 |
| L'Absinthe
24, Place du Marche Saint-Honore
75001 Paris
Tel: 01.49.26.90.04
|
Absinthe is the
name of a popular Paris bistro where, though they don't
serve Absinthe, they do serve excellent food in a friendly
setting. Located on a quiet but very chic square, in
warm weather you can dine on the terrace. The bistro
is part of super-chef Michel Rostang's restaurant empire
so, quality is kept high while prices run at about 40
euros per person with wine. |
| Alain Ducasse
Plaza Athenee
25, avenue Montaigne
75008 Paris
Tel: 01.53.67.66.65
|
It's new again.
Super chef Alain Ducasse has settled into his new home
at the Plaza Athenee hotel, in a contemporary space
designed by the young Patrick Jouin. Meals to remember
(with many new dishes) from the only French chef to
have received two three-star Michelin ratings in the
same year. Prices to remember too. Count 140 euros and
up. |
| Anahi
49, rue Volta
75003 Paris
Tel: 01.42.77.41.65
|
An Argentine restaurant
set in an old butcher shop, is sure to have atmosphere,
but here they also have good food, Spanish wines and
friendly service. Very popular with journalist and fashion
people. About 40 euros. |
| Bon
25, rue de la Pompe
75016. Metro La Muette
Tel: 01.40.72.70.00
|
Sashay over to
the sushi bar or past the boutique to the dining room
at this new eatery owned by Laurent Taieb (owner of
Lo Sushi) and designer Philippe Starck. After over ten
years of directing his talents elsewhere, Starck has
again turned his eye to Paris and created a seductively
homey space filled with theatrical touches. The cuisine
is anachronistic for Paris: continental fusion with
Eastern accents and a Zen devotion to well-being. However,
if you crave steak-frites, you can find it listed on
the menu under "I Am Bad." |
| Les Bookinistes
53, quai des Grands Augustins
Closed for lunch Saturday and Sunday
Tel: 01.43.25.45.94
|
A few years ago
Guy Savoy, a chef who has a two-star restaurant named
after himself, decided to extend his domain by creating
gastronomic bistrots that would serve simply cooked,
excellent food, at affordable prices in a friendly atmosphere.
This is one of these bistrots. Les Bookinistes is facing
a row of bouquins, or book stalls, on the Left Bank.
Inside, there is a sense of fun and ease that is reinforced
when you receive one of the warmest welcomes in Paris.
The set lunch menu of three courses is 25 euros, a seriously
good price for the quality of the food on offer in a
restaurant that prizes simplicity, flavor and fun over
pomp and ceremony. |
| Chez Omar
47, rue de Bretagne,75003
Tel: 01.42.72.36.26
|
Expect to wait
at the bar before you're able to catch Omar's eye for
a table. Once seated, order a mechoui or other Arab
dishes and enjoy the friendly atmosphere. Open until
midnight. Closed Sunday lunch. No Credit Cards. 30 euros.
|
| Le Clos des
Gourmets
16, avenue Rapp
75007 Paris
Tel: 01.45.51.75.61
|
The owners are
Arnaud Pitrois and his wife Christel. He creates his
magic in a five square meter kitchen, and she runs the
dining room. Arnaud is only 28 years old and has a very
impressive background that shows up in every dish. He
has worked with Guy Savoy and Christian Constant, who
have probably done more to add new ideas to classical
French cuisine than anyone else in this city. They have
trained an increasingly important group of young chefs
who are dedicated to their craft and who have opened
their own restaurants where one can eat superbly at
very reasonable prices. Le Clos Des Gourmets is one
of these. The menu changes slightly every week, and
daily additions are marked on a blackboard. |
| L'Etoile
12, rue de Presbourg
75016 Paris
Tel: 01.45.00.78.70 |
With a superb
view of the Arc de Triumphe, a fresh menu by young chef,
Didier Doucet, an elegant high-ceilinged interior and
all new management this restaurant is on the upswing.
Tony Gomez presides over both restaurant and downstairs
nightclub with the style and taste that has made him
the man to follow on the Paris night scene. Here he
has created an atmosphere where you eat well (and maybe
see some beautiful people) without entering the stuffy
world of four-star mannerisms. He is as happy that you
enjoy the scallops topped with thin truffle slices,
as the art work large format photos of jazz musicians
from Gomez's own collection. |
| Georges
Centre Pompidou. Sixth Floor.
Metro Rambuteau or Hotel de Ville.
Closed Tuesday. Open until 2am
Tel: 01.44.78.47.99 |
This new canteen
for the artsy crowd can be found high above the city
on the sixth floor of the Centre Pompidou. "Georges"
is run by the Costes familywhich has brought us many
trendy Paris cafesand is designed by young, Paris-based
architects Dominique Jakob and Brendan MacFarlane. The
design is striking with giant, aluminum-clad bubbles
rising out of a silver floor. These contain the kitchen,
bathrooms and VIP lounge. The real star of the restaurant,
however, is the impressive wrap-around view of Paris.
To access the restaurant without buying a museum ticket,
take a special elevator just to the left of the main
plaza entrance. Sadly, this doesn't mean you will be
able to sneak into an exhibit after coffee. Coffee,
light food or hot entrees (10 euros and up). |
| Les Grandes
Marches
6, place de la Bastille
75012 Paris
Tel: 01.43.42.90.32 |
Legendary chef
Christian Constant has conceived the menu for this large,
airy, contemporary restaurant next door to the Bastille
Opera. The 300-place restaurant gets it names from the
graceful, curving staircase leading to the upstairs
dining room. The interior by Elizabeth de Portzamparc
is refined and modern. The owner is the Flo group, proprietors
of Paris favorites like La Coupole, Julien and Brasserie
Flo, amongst others. While they may have made the leap
to designer interiors, the food is traditional French
with Constant's creative touch, of course. Menu at
30 euros. A la carte over 45 euros per person. |
| Jules Verne
Second floor Eiffel Tower
South pillar.
Tel: 01.45.55.61.44 |
The Jules Verne
Restaurant is on the second platform of the Eiffel Tower.
A private elevator (you must have a reservation to gain
access) takes you 123 meters up, where a welcoming committee
will greet you. Although dinner is quite expensive,
lunch is a very good value. There is a lunch menu from
Monday to Friday consisting of three courses for 45
euros and a selection of wines priced under 30 euros.
|
| Lo Sushi
8, rue de Berri
75008 Paris
Open daily noon to 12:30 pm
Tel: 01.45.62.01.00 |
Lo Sushi, with
its ultra modern video screens and curving conveyerbelt,
was designed by Andree Putman. Sit at the counter and
try to choose as plate after plate of fresh and colorful
sushi passes by. Plates are different colors representing
different prices. When you're finished the waitress
tallies up the empty dishes. About 5 euros a plate.
|
| Korova
33, rue Marboeuf
75008 Paris
Open daily
Tel: 01.53.89.93.93 |
Four rooms, with
four different ambiences, take you from day lit cafe,
to the ice-green leather chairs and stunning black and
white of the bar, to the hushed orange of the candlelit
restaurant, to a "chill out room" with a low ceiling
and even lower seating in this new restaurant designed
by French architect Christian Biecher. The concept being
that urban professionals can come at any time of the
day or evening for something to eat and drink. Very
chic and relaxed without being "trendy." Glass of champagne
10 euros, dinner 30 euros and up. |
| L'Os a Moelle
3, rue Vasco de Gama
75015 Paris
Closed Sunday & Monday
Tel: 01.45.57.27.27
La Cave de l'Os a Moelle
181 rue de Lourmel
75015 Paris
Tel: 01.45.57.28.88 |
Thierry Faucher,
who worked with the brilliant Christian Constant, is
another one of the talented young chefs contributing
to the modernization of traditional French cuisine.
Faucher opened his restaurant, L'Os a Moelle, outside
of Paris' chic districts in order to offer excellent
food at reasonable prices. The result is that he is
booked full every night. He's also taken his concept
one stage further and opened a bar across the road where
you can eat at one of two communal tables. L'Os a Moelle
is small, friendly and unfussy. At lunch the prix fixe
menu is 25 euros with a choice of six entrees. At night
the price is 30 euros for a set, six-course meal with
a choice of dessert. It's all decided for you but you
won't be disappointed. Everyone arrives anticipating
an unknown menu--one they know will be brilliant. Meanwhile,
across the road the atmosphere is informal and the food
is homey. The set-price menu is 20 euros, and you serve
yourself in your own time. |
| L'Osteria
10, rue de Sevigne
75004 Paris
Open daily
Tel: 01.42.71.37.08 |
Excellent Italian
cuisine prepared by Toni, in this tiny restaurant, that
fills up quickly with those who know that pasta is good
for the body and the soul. Reservations suggested. Around
30 euros. |
| La Regalade
49, avenue Jean Moulin
75014 Paris
Closed Sunday and Monday
Tel: 01.45.45.68.58 |
Yves Camdeborde's
popular restaurant, La Regalade, is intimate, cluttered
and warm. The food is what the French call cuisine familiale,
but the menu goes from the fine and subtle to the truly
traditional. This restaurant caters to those who believe
that simpler is better. Camdeborde is definitely one
of the talented young chefs who exercises this thinking
and the price, 28 euros for three courses at lunch,
is very reasonable for the standard of quality. |
| Rotisserie
d'en Face
6, rue Christine
75006 Paris
Metro Odeon
Closed Saturday lunch and all day Sunday
Tel: 01.43.26.40.98 |
While it might
not sound very French, a meal of meat and potatoes is
at the heart of the country's culinary experience. Long
before nouvelle cuisine, there were grilled steaks and
plump fowl turned over a fire. What could be better
then a crisply roasted free-range chicken, accompanied
by a creamy puree de pommes de terre, then followed
by an excellent dessert? Not much. Fortunately, Parisian
chef Jacques Cagna, of the famous restaurant that bears
his name, created the Rotisserie d'en Face, an open,
roomy restaurant where you can get exactly this meal
and more. About 45 euros with wine. |
| Zo
13, rue de Montalivet
75008 Paris
Closed for lunch Saturday and Sunday
Tel: 01.42.65.18.18 |
It hasn't taken
long for Parisians to discover ZO, tucked off the Rue
Faubourg Saint Honore on a very quiet, but central street.
In just nine months, young and dynamic owners Micael
Memmi and Olivier Haski have conceived two-menus-in-one,
both inspired by southern cuisine. French provincial
cooking shares the spotlight with sushi. Each menu has
its own chef. The clientele, too, is a mix from the
worlds of business, fashion and politics. We recommend
the mille feuille of zucchini, tomato and mozzarella,
and an incredible dessert, le Ying et le Yang, served
warm and oozing an unctuous chocolate sauce. Lunch menu
15 euros. Dinner around 30 euros. |
