot and then took us shopping for tea on my request.
Even though it was very early, and the main markets weren't even open yet, the streets were very busy! After buying tea and spices we ventured down a few side streets, they seemed to get narrower and narrower the deeper into the area we went. And the hanging electrical wires were crazy!!
Rachel had been looking for some particular jewelry so our guide also took us to a great little shop, hidden in a little dead-end alley. These tiny streets reminded me of being in the medinas in Morocco! So confusing! It was quite a thrill riding through here, I'd highly recommend a ride thru Old Delhi!
Our final stop of the day was at Humayun's Tomb. Humayun was the 2nd Mughal emperor and the tomb was commissioned by his first wife Empress Bega Begum. He was also the great grandfather of Shah Jahan who built the Taj Mahal. The similarities are obvious!
The garden grounds of the complex are huge and a few other tombs are on the site as well. But we spent our time in the main one, walking around and admiring the beautiful architecture. There are actually over 150 family members and other Mughals and emperors buried here, but the odd thing is that none of the graves are marked, except with a symbol for male or female, so it's hard to know just who is who. Except for Humayun who has center stage.
Another great stop!
We dropped my friends off back at the Oberoi while I headed to the Le Meridien where I had a comped room. My flight was later the same night so I would only be there for 5 hours, but since I'm a Marriott Gold member they upgraded my room to a 1-bedroom suite with living room, huge primary bathroom, guest bath, and lots of views of the city. I had lunch and took a quick swim in the pool, both were fine but this is definitely more of a business hotel than a resort.
I checked out the Club Lounge, which kind of looked like a UFO to me, but they were not offering wine or cocktails until later so I went down to the main bar. It had a surprisingly long cocktail menu and the space & staff were nice.
Palace on Wheels had the same guy pick me up to take me to the airport but this time we were really in the thick of rush hour traffic. It took us 1 ½ hours to get to there, just ~7 miles away! My driver was so worried, he even called me to make sure I got through security, but luckily I was flying business so it was a breeze.
At DEL I hung out in the Encalm Prive Lounge, which is only available to business class passengers, vs credit card or pass holders. This lounge is HUGE! I didn't eat as I wasn't hungry yet and I was flying Singapore Air business class, thru Singapore to Seattle, and was very interested in trying their food.
I had booked my flight using my Biz Plat Amex & MR miles, and since I booked business class I was refunded 35% & there were no fees. My suite on Singapore's A380-800 was very nice! There was a side console, a footrest and a storage cubby under the footwell, also a little mirror and lots of usb plugs. Strangely though there were no pj’s/slippers, amenity bag or mattress on this 6 hour/overnight flight; that was a bit disappointing. The upper deck on these planes has a huge biz class section & I had chosen a seat in the smaller rear one thinking it would be more private. Wrong. All the families had chosen this section, so many noisy kids! The flight crew actually handed out earplugs! But the layflat was quite comfy, even though the flight attendants did not offer to make up the bed with the sheet and duvet like most do & there are no privacy door. First world problems, I know!
Something that Singapore Air has, unlike any other biz class I have flown is, a pre flight menu option called Book The Cook. This is a special menu of Western, India, and Singapore dishes and these dishes are not available unless you pre book. Since this was a late flight I just chose some of their tandoori kebabs which were quite good! They also served some marinated prawns with cucumber as a starter which was tasty and I chose a scoop of ice cream for dessert.
We arrived in Singapore at 6am and I had a 3 hour layover before my next flight. It's a huge airport and it took me a while to find the correct lounge. This one had some excellent food options including lots of dumplings, fried rice, and cucumber/cream cheese sandwiches.
My next Singapore Air flight was on a A350-900 and the business class seat here was very good, even without privacy doors. This layflat pod also had great storage and a nice footrest. And the chair folds forward & down to reveal a bed and bedding. It was super comfy and the attendants will do it all for you as it really isn't automatic. The only issue with this is that you have to choose to either be in bed or be in your seat.
I had forgotten to order my Book the Cook on this leg so I missed out on the lobster thermidor but I still had a delicious Beef Rendang! And for lunch I had prawn salad, dry style noodles Bok Chor Mee & an excellent mango passionfruit cake for dessert.
The flight home was just under 15 hours! So it's really nice to have a comfy bed, some good movies, and lots of champagne to pass the time.
