Did I hit the jackpot at Paris’ Charles de Gaulle with Gontran Cherrier?

A missed connection with 9 hours at Paris’ Charles de Gaulle airport — what I’m gonna go out on limb and call “The Worst Airport Ever” — didn’t put me in a favorable mood. After I wrangled a 15 Euro meal voucher from the airline (given begrudgingly), I went in search of a fitting repast.

The US dollar to Euro exchange rate is currently horrible; we Americans lose 40% of our spending value right off the top. So, 15 Euros would be a fancier lunch at home than is at a French airport.

Could I still get something that was tasty, appealing to me and well . . . French? Well, if I settled for French and English, yes. I probably should note that at that moment, I was 2 weeks past a near-death hospital stay, so my palate is more first grader than not. But if I liked it, you’ll like it.

Clutching my voucher, I peeped into a few places and at Terminal 5, 2B, I discovered Gontran Cherrier Boulangerie Artisan. I didn’t know he is a famous French tv star and from a family of bakers! I just knew the shop looked like it was selling high quality stuff and the seating area looked comfy.

So, they had a lunch special for under $15 E with all kinds of courses! Jackpot. I ordered the very French crunchy baguette with saucission (nice and fatty) with salted butter and cornichons. The baguette was sizeable and every ingredient was on point, tasty. There was lots of rich butter.

There were several British offerings and a few called out to my worn-out and hungry self. Some Piper’s Lye Cross cheddar and onion crisps (potato chips) were new to me and I needed to try them. But, I felt they were too salty, too seasoned and tasted artificial.

We have Schweppes’ brand in the US — it was my grandparents’ favorite ginger ale brand — but we don’t have “Agrunes aux Saveurs”, which is French for citrus flavored. It has grapefruit, orange, mandarin and lime. It didn’t seem like it had too many carbs — I really watch those now — but it was hard for me to convert measurements and I was thirsty. This flavor is splendiferous and if it ever comes states-side, we all must buy it.

So, other than the baguette, it was time to try Monsieur Cherrier’s work: I ordered a passionfruit mango macaron. It was delicately crispy, while the filling was super rich, bursting with tropical fruit flavor.