Paris is the land of hard-and-fast kitchen etiquette, where skilled chefs come to invent, and foodie fans come to feast. From bubbling croque monsieur’s on café tables, chateaubriand in candlelit bistros and inventive 13-course tasting plates of caviar and curried lobster overlooking the Seine, Paris’ food scene has never looked or tasted better. But with 44,000 restaurants (119 of which proudly boast Michelin stars) jostling for the mouths of the city’s two million residents and 30 million annual tourists, deciding where to take the first bite can be the hardest part. We’re always up for a challenge though, so have whittled down 44,000 to a more easily digestible eight. Read on to discover our best restaurants in Paris.
Le Chardenoux
11th Arrondissement
Ever since chef Cyril Lignac gave this 11th Arrondissement address a lick of paint and complete redesign, ‘wow’ is the only word its diners have been able to utter upon entering this charming restaurant. Between its mint-green floral ceiling, marble bar and antique bar stools, Le Chardenoux is the kind of place you can sip on lavender cocktails and tuck into mussel gratin, avocado-covered crab and crispy sushi. Their menu has all this and a delectable dessert menu to boot. In fact, Monsieur Lignac is quite known for his pastries, particularly his signature praline and pecan millefeuille, so try your hardest to leave some room.
Dersou
11th Arrondissement
Café by day and cosmopolitan canteen by night, Dersou never misses a beat. Despite squirreling itself away down a small back-alley near Bastille, it pitches its menu somewhere between Asia and Paris. Offering a six or seven course tasting menu of soy-soaked beef, Japanese chicken and sticky rice, with a cocktail pairing for each, Dersou is creative fusion at its finest. It is also a master at brunch. With a menu spanning from granola and yoghurt to avocado and feta on sourdough, you may have to fight Paris’ millennial population for a table, but trust us, it’s worth it.
Guy Savoy
6th Arrondissement
Dining at the three Michelin star Guy Savoy, located on the bank of the Seine, feels like a true pinch-me moment. With floor-to-ceiling windows and works from the Pinault Collection adorned on every wall, it’s obvious from the moment you set foot onto L’Hotel de la Monnaie’s red carpet that cooking is an art form. Starting with ice-poached oysters, Savoy’s 13-course menu promises to take tastebuds on the trip of their lifetime. Eat your way through a ‘bursting’ tomato, roasted lobster and guinea fowl with girolles before ending with a trolley of ice creams. It may come with the hefty price tag of £500, but, if you’re quick enough, try bagging the one table reserved during lunch service for a more pleasantly priced £110 three-course menu.
Les Arlots
10th Arrondissement
Cosy, clubby and almost certain to leave you stuffed, dining at Les Arlots is much like dining at your grandparents’ house. The menu is short and sweet, scribbled daily onto a single chalkboard, the décor is tasteful yet traditional and the atmosphere speaks for itself – literally. Strike up conversation with locals while waiting for your soft-boiled egg and bottarga (cured fish roe) starter and follow it up with the restaurant’s pièce de resistance, sausage and mash. Admittedly a simple dish, but one that’s done so well you’ll be wondering what their secret is. While its menu is small, its wine list certainly is not. Championing small and natural wine producers, you’re sure to be spoilt for choice.
Septime
18th Arrondissement
At Septime, you won’t just be dining at one of the best restaurants in Paris, you’ll be dining at one of the best restaurants in the world – 22nd in the world to be precise (according to 2022’s World’s 50 Best Restaurants). Big on exposed wood and industrial lighting, the neo-bistro is purposely relaxed and unpretentious to make its food the star of the show. Expect unsung mashups of raw and cooked (in many methods) flavours, inspired plate-scaping and desserts topped with blackcurrant sorbet and purple basil – that’s if you can bag yourself a table.
Déviant
10th Arrondissement
With no tables or chairs, just a tiny kitchen surrounded by a bar and a shallow ledge to pop your drinks on, Déviant revels in being a little different. Located in the attractive and atmospheric Montmartre neighbourhood, owner Pierre Touitou knew what he was doing when he created his second restaurant. Serving an everchanging menu of small plates that can be eaten solely with fingers or a fork, including mussels and seared foie gras, Déviant is living proof that small and mighty more often than not go hand-in-hand. And with both foodies and fashionistas jostling for space, the earlier you get there the better.
La Fontaine de Mars
7th Arrondissement
What makes La Fontaine de Mars one of the best restaurants in Paris is its history. Serving Parisians and its fair share of famous faces (we see you Barack and Michelle Obama) since 1908, La Fontaine de Mars would be forgiven for resting on its laurels. But it doesn’t. Sporting a typically Parisian interior of vintage posters, checked tablecloths and red wicker chairs along the equally Parisian Rue Saint-Dominique, its coq au vin, confit de canard and thick fillets of beef remain some of the best south of the Seine. Save room in your stomach and camera roll for this one.
Clover Grill
1st Arrondissement
Dining in Paris has always been more than rare steak and salty frites. But sometimes you can’t help but fall for a cliché. And there is no better place to do so than at Clover Grill. The hotly anticipated address from Michelin-starred chef Jean-François Piège, this intimate haunt specialises strictly in all things carnivorous. Begin with the duck foie gras to whet your appetite (if it isn’t already) before digging into the main event: a side of wood-smoked noire Baltique beef. Watch as it surrenders to the slight touch of a fork and sinks into surrounding goose-fat roasted potatoes and house Béarnaise sauce. Complete with marble tables, copper décor and a lofty open kitchen, it is one of the best restaurants in Paris, just with a slight twist.