Paris a porter: San Francisco is full of Francophile treats - Brief Article

Sunset, Feb, 2002 by Deborah Claymon

Whenever I feel lonely for Paris and I can't wing off to Charles de Gaulle, I indulge my craving with a Francophile sojourn around San Francisco. Though Belden Alley and the Gallic haunts around the French Consulate are also nice, these lesser-known spots are my favorites.

I start at Bell'occhio (8 Brady St.; 415/864-4048), a hidden boutique off Market Street that stocks French cosmetics, stationery, ribbons, and even chocolate. Then I jaunt over to Gough Street--it's not hard to imagine it a busy boulevard--and grab coffee and a sandwich of brie and tomato at cafe Tartine (244 Gough St.; 415/553-4595), which could be any neighborhood cafe in the Bastille.

I skip up to Hayes Street to eye the French antiques in Champ de Mars (347 Hayes St.; 415/252-9434), easily located by the French flags flanking the doorway. Owners Pierre Mosko and Marceau Galliot regularly scour Paris for unusual pieces from the 18th and 19th centuries.

For a more contemporary French pastime, I head to two adjacent shoe boutiques, Gimme Shoes (416 Hayes; 415/864-0691) and Bulo (437-A Hayes; 415/864-3244)-actually more museums of shoes than stores. But even a casual shopper here can try on a $370 pair of Helmut Lang pumps without igniting a salesperson's ire. Clothing and furniture stores, as well as art galleries, continue up Hayes to Laguna Street, a stroll not unlike a wander through the Saint-Germain-des-Pres quarter.

By then I'm really ready for the culinary side of my Parisian longings--and my nearby options are fantastic. If I am ready for a full lunch or dinner, I try Bistro Clovis (1596 Market St.; 415/864-0231) for traditional French, or Absinthe (398 Hayes; 415/551-1590) for provincial French. I always leave room for a fabulously executed creme brulee or chocolate mousse cake. (Absinthe's desserts drive even the most determined California dieter to abandon.)

Sometimes I even go out of my way to take the Market Street streetcar home. It's not the Metro, but if I close my eyes, the humming of the tracks almost does the trick.