After the Louvre, I'd probably go get a hot chocolate at Angelina's. It's right down the street, and it's a must-do. It's like drinking cake through a straw. It's the most amazing concoction of hot chocolate that you'll ever taste in your life. The amazing thing about it is that it's really thick, and when you try it without the crème fouettée, it's bitter. But then you put the crème fouettée on it and, well, it's a sort of ritual. They bring it in a pitcher, with the crème fouettée on the side, and you put it together to your own liking. And when you put the crème fouettée on it, it sweetens it. So it's sort of this amazing alchemy of chocolate and cream. Together it's the most sensational thing you'll ever have. Afterward, you might as well check yourself into the nearest hospital – because it's overload. They also have really good pastries. It's very touristy, but worth it.
Lunch
I'd go to Chez Janou for lunch. It's a little more laid-back restaurant, a little more hip. It's just outside the Marais. The food is Provençale, and it's amazing. You have to get the chocolate mousse when you're there, because it comes in this big tub, a big bowl, and you just scoop out the mousse, and, oh my goodness, it's so yummy! It's on a fabulous street corner, and it feels like you're in a real neighbourhood – we love that. They have wonderful stuffed peppers, and their rabbit is excellent if you eat meat.
Shopping
I'd go to stores you can't go to anywhere else – like Colette. That's my favourite store in Paris. Then there's L'Eclaireur in the Marais. It's like Maxfield's in Los Angeles, with local designers, some Dries Van Noten, and beautiful things I'd never seen before. The Marais is the best place to go shopping; it's the most young and hip area.
Music
I'm not a club person, but my husband and I did go hear some music. We went to see jazz pianist Ahmed Jamal at that beautiful concert hall. Oh, it's a famous one; it's really high up. There are lots of balconies. When you walk in, it's almost like a circle and the balcony kind of circles up. But the best was the Zenith, where we went to see Bob Dylan. The Zenith is more like an arena. It's not the most charming. It's not like the Paradiso in Amsterdam, you know, where I went to see the Black Crowes. But it was amazing because it was Bob and he's always amazing.
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Excerpted from Celebrated Weekends: The stars' guide to the most exciting destinations in the world by Mark Seal. Copyright 2007 by Mark Seal. Excerpted with permission from Rutledge Hill Press. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced except with permission in writing from the publisher.
