January 2023 Newsletter
It's a New Year!
Well, here we are—again, in a new year. As the end of 2022 came to a close in Paris, the final week was one big, collective wind-down. Restaurants and shops put Fermé signs on their doors as people headed out of town, either to their maison secondaire (second home) or elsewhere, on vacation.
Others, like us, stayed in town that week, preferring not to travel by trains or planes, which are either crowded and/or go on strike. My idea of a relaxing vacation isn’t being crushed in line at a stuffy airport or chilly train station.
The upside of sticking around town is that an August-like calm takes over Paris. While the grey, chilly grisaille of Paris persisted in the air, we got a little reprieve from the sub-zéro temperatures as December drew to a close and things warmed up a few degrees. Even better news is the days are starting to get longer and summer solstice is right around the corner—right?
At the end of December, I looked at our garden—the first garden I’ve had in over twenty-five years—and saw the droopy cherry tomato plants withering in the cold. The tomatoes were small, hard, and green, yet surprisingly abundant. I hated to see them just wither away and remembered my recipe for Green Tomato-Apple Chutney.
So I put on my doudoune (down parka, which also happens to be one of my favorite words in French), along with my cotton* scarf, hat, and gloves, and went picking, then pickling, so to speak. And now I’ve got four jars of lively chutney to last through the spring.
I don’t really do New Year’s resolutions, but I’ve decided to throw a few rules out the window as 2022 came to a close, and we’re entertaining at home more now that we’ve got a real dining room table.
One rule I’m tossing is that I’m not sitting people boy-girl-boy-girl at dinner parties, separated by sex, as is customary in France. In 2023, I am not sure that tradition makes sense…unless someone has a reason that it’s worth holding on to.
Couples are also traditionally separated at the table dinner parties in France, on the assumption they see each other all the time. But rather than make a big fuss about who sits where and by their sex or relationship status, when it comes time to be seated at dinner chez nous, I’m just going to let people sit wherever they want.
Another custom is making eye contact when chinking glasses together for a toast. For some, that’s become full-on, bore-down-on, eyes-wide-open contact, which, to be honest, I find a little frightening.
The custom is said to go back to the days when people poisoned others, and hitting the glasses together was a sign that you weren’t going to get poisoned. (Unrelated: Some believe you’ll have seven years of bad sex if you don’t look into everyone else’s eyes.) I don’t think that getting poisoned happens much nowadays at casual dinner parties—but ya never know, I suppose.
In any case, it’s a nice custom to acknowledge your friends with a mutual glance of recognition (on the assumption you’re not being poisoned…and why take a chance on having bad sex?), but I think we can stop craning our necks and drilling our eyes into others…and simply smile as gently as La Jaconde (the Mona Lisa), then sip.
Apologies for the newsletter being a few days late, but since the end of the year was rather tough, with stacks of year-end paperasse (paperwork) to wrap up, we hopped in the car to head to Brittany to visit friends and eat galettes (buckwheat crêpes) and oysters, and stock up on buckwheat honey and salted butter.
While I was relaxing, I posted on Instagram one of those In/Out lists that were going around at the end of the year, just for fun, and was surprised how many people felt like they were being handed the Ten Commandments and the lists of things were to be strictly adhered to. Thankfully, most of us live in free countries where we can eat and drink as we please, and even though one blowback item on my “In” list was “salted butter,” my subsequent IG post (above) on that subject generated a whopping 15,200 likes.
If you’re in Brittany, as we were, no one cares about “Likes.” The default butter is salted, which we spread on rye bread (a traditional combination enjoyed with shellfish platters in France) on New Year’s Eve with our friends, enjoying les huitres from the market in St. Malo, along with a (salted) buttery Kouign Amann from the same market for dessert, which we didn’t just “Like”—we loved.
Before I sign off, big thanks this year to a few people who’ve helped keep things running around here in 2022:
Emily, who writes the
newsletter, who comes over and takes care of admin and e-mails, and also makes me feel much better about not understanding how Excel spreadsheets work, and not getting mad at me when I mess them up. I promise to do better in 2023.Justin Golden, who edits my podcasts and makes things sound much better since I’m recording them at my kitchen table rather than in a studio.
Kim Gooden who copyedits to correct my goofs and gaffes before you see them and brings things to my attention that don’t make sense. (Any that are missed are my fault since I can’t resist going back and changing a few things before I hit the “Send” button.)
The team at Substack who’ve been very supportive of my starting my newsletter on their platform.
And, of course…you! Thank you for subscribing, both free and paid subscribers, and I am glad you enjoy getting my newsletter in your Inbox.
Thanks for sticking around in 2023!…🙂
-David
Links I’m Liking
One baked good item not available in France…Weed Brownie Mix. (Thrillist)
France to abolish (some) short-distance flights within the country. (Euronews)
*For those whose skin can’t take scratchy wool or synthetics in Europe, Living Crafts, based in Germany, carries cotton hats and scarves. (Available at ComptoirbioSud in France)
The King of Garlic is gone. (NYT/unlocked)
While I’ve not seen it, apparently the “hot” Aperol Spritz is in season in Europe. (Punch)
A French revolution for 2023: Fast-food restaurants in France ban single-use plastics. (The Guardian, via Secrets of Paris)
Barbara Walters interviews (Cheri Oteri as) Barbara Walters. Or vice versa? (The View/YouTube)
Video tribute to the lesser-known hard workers of Paris, who make the city tick. (Messy Nessy, Instagram)
Inflation pushes the price of Galettes des Rois in France up. (France24/YouTube)
’Tis the season! Make your own Galette des Rois with my recipe here. (Davidlebovitz.com)
Paris Info
I frequently get asked for Paris recommendations. While it’s hard to tell people what arrondissement they should stay in (I tend to recommend the 9th since it’s so diverse and close to a variety of neighborhoods), and I can’t recommend a hotel (since I haven’t stayed in one since 1998), I do go out to eat a lot and visit as many bakeries as I can. So you can find my favorites below:
Favorite Paris Bakeries and Chocolate Shops
Other links to my favorite places and things to do in Paris:
-Tapisserie bakery
-La Cidrerie cider shop and café
-Folderol ice cream shop and wine bar
-How to Buy an Apartment in Paris (And you can listen to my podcast on that here)
-Paris Thrift Stores and Flea Markets
Throwback! Romain, circa 2004, shortly after we met…
When I read your reference to 'hot aperol spritz' it made me remember something I'd totally forgotten about until now. When I first lived in Florence 30 years ago, my friend always ordered 'Punch caldo.' This was an orange flavored liqueur made by Barbieri. Coffee bars would pour a shot into a glass, then steam it with the espresso nozzle until piping hot. The taste is very similar to aperol, but maybe a bit sweeter. Another option was Vov, a eggy liqueur, also heated. You can find them here: https://www.distilleriemoccia.it/en/prodotti/
dear david lebovitz
a pleasure to be a subscriber to your newsletter.
smart and funny and very human.
happy new year
your new reader
maira