mon petit chou-chou

Missing la vie en rose? Recently tried a new French place - Gregoire Restaurant on Piedmont Avenue in Oakland.

love the little cherry in the logo...
it reminds me of a real café in Paris, Les Temps du Cerises, in the Latin Quarter

It was hot hot HOT inside - and you remember how it was uncannily warm last week? I feel for the people who work there without air conditioning but I'm glad someone's there to whip up this delicious-ness:

rainbow trout with almonds (they're in the sauce)

crispy potato puffs... drool

my friend's dinner: grilled pork chops

Not a lot of seating - just a counter and a single table outside - as this place is advertised as a take-out place. And that's just the way I want it! That way, Gregoire's doesn't have to worry about "customer service" or cleaning up after diners and can just continue to turn out heavenly food.

After dinner, made like the French and took a promenade around a body of water.

Lake Merritt

 Now we didn't walk from Gregoire's to Lake Merritt - we drove that bit - but after a nice hour-long walk around the lake, I was feeling relaxed and pretty darn great. Very French indeed.