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by N. A. Ross.
Renovating a Parisian grand hotel is a precious process where balance must be provided between the historic context of the property and the needs of the
 modern up-scale traveler. The Meurice, after a two year, $65 million dollar renovation, has succeeded in creating state-of-the-art comfort without disturbing what remains of the grand dame’s elegant and illustrious past. The best of the 19th and 21st centuries have been combined with minute attention to detail, such as the recreation of the hand-painted floral motifs on the built-in wardrobes. Brand-new -- in addition to air-conditioning, soundproofing and Internet connections --are a gem of a little bar, an elegant winter garden and a full service health club with anti-aging spa treatments by Caudalie, the famous spa in Bordeaux. The greenhouse like Belle Étoile Suite on the top floor, has a private terrace and magnificent city views. Suite No. 628 is decorated like a Napoleonic campaign tent, with fabric walls and ceiling.
 The Restaurant Le Meurice, the hotel’s salle à manger (main dinning room), serves some of the best haute cuisine in a city that still clings to the cream and butter traditions of Beauvilliers, Carême and Escoffier The salle à manger, a crystal and gold decorated paradise of gastronomy, has this indefinable something that lets you know that when you step into this room, what you will get will be a celebration for the palate. The kitchen is presided over by Chef Marc Marchand, who creates unforgetable seasonal taste treats. Grilled foie gras, fresh daily, is a delight that few bon vivantes will want to pass on. Snails and frogs -- snails in a potato cake and sautéed frog-legs in a red wine and tarragon reduction sauce, were one of the delicious fish courses; another was Red Snapper sautéed fillets with olive oil, baby artichokes, broad beans and onions. Baby lamb from the Pyrennées, roasted with Mediterranean spices, is an unforgetable treat and so is the duckling from La Dombes cooked in a cocotte with cumin sauce, and served with carrots glazed with honey and lemon. The wine cellar, provides exquisite examples of the French vintner’s art; bottles that are usually exported to the US or Japan, where they fetch a pretty penny.
Tea time at the Jardin d’Hiver (the winter garden) is very special indeed, with fragrant teas from China, India, Ceylon and Turkey and exquisite coffees from around the world. Queen Victoria, who put the hotel on the map in 1854, would have approved. Step through the bronze doors. Natural daylight surrounds you. Glance up at the glass Art Nouveau rotunda; notice how the reflections caress the palm trees. This unique ambiance, cushions you from the hubbub of the city around you.
© August 2000. All rights reserved.
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