Local Expert
Kate Cyr
Originally from a small town in upstate New York and most recently living in New York City, I transferred to Paris for work in April 2007. I'll admit it: I came to Paris convinced that no city could…
Originally from a small town in upstate New York and most recently living in New York City, I transferred to Paris for work in April 2007. I'll admit it: I came to Paris convinced that no city could compare to New York. But little by little, day by day, Paris is winning my heart as I discover its beautiful art and architecture, its fabulous food and the unique attitude of its residents. I'll share these winning discoveries here.
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Les Ombres
27 Quai Branly, Paris, 75007, Franc...
Lost in the shadows of translation
It can be so very difficult sometimes to live in Paris when you are just learning French. Especially when you compare yourself to the average Parisian, who most likely started studying English when she was around six years old. So it’s heartening to have those moments when you realize that foreign languages are tough work for everyone.
I had one of those moments tonight, looking at the English language version of the website for Les Ombres . I’d heard good things about this restaurant located on the roof of the Musee Quai Branly and wanted more details before writing about it here. Like the museum, the restaurant was designed by prize-winning architect Jean Nouvel. "Les Ombres" means "the shadows" in French and the restaurant sits in the shadow of the Eiffel Tower. The design of the dining room, with its glass ceiling and steel girders, is meant to echo the design of Tower. The menu is influenced by the indigenous cultures of Asia, Africa, Oceana and the Americas represented in the museum’s collections. By all accounts, the restaurant is a treat (if a bit of a splurge) - a swanky room with a gorgeous view of Paris and interesting food prepared by a talented young chef.
Even if high-end museum dining doesn’t interest you at all, the website provides plenty of nourishment for the soul of the non-native speaker*. Imagine, as you enter the museum (on your way to a lunch that starts with "gazpacho lightly trembling" and ends with a dessert of "it’s cherries season in crunchy way"), you are "heckeld by 29 colorated boxes**". Suddenly your non-French-speaking spirits start to lift.....
Les Ombres is open every day of the week for lunch and dinner.
*In no way do I condone ridiculing students of second languages, but some things are just too good to pass up. ** I have absolutely no idea what this means.