Saturday is market day at our local Marché Saxe-Breteuil. It is a ten-minute walk from the apartment and boasts a great view of la Tour Eiffel and the back of l'École Militaire where the soldiers are out riding horses on Saturday mornings. We brought our roller cart and a couple of shopping bags and started off about 10 am with blue skies.
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| On our way the le marché with la Tour Eiffel behind l'École Militaire |
The marché was even better than I remember. The place was bustling. Such a variety of produce, fish, meat, free-range chicken eggs, honey, jam, flowers, housewares, nuts, fromage, bread, socks, scarves, antique chairs, etc. We stayed away from the pigs' feet and the whole skinned rabbits. There were multiple vendors of most goods that we could choose from. We walked all the way around it to see who had the best prices but also the longest lines (always a good indication of quality).
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| Produce |
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| Many Varieties of Mushrooms |
We admired the huge leeks (we need Tom to visit and make us potato leek soup again) and giant, juicy clementines. Eggs came by the half dozen, 15 or 30. No dozens here. So we bought a tray of 15.
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| Clementines |
Kate found Opal apples that she has loved buying in NYC. The stand had nothing but different varieties of apples and fresh pressed apple juice.
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| Fish |
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| Oysters |
One rule in the market is not to touch
anything. You can point and tell them which bunch of bananas you want, but do not pick them up. There was even a sign nestled among the lemons and avocados at one of the produce stands as a reminder.
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| "Don't Touch Please" |
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Pulling the shopping cart
through le marché |
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| Eiffel Tower view from le marché |
We bought clementines, raspberries, bananas, flowers, fresh pasta for Sunday dinner, eggs and roquefort cheese. We will be back next week for more.
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Une Tradition Baguette, Anemone and Santini Flowers,
and Giant Clementines |
The market looks amazing. I was surprised that you can't pick up the fruit. How do you know if an avocado is ripe? The produce looks amazing.
ReplyDeleteIt is hard when you can't touch the fruit. But they are good at picking out good fruit for you. They don't ever give you bad fruit.
ReplyDeleteAnd you can point.
Last time we went the woman asked how we wanted the avocados but neither Kate nor I could think of the right vocabulary or understand what she was saying. Finally she asked when we wanted to eat them and I blurted out Monday. We ended up with one ready to eat and two not quite ripe and it all worked out! It's easier with bananas because you can just say "a little green". Much easier vocabulary. I'll have to brush up on my market French!