Thursday, December 06, 2007

Ode to Pain Au Chocolat

You pain au chocolat! I remember
when I first saw you behind the aging
teal facade of Au Levain du Marais at
28 Beaumarchais. I was skeptical, I'll admit it.
I had food snobbery all over my face and a
privileged of sigh of oh, I guess you'll do for the movies
as I began a homesick trip of Landmark Cinema
popcorn with real butter and Izzy soda and even
ice cream, but here, a country serious about its movie-
going experience, a place serious about its pastries
as well, I figured you couldn't be too bad. Pain au chocolat,
how you proved me wrong! I left you into my pocket,
hoping that you would not betray this first trip to French cinema.
You startled me during first bite to as I heard your
roar of endless buttery crust and the catch of the
sweet baton inside. I had to wait then for Bowie
to blast on the scene, for vinyl turning underneath the needle
so I could crunch again into your middle, hearing
the acute silence around me, remembering
my Uncle Bob eyeing me at a Broadway show
when I opened a small foil of chocolate after the
show started. After, I waited, licked my fingertips and
fished you out of the folds of my scarf,
letting each piece of dough melt on my tongue,
wanting to lean over and tell Liam, this,
this is the best chocolate croissant I've ever had
waiting for the film to be over, or even,
for the next morning, to go back
for another.



*after Raymond Carver's Soda Crackers

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

excuisite.
extra-ordinary.
publish it.
or perish.