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in Paris
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Alain Ducasse au Plaza Athénée
Hôtel Plaza Athénée Paris, 25, ave. Montaigne
Paris
Restaurant
Formal
true
Sumptuous haute interiors complement over-the-top haute cuisine at this elegant eatery.
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Angelina
266, rue de Rivoli (Next to Le Meurice hotel)
Paris
Restaurant
Local Gems
Romantically shabby Belle Époque tearoom serving the city’s most decadent hot chocolate.
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Benoit
20, rue St-Martin
Paris
Restaurant
Local Gems
Historic, elite-favored, Michelin-starred bistro that’s now part of the Alain Ducasse group.
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Café de Flore
172, blvd. Saint-Germain
Paris
Restaurant
Local Gems
Classic Latin Quarter café where the likes of Sartre, Hemingway, and Picasso once hung out.
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Chez Georges
273, blvd. de Pereire
Paris
Restaurant
Local Gems
1920s bistro with a quintessentially Parisian menu of dishes like foie gras and frogs’ legs.
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Chez Janou
2, rue Roger Verlomme
Paris
Restaurant
Local Gems
Perk yourself up with a cheery meal at this funky, boisterous, Provençal bistro near Place des Vosges.
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Chez Prune
36, rue Beaurepaire
Paris
Restaurant
Local Gems
Lounge with the cool crowd at this trendy café on the banks of Canal Saint-Martin.
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Cibus
5, rue Molière
Paris
Restaurant
Local Gems
Charmingly intimate Italian restaurant serving organic market-fresh eats.
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Crêperie Suzette
24, rue des Francs Bourgeois
Paris
Restaurant
Local Gems
Charming Marais crêperie serving up sweet and savory treats for eat-in or takeaway.
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Cristal Room Baccarat
11, pl. des États-Unis
Paris
Restaurant
Formal
Striking Starck-designed dining room-cum-Baccarat showroom serving decadent Nouveau French cuisine.
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derrière
69, rue des Gravilliers
Paris
Restaurant
Local Gems
Boho apartment-turned-hip eatery that draws la crème de la crème of Paris’s trendsetters.
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Dominique Bouchet
11, rue Treilhard
Paris
Restaurant
Local Gems
Superchef Dominique Bouchet has ditched Michelin-style pomp at this pleasingly relaxed bistro.
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Gaya Rive Gauche
44, rue du Bac
Paris
Restaurant
Current
Fashionable fruits de mer restaurant by avant-garde Michelin-starred chef Pierre Gagnaire.
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Hôtel du Nord
102, quai des Jemmapes
Paris
Restaurant
Local Gems
Historic Canal Saint-Martin bistro where the coolest kids in Paris hold court over coffees and cocktails.
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Kong
1, rue du Pont-Neuf
Paris
Restaurant
Current
Ultra-sceney Starck-designed lounge and resto with a funky Tokyo-meets-Paris aesthetic.
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L'Atelier de Joël Robuchon
5, rue de Montalembert
Paris
Restaurant
Current
Trendy bento box of a Michelin-starred, open-kitchen restaurant serving up funky haute tapas.
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Ladurée
16, rue de Royale
Paris
Restaurant
Local Gems
true
Historic 19th century tearoom famous for its melt-in-your-mouth macarons.
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Le Cinq
Four Seasons Hotel George V Paris, 31, ave. George V
Paris
Restaurant
Formal
Sumptuous Michelin-starred restaurant in Four Seasons Hotel George V Paris catering to Paris’s best coiffed.
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Le Comptoir du Relais
Hôtel Relais Saint-Germain, 9, carrefour de l’Odeon
Paris
Restaurant
Local Gems
true
Tiny, crazy-busy haute bistro in Hôtel Relais manned by celeb chef Yves Camdebord.
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Le Fumoir
6, rue de l’Admiral de Coligny
Paris
Restaurant
Local Gems
Handsome bar/restaurant where trendy kids come to grab a bite and scope the scene.
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Le Relais de l’Entrecôte
15, rue Marbeuf
Paris
Restaurant
Local Gems
true
Legendary steak-frites joint that peddles plate after plate of its specialty dish to eager crowds.
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Les Ombres
Musée du Quai Branly, 27, quai Branly
Paris
Restaurant
Current
Swanky contemporary restaurant with bring-your-camera-worthy views of the Eiffel Tower.
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L’As du Fallafel
34, rue des Rosiers
Paris
Restaurant
Local Gems
Elbow through the crowds of falafel fanatics to sample “The Special” at this perpetually packed joint.
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L’Epi Dupin
11, rue Dupin
Paris
Restaurant
Local Gems
Jaunty, perpetually packed “bistronomic” eatery next to the posh Le Bon Marché department store.
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Mariage Frères
30, rue du Bourg-Tibourg
Paris
Restaurant
Local Gems
true
Historic tearoom serving exotic infusions and dainty cakes in French colonial surrounds.
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Restaurant Hiramatsu
52, rue de Longchamp
Paris
Restaurant
Formal
Forget trendy fusion antics–this Franco-Japanese restaurant oozes refined, haute cuisine-style vibes.
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Restaurant Le Meurice
Le Meurice, 228, rue de Rivoli
Paris
Restaurant
Formal
true
Breathtakingly opulent décor meets over-the-top haute cuisine at this historic Le Meurice eatery.
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Senderens
9, pl. de la Madeleine
Paris
Restaurant
Current
Trendy brasserie by Nouvelle Cuisine elder statesman Alain Senderens.
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Taillevent
15, rue de Lamennais
Paris
Restaurant
Formal
true
Timeless Michelin-starred restaurant that’s been wowing the world since the 1940s.
Like Julia Child in her days writing Mastering the Art of French Cooking, we're pretty enamored with dining in Paris. It's a culinary Eden where greenmarkets burst with fresh produce, fine wines flow like nectar, and top toques tend to flocks of gourmands. Even the most modest of venues here often turn out amazing cuisine. No wonder Julia once described her first encounter with food in France as no less than "an opening up of the soul and spirit."
But, yes, such foodie grandiosity can be somewhat intimidating to the uninitiated. Fear not: for all its culinary grandeur, Paris is a surprisingly approachable dining city. Pompous waiters aren't found nearly as often as one might think. You can certainly have the lavish, multicourse foie-gras-and-escargot experience, but you can also grab a cheap and delicious crêpe at a corner stand and be perfectly satisfied. As for butter coming out your pores? Sure, it's used liberally, but savoring–not gorging–is the order of the day. Think of your stay here as a crash course in mastering the art of French eating–a Parisian dining adventure that includes many diverse chapters.
Chapter One: Traditional French (to the max). Named for the court chef from the Middle Ages who wrote one of the earliest French recipe collections, Taillevent is a study in elegance-steeped tradition, with just the right touch of modernity. The velvet-laden manor house surrounds are airy (not musty!), while the delicate preparations keep dishes like saddle of lamb from drowning in cream. But if you want to turn the clock back further to royal feasts in the days of Versailles, you might put on your poshest frock for a table at Restaurant Le Meurice. The dining room dripping with crystal, bronze, and marble channels a "grand siècle" salon, while the haute cuisine is best washed down with bubbly from the champagne bar.
Chapter Two: Quintessential Bistro. Tone down the glamour but keep things classically French by seeking out the Parisian bistro experience. You know the drill: sidewalk tables, crisp linens, a cozy neighborhood feel, and plenty of wine. Even though Le Comptoir du Relais boasts cream of caviar on its menu, it manages to maintain a relaxed vibe with reasonable prices (expect long waits for the lunchtime set menu), a colorful mosaic-floored space, and a following of Left Bank locals. Equally convivial is Chez George, where you'll feel like you're in a classic French film while nibbling rib roast on the elegant leather banquettes.
Chapter Three: Laidback Contemporary. You might want to step out of the classical French world into something a little more chill in the vibe and punchy on the plate. Le Fumoir near the Louvre is an easy choice for brunch with friends–the selection of global dishes is matched by an array of international newspapers to be leisurely read over coffee. Fruits de mer get fun and fashionable at fish-centric Gaya Rive Gauche, while the chic model crowd gets cheeky at derrière, whose apartment-style setup allows you to dine in the bedroom or the boudoir.
Chapter Four: French Fusion. For some of the most cutting-edge fare in town, look to the collision of French flavors and techniques with multicultural imports. You'll find refined haute cuisine (not "trendy fusion") at Franco-Japanese Restaurant Hiramatsu (emphasis on the "Franco"–don't let the name fool you). Also reinterpreting French cuisine with a Japanese slant is Kong, where the playful toy geishas come courtesy of Philippe Starck. And the inventive tapas at L'Atelier du Joël Robuchon bear both Asian and Spanish influences–take a solo seat at the bar overlooking the open kitchen for engaging conversation with your equally globetrotting neighbors.
Chapter Five: Sweets and Tea. We know, in Paris it’s hard not to eat dessert first, but it’s truly worth waiting for the city’s distinctive sweet offerings. There are few foods more Parisian than the macaron. The bite-sized double-decker pastries were purportedly born at Ladurée, a historic tearoom that sells the confections in a rainbow of pastel colors. Alternatively, you can take your tea and pastry at Mariage Frerès, where each pot is individually brewed according to complex rules of "Art du Thé." And though it calls itself a tearoom, Angelina is better known for its menu of thick, creamy hot chocolates–even Coco (as in Chanel) went cuckoo for her cocoa here. Don’t be shy about ordering a full table of pastries along with your chocolate–after all, as Julia once said, "Everything in moderation...including moderation."
Photo of Hotel du Nord courtesy of au35 on Flickr