La Vaissellerie is one of my favorite neighborhood shops and one of the most popular stops on my Eye Prefer Paris tours. It’s a china and house wares emporium filled to the brim with a fantastic selection of glasses, mugs, dishes, flatware, napkin rings, teapots, snail forks, and anything imaginable for the home. Every nook and cranny is filled with some clever and delightful item you can’t resist.
Outside is the bargain bin with café au lait bowls and colored glasses all under 3 euros and waist high stacks of plates, bowls, cups, and saucers in every shape & size greet you in the entrance. I outfitted my entire kitchen when I moved here for under 200 euros, which included some good quality white restaurant plates for only 2 euros each. And with the shrinking dollar against the euro, this is a store you can go a little crazy in and not get sticker shock when you receive your credit card statement. They have many wonderful small gifty objets for under 5 euros and if you are visiting Paris in December, it’s a great place to do some Christmas shopping.
The staff is helpful and they ask every customer if there purchases are gifts, and prettily wrap them for free. They are also thoughtful enough to tightly wrap your items if you tell then you are traveling. My favorite staff member is Roman, the cute French guy with dreadlocks who was getting down to reggae music while wrapping my client’s gifts.
Hugs not drugs
Here kitty,kitty!
Some of my favorite items are the wooden baguette with a hidden bread knife, Provencal ceramic olive bowls, over 15 patterns of demi tasse spoons, salt & pepper shakers with hugging figures, cookie tins with bold graphics, and my favorite of all, single serving mini le Creuset-style pots in ocean blue, lemon yellow, and pale green.
They even sell large vinyl shopping bags with scenes of Paris in case you go overboard with your fabulous finds and have no room in your suitcase.
La Vaissellerie
92 rue St. Antoine, 4th arr.
Open 10AM-7PM, everyday
Metro: St. Paul
Click here for other store locations & website
Mini le Creuset
Eye Prefer Paris Contest:
Submit a photo of Provence or Paris and a short paragraph about the photo, where it is and why it’s a special place/thing. The best photo & story will win a free copy of Vicki Archer’s My French Life. The deadline is Sunday, December 2 and the winner will be posted on Monday, December 3, along with their photograph & story. Good luck and I look forward to your entries.
Email me photos & story to r.nahematgmail.com
I am pleased as punch to announce the launch of Eye Prefer Paris Tours, which are 3-hour walking tours I will personally be leading. The Eye Prefer Paris Tour
includes many of the places I have written about such as small museums & galleries, restaurants, cafes & food markets, secret addresses, fashion & home boutiques, parks, and much more.
I look forward to meeting you on my tours and it will be my pleasure and delight to show you my insiders Paris.
Check it out at www.eyepreferparistours.com
Love La Vaisselerie, Richard, and in fact I shopped at the one you mention after breaking a glass in the apartment we rented. Love all the cool kitchen and dining stuff - next time I'll spend more time and money here!
Posted by: Mimi | November 29, 2007 at 12:43 PM
Dear Richard, We have family in Paris,& I go there every year.La vaissellerie is one of my favourite shops in the world, and I travel a lot. I am however a little dissappointed,in their new website. When you click to go on to the online site nothing happens. I sent them an email as I need something urgently to bring to the U.S. in October, but got no reply.It's a shame, as I am a good customer, and have sent oodles of people there. I guess I will have to ring them. The man in the St. Paul is so nice,and remembers me when I go there. Found your site by accident, and can't wait to read it all.
Lucia Dublin Ireland
Posted by: Lucia Marié | August 14, 2008 at 01:05 PM