Grocery Run

I made a salad last night and I really wanted some little cherry tomatoes to put on the top of it. Sadly, after searching the fridge and produce bowl at home I found zero tomatoes, of any variety. What’s a girl to do? Well, in most cases I would have to choose between going without (sigh) or jumping in the car and making a run to the grocery store. But what does this situation mean here in Paris? Here it means walking to the street corner about 100 feet away to a produce stand. Ten minutes after discovering the lack of tomatoes in-house, I was back in the kitchen adding delicious cherry tomatoes to my salad.

This brings me to a quick tally of the food stores (not including cafes/brassieres/restaurants) around where I live in Paris.
Let’s count together!
1 (un) butcher
1 (un) grog shop
2 (duex) cheese shops
2 (duex) pharmacies
3 (trois) produce stands
3 (trois) bakeries (yummy!)
4 (quatre) chocolate shops (double yummy!)

I have no idea how it worked out that there are more chocolate shops than anything else within two blocks of the apartment, but that’s the way it is. And far be it from me to complain. There is also one “supermarket” in the same radius, and while it has a comprehensive assortment of goods (cereal, yogurt, milk, frozen goods, a bit of produce) it’s teensy by US standards. But! When you can’t find lentils anywhere else (another true story), the supermarket has them! It appears to be a wonderful symbiotic relationship (and hopefully that's not just an appearance, but a reality) between these small, specialized stores, and the general grocery. Turns out, if each store is on the small side, there’s room for a lot more.