Samaritaine...Bofinger

We'd walked past the old Samartaine department store many times, between Rivoli and the Seine, a beautiful Belle Epoche construction, several years closed and disused, wondering when and if it might ever be renovated and re-opened. In 2005 it was bought by the LVMH group (Louis Vuitton, Moet/Chandon, and Hennessy) and proceeded, through many disputes and lawsuits, to a reopening only a few weeks ago. Just what the world needs, you might think: another Paris department store for the crazy rich. And not mistakenly. But most of it has been lovingly re-done, and the current re-opening is paying much marketing attention to the store's long history and prestige in Paris. It's so ironic...department stores initially brought mass-produced goods to the masses. Now they mostly bring mass-produced goods to the crazy rich. Oh well. We visited Samaritaine one morning recently. Interestingly, there were more people with cameras, like us, than actual customers. About the same time we visited, this interesting article appeared in Bloomberg. Part of Samaritaine's deal with the city is to have some 96 public housing apartments atop the building. Ninety-six public housing apartments in perhaps Paris' most prestigious locale. Where can we apply?!

A history of the Samaritaine greets you at the
entrance; nicely done, too; I like the attention
to history; but then I'm not a buyer...

Riding up to the top

Retro TVs playing old Samaritaine ads

Nice champagne display

In the ladies' shoes department, looking out the window to the
church of St. Germain l'Auxerrois...true artseau-fartseau

More of the gorgeously restored department store

More champagne...not even Moet Chandon...to personalize

The adjacent, Rivoli building, not as successfully
restored...Parisians refer to it as the "shower curtain"

But it has a nice atrium

And patisserie

The revolving cake automaton; certainly a big deal in 1895

Our next stop was the BHV, the Bazaar de Hotel de Ville, our
favorite among the grands magasins (big stores); above, en route,
is the Hotel de Ville (city hall), with a huge white tent, just visible
on the left, for COVID tests and vaccinations; our visit to the BHV
was of a practical nature, no pix, and too much of it devoted to 
searching for my lost transit pass card, which turned out to be
waiting for me at the store's objet trouve (lost and found)

We proceed on, through more difficulties, but ended finally
with a pleasant late lunch at Bofinger, near the Place de la
Bastille, familiar ground, and a great Art Nouveau restaurant

Her squab and potatoes

My moules et frites; last time I had this many moules, it did 
not end well; but I had been in training in London, and it was
fine

At Bofinger, reminding me of a Dali parody on Las Meninas,
a portrait of Gala originally designed to use 1,000 mirrors