Tag Archives: Le Marais
Breizh Cafe
On a rainy day in Paris, there’s little else as satisfying as a savory crêpe served up in a warm little cafe. There are many crêperies in Paris, but as long as you’re so close to Brittany, their place of origin, you might as well seek out the real item. Breizh Cafe brings the hearty country cuisine of Brittany to the Marais with dozens of types of crêpes, sweet and savory, and a variety of hard cider.
We arrived for a late lunch at quarter to three, but the place was still packed. Breizh Cafe has gotten a lot of press and is listed in a number of guidebooks, but don’t be put off by the menus in English and Japanese. Surprisingly, their crêpes are also big in Japan, where Breizh Cafe has another outpost. The staff is equally international, with French managers, Japanese chefs and a British waiter all at work on that particular day. The unifying factor for everyone here seems to be the love of crêpes. (more…)
Les Vitelloni
If you speak French, or if you can piece together a phrase or two on the page, it’s definitely worth picking up Le Figaro on the first Wednesday of Paris Fashion Week. The popular daily Parisian newspaper definitely has an in with the fashion world – chic Le Figaro editrix Virginie Mouzat is everywhere come fashion week.
This past season their feature “Fashion Food, les tables du mode” mentioned Les Vitelloni, a new Italian restaurant in the northern Marais, a neighborhood that has become a mecca of fashion showrooms in the past couple years. (more…)
Le Royal Turenne, Paris
With all the tips given so far for finding a good place to eat in a touristy area in Paris, a distinction must be made: there are places to eat, and then there are places to drink. If you walk by an outdoor cafe on the sunny side of the street and see that it’s full of French people, chances are it’s popular because it is bien situé.
There’s nothing wrong with the food at Royal Turenne on rue Turenne in the Marais. We had a steak au poivre there which sufficed perfectly for the first, very jet-lagged dinner in Paris. But we returned again and again not for a meal but for a seat on that terrace, watching the world go by over a cafe au lait or a kir royale. (more…)
Chez Janou
This little Provence-style bistro on a quiet corner in the Marais is no longer a neighborhood secret. If you arrive here on a nice evening, you won’t be the only one looking wistfully at the sidewalk tables, hoping to be seated.
So if the hostess tells you they’re “complets” (the French version of “we’re fully committed”), she’s not kidding. After two failed attempts to dine at this Chez Janou on two separate nights, I walked up for the third time, at the very start of dinner service, and tried again for a table. (more…)
Robert et Louise, Paris
If you’re a stranger in a strange land, sometimes it’s better to ditch the guidebook and get lost, as former Frugal Traveler Matt Gross recently did in Paris. After all, all the other tourists are probably reading the same guide books as you are.
But when it comes to walking into a restaurant blind, what should you consider? First of all, don’t be afraid to keep walking. It would be easy to settle on the first vaguely familiar place that comes along. (Presumably this the secret of Olive Garden’s success in NYC, a city full of good Italian restaurants, and the baffling success of Starbucks in Paris.) But the best finds usually come after some investigation. (more…)
Le Petit Marché, Paris
The Marais neighborhood on Paris’ right bank may be known for its excellent shops, cool crowd and Galliano’s meltdown, but for great dining, most Parisians head elsewhere. Seemingly as soon as the area became trendy several years ago, the restaurants started catering to tourists looking for convenience over quality.
There are still some very good meals to be had here for a reasonable price, and since we were staying in the Marais this past trip to Paris, we decided to dine in depth in this one particular neighborhood. One key is to head away from main drag and look for places off the beaten path – as on the quiet rue Béarn just north of the Place des Vosges. Here a local crowd gathers at the outdoor tables of Le Petit Marché, a modern Parisian bistro with a pan-Asian spin to the classics.