Bestselling author and world-renowned chef David Lebovitz continues to mine the rich subject of his evolving ex-Pat life in Paris, using his perplexing experiences in apartment renovation as a launching point for stories about French culture, food, and what it means to revamp one’s life. Includes dozens of new recipes. When David Lebovitz began the project of updating his apartment in his … apartment in his adopted home city, he never imagined he would encounter so much inexplicable red tape while contending with perplexing work ethic and hours. Lebovitz maintains his distinctive sense of humor with the help of his partner Romain, peppering this renovation story with recipes from his Paris kitchen. In the midst of it all, he reveals the adventure that accompanies carving out a place for yourself in a foreign country—under baffling conditions—while never losing sight of the magic that inspired him to move to the City of Light many years ago, and to truly make his home there.
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As charming as it is informative, L’appart offers a chef’s eye view of the beauty and bureaucratic madness that is France.
After moving from San Francisco to Paris, Lebovitz spent a decade living in a tiny top-floor flat with a magnificent view of the City of Light. When he finally decided to buy his own place, he had no idea what he was in for. In this fresh, funny memoir, sprinkled with insider knowledge about Paris life (sales only happen twice a year, for example, and baguettes always come wrapped in tiny paper “because excess is ground upon in France”), Lebovitz chronicles his attempt to buy and remodel a Paris apartment amidst miles of red tape and misunderstandings. Each chapter ends with a recipe, which, for the culinarily untalented among us, may prove as daunting as dealing with the Parisian real estate agents and electricians. Even if you can’t imagine pulling off a pain perdu caramelise, you’ll be happy to learn that pain perdu got its name because it “takes lost (perdu) bread and turns it around, making it something marvelous.”
Leibovitz’s love of his adopted city, as well as his passion for the bounty of the Parisian marche, comes through loud and clear. An utter delight.
What a story! Any major work on any house is fraught with perils of many kinds and this book certainly bears that out. I laughed and cursed and cried with the author as he struggled to acquire and perfect l’appart for his new life in Paris. How the author kept his sanity I do not know. I am grateful that my remodel projects have gone very much smoother than his did (though the cost overruns were quite similar proportionate to the original bids.) Find the YouTube interview with the author so you can see how it all turned out.
Just when I consider making a long term stay in France a possibility, I read this book and learn how wholly unprepared I am for navigating the challenges of having an apartment! YIKES! I so love reading (and using) David Lebovitze’s cookbooks – this was the first memoir I read. He managed a remarkable project with soooo many obstacles. Most impressive. And what a lovely outcome.
I love his appreciation of France, while at the same time expressing his frustration over the many day-to-day experiences which are new and different to him. I loved this book.
Frustrating, but interesting. No longer thinking how nice it would be to buy a place in Paris. Not that it was ever going to happen anyway. I think lots of people have that in the back of their mind. After being involved with contractors lately, I enjoyed reading the book, but wanted to tear my hair out along with Mr. Lebovitz.
I used to read his blog and found the book just as enjoyable. Tales about French bureaucracy, apartment hunting, plumbing troubles, etc. It was funny, but I’ll admit that it helps to have some knowledge of French to appreciate the jokes. There are about 2 dozen recipes, which is why I used to follow him and partly why I bought the book.
I think the author was stupid to trust incompetent people.
He writes in a way that makes you feel like you are there sharing his adventure.
What he went thru made me mad! I grew frustrated with him and his reticence to fight for himself.
unoriginal re-telling of an American’s attempt to buy and remodel an apartment in Paris with a contractor who was incompetent and dishonest.
If you love Paris, you’ll love this book.
So refreshing
I read this while going through a remodel project. I laughed and groaned a lot. Loved the recipes too.
True and funny account of differences between French language/ culture and ours. Many great recipes as a bonus!
For fans of Paris and food, and anyone who’s remodeled an old space, this is a fun romp
The recipes are great. Love their conversational tone. The renovations are a bit dry & relatively predictable. Nice portrait of Paris.