Top ten places to eat in Paris
I’m often being asked for restaurant recommendations in Paris. Following are the 10 I’d most recommend. Wine cost refers to how much you should expect to pay per bottle for a good experience. You can see by the rest of the site what I call a good experience with respect to wine.
Fine Dining
Best three star restaurant: Pierre Gagnaire
Summary: Superb, intellectual food, impeccable service, sumptuous surroundings.
Style: Nouvelle Cuisine/Molecular Gastronomy
Wine list depth: Top estates/domaines of France but only recent vintages.
Food cost: 100 to 400 euros per person
Menus: Fixed price short and large dégustation, à la carte.
Wine cost: At least 150 euros per bottle.
When to book: Two months in advance.
English spoken: very high quality
Contact details: http://pierregagnaire.com/index-fr.htm
More: here
Best one star restaurant: Passage 53
Summary: French produce, Japanese techniques.
Style: Nouvelle Cuisine / “Zen”
Wine list depth: Fair selection of French organic producers, strong on Champagne
Food cost: 45 to 65 euros per person
Menus: Six or Eight course dégustation
Wine cost: 100 euros per bottle
When to book: One month in advance
English spoken: very high quality
Contact details: 53 Passage des Panoramas, +33 1 42 33 04 35
More: soon
Where Parisians go to be seen and still eat well: Ze Kitchen Galerie
Summary: Fresh, lively Asian flavours but with French flare.
Style: Nouvelle Cuisine / “Zen”
Wine list depth: Poor
Food cost: 30 to 40 euros
Menus: Entrée plus main, main and dessert or all three
Wine cost: 40 euros
When to book: Three weeks in advance
English spoken: moderate to high quality
Contact details: http://www.zekitchengalerie.fr/
More: soon
Fine dining but not intellectual: La Régalade St Honoré
Summary: Top quality produce, cooking and presentation but with Southern serving sizes (that is, big!).
Style: High quality bistro
Wine list depth: Limited
Food cost: 35 euros per person
Menus: Entrée, main and dessert
Wine cost: 40 euros
When to book: Two weeks in advance
English spoken: Moderate quality
Contact details: 123, Rue St Honoré +33 1 42 21 92 40
More: soon
Bistro dining
Best quality produce: Les Fines Gueules
Summary: Great atmosphere, excellent food with a strong organic focus. Staff amazingly accommodating and friendly.
Style: Organic / Bistro
Wine list depth: Small but enticing selection of mostly organic proxucers
Food cost: 30 – 45 euros per person
Menus: à la carte
Wine cost: 30 euros per bottle
When to book: Two weeks in advance
English spoken: Yes
Contact details: http://www.lesfinesgueules.fr/
More: soon!
Honest food, only French customers: Mémère Paulette
Summary: The owner knows all the customers, smokes in the kitchen, gets drunk with you, cooks big, fatty plates of stuff you can only find in France. Almost more like an eating and drinking club than a bistro.
Style: Traditional
Wine list depth: Huge wine list. My favourite entry: ‘Coca-cola: special price for being an idiot: 30 euros’. Second favourite entry: ‘Liver cleansing recommendation: one bottle of Champagne’.
Food cost: 25 euros
Menus: à la carte
Wine cost: 25 euros
When to book: a week in advance
English spoken: None, and go with a French person
Contact details: +33 1 40 26 12 36
More: No.
For those who just want to drink rare wine
The biggest wine list: La Tour d’Argent
Summary: The wine list must be 500 pages long. The cellar has hundreds of thousands of bottles. The views are also great.
Style: Old fashioned.
Wine list depth: 500 pages to be precise. Takes about 3 hours to read it all closely.
Food cost: 65 to 200 euros. Go at lunch time, when it is 65 euros.
Menus: Fixed menu or à la carte.
Wine cost: 200 euros.
When to book: One month in advance.
English spoken: The sommelier is English.
Contact details: http://latourdargent.com
More: here
Wine bar
The king is still the king: Le Verre Volé
Summary: Eat top quality charcuterie surrounded by bottles. If you’re thirsty, just grab a bottle.
Style: Bistro / Wine Bar
Wine list depth: 200 different wines
Food cost: 25 euros
Menus: à la carte
Wine cost: 30 euros
When to book: A week in advance, two weeks for a Friday night
English spoken: Don’t think so
Contact details: 67, rue de Lancry +33 1 48 03 17 34
More: soon!
Current hottest address in Paris
Yam’Tcha
Summary: The place everyone wants to go right now. French interpretation of Southern Chinese cooking. Extremely exciting combinations of flavours and styles.
Style: French techniques and produce, Chinese sensibility.
Wine list depth: Moderate but also check out the tea pairing menu from Chiwah Chan whose wife is the chef.
Food cost: 30 – 65 euros
Menus: Fixed price menu and dégustation
Wine cost: 40 euros
When to book: Running at three months in advance at the moment!
English spoken: Yes
Contact details: 4, rue Sauval, +33 1 40 26 08 07
More: soon
Take away for picnics and the like
Best food street in Paris: Rue Montorgueil
Summary: Three of everything: Cheese shops, boulangeries, butchers, patisseries. Check out Maison Collet, which supplied Louis the XIV with bread!
Style: Parisian
Wine list depth: Both the wine stores on the street are, sadly, lacking.
Food cost: 20 euros per person, assuming you buy some roast chicken, pâté, cheese, bread and salad.
Menus: N/A
Wine cost: N/A
When to book: N/A
English spoken: Sign language required
Contact details: Rue Montorgueil, behind Les Halles and St Eustache
More: No
