by Marissa Rosenberg-Carlson<\/p>\n
The atmosphere on the Rue des Martyrs is unexpectedly familial. The shop owners rely on each other. When one fish seller had to close up shop some years ago, his neighbors joined forces to make sure another fish market took its place, according to Elaine Sciolino, former Paris bureau chief at the New York Times. Many of the Rue\u2019s shops sell just one product \u2013 cheese, watches. They make no room for brand name stores. \u201cPeople expect something real when they come here,\u201d said the owner of Premi\u00e8re Pression Provence, an artisanal olive oil shop on the Rue, to Princeton University students during their Saturday morning visit.<\/p>\n
This camaraderie blossoms all the way up the street. Shop owners make time for visitors, even at busy times. During late afternoon rush hour, acclaimed chef S\u00e9bastien Gaudard welcomed the students into his patisserie to chat about how his industry is changing. The meaning of \u201cnoble ingredients\u201d in pastry-making has flipped entirely in the past half-century, he said. In the 1950s, white flour and refined sugars were considered noble, or \u201ctrendy.\u201d Now, whole grains and natural sweeteners are noble, and S\u00e9bastien has had to adjust his grandmother\u2019s recipes.<\/p>\n
In the evening at Caf\u00e9 Miroir, the students found dinner to be no less than a family affair. Sciolino said that the restaurant\u2019s head, also named S\u00e9bastian, keeps one table per night unreserved so that his friends can walk in and know that they have a place. After several glasses of wine and plates of foie gras, the caf\u00e9\u2019s spirit carried the students up the Rue to the Sacr\u00e9-C\u0153ur. Above the streetlights of Paris, people sang in many languages and danced with strangers.<\/p>\n
B\u00e9reng\u00e8re Sim, a young Scottish-French journalist who moved to Paris four years ago, said, \u201cParis sucks you in \u2013 every time you think you\u2019re going to leave, you find that you can\u2019t.\u201d On the Rue des Martyrs, it is easy to see how that happens.<\/p>\n
by Marissa Rosenberg-Carlson The atmosphere on the Rue des Martyrs is unexpectedly familial. The shop owners rely on each other. When one fish seller had to close up shop some years ago, his neighbors joined forces to make sure another fish market took its place, according to Elaine Sciolino, former Paris bureau chief at the … <\/p>\n