
In mid-October, I received an invitation from Dana McMahan, a freelance travel and food writer from Louisville, for a pop-up dinner with the James Beard nominated chef Alison Settle. Never one to turn down a dinner invitation, especially with an esteemed chef, I emphatically replied YES to the invitation.
The dinner was organized at Kai's Kitchen, a highly coveted Air-Bnb, mostly occupied by a long dining table and chef’s kitchen in the 11th arrondissement. (It’s been named one of the top Airbnbs in Paris by Conde Nast Traveler).
Dinner was called for 7:30 pm and it was a very rainy night, so it was a welcome relief when I stepped into the kitchen effusing tantalizing aromas from the stove. The long, wood plank table was attractively set with white dishes, beige cloth napkins, and lovely, fresh flower arrangements.
Twelve guests were invited, mostly bloggers and travel and food writers, two-thirds Americans and about a third French. Some of them I had met previously, so it was nice to see and catch up with them and meet some new, fun people.
I could tell by the first course, a festive salad of radicchio, endive, fennel, red onion, Sicilian olives, and blue cheese, which are some of my favorite foods, that the dinner would be a roaring success.



Next up was duck fat roasted fingerling potatoes and leeks with celeriac cream, a necessary, stick to the ribs dish for the cold rainy night. It was so good, I wanted to have a second portion, but had to pace myself for the upcoming courses. A cioppino with fresh oysters and clams was like a bouillabaisse, but much more robust and in red sauce. Last but not least, the roasted spring Onion and chanterelle Fratelli pasta with pecorino cream was sublime.
A simple fruit plate of prune plums, persimmons with clementine, and lime crème fraiche was the perfect finale, rather than a fussy dessert.
The whole table cheered and applauded chef Alison, for her fabulous and unique dinner. Alison spoke at length about how she arrived in Paris the day before, hitting the ground running with little sleep and jet lag, going to the Marche Aligre, and a variety of other, specialized food shops, to shop for the ingredients. She spent the day cooking and preparing the dinner, and she also shared about how inspiring and exciting the food markets were and how much less expensive the prices were than in Louisville. Her menu wasn’t planned and she created the menu, as she shopped at the market.
The good news is that the dinner was such a success, that Alison and Dana are returning next year, most likely in April to create more dinners. I will keep you posted here and, on the link, below when the dates are finalized.
https://elleferafera.com/get-lost-in-paris/
Photos are courtesy of Panos Achouriotis





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