Top 10 restaurants in Paris

Every cuisine in the world has a touch that makes it special and recognisable. It may be the use of spices, the spiciness or the preparation of its dishes. However, French cuisine has many nuances that define it and have made it one of the most famous in the world.

The mixture of sweet and savoury, the raw materials, the mastery of dough, the subtlety of butter and the mastery of meat and fish have made eating in Paris a culinary experience. That's why, if you're thinking of visiting the French capital, I'm going to give you a list of ten places to eat that you can't miss. Let's get started!

If you want to taste in a unique and exclusive way all the delicacies that Paris has in store for you, one of the best plans I offer you is to book a private gastronomic tour so you can have a personal guide who will take you to different places to taste the characteristic products.

From a famous macaroon with a good coffee, to taste a glass of local wine with a French cheese. Let your taste buds fall in love with this worthwhile experience on your trip to the French capital. You can choose to do the private tour with your group of friends or family or, if you are travelling alone, in a small and exclusive group, which will be guided through different markets and key places where you will make the obligatory stops to taste the most famous local product of the city. Bon apetit!

Interesting details

• Price: between 140€ and 150€.
• Duration: around 3 hours of gastronomic tour.
• Direction: with this type of tour you will visit different typical places around Paris.
• Recommended for: groups of friends or families who want to taste and get to know the local gastronomy of France.

If you want to get off the beaten track and discover the gastronomy of Paris in a way that is authentic and close to its people, one of the best places to visit is the Marché d'Aligre, located in the 12th arrondissement. Six days a week, a large market is located in this area, divided into an open-air part and an indoor part, where you can stroll around to discover the fresh, local products that the average Parisian eats.

Fortunately, so that you don't feel so lost, you can find tours for small groups that take you for a morning to get to know this picturesque place and, of course, to offer you a gastronomic experience by tasting the food and ingredients from the market stalls. It's an experience for your taste buds that goes beyond the classics and gives you a deeper insight into the flavours prevalent among the local residents.

Interesting details

• Price: between 60€ and 70€.
• Duration: approximately 2 hours.
• Address: Marché d'Aligre, Place d'Aligre, 75011.
• Recommended for: groups of friends or families who want to try local flavours and experience a more everyday experience.

Paris may have many places and interests that make it unique but, within its gastronomy, two of its main pillars are wine and cheese. If you want to get to know and taste these two raw materials in a special and unique way, you have the opportunity to do so in some of the tastings that are organised in the Latin Quarter, a place full of history and French culture.

In this way, not only will you taste the different types of wines and cheeses that are most famous in Paris, but you will be guided at all times by expert chefs and sommeliers who will advise and instruct you on the nuances that you will taste. There are different tours that organise this type of French-style tasting and, if you like the world of wine, it is definitely a plan to consider.

Interesting details

• Price: between 40€ and 50€.
• Duration: Tastings usually last around 2 hours.
• Address: Latin Quarter of Paris.
• Recommended for: couples and groups with a taste for wine and cheese.

The Moulin Rouge is one of the biggest shows in Paris and, as well as offering a show full of excitement and music, it also offers a delicious dinner that you can enjoy to the rhythm of the cancan. This place has been a hotspot of Parisian bohemian life for decades and continues to offer performances every week.

If you are interested in seeing this spectacular performance and enjoying a glamorous dinner, you should plan ahead, as tickets and table reservations are usually bought well in advance. That's why I recommend having a tour or ticket already organised where you can usually choose from a variety of menus inside the Moulin Rouge, as well as enjoying France's most famous cabaret.

Interesting details

• Price: between 190€ and 200€ with dinner and show included.
• Duration: approximately 4 hours.
• Address: Moulin Rouge, 82 Boulevard de Clichy, 75018.
• Recommended for: Couples who want a special dinner.

If you're visiting the centre of Paris and want to be sure of a first-class dining experience, I recommend L'Atelier Maître Albert, a restaurant located a few steps from Notre Dame with a classic and cosy style and traditional gourmet food that will make your mouth water.

Its decoration around a large room with a fireplace and its dishes based on slow-cooked meats, fish and vegetables make it a place not only comforting, but also of a quality typical of the French capital. I recommend you book a table in advance as it is a very popular place in Paris.

Interesting details

• Price: around 25€ per person.
• Address: 1 rue Master Albert 75005 Paris.
• Recommended for: Romantic dinners, couples.

If you want to taste the most traditional dishes of Paris in a place with more than 130 years of history, you should definitely come and visit Brasserie Lipp, a restaurant located in the Saint-Germain-des-Prés district and specialising in typical food and brasserie.

Some of its most typical dishes are herring from Bismark, cod brandade, sauerkraut or roast free-range chicken. The popular restaurant is open every day and has a continuous service for lunch and dinner, so if you get the chance, don't miss the opportunity to try its delicacies.

Interesting details

• Price: around 35€ per person.
• Address: 151 Bd Saint-Germain, 75006.
• Recommended for: Couples and families who want to try traditional dishes.

If you are passionate about seafood and seafood products, you can't miss La Criée, a chain of restaurants specialising in fresh seafood products that will offer you, for a very reasonable price, both lunches and dinners of very good quality, as well as take-away food.

Fresh oysters, tuna tartare, grilled prawns, even a French version of Fish & Chips. Whether you're travelling with friends or family, this place has top quality produce and you'll find it all over the city, although one of its larger venues is located right in the centre.

Interesting details

• Price: around 20€ per person.
• Address: 31 Bd de Bonne Nouvelle, 75002.
• Recommended for: Families and groups of friends.

The French are true masters at making dough, whether it's for their delicious baguettes or their famous croissants. That's why you can't leave Paris without trying one of the most popular bakeries in the city, Du Pain et des Idées.

This place sells the most famous croissants in Paris, but it also has a wide selection of breads and other sweets, and you can even ask them to prepare a sandwich to take away and enjoy it while you walk around the city of light and love. Without a doubt a unique and very typical experience.

Interesting details

• Price: approximately 10€ per person.
• Address: 34, Rue Yves Toudic, 75010.
• Recommended for: lovers of bread and sweets.

One of the most typical foods that can be seen all over Paris is undoubtedly crepes. These delicious pastries that can be eaten both sweet and savoury originate from France and are popular with tourists and locals alike, so you can find many establishments and stalls selling them.

However, I recommend you to go and try them in one of the best places in the city, the Creperie Bretonne, one of the most famous places located in the heart of Montparnasse and which attracts thousands of sweet-toothed people every day who want to try this delicacy for a very affordable price.

Interesting details

• Price: between 4€ and 9€.
• Address: Rue de Montparnasse.
• Recommended for: families and couples with a sweet tooth or a sweet tooth for pancakes.

Going to Paris and not going up the Eiffel Toweris like not going there at all. This huge and famous international monument is the icon of the city and from the top you can not only see the fantastic views of the whole city, but you can also enjoy a romantic dinner or lunch in their restaurant on the heights.

The Eiffel Tower has its own restaurant, Altitudes 58, where they offer menus and a menu full of traditional dishes and products of French gastronomy. The price, as you might have guessed, is higher than that of a regular restaurant, but it's not every day you get to toast and eat a gourmet meal at the top of one of the Wonders of the Modern World.

Interesting details

• Price: approximately 45€ per person.
• Address: Champ de Mars, 5 Av. Anatole France, 75007.
• Recommended for: Romantic dates and couples.

Paris is the capital of one of the richest countries in the world and, in addition to being geographically positioned between the Mediterranean and the Atlantic, it has a very versatile climate that gives rise to top quality produce. This means that the raw material is excellent and the base of its dishes has an extra flavour.

Paris has also been one of the cradles where haute cuisine and the great chefs of the world have developed. This city has known how to mix tradition and the products of the sea and the land with the most innovative culinary techniques of each era, giving rise to typical dishes such as:

• Foie gras
• Coq au vin
• Snails
• Brioche
• Crêpes
• The Quiche
• The Ratatouille

Keep in mind that Paris is an expensive capital city compared to other European countries. That's why, when calculating a budget for eating out on your visit to the city, you have to decide what kind of places you want to visit and the plan you want to go with.

You can find restaurants that cost around €35 a fork, but you can also opt to eat at more local stalls or restaurants where lunch can cost around €15.

Paris, like other northern European cities, tends to wake up early and go to bed early, and meal times are also reflected in this. As a general rule, shops usually open at 9am and close at around 7pm so, as you would expect, lunch and dinner will fit in with these times.

The local Parisian usually eats lunch between 12 and 2pm and dinner at around 8pm, so restaurants will offer their menus at these times. However, being in such a busy city, you will never have a problem finding any place open where you can get a tasty meal at a reasonable price.