The Brasserie Waiting Game (L'oree du Parc)
One of the reasons we came to Paris was to get a classic Steak Frites (grilled steak and "French" fries). So far we had seen not one place with, nor one plate of it. However, we had heard about this place called La Mauzac which apparently has grilled onglet and frites. At 6 pm and colder than cold from standing at the Eiffel Tower, we headed off.
At the door around 6:30p, we inquired about a seat for four. Now, regular restaurants in Paris open late and start serving at 8 pm - brasseries (neighbourhood bars) and some bistros are open "non-stop" which usually means somewhere between 12 and 24 hours... So we bit at the 8 pm slot then searched around for something to do for 90 minutes.
The L'oree du Parc brasserie on the corner looked inviting and had a window table for four. Wine, coffee and whisky began to arrive and we sat and continued to document the trip, entertain the owner's dog (man, I have seen a dog in every brassierie here....it's seems that it's part of the deal...), and generally get warm. We debated ordering rillette (long, slow cooked pork mixed with pork fat and served cold to spread on bread) until hunger would not let us rest. I know that this kind of thing makes some people squeamish or screw their face up into a "oh my, that is SO unhealthy..." look but hey, this is food of history because when one didn't have heat or fire 24/7 or a refrigerator one did their best to preserve their food - this is just one of those ways. If you get a chance, (or if you can get over your fear) you should leap, not jump, at the chance to eat rillette.