Last week, I was in Paris on business.  Most of the week (outside of meetings) was filled with lunches, dinners and drinks with friends. Except for Wednesday evening.

I got back to the hotel and debated if I should just stay in and order room service or venture out on my own.  I find that hotel room service is never great so I googled “good places to eat alone in Paris” and came across a couple wine bars near the hotel.  Despite the pouring rain, I ventured out and ended up at Willie’s Wine Bar.

I sat at the bar and proceeded to order myself a glass of wine and peruse the menu.  I was hearing a decent amount of English spoken, and hoping that someone interesting would sit next to me.  But the British guys to my left intentionally turned their backs to me, and the women who sat on my right spoke only French.  Just when I gave up and decided to just enjoy my meal, three Americans walked up to the bar.

Turns out that Neil, Dave and his wife were from LA, and were in town for the French Open (they work for the tennis channel).  After some wine and great conversatoin, I found myself discussing the possibility of getting tickets!

Doug came through — two tickets to the Quarterfinals were left for me at the Hilton Concierge, and this week, I found myself back in Paris this week, at the French Open! Roland Garros is a great venue, and even better when you get to be there watching Nadal play Almagro and Sharapova play Kenapi.

What’s the lesson?  Don’t stay in and order room service!