How'd you sleep?
When you're ready, roll over and reach for this little instalment of reads to go with your brekkie today - just watch out for the milk.
Welcome to Breakfast Scrolls, the mid-month morning edit of my What’s Up, Paris? newsletter. Thank you for being here!
Today, I’m bringing you major news for the women of France (in case you missed it!), I hopped over to meet Audrey Demarre, the artist mapping out emotions in her embroidered works (just don’t ask what stitch she uses, she’s not that kind of embroiderer). I report back on a weekend getaway outside Paris where Romain Meder (aka Alain Ducasse’s right-hand man at their former three-star spot) is doing it all over again at the fairytale chateau that used to be Catherine Deneuve’s weekend hideout. Lace up with me in Pernety, a handful of streets south of Montparnasse with an out-of-this-world architectural gem and some great independent places to eat and drink. Enough to make you forget breakfast altogether..! Bon weekend, my dears! Roxy x
Breakfast reads 🥞
Here’s what been happening in Paris since the last Breakfast Scrolls…
France makes abortion a constitutional right | The Guardian
Catch up on the Césars French film awards nominees and winners and actress Judith Godrèche’s call to speak out against the exploitation of young women in the film industry | Le Monde (English)
French Federation says fashion weeks on track as Paris Olympics 2024 near | WWD
On transforming the city: a conversation about Paris, bikes, the Olympics and more with journalist Lindsey Tramuta | The New Paris podcast
In Paris, star chef Mory Sacko redefines French cuisine at Lafayette’s | Forbes
Outfits of epic proportions outside this month’s Paris Fashion Week, captured by Simbarashe Cha | The New York Times
Morning mingle ☕
Grab a cup of coffee or tea, and if you can brave the world, hop over to a bakery for a croissant, before settling back into bed and getting to know Audrey Demarre who embroiders maps of feelings and forests for friends and clients like Dipthyque.
"I often think of them… All the generations of women whose embroidery work was never recognised as an art form. My work is a sort of tribute to their resilience and creativity, a celebration of the countless women whose craft was cast aside as a mere pastime for centuries."
A self-taught embroiderer inspired by the rich hues and motifs of American Indian art, Audrey tells the stories of women’s heritage and identity using her imperfect trademark stitches. And it’s precisely her lack of formal technique that sets her apart.
Women are central to Audrey's work and this summer, she’ll publish a book paying homage to embroiderers, predominantly women. For Audrey, this book and her work in general are deeply personal tributes, drawing inspiration from her own lineage of talented seamstresses, whose legacy she carries forward.
Earlier this month, I crossed town to Audrey’s studio on the Left Bank at Césure, a former Sorbonne building that’s been repurposed as a hub of artist studios. She talked to me about her life, her work, about being shunned by other embroiderers for her lack of classical training and about her life in Paris.
Why Paris?
I am from a small town in the Lot-et-Garonne called Agen, southeast of Bordeaux but I’ve always loved big cities and the endless possibilities they offer.
Profession
I have been a literary agent alongside my embroidery work up until very recently, when I decided to give my all to my craft. I’m a sort of embroiderer, or more of an artist, some embroiderers would argue (and have said in the past…)!
A neighbourhood you never get bored of
Montmartre. It’s full of clichés, but it’s also a piece of the city that’s stuck in time and I love exploring its streets; it’s like navigating a big open-sky museum.
Hidden talent
Something to know about me is that when I’m good at something, I don’t hide it!
Breakfast or brunch?
Brunch of pancakes at mine - which is definitely a tradition at home with my partner and son. I love brunch in the same way I love the French apéro (pre-dinner drinks and snacks) - in fact, I love meals in between meals: brunch, goûter (tea time), apéro…
Your weekend starter
On Saturday mornings I usually meet up with friends at a yoga class.
Bedside reading
I’m actually reading lots of books at the same time. Le Coeur Cousu (The Threads of the Heart) by Carole Martinez who actually wrote the preface to my book, which I’m thrilled about. But also works by Joan Didion and Maggie Nelson.
Weekend brunch spot for under 20 euros
L’Entrepôt in my neighbourhood (see the Micro-itinerary in this newsletter, below). It’s a restaurant with good food, a patio, but also a cinema and theatre. It’s not really brunch, but I do also really love good pizza - have you tried Tripletta?
What people love the most about you
I’m funny. It’s not very humble of me to say that, but I think it’s what people like. I’m a pretty happy person.
A cliché about Paris that’s true
That Parisians complain all the time.
Weekend sound
I love I Heard It Through The Grapevine by Otis Redding.
What’s next?
My book, coming out in June. And I’m thinking about maybe creating an agency for textile artists. But first, embroidery!
See Audrey’s work and inspiration on her Instagram account, and stay up to date with news of her book coming out this June.
The weekender: Domaine de Primard
An hour’s drive out of the city is a small chateau with its own moat, where a restaurant focused on local produce and traditions is so good it’s got a star.
Drive westwards out of the city for about an hour where the buildings give way to vibrant green forests. Just before you reach Normandy proper, you’ll arrive at the picturesque Eure river. It’s here that actress Catherine Deneuve would retreat from city life to tend to her gardens with the help of Gérard, the longstanding gardener with a thousand stories to tell. If you wake up early in the morning, you might see him donning his straw hat, doing the rounds, making sure everything is as it should be, from the hedges trimmed in bulbous shapes to the delicate roses by the greenhouse that the place’s former resident loved so much.
Primard is an elegant cream hued stone building with blue shutters. There are rooms in outhouses scattered on the grounds, but opt to stay in the main house if you can, and ask for a back-facing room with a view of the river that runs through the garden.
In summer, loungers line the water, and guests sit on white cast iron chairs on the patio, enjoying a chilled glass of rosé, while others venture to the outdoor pool. In winter, they hide inside, in the living room bar with cosy couches and a tiny parlour room that’s apparently been kept just as it was when Madame Deneuve was the lady of the house.
As France was pulling out of Covid, she sold the manor to the guys behind the Domaines de Fontenille, a collection of smart hotels in France, Italy and Menorca. They’ve polished the place, putting in a Susan Kaufman spa with an indoor Nordic bath, airy rooms and restaurant Les Chemins, helmed by Romain Meder, who, together with Alain Ducasse won three stars for their former restaurant at the Plaza Athénée hotel in Paris. It closed during Covid and never reopened. Ever since, Meder was looking to leave the big city life and get as close as he could to the terroir, and landed at Primard.
So far, thanks to his nature-focused cuisine the chef’s turned the restaurant into a standalone destination with a Michelin star. Everything here is carefully sourced, from the bread and butter to the smallest flower. Combinations of flavours and textures are magic, like the chickpea and clam with a sweetcorn crunch and piquillos from the garden planted by Mehdi, who followed the chef here from Paris.
On this occasion, the starter was followed by a fleshy Brittany oyster paired with liver, tart citrus fruit under meaty cabbage leaf from the garden here or nearby. And of course, being so near Normandy, there was an apple dessert where the fruit was infused with the sommelier’s beer and iced cider from a neighbouring farm, which brought sweetness to the dark chocolate and coffee dish with lentils for an extra crackle.
Flavours here are gentle and dishes wholesome, the dining experience led by the best in their field, including Florian the Maître d’hôtel, Nicolas, the F&B manager, and Alexis, the sommelier, all always looking to go a step further without it every being too much.
Micro-itinerary: delving into Pernety🚶🏽♀️
Time to get up and get moving! Let’s explore this lesser-known corner of Paris a few minutes’ walk south of the Montparnasse frenzy.
A short walk from Montparnasse train station, its old Art Deco cafés and art venues like the Musée Bourdelle, Giacometti Institute, Fondation Cartier and attractions like the Catacombs, is a cluster of streets that ticks to a slower pace of life. Close to Pernety metro station, there’s a little market street with pockets of houses like on rue des Thermopyles and the Cité Bauer as well as jaw-dropping architectural folies like the post-modern housing complex Jardin des Colonnes by Spanish architect Ricardo Bofill. There are also some excellent independent eats worth your time like Michelin star Mory Sacko’s Mosuke, the refined Japanese Kigawa or French bistros like the high-end La Cantine du Troquet and the neighbourhood spot Les Tontons. All in all, Pernety’s got heaps of reasons to leave the beaten track!
I’ve added them on a handy map for you, hopefully making it easier to explore 👉 👉
Until next time… leaving you with Ma Benz by NTM, to get up to and grinding out of the house, because Michelin-star food and music that makes you feel like a bad ass, aren’t mutually exclusive - are they? 🎶
Great edition and thank you for giving a nod to my podcast episode!