Unless you’re on an all-chocolate diet, this can be a frustrating food neighborhood. Prices are high and quality is sometimes questionable. But with a batch of new openings over the past two years to add to our old favorites, we’re no longer stumped by the (frequently asked) question: “I’m staying in Saint-Germain. Where should I eat?”
With excellent shopping, unique art & architecture and a vibrant gallery scene, the Marais attracts a huge number of visitors. There are some outstanding food & wine options within this maze of fashionable streets, and we’ve selected our favorites for you here.
Don’t get excited: Paris has no Brooklyn. Due to short-sighted urban planning in mid-century, Paris is cinched into its ring-road, le péripherique, like a dress it wore sixty years ago and never removed. The sheer impracticality of crossing this eternally congested ring-road has long prevented, in les banlieues, development of establishments Parisians might consider destinations. For Parisians, you’re either within city limits, or you’re way, way out.
This friendly upper Marais wine bar serves simple charcuterie, cheese, salads, and sandwiches to go along with 5€ glasses, or a bottle from their cave next door. The plate of truffled ham is always a good bet. In the summer, there’s a great terrace on the street.
Address: 40 avenue Duquesne, 75007
Nearest transport: Saint-François-Xavier (13)
Hours: Open every day
Reservations: Book a few days in advance
Telephone: 01 53 86 09 09
Average price for lunch: 35-49€
Average price for dinner: 50-99€
Style of cuisine: Chinese
Special attributes: outdoor dining, open Sunday, open Monday
Patricia Wells (2011) “Alas, 168 euros poorer and barely sated, we left wondering what this place was all about. Food no better than any Parisian Vietnamese carryout. Rubbery pork dumplings, dipping sauces that tasted like ketchup, tasteless shrimp…”
Address: 11 rue Dupin, 75006
Nearest transport: Sevres-Babylone (10, 12)
Hours: Dinner, Monday-Friday; lunch, Tuesday-Friday; closed Saturday and Sunday
Reservations: Last minute booking usually O.K.
Telephone: 01 42 22 64 56
Website
Average price for lunch: 20-34€
Average price for dinner: 35-49€
Style of cuisine: Modern French
Special attributes: market-based cooking, open Monday
Caroline Mignot (2009) “L’ardoise arrive, pas une suggestion qui ne fasse pas envie…Crevettes à peine saisies, au coeur encore fondant et “rosé”, enrobées de quelques grains de sésame…Velouté de Saint-Jacques incroyablement lisse…Le dessert parle de lui-même…”
Activities for Food Lovers
Musée de Camembert (in Vimoutiers)
Delicious Normandy Food Tours (in Bayeux)
Restaurants
Le Vauban (in Port-en-Bessin-Huppain)
Auberge le Clos Saint Julien (in Saint-Julien-sur-Calonne)
Manoir de la Drôme (in Balleroy)
Restaurant La Sapinière (in Saint-Laurent-sur-Mer)
La Rotonde (in Port-en-Bessin-Huppain)
Cheese & Dairy
La Fromagerie Graindorge (in Livarot)
Coopérative Isigny Sainte-Mère (in Isigny-sur-Mer)
La Fromagerie de Bayeux (in Bayeux)
Wine & Cider
Game season is a special time in Paris restaurants, with gibier à plumes (wild birds) arriving in late Autumn and gibier à poils (hare, boar or deer) turning up in the early winter. For those who aren't quite sure how to play the game, we've compiled some resources to help guide you through the forest of options.
Our Guide to Paris Restaurants
This place is known mainly for its giant, meaty salads.
This historic spot is known for oysters and grand platters of fruits de mer, as well as its classified, Louis Majorelle - designed art deco toilettes.