O Chateau Valentine’s Dinner
75 euros/person
(13 euros extra for the Cheese course option)
- Entrée -
Poached salmon and ginger
Wine pairing : Vouvray 2009 – Clos Baudouin – François Chidaine
- Plat -
Pink veal, cream and tomato risotto, asparagus and bacon
Wine pairing : Vosne Romanée 2008 – Domaine des Perdrix
- Cheese -
(option)
Truffled Brie, Comté and Aged Saint Nectaire
Wine pairing : Crozes Hermitage 2009 – Clos des Grives – Domaine Combier
- Dessert -
Chocolate Strawberries
Wine pairing : Champagne Rosé – Eric Phélizon

Our whole place will be dedicated to love that night, but we will have a limited seating. So make sure to book your spaces in advance !
The service will have 2 settings : first one starting at 7PM, and second one at 9PM…. but feel free to join us before at the bar to experiment our special Rose Cocktail, or maybe just a glass or Champagne.

For booking shoot us an email at reservation@o-chateau.com with you name, contact phone, number of people attending the dinner and your preferred time of arrival. You can also give us a call : 0033 (0) 1 44 73 97 80.

“Hilariously perceptive”

“Extremely funny and intelligent” - France 24

“Hysterically funny” – Girls’ Guide to Paris

“Extremely well written and witty” – Paris Missives

“One of the funniest books I’ve ever read and one of the cleverest concerning the French. I give it my highest endoresement” - John Talbott

Do you have your own copy already?

Order it on Amazon and/or get it signed at O Chateau by Olivier Magny.

If you are in Paris on Saturday, December 10th, this night will the unique opportunity to have a great French dinner. For the first time at O Chateau, we are organizing a very special night dedicated only to Champagne. We created this experience for people willing to treat themselves with a different experience, and of course, willing to learn about Champagne!

>> More details and Reservations on that page >>

(and you may even try some Beaujolais Nouveau if you really want to!!)

Read the article…

For Parisians, it is the City of Relationships. Every Parisian is in a relationship. That relationship is more or less official, more or less successful, but it always is. Consequently, there is simply no singles scene in Paris. If sexual tension is what makes a city fun, Paris has officially become the most boring city in the world.

All young Parisians are in relationships. For them, the main reason to be in a relationship is simply not to be single. Most young Parisians are averse to life: they see most things as threats, most risks as primarily dangerous, most singular paths as awfully unsafe. Danger for them is around every corner. They view relationships are round little things with no threatening corners; the threats of a relationship they feel they master and choose—this feeling is a reassuring one. Therefore their relationships are long-lasting ones. Not quite good enough to get married, not quite bad enough to break up.

Being single after the age of twenty-six is the clear indication of a troubled mind. If not a troublemaker, that person has got to be a trouble seeker. While the English language has the good taste of distinguishing “alone” from “lonely,” French only offers seul. Not being in a relationship means being seul. The threatening shadows of loneliness, only darkened by the local inexistence of celibacy.

Most surrounding elements create the perfect scenario for a life of romantic dissatisfaction: absence of a singles scene leads to sticking with the wrong person, which itself leads to many a frustration, which inevitably—in a nonreligious city—leads to divorces and breakups a few years down the road. Older Parisian men who still have a form of moral and religious grounding do nonetheless stick with their spouses (unless it is the other way around). They like to flirt and compliment beautiful women—which usually amuses the French and shocks foreigners. That charming France—sadly—is vanishing.

Courting is no longer a Parisian habit. The only way Parisian men like to play it is safe. Parisian women on the other hand, caught in the double obligation to be neither sluts nor single, become undesirable. Absence of flirtation becomes the norm after the age of twenty-six.

Curtains closed.

The dry local environment inhibits natures and ambitions. Ironically enough, as Parisians are more and more in relationships, they become less and less likable. Which, needless to say, makes them stick to their relationships even more.

Useful tip: If you have a vague fantasy about Parisians, rest assured, the few that do not follow the pattern explained above usually end up with foreigners. Those are the wise ones.

Sound like a Parisian: “Ils sont ensemble depuis cinq ans. . . . Ouais, ça se passe bien je crois. . . . Non, ils sont pas mariés, non non.”

If you like this blog, you can support it by getting Olivier’s book: Stuff Parisians Like. It is available online….Olivier can also sign your own copy at at O Chateau…

So, this Sunday morning, we’ll open O Chateau exceptionally to watch the final on our big screen.

Kick off is at 10am but we’ll open at 9.30.

We have coffee, tea, fruit juice and we’ll have croissants and pains au chocolat. Beer, wine and charcuterie can wait until the second half!

O Chateau – 68, rue JJ Rousseau – 75001 Paris.

Needless to say, such positions are hard to obtain.

“Real job” for Parisians implies either a corporate job or working for a prestigious institution. All other jobs are not serious. “Real life” implies the possibility of waking up to the ocean on the weekend and exposure to other cultures, while of course enjoying an eminently comfortable lifestyle.

Given these parameters, it will come as no surprise that Parisians love expats. Being an expat brings the best of both worlds: a good, well-paid position in a foreign yet cozy environment. Bingo!

Parisians would all like at some point in their career to be sent overseas on an expat contract. Since these days—as Parisians like to complain—”ils ne font plus de contrats d’expat”, many Parisians are given opportunities overseas on a “contrat local“. This option is acceptable for Parisians under thirty-five and for destinations where salaries are significant. If these two conditions are not met, chances are the Parisian is more into real job than real real life. Expat contracts having become scarce, those who obtain them tend to be on the efficient side and are therefore probably more into real jobs.

While Parisians look up to their fellow Parisians who go exploring on a mission, they do enjoy the possibility to socialize with foreign expats. Having an expat friends displays fantastic “ouverture internationale” and implies that the Parisian is both a gracious host and possibly a polyglot. Talking about his expat friend, the Parisian will always mention his nationality: “Tu sais, Mark, mon copain expat canadien.” He will also make mention of the quality of his position: “Il a un très gros poste chez Microsoft … un type assez brillant vraiment.” The Parisian will always compliment his expat friend publicly on his French: “Non, vraiment, il parle très bien. Non, c’est vrai Mark, tu as fait de gros progrès.” The Parisian doesn’t think Mark’s French is any good but he likes to come across as the benevolent paternalist mentor.

Having an expat friend is about adding glow to the Parisian’s life. Not all countries come with the same glamorous touch. Having an American expat friend is the ultimate luxury, then comes South American, then other Anglo countries, then Italy. Having expat friends from any other country will only be acceptable in left-wing circles for whom the betrayal of having friends in the corporate world (losers) will be compensated by the unlikeliness of their country of origin.

Expats arriving in Paris are usually very keen to make Parisian friends and to work on their French. Soon enough, they give up on French and, not long after, on Parisians. Those who love the city enough end up re-creating a Parisian life with compatriots, other international folks and Parisians who have lived abroad long enough. Those who don’t just leave—disenchanted.

For Parisians with social ambitions, the proportion of expats and foreigners at the events they organize is the safest way not only to attract what they deem to be Parisians of quality but also to place themselves on a nice international pedestal—with both their expat and Parisian friends.

Interestingly enough, in Paris, the quality of a social circle will be judged predominantly on the proportion of its internationals. The higher the proportion, the more desirable the circle.

Having many international friends helps Parisians overcome their catch-22. They keep their serious job, while getting a taste of adventure through their international friends. Between real job and real life, Parisians choose not to choose: they opt for real Parisian life.

Useful tip: Saturday nights are “International’s Nights” at O Chateau: 20% off on your check if you come with an accent or a foreign passport.

Sound like a Parisian: “Je peux venir avec mon copain expat? Tu sais, l’Américain, de Boston . . . tu vas voir, il est très sympa.”

You like the blog? You’ll love the book (hopefully): Stuff Parisians Like is available here…