Monkey Find: Neest

Japanese designers + Scandinavian influence + French store= Neest. Once I came upon this petit online and brick and mortar shop, I marked in on my list for when I'm in France over the holidays. Something about the back-to-basics but with rich materials approach by contributing artisans makes you want to jump through the screen and peruse about. Their blog, chalk-full of sweet cat photos, other little must-sees in Paris, plus ways to incorporate Neest offerings into your decor, is simply swell. Check it out here.

Stay In: Coquilliere to Royale

With mom in tow, it's time to taste summer over a laissez-faire weekend filled with pain perdu and sun. So pack your latest read and bright beach towel in a trusty tote and head off on our French-inspired STAY IN (albeit close in Beverly Hills) to welcome in May and give thanks to mom. À votre santé!

EAT: Share a Meatless in May feast with mom at Thomas Keller's Bouchon, a nod to the famous brasseries of Paris. Start with the Salade de Concombre, a fresh mix of kumquats, English cucumbers, heirloom radish and marcona almonds, followed by Gnocchi à la Parisienne, rich potato dumplings topped with spring vegetables and brown butter. If you've got room, order the Marquise au Chocolat and forget the guilt--the French don't get fat.

DRINK: Imbibing within the red velvet walls of La Boheme will make you forget you didn't jet to Paris for the weekend, particularly after a few French Pear Martinis or the aptly named Earth Goddess, a concoction of Veev Acai spirit, pomegranate liquor and a dash of sweet and sour. Mom's a bit of lightweight? Share the Tiny Bubbles champagne flight and clink your glasses in her honor--without the fear of a headache in the morning. 

STAY: Sleep like Amelie in one of the quaint Parisian rooms at Maison 140, a 44-room hotel dressed in rich crimson and black. After your quick morning dip in the pool at Avalon, do what every good Francophile does--have a cup of French press coffee and a baked good, followed by a Sunday afternoon of shopping with mom along Boulevard Santa Monica (that's Santa Monica Boulevard to the rest of us). Enjoy!

*Photo by Le Yeti