Food is more of an art (and for some, a religion) in France, and if there's one thing the French know how to do well, it's food. So I knew I would be remiss in my duties if I did not go and seek out Paris's finest gastronomic glories for my readers of paris-eiffel-tower-news.com. Sampling the following is not optional – it's a must!!!

In Part I, we revealed to you the Raspail organic food open street market and the Lafayette gourmet food court. Now, we offer you two more of those Parisian gourmet food gems.

Real French Bread

In France, almost anyone will tell you that Poilane bread is the pinnacle of Parisian baking. First established 75 years ago, Poilane is now run by Lionel Poilane, who took over the business from his father about 30 years ago and boomed it: the shop sells 15,000 loaves of bread each day, i.e. 2.5% of all bread sold in Paris, by weight.

The secret of Poilane bread is steeped in tradition. Lionel himself conducted an extensive research project on the 'ethnography', as he put it himself, of his craft. Poilane bread is made from wheat grown only on farms employing sustainable techniques with sea salt from the French Atlantic Coast. It's baked for over an hour in Poilane's specially designed wood-burning ovens, and will easily keep for a week in its original white and green paper bag.

Poilane bread traces its heritage back to the genuine regional French bread, but the business is remarkably modern. Today, the family manages a new shop in London and a 'manufacture' on the outskirts of Paris producing the goods that are sold in more than 2,500 restaurants and shops in Paris alone, and about 20 countries around the world. Poilane is one of the few 'global bakers' today, taking advantage of the Internet and the large FedEx hub near the Roissy-Charles-de-Gaulle airport to ship the bread worldwide. The goods land on dinner tables within 48 hours of their cooking.

The bread itself is decidedly old school: thick, chewy, and rich with a dark, fire-tinged flavor. Traditional French bread is not the ubiquitous white bread used in baguettes. It used to be a dark, wholesome stuff eaten by poor people when they could not afford anything else. It almost disappeared from French tables because of its very history. So much so that the old saying "He ate his white bread..." means that he mused and fooled around instead of working diligently, and now he's in for hard times (and only dark bread).

After World War II, the height of chic was white bread, imported from Austria. Poilane is very unique in that in a city where you can't walk two blocks without running into a baguette, he refuses to produce any!

Poilane's bread has won him famous fans over the years: Frank Sinatra and Lauren Bacall used to enjoy a loaf from time to time, and Robert De Niro is a customer.

There's one person in the shop who speaks English, who confirmed taking bread back to the US is no problem.

Poilane's famous bread can be found at 8, rue Cherche Midi, 75006 Paris. The closest metro station is Sevres-Babylone.

BE – Tasty and Classy

Boulangépicier, or 'BE' for short, is owned by two of Paris's most famed and respected chef and baker: Alain Ducasse and Eric Keyser, respectively.

BE's name and concept result of the fusion of 'boulanger' (baker) and 'épicier' (grocer). Its culinary creations are inspired by simple, traditional French recipes.

BE is housed in a smart, typically Parisian building located not too far from the Arc de Triomphe, and close to the Parc Monceau. This makes it an ideal spot for a take-away lunch near one of Paris's loveliest green expanse.

On sale is a carefully selected range of fine products and a tempting selection of sandwiches, homemade soups and fresh salads as well as pastries and desserts, whether to take away or eat in (there is a seating area that takes about ten).

On the grocery front, BE sells a range of gourmet goods (unusual spices, condiments, jams, chocolate, candy, pasta etc.), and a small selection of organic produce and dairy products.

On the bakery front, they sell Mr. Keyser's renowned breads, made on the premises, whether as a loaf to take home or in the mouth-watering array of ready-made sandwiches. I had never actually tasted Keyser bread, and was genuinely surprised to find that it was far superior to almost anything I tried from other Parisian bakeries, including the famous Paujauran bread.

The array of breads is carefully displayed; they are made from various combinations of high-quality ingredients and are all at once tasty, crusty, fresh and moist, a welcome break from the ubiquitous mass-produced chewy white bread.

I was particularly intrigued by their concept of 'Sandwich Brochettes', an assortment of mini-sandwiches on skewers. After much deliberation, I went for the 'Brochette Riviera', which was comprised of little buns of black olive bread filled with tapenade (olive paste) and slices of fresh goat cheese; tomato buns filled with tomato 'caviar' and basil turkey; and then basil buns filled with pesto and sun-dried tomatoes. Wise choice.

I washed down the lot with a bottle of Orezza, a sparking mineral water sourced from springs near Rappagio in Corsica. I'd never tasted it before, and had expected to find the more common French mineral water brands such as Chateldon and Badoit, but it was a pleasant surprise – Orezza has a fine flinty aftertaste and delicate levels of natural gas.

Naturally, this 'designer food' isn't the cheapest: sandwiches start at 5 euros, and my Brochette Riviera set me back 7.5 euros. But it was worth every cent.

Tuck into BE's tasty and classy food on the go or to take away at 73, boulevard de Courcelles, 75008 Paris

About the Author:
Phil Chavanne heads the editing team of Paris-Eiffel-Tower-News.com, an easy-going travel guide written for people who love the French capital, and wish to read on Paris hotels, museums, restaurants, hot spots, and streets.