It’s not everyday a local chef can take you on a foodie tour of their city. Despite her Michelin-star training, Ruba reveals all her downtime faves from sense-awakening authentic street food to hidden hole-in-the-wall treasures. One thing for sure, you’ll never eat better.
Paris with Ruba Khoury
Chef
Food & Drink Aujourd’hui Demain
‘Aujourd’hui Demain is the best vegan grocery store that sells vegan clothing. I think it’s very unique in Paris.’
42 Rue du Chemin Vert, 75011 Paris, France
Nature Coulée verte René-Dumont
‘If you happen to be in the 12th district, definitely take a walk on the Coulée Verte. It’s actually what inspired the New York High Line. It’s a green space on top of the viaduct in the 12th, and if you walk all the way to the end, past the bridge and keep walking, you’ll end up in a forest in the middle of the city. It’s beautiful.’
1 Coulée Verte René-Dumont, 75012 Paris, France
Culture Musée de la Vie Romantique
‘Musee de la Vie Romantique is a free museum – it’s super tiny, like bite-sized. It’s perfect if you’re like me who gets bored after half an hour. Go through the museum and then don’t miss the cafe in the garden, it’s beautiful.’
16 Rue Chaptal, 75009 Paris, France
Culture Le CENTQUATRE
‘Le CENTQUATRE is an old factory that’s renovated into an edgy cultural centre where they host exhibitions, artists, and performances.”
5 Rue Curial, 75019 Paris, France
Food & Drink La REcyclerie
‘La REcyclerie is an urban farm and industrial cafe workshop. There are many things going on there. It’s a huge space, super fun.’
83 Bd Ornano, 75018 Paris, France
‘No matter what your socioeconomic status, you can step out (in Paris) and have access to everything almost anyone has. It’s accessible to everyone, you can have a really rich quality of life here.’
Paris in one word
Rich.
In the sense that, no matter what your socioeconomic status, you can step out and have access to everything almost anyone has, like affordable fruit and vegetables, cheese, great wine. It’s accessible to everyone, you can have a really rich quality of life here.
On your whistle stop tour of the best restaurants in Paris
Le Royal China is definitely the best dim sum in town. You go in and you feel like you’re in Chinatown in New York City. It’s super delicious and fresh, definitely an experience. Aujourd’hui Demain is the best vegan brunch spot, and it’s in the middle of a vegan grocery store that sells vegan clothing. I think it’s very unique in Paris.
La REcyclerie is an urban farm and industrial café workshop. There are many things going on there. It’s a huge space, super fun. For good, down-to-earth, authentic home-style Japanese food, go to Chez Miki in the 2nd district. It’s woman-owned, a one-woman show in the kitchen, a very tiny place run by two women.
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On the ethos of your bar, Dirty Lemon
It was basically to create a bar from a woman’s point of view. Historically, bars — especially cocktail bars — are seen as very pretentious and masculine and are run by tatted and bearded men. You feel like you can’t enter without knowing a thing or two about spirits or cocktails, it can be unwelcoming. Also, bars are known to not be a safe space for women. It’s not so common that a woman can go to a bar and sit alone at a counter and have a drink without being harassed or spoken to.
So the whole idea was to create a space for women — the queer community, because I’m queer — that was inclusive and welcoming, where you can have a good drink with great music, good vibes and good food at the same time. Which is quite rare, especially for the queer community in Paris. So often the queer community is cornered into the section of the restaurant or bar industry where it’s just like dingy places found in certain neighbourhood, and there’s no food or good drinks or music. I wanted to change that and create something that everybody can come to. It’s not just for the community but also to show the world that we can do it too, and have it just as nice as other establishments.
On getting off the beaten path in Paris
If you like live music, definitely go by La Gare / Le Gore in the 19th on a small, old tramway line in Paris that used to run through the city border and has turned into a jazz club every night of the week. It’s donation-based, so at the end of each performance, they pass along a purse and you put in what you feel. It’s very community-based.
Walk off Ruba’s delicious diary of Paris by strolling through the most stunning, and free parks in the city: Bois de Boulogne, Jardin des Plantes, and Tuileries Garden are free to roam all year round.
Musée de la Vie Romantique is a free museum in Paris — it’s super tiny, like bite-sized. It’s perfect if you’re like me who gets bored after half an hour. Go through the museum and then don’t miss the café in the garden, it’s beautiful. For Jardin de l’Hôtel de Sully there’s a secret entrance from there into Place des Vosges, which is also a beautiful manicured garden. Le CENTQUATRE is an old factory that’s been renovated into an edgy cultural centre where they host exhibitions, artists and performances.
La Roche Mère is a crystal shop in the 11th district. They do customized readings. They have very strange hours, usually there’s a line out the door of people waiting to get their auras read. I highly recommend it, it’s an experience.
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On getting the best views in Paris
If you want some amazing views in Paris, definitely take the Ballon de Paris Generali hot air balloon ride in the city. It’s in the middle of the city in the 15th arrondissement. You go up and down — it takes about 15 minutes, very easy. You get a beautiful view and you get to actually see the Eiffel Tower, you can see all the beautiful monuments.
On showing a friend around Paris for a day
I’d take them for a croissant and coffee in the morning, then a walk around the Marais. I’d take them to the River Seine and to see some monuments, like Notre-Dame or the Eiffel Tower. Then, I’d take them to a typical French bistro lunch in Saint-Germain, and then over to Dirty Lemon for a drink.
On the influence of your Palestinian culture
In our Palestinian culture we love to host and have people over and cook for them, and we’re very gourmand as a culture. We love eating and sharing food and stories around the table, and I would always try to help my mom in the kitchen. I love starting from a simple ingredient and turning it into a dish, and handing the dish to someone and seeing their faces when they eat it — it’s like, the whole experience from start to finish. And I love working with my hands, I’m a very tactile person.
On how Paris inspires you creatively
Paris is just such a beautiful city. You step out of your apartment and have everything around you. There’s an open-air market a couple of times a week, there’s a museum or a monument on every corner. I find the culture very rich, as well as the country itself.
‘You step out of your apartment and have everything around you. There’s an open-air market, a museum or a monument on every corner. I find the culture very rich.’
Next stop: Paris
Creators
Camille Tanoh
Fashion Designer & Founder
They say, Paris is always a good idea. Well luckily, whenever the urge strikes to visit, our local’s guide is broken down into the best spots to see during every season. From summer musts like open air cinemas, to cozy winter cocoa cafes, you’ll have loads to see no matter the time of year.
Ramesh Nair
Creative Director
The streets of Paris are undoubtedly Ramesh’s secret source of inspiration, which is why his walking tour of the city is the best way to find things no one else will. Plus, he shares his favourite local vintage markets and Korean food spots.
For more exceptional creators, visit www.exceptionalalien.com
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