March Monthly Round Up

LIFE LATELY: March was a very boring month. For a start, both of us got sick. When I recovered, I only felt good by hibernating at home! I nevertheless visited the Museum of Art and History in Geneva…but apart from that, I was longing for spring to come and our gardens and parks to be full of blossom.

GENEVA POSTCARDS: In the first week of March, Geneva looked like Siberia: freezing, cold and snowy. I took these morning photos of my neighbourhood.

BOOKS: My March goals were to review some old reads that I will be posting in May. The beautifully written, macabre and fascinating The Collector by John Fowles. The very powerful memoir Amores da Cadela “Pura” by Margarida Victória (English title: The Loves of the Purebred Bitch). The magnificent The Great Tea Rooms of Britain by Bruce Richardson.

ART LOVER: Museum of Art and History (2, Rue Charles-Galland)

The Museum of Art and History is a huge museum of over 1 million exhibition pieces, capturing the history of Western culture and civilisation from ancient times to the present day. Museum entrance is free for everyone.

Konrad Witz (Rottweil 1400 - Bâle 1447)

Jean-Étienne Liotard (Genève 1702 - Genève 1789)

Sir Thomas Lawrence (Bristol 1769 - Londres 1830

BOOKSTORE: Les Recyclables (53, Rue de Carouge)

This is an inescapable and friendly place for lovers of reading and good food,  where you can buy second hand books (often in perfect condition). This bookshop-café pairs literary taste with culinary artistry.

What is coming next? Well, warmer and longer days suitable for outdoor life, getaways, after work drinks on café terraces and seeing our markets and parks filled with colourful and pretty flowers. I wish you all an amazing Easter holiday.

A Wonderful dinner at Le Patio

For Valentine’s Day, Sweetheart took me to the very famous Le Patio, located at Boulevard Helvétique 19 near Rive.

For this occasion, I put on the blue lace dress I bought at Sandro boutique and I hid the gift I got for Sweetheart, the book “A Gentleman in Moscow” by Amor Towles, in my big bag.

That night, it was cold and the restaurant was almost empty. I arrived a little before Sweetheart. After being installed at our table, I went around the premises to admire the colourful canvases that adorn and enhance the walls of the restaurant.

For those who do not know, Le Patio has been open for almost 40 years. I would say that it is a restaurant where Genevan gourmets like to meet to taste the specialities of the restaurant. As soon as the warm weather arrives, locals flock to the charming little terrace.

The restaurant is composed of a small bar at the entrance which also serves as a lounge. There is a raised platform and, behind it, another larger room. We stayed at the front by the large windows.

The small bar of Le Patio

Panorama of the room

Canvas by the Cuban and Genevan painter Carlos Boix

As soon as Sweetheart arrived, our waiter advised us and explained the menu with warmth and professionalism. As lobster and beef are the stars of the menu here, we chose both.

My first drink was Champagne Guy Charlemagne Brut Réserve, the perfect way to kick off a meal - actually, I opted for bubbles throughout.

To accompany our aperitifs we were served a small appetiser: “Tartare de Saint-Jacques et Loup”. A real delight! The evening was shaping up to be a gourmet one!

My starter “Marbled foie gras and guinea fowl comfit, compote of apple and celery, flambéd with Calvados” - was successful.

Sweetheart’s starter was one of the best I’ve tasted in a long time. He had “Lobster cannelloni stuffed with chanterelles and baby spinach, served with a shellfish emulsion”

I chose the restaurant’s signature lobster dish, a really succulent “Grilled lobster with coral butter, courgettes, candied tomatoes and green olives, shellfish sauce”. Instead of potato purée I asked for a portion of French fries – this was a fantastic dish and perfectly portioned.

The food here is French and each of the wines has been chosen to pair with the dishes.

Sweetheart’s beef was pretty as a picture and cooked just the way he likes it. “Molard Beef Tenderloin Fillet grilled with crushed pepper, Béarnaise sauce, served with spinach”.

Being the sweet tooth that I am, I wanted to finish our meal with a lovely dessert. I had a delicious “Vanilla crème brûlée with caramel tuile biscuits” – a real treat!

Sweetheart went for “Rum baba, whipped cream and orange flavoured syrup” - he loved his dessert - and so did I!

Our menu may seem quite simple, even unpretentious, but the end result was stunning and we finished our meal with a huge smile on our faces, just happy to have enjoyed fine food in a warm atmosphere.

Once I heard a French chef say “simple cuisine is actually the most difficult to prepare” At  Le Patio, they succeeded hands down.

Le Patio 

Boulevard Helvétique 19

1207 Genève

Tél.: +41 22 736 66 75