The many fans of Café Oberkampf will rejoice at the opening of a sister restaurant with longer hours and online reservations. With its light and airy interior, friendly staff, and an addictive breakfast roll, Café Méricourt is currently our #1 favorite place for breakfast or brunch in Paris.
This tiny café on a small street just off the rue Oberkampf perpetually has a crowd of young people lingering outside. They’re all waiting to snag one of just a dozen seats before the daily supply of Shakshuka runs out. The Lost in Cheeseland sandwich, named after the food writer who was an early supporter, is also a big hit, along with healthier fare like muesli and granola. If you come after 10am, expect to leave your name and to kill some time wandering around the neighborhood before a table opens up. If you prefer not to wait, their sister restaurant Café Méricourt opened around the corner in June 2017 and has much more seating.
Pancakes, poached eggs and hearty seasonal fare served alongside excellent coffee sourced from Belleville Brûlerie in a sunny space along the Canal St. Martin. An international array of coffee preparations (flat whites, espressos, long blacks, cappuccinos, and very good “real deal” filtered coffee) are accompanied by hot chocolate made from homemade chocolate syrup and a selection of teas from Le Parti du Thé. The exceptionally friendly service is notable. Also notable, the lines for weekend brunch. Get there early.
Address: 52 rue Faubourg Saint-Martin, 75010
Nearest transport: Jacques Bonsergent (5)
Hours: Open every day
Reservations: Walk-Ins Welcome
Telephone: 01 42 41 73 31
Average price for lunch: 10-19€
Style of cuisine: Soup, salad & sandwiches
Website Facebook
Sprudge (2015) “While the coffee is carefully selected, here the focus is more all-around cafe as opposed to coffee bar; it’s the entirety of Blackburn that’s important, not just what they’re serving. There are fresh juices if you’re not in a coffee mood, all food and most of the pastries are made in house, and there’s even an inviting couch at the back – a vintage Scandinavian model of course.”
Ob-La-Di might be the most Instagrammed café of the 2015 rentrée, but there’s real substance at this stylish spot in the Haut Marais. Most of the baked goods are made in-house, and many of them manage to be vegan and gluten-free, and still actually taste good. Coffee is expertly prepared with Lomi beans by Lloyd, formerly of Boot Café, who also curates a killer playlist most days. Creative offerings include an affogato made with cookie dough ice cream, horchata, a vegetarian burger, and avocado toast that is worth an eye-popping €9 price tag due to the homemade purple potato bread and chimichurri sauce, plus pomegranate seeds.
— Catherine Down, September 2015
An Absolute Favorite
We have not yet reviewed this coffee shop, but you’ll find practical information about location and hours on this page, along with links to other reviews. Feel free to share your own opinion in the comments.
Address: 54 rue du Faubourg Saint-Honoré, 75001
Nearest transport: Madeleine (8, 12, 14), Concord (1, 12, 14)
Hours: Closed Sunday; Open Monday-Saturday
Telephone: 07 82 52 93 63
Website Facebook
Sugared & Spiced (2015) “Excellent coffee, super friendly service, and pastries supplied by Broken Biscuits. I’m not often in this neighborhood but when I am, I make sure to come here for a cup of coffee.”
A design and home goods shop that happens to have an excellent coffee counter where Benoît Touche makes espresso, chai lattes, and filtered coffee using beans from local roaster Coutume.
A shoebox sized coffee shop inside a former cobbler. The coffee's made for walking so plan to take your Belleville Brûlerie coffee and Emperor Norton baked goods to go.
Fuel your coffee fetish at the same place that Pierre Hermé does. This unique little shop on the foodie’s dream street of rue du Nil sells coffee equipment and freshly roasted single-origin beans from 15-20 small-scale coffee farmers. It’s not a true café where you can linger, but you can grab one of the most interesting shots of espresso in town or an expert cold-brewed coffee. And for chocoholics, they offer Claudio Corrallo chocolates and homemade chocolat chaud.
Black Market, a well loved cafe with great coffee, is adapting and transforming--into a bigger and better coffee shop set in a building that was formerly stables. This is an upcoming opening and we’ll update our description and trusted reviews as soon as we know more.
Part concept shop, part café, the stylish space has small plates, cookies and cakes, and a tightly edited, but well-prepared, coffee menu. Coffee available to-go, as well.
Beans are roasted right before your eyes at this excellent coffee boutique. Take a bag home, or take a seat in the back room and order a drink from the expert barista.
This wedding cake bakery has a café in front, serving house made American style treats, and - whoa! - free refills on drip coffee.
Télescope was one of the first in a collection of cafés that are changing the way the capital caffeinates. With only a few tables, no wi-fi and scant food options, the focus is squarely on the nectar inside your cup.
Perhaps better known for its open armed embrace of kale (in salad and chip form), Loustic also has quite good coffee. Beans are sourced from Caffènation and prepared with care. The stylish space, designed by Dorothée Meilichzon, is a bit of a place to see and be seen, but the bobo is balanced out by free wifi and friendly staff.
An absolute favorite for coffee
A brand-new roastery from the Parisian coffee powerhouses David Flynn (formerly of Telescope), Thomas Lehoux (Ten Belles), Anselme Blayney (Ten Belles and Le Bal Cafe). The roastery and accompanying tasting space are geared towards production and professional trainings during the week, but will be open to the public for cuppings and coffee on Saturdays.
Forget about café crème and go for a flat white at this Aussie-inspired shop, one of the new wave of serious coffee places popping up in Paris. Also on order are fresh juices, sandwiches, and house-made tea cakes and scones.
Address: 82 rue de la Folie Méricourt, 75011
Nearest transport: Parmentier (3), Oberkampf (5, 9)
Hours: Closed Monday-Wednesday for lunch, Thursday-Saturday for lunch & dinner, and Sunday for brunch
Reservations: Reservations not accepted
Telephone: 01 47 00 78 95
Average price for lunch: 10-19€
Average price for dinner: 10-19€
Style of cuisine: Mexican, coffee, vegetarian options
Facebook
Le Fooding (2015) “Karen, l’autre chef, fait éclore de délicieux tacos: pommes de terre, graines germées, sauce verte; poulet émincé sauté sauce mole, herbes; poulet, maïs bleu, coriandre, oignon rouge; fromage, haricots rouges, crème et chou arrosés de citron vert pétaradant de fraîcheur et de piquant.”
If you're looking for more than an average cup of joe, here is our guide to specialty coffee shops, espresso bars, and purveyors of quality beans.