Berthillon Paris : Legendary Ice Cream With A View

Imagine sunny Paris.
Imagine blue sky.
Imagine walking on the bank of Seine river sipping the warmth.
Imagine breathing in the chilly air.
Imagine doing all that with your significant other ... with Paris' legendary ice cream in hand.

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Berthillon. Started in 1950 and made famous after being founded in the 60s by none other than Messieurs Gault & Millau, it has become a must visit place if you pass by Notre Dame and walk to île St-Louis, one of the two natural island on Seine river.

Lonely Planet ranked it #23 of 1566 things to do in Paris. As for me it was an obvious thing to do as an ice cream lover and a sweet tongue. Its been in my trix even before I landed in the city of lights. Plus the heat was right that afternoon, so we headed there with no hesitation and a heartful of expectations.

The queue is always long no matter what time of the day. A green signboard is hanged on the front facade with hand written flavors on it in gold paint. It has so many interesting flavors that deciding can be quite a tedious task. Hmm.. How about wild strawberry sorbet? Wait! There's ginger caramel. Oh, here's something fancy. What's agenaise? It sounds exotic. The drama continues and the next thing you know you're on the front of the line and still paralyzed by the amount of choices. I finally went with wisdom of the crowd, pear sorbet and the butter caramel gelato.

Both was fantastically rich in flavor. It was as if munching on real pear. Refreshing. Same goes to the butter caramel. The creamy base made it somewhat heavier and bolder, yet still light enough to enjoy one full scoop altogether with the cone without feeling bloated afterwards.

I took the scoops to the banks of the river. Enjoyed it slowly, feasting both my tastebuds and my eyes with the view. I then took the stairs down the road and sit on the concrete chair, relaxed with no thoughts of work, looking at life and the people passing by. It is probably one of the simplest joy of Paris.

Or maybe life is really that simple? We humans, made it complicated. With what, you ask? Ehm, our selfish wants and desire? Now, that something to ponder until my next post.

Stay chilly,

Fellexandro Ruby 
Glacier addict

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Berthillon Ice Cream 
31, rue St-Louis-en-îlle (4th)
Closest Metro: Pont Marie
Closed: Monday, Tuesday, Second half of July and all August.

Funky Gelato at Convivium : From Bacon to Strawberry Chilli

Ten outrageously uncommon flavor that you rarely found anywhere else. Weird and somewhat displeasing the first time I heard about it, but I was never hesitant. It captured the adventurous foodie in me. I was really intrigued on how they could pull it off. Plus, this could be a good wave to swallow the flooding rainbow cake fad.

Given the credence to do a quick photoshoot of them, I quickly grabbed the opportunity despite being a last minute assignment. It was one of the best decision I took, although I felt I could do a lot better if only my flash lights didn't fail on me. But better yet, here they are in order of my palate like-ability.

Squid Ink

I loved it for its daring flavor. I think just the thought of giving it a try and being able to pull it off deserve an applause. The color represent what the eyes expected and the taste was one of a kind. 

Earl Grey

For those who have tasted tea-infused macaron in TWG, then you'll get the idea. Its a similarly awesome personification of the famous tea. 

Lime Rosemary

The lime was at the right amount of sour and the subtle hint of rosemary at the back close it up with a refreshing natural flavor.

Red Velvet

I sincerely hope this would silence all the RVC hype. Red velvet cheesecake, red velvet cappucino, red velvet whatever. Probably one of the best rendition of the original idea. 

Strawberry Chili

I like how they keep the strong fruity strawberry flavor all around your palate and then somehow manage to bring out the chili only nearing that second you're about to swallow it. A little shock on the first bite, but those who fond of chili would easily fall in love with it. 

And the other remaining flavors are: Lychee, Bacon, Risotto Marscarpone, Orange Basil, Vanilla Balsamic. 

Don't get me wrong. Its not that I don't want to share how they tasted, I just feel like those five I mentioned are enough reason to move your ass, get going and give it a try before it became a hit and the next time you come around it will either always be unavailable or you would have to fight and wait for it for hours. 

My advice, hit it this weekend. Make it your Misi21. Especially if you've been bored having the same thing over and over again, this could be an eureka moment for you. Oh, and bring your friends around. It is a lot better to have it together with your loved ones. Not just because of the 70k Rupiah price tag but you most probably won't be able to finish it alone anyway. 

Let me know what you think. 

Ciao Bella, 

Fellexandro Ruby

Food Conversationalist & Photographer

Munch on my tweets @Wanderbites