Just in time for summer, lots of exciting new dining options have opened in the French capital, making it even harder to choose where to eat in Paris. From Japanese-French fusions restaurants plating up hearty specials to laid-back spots for a quick bite to eat before going back to exploring the city, here are a dozen places to check out:
Akabeko, French-Japanese Fusion For A Special Occasion
Chef Yasuo Nanaumi and his son’s Akabeko restaurant in Paris close to Saint-Germain-des-Prés.
Akabeko might be Chef Yasuo Nanaumi’s first fully self-owned restaurant but he is by no means new to the Paris food scene. Having left Japan at a young age, he’s worked at top institutions like Troigros and Lucas Carton before heading things up at the Maison de l’Amérique Latine for a decade and creating restaurants Sept’N and Ao Izakaya over his 55-year career.
Created with his son Ken and his daughter who worked on the warm interiors with Thomas Pujol at Studio HEKLA, Akabeko is the accomplishment of a lifetime for Nanaumi. Located on the left bank close to Saint-Germain-des-Prés across the road from YSL headquarters, this is an elegant spot to have on your list for a special occasion.
Start with Nanaumi’s signature hors d’oeuvre of catergory-five wagyu beef from Hokkaido, fried tempura style with a Shizo and soya, finished with a dollop of Sologne caviar and mayonnaise flavored wih shimizu (a mix of Japanese spices). Follow with thinly sliced tuna tatami with onion sauce and daikon, with watermelon cut like sashimi for an extra fresh kick and pickled lotus. There’s also Perigord foie gras with teriyaki sauce on a bed of sushi rice with tempura beetroot and pansy petals. Two mains follow in the set-course dinner, starting with delicate miso sea bream cooked slightly braised so it’s a little crunchy on top with a wasabi sauce.
The meat dish is melt-in-the-mouth beef cooked at low temperature and then oak smoked, served with celery root purée and an oven-baked parmesan millefeuille. Finish with a 70% black Honduras chocolate tile and crumble that’s wicked but not too sweet.
Every course is served with expertly chosen wines by sommelier Paul. Having worked with the family for several years, he is only too happy to guide you through the chef’s dishes thanks to his detailed knowledge, in his discrete but friendly manner, which goes miles to heighten the experience even more.
Akabeko, 40 Rue de l’Université, 75007 Paris
Eunoé, Where The Laid-Back Chefs Make You Feel At Home
Founders Ryuji Sato and Félix Perrotte at their new restaurant Eunoé in Paris 11.
A new favorite on the scene, this little spot on a quiet square of the bustling 11th arrondissement of Paris, Eunoé is all about hearty, refined dishes like coal-cooked monkfish with anchovy sauce and tiny little Sardinian fregola pasta and fennel. The other star dish is the roasted lamb sourced in the Pyrenees cooked with wild garlic. Not to miss are the tasty cockles from Normandy served poached in a white wine and yuzu sauce and of course, the starter of beef tartare with egg yolk and apple, served in an ice cream cone, which you crumble on top of the meat for bit of crunch in guise of the usual fries. The tartare denotes the team’s fun-loving, laid-back spirit, which adds a friendly twist to their professionalism.
Eunoé was created by Japanese chef Ryuji Sato (previoulsy at the Michelin starred Nomicos in Paris) and Felix Perrotte, whose chance encounter through an old friend was the start of this venture they have named after a mythological river of memory.
In fact, the Agnès Kotarba frescoes of earth and soil, and other minerals, highlights the team’s organic focus – even the natural wines Perrotte has handpicked are pesticide-free. Perrotte, in fact, is a bit of a digger and loves nothing more than a flea-market. Working with interior designer Annabelle Fesquet, he unearthed the tables, which used to belong to an old train carriage, and chairs from an old Gentian liquor bar, at a market. If you look under the chairs, you can actually still see the round burn marks, where punters would light up a cork stopper and stick it to the underside of their chair to keep their bottoms warm.
Like the interiors, which are seemingly simple, Sato’s dishes are composed of many more ingredients than meets the eye and warrant several visits to properly uncover his cooking’s complexity.
Eunoé, 6 Rue Rochebrune, 75011 Paris
Lou Paris, A Quietly Elegant Spot Serving Food With Californian Soul
Chef Mailea Weger opens a Paris offshoot of her Nashville restaurant Lou.
After opening Lou in Nashville, the Californian chef, Mailea Weger, has opened a Paris offshoot. She’s worked at restaurants Gjusta and Gjelina in Saint Monica and in Paris where she headed things up at Echo, turning the new venture into an undisputed success, its smash burger paving the way for an onslaught of copy cats across the city.
She’s moved on but stayed on in Paris to open her own place where she rustles up super-fresh asparagus salads, crunchy ‘bijou’ rice with a novel combination of flavors with salsa negra, egg yolk, turmeric and dried fruit, as well as moreish pulled lamb and corn tortillas, finished off with a surprisingly tasty green pea ice cream.
Weger takes us on a journey to her native Californian roots through her dishes, but also through the subtly stylish and tasteful design of the space. Very alluring, the space feels like being somewhere between the Parisian outskirts and buzzing Downtown Los Angeles. It’s all very easy, very relaxed, very smooth, very perfect.
White walls surround part-exposed local stone, waxed cement floors break into color in some areas, the kitchen is sealed off with atelier-style windows, tables are like giant origami furniture, and artworks, books and plants give Lou a lived-in feel. In an enviable spot with huge windows lining the front and back of the space, it’s light and bright in the daytime, and at night, Lou dims the lights and throws a few candles on the tables, turning it into a sexy, sultry space you wish you could have all to yourself.
Lou Paris, 18 Rue Saint-Ambroise, 75011 Paris
Colvert, The Contemporary Bistro That Will be Your Go-To
Chef Arnaud Baptiste opens his first restaurant under the Bec Parisiens label.
Colvert is a new addition to the French bistro scene that’s headed up by French Top Chef contender Arnaud Baptiste who’s worked alongside some big-name chefs like Guy Martin and Yannick Alléno and headed up a restaurant in the Paris suburbs, Les Mérovingiens. Despite his boyish confidence and cleaned-up pirate look (hair slicked back, arms tattooed all over), there’s nothing brutish about his cooking, which is refined and flavorful.
Completely refurbished, Colvert is part of the Becs Parisiens group with Baptiste as chef for the revamped spot and Amélie Gaudillat as director. Despite the polish, the restaurant located on a narrow winding pedestrian street of Saint-Germain-des-Prés has all the charm of the area’s age-old institutions.
Tastefully overhauled, there are zinc-lined bistro tables and wooden ‘troquet’ chairs with the seat upholstered in a duck green leather to match banquettes against exposed brick walls. Contemporary black tube lighting hangs from the ceiling, and the floor-to-ceiling doors are thrown open in summer. Patterned cement tiles line the floors to the original wooden staircase that leads to the kitchen and extra dining room.
The menu changes every week according to local produce available and each dish comes with a twist. A breaded egg plant with Taggiasca olives served with purple garlic flowers that recall the color of the vegetable makes its debut on the menu. A must-try is the chef’s signature guinea fowl cooked two ways – including oven- and pan-cooked – with chard leaves, which is light enough to be enjoyed even in hot weather. The cod is also excellent in an original feta lemon-mint sauce with absinth gel. For dessert, go for the Clafoutis, served warm, with Céret cherries soaked in orange blossom and served with shiso ice cream.
Colvert is a relaxed bistro with great service led by Maxime and Rama, who’ll be only too happy to share heir knowledge of the chef’s cooking, and updated French food in cozy but stylish surroundings.
Colvert, 30 rue des Grands Augustins, 75006 Paris
Rhodia, An Arty Spot Inside An Artist’s Atelier Plating Up Ceviches
Rhodia opens inside the spectacular Bourdelle atelier-museum.
A lunch spot to have on your list for several reasons, the stylish Rhodia has just opened its doors inside the gorgeous Bourdelle Museum and overhangs the gardens below. The museum was French 19th century sculptor Antoine Bourdelle’s studio where today, his gigantic sculptures still adorn the leafy gardens and line his old studio space comprising several rooms. An impressive spot in its own right, it merits crossing town for. And the same can be said for its new café, Rhodia, named after the sculptor’s daughter.
Helmed by chef Jean-René Chassignol behind Isana, the Latin-American influenced restaurants in the city, his passion for the craft can be felt in the seasonal and organic menu that leads with empenadas and ceviches and also has some tasty salads and heartier dishes like beef Bourguignon. There is also a brunch at the weekends.
A large terrace on the upper floor of the museum leads to the interior dining room, previously the artist’s apartment, has an Art-Deco tinged lemon-yellow shell and wooden tables and chairs that have a monastic twist by Olavi Hänninen or Pierre Gautier Delaye. Rhodia is great spot to have up your sleeve when looking for a quiet place to eat, drink or dream close to Montparnasse away from the buzzy neighborhood’s hubbub.
Rhodia, 18, rue Antoine Bourdelle, 75015 Paris
Aube, Brunch All Day In A Hidden Corner Close To Bastille
Aube restaurant in Paris 11 opens for breakfast and brunch.
After consulting for a handful of spots in Paris like the Kimpton’s Montecito and Cali Sisters, and writing a couple of books, American chef Carrie Solomon’s teamed up with the Au Passage clan and opened Aube. The café is tucked in a small street in the bastille neighborhood, in the spot where Buffet restaurant stood, as connoisseurs of the Paris food scene will note, where Solomon rustles up breakfast and brunch every day until 4.30pm.
The menu is largely vegetarian with meat and fish used like condiments to give dishes a bit of a kick rather than as standalone ingredients. The stars of the show are the buckwheat nachos with smoked eel, strained yoghurt, helianthemum (a cousin of the daisy) and zaatar, also worth ordering are the devilled eggs with trout eggs that pop in your mouth and chili, and crunchy hassle back potatoes with raw cream, dill, and trout eggs. Do not miss the pancakes that are so fluffy you’ll never be able to have any other kind. They are served with lashings of mascarpone, strawberries, dukkah pistachios and elderflower, laced with cold-pressed dandelion golden syrup.
The place itself is inside an old wine and liquor bar with the old facade still in place, including the lettering on the window advertising a telephone inside way back when it was a rare commodity. Today, there’s no longer a phone for public use, but there is a fun retro vibe with Formica tables and a subtle seventies style color palette (a Cadillac-red bar and lemon-yellow tables). In summer, there are a handful of tables outside for a sunny breakfast, late lunch and anything in between.
Aube, 8 Rue de la Main d’Or, 75011 Paris
Le Cyrano, A Historic Bar Turned Restaurant With Mediterranean Staples
Le Cyrano reopens as an atmospheric bistro.
A Batignolles neighborhood institution on the trendy street-art splattered rue Biot, Le Cyrano’s been a go-to for locals thanks to well-priced beers and wine with friendly service. That, and the splendid Art Nouveau interiors that always made me wonder – as a regular local myself – how this spot had flown under the radar for so long. A well-guarded secret among its loyal clientele it remained, until now.
The locale was snapped up by young self-taught chef Charleyne Valet, who dusted off and renovated its golden flower mosaics and spruced up the huge oval mirrors, gave the whole space a thorough clean, and turned it into a bistro with Mediterranean-infused dishes that are perfect for any time of day or year.
The tarama and lemon to start is tangy and creamy, which I followed with pressed beef with piquillos peppers and hazelnuts, and cornbread with corn and chilli cream, all of which were delicious. The light-as-a-feather safran panacotta is the perfect note to end on.
Book a table prior if you don’t want to risk disappointment as Le Cyrano is a small spot with a handful of tables only on the terrace outside. Otherwise, there’s always the handsome polished marble-top mahogany bar where you can watch as the headman here, who’s been running things for a good decade, makes an assortment of cocktails for a crowd of business types and arty locals.
Le Cyrano, 3 Rue Biot, 75017 Paris
Hotel Eldorado Restaurant, Where Paris Meets Provence
The garden restaurant at Hotel Eldorado in Paris 17.
If there ever was an eldorado, than this aptly named next spot is it. This month, the Hotel Eldorado reopens its doors after new owners, the trio Elodie and Pierre Moussié and Sophie Richard, behind local favorites like Hotel Providence and Bouillon Pigalle, have transformed the hotel and restaurant into a leafy paradise in the heart of the city.
Previously a hostel on the Rue des Dames, one of the liveliest streets of the Batignolles area and steps from busy Place de Clichy, it’s now a slick place to bed down with floor-to-ceiling House of Hackney wallpaper and velvet coverings that’s somewhat of an ode to Brit flower-power with a chic vintage twist.
Rooms are cozy with views of either the garden and its tall swaying trees downstairs – and they have balconies, terraces or bath tubs, where guests can sit for a summery toast – or of the Paris rooftops street side. From some rooms, you can even glimpse the Eiffel Tower. There is also a separate house in the garden with four rooms that can be rented separately or all together.
Downstairs, the old Bistro des Dames has also been given the flower treatment. Tables line the green velvet walls with seating continuing outside in the wild garden. Amid the bushes and trees, green and white striped umbrellas provide shade for diners who will be sat at the white forged iron tables and chairs.
At the time of writing, the hotel and restaurant hadn’t opened yet (opening date June 19), but I was able to have a snoop around the rooms and get a look at the summery French-meets-Mediterranean menu. Expect escargots, mimosa eggs, burrata and oysters to start, and to follow, omelettes, grilled sole meunière, steak tartare and the Eldorado club sandwich. The vol au vent with clams and asparagus also looks exciting. The hotel and restaurant are taking bookings now, so reserve without delay if you want to be sure to get a table over the summer.
Hotel Eldorado, 18 Rue des Dames, 75017 Paris
Mistinguett, Hearty French Staples Inside An Old Cabaret
Mistinguett restaurant inside the main hall of the Casino de Paris.
The latest spot of trendy restaurant powerhouse the Moma Group, Mistinguett is tucked at the top of the Casino de Paris, an old cabaret called Le Perroquet (the Parrot) close to Place de Clichy, where the famed performer Minstinguett would dazzle the crowds on stage.
Here, diners sit at tables facing an enormous stained glass window depicting a garden of flowers, dusted off by duo of architects Adèle Nourry and Hugo Vince of Atelier HA who have given the space elegance that evokes the glamor of 1930s Paris. It’s also the backdrop to the cocktail-shaking action and staff shuttling plates from behind velvet curtains to tables. Dishes to order include the not-too-oily savory parmesan madeleines to share, fresh haddock and pea starter, and Saint Pierre fish in a meunière style that is cooked to perfection and served with fregola pasta and fennel by chef Etienne Daviau, who has worked alongside Alain Sederens and Eric Fréchon.
Bathed in a tinted light that recalls boystrous nights of Pigalle, the city’s former red light district, Mistinguett is one of those places where you won’t feel out place dressed in casual jeans or in full going-out garb. Stay on for the trapeze number, where a dancer clad in a spangly leotard jumps up on the main table out of nowhere, and does an elegant number swinging from a large ring that drops down from the ceiling.
Mistinguett, 16 Rue de Clichy, 75009 Paris
Kaïto, A Stylish And Tasty Pit Stop In Saint-Germain-des-Prés
Kaïto, a new handroll sushi bar in Saint-Germain-des-Prés.
A stylish new addition to the Saint-Germain-des-Prés scene, Japanese handroll bar Kaïto is the perfect pit stop for a quick and healthy bite to eat while sightseeing or shopping. Behind the ice-blue marble counter, baseball capped and tattooed sushi chefs prepare rolls filled with sea bream, salmon or the house special, bluefin tuna.
Each week, in the kitchen upstairs, the team receives an impressive a 50kg tuna fish from the Spanish high seas, which they mature to get rid of as much of the water it contains as possible, giving it its fondant texture and flavor.
The concept here, unlike at other handroll sushi bars in Paris, is to eat standing at the bar or around marble islets, all designed by Mur Mur Architects, before being off on your way, like at some fish bars at Tokyo’s fish market.
A joint venture between Takuya Watanabe, who is behind the Michelin starred Jin restaurant, and David Memmi, founder of several food spots like Mems and Birdy Hamburgers, at Kaïto, meaning man of the seas, the idea is to work the fish to a very high standard, just as Watanabe would at Jin.
Start with wholesome miso soup, and go for the salmon, sea bream and tuna trio rolled in soft warm rice and crunchy nori. For more adventurous palettes, there are the signature rolls and the day’s specials like sea bream with cucumber and grilled Shiso pepper with sesame sauce or finely sliced oily tuna served like a tartare with olive oil, leek, sesame and dill.
A great spot to eat as much or as little as you like, without the commitment of a long meal, it’s great for a casual affair, or a business lunch you want to put a time cap on.
Kaïto, 71 Rue de Seine, 75006 Paris
Superflu, Where Dinner Turns Into A Party
The music focused restaurant also has an outdoor space perfect for summer nights.
A duo of young entrepreneurs, architect Jean-Baptiste Andrau and Louis Bruneteau, the founder of wine bar Stereo in Pigalle, have taken over this old bistro, soundproofed it for late-night parties and given it a cool contemporary edge with subtle retro undertones.
The space looks like a cave with undulating ceilings and walls that conceal a complex insulation system for perfect acoustic sound. Over the bar and DJ space, covered in blue mosaic tiles, hangs a magnificent purple neon strip swirl, created especially by one of the owners’ artist friends Paul Créange. The space leads to an outdoor patio, open for early-evening dinner until the glass screen doors close, the music is turned up or a DJ comes on, tables are pushed back and the night takes on a different turn.
The menu is a small one of hearty Italian influenced food by chefs Cherki Slimani and Paul Eidel de Boucan, like scrumptious French toast with cacio e Pepe sauce, grilled celery and smoked sesame and black cod marinated in soya and miso served with fennel – portions are generous here, and mains are for two.
A discreet spot in the 18th arrondissement of Paris on the rue Marcadet which has local bars and restaurants, Superflu is open Tuesday to Saturday for dinner (and soon for lunch too), and hosts parties most Fridays and Saturdays from 10pm till 2am.
Superflu, 227 bis Rue Marcadet, 75018 Paris
Joia Bun, Michelin-Star Chef Hélène Darroze’s Basque-Inspired Burger Joint
A burger at diner-style Joia Bun.
French chef Hélène Darroze needs no introduction. Three of her restaurants have been commended with Michelin stars (three at The Connaught in London, two at Marsan in Paris, and one at the Villa Lacoste in Provence), and now, she’s launched a shiny Basque burger diner close the Opéra Garnier in Paris.
Joia is kitted out in powdery pinks and brass, giving the diner an updated sixties feel. Like at her other restaurants, produce here is mostly from France with a focus on Darroze’s home region, the Basque Country. The hearty burgers all have Basque names and are filled with beef from Aubrac or yellow chicken from les Landes and cheeses matured by Beñat, Hélène’s cheesemaker in Saint-Jean-de-Luz, slid between bread made by the in-house pastry team.
I had the poppy and sesame seed bun with an Aubrac burger, sheep’s tomme cheese, pimientos del Piquillos, guindillas, and crunchy lettuce teamed with cheese-laden oven-cooked potatoes and deliciously seasoned baby lettuce. The burger was generously filled and tasty – perfect for burger-lovers who are serious about produce and decor.
Joia Bun, 6 Rue de la Michodière, 75002 Paris
Dar Mima, A New Rooftop Dining Spot For the Latin Quarter
Dar Mima’s dining room on the rooftop of the Institut du Monde Arabe in Paris.
The Left-Bank dining spot on the rooftop of the Arab World Institute is a joint venture between hospitality giant Paris Society and Jamel Debbouze, one of France’s top stand-up comedians and a name that’s drawing the crowds, including politicians seen having hushed lunches here.
Aptly so, Dar Mima serves specialties from all over the Arab world, from Lebanese mezze to Tunisian Mechouia, and Moroccan tagine and couscous. Start with the sweet and savory chicken, almond and cinnamon pastilla and try the decadent fish, octopus and gambas tajine with levantine spices and candied vegetables. Don’t leave without trying the yogurt ice cream with caramelized pistachios and honey.
The decor of thick flower-moitif carpets and velvet drapery dressing gigantic floor-to-ceiling windows recalls large luxurious wedding venues seen in the Emirates. The real selling point here though is the friendly, impeccable service and, of course, the jaw-dropping views of the Paris rooftops from the terrace, where tables are laid out in the summer months.
Dar Mima, 1 Rue des Fossés Saint-Bernard, 75005 Paris
