There’s nothing Bon Appétit staff loves more than food–the Paris restaurant scene is endlessly rich and varied.
Here are some great, affordable restaurants in the City of Light.
Tèkes
4 bis Rue Saint-Sauveur, 75002
At Tèkes, vegetables are in charge. The restaurant, which opened in the city’s 2nd arrondissement in early 2022, comes from the team behind Mediterranean-Israeli standouts like Shabour in Paris and Machneyuda in Jerusalem. The open kitchen puts a focus on the charcoal grill, resulting in bright, shareable dishes that draw on the flavors of a range of Jewish culinary traditions. There’s a big bowl of fattoush salad with labneh, burnt cabbage dressed in a za’atar chimichurri, and a vegetarian take on creamy chicken liver.
The earthy, wood-washed space is filled with design touches like mesh shelves stocked with fresh market produce and terracotta earthenware. It’s the kind of place you’ll want to linger for a natural light-soaked lunch or a long, leisurely dinner.
Oobatz
Oozbatz was born as a pizza pop-up at Le Rigamarole (a Japanese-inspired tasting menu space), where its slow-fermented sourdough crust developed such a devoted fanbase that finding a brick-and-mortar home became all but necessary. The restaurant opened earlier this year with a tight but exciting menu (think pies topped with white asparagus and preserved lemon or teeny tiny meatballs with red onion and chives) and a cool, blonde wood dining room that feels like a breath of fresh air. Order the number six for a “surprise du chef” pizza, which last month was adorned with dollops of duck ragu nestled alongside pockets of melty cheese.
Elmer
30 rue Notre Dame de Nazareth, 75003
The modern-but-not-austere bistro is on a quiet street in the northern end of the Marais, just off the Canal Saint-Martin. The dishes are light, precise, and feel completely original. Compositions of crudo tightly nestled in wafer-thin pastry shells, a savory seasonal fruit salad plated geometrically like a tart; perfectly shingled slivers of faux-filet steak, alongside creamy eggplant slices. The desserts are glorious, too. The vanilla hazelnut praline tart for two pieced together the frayed.
Table by Bruno Verjus
The casual intimacy of this 40-seat dining room draped in luscious green velvet and filled with chef-owner Bruno Verjus’ jovial laughter. The restaurant practically flaunts its two Michelin stars and meteoric rise on the World’s 50 Best Restaurants list, with pristine seasonal ingredients, such as the Color-of-the-Day salad, the staff’s crisp forest green uniforms that highlight Table’s modernity, and exquisite service. Their 27-year-old sommelier Agnese Morandi is one to watch, earning a reputation for her clever pairings of sake and natural wines. If you come alone, Bruno will be your conversation partner for politics, literature, and the Olympics, in French and English.
Le Petit Vendôme
“The Best Sandwich in Paris”Le Petit Vendôme.
Jamón beurre sandwiches, crackly fresh baguette, soft rich butter, a ham to end all hams, and a few cornichons.
Early June
Early June is a wine bar that takes its food just as seriously as its bottle list. The kitchen plays host to visiting chefs from around the world for weeks or month-long stints. On a visit last summer, Susan Kim, of the Korean pop-up Doshi, cooked dishes like squid noodles with kimchi butter and crisp rice cakes dressed in brown butter-gochujang and comté. In contrast to the ever-changing menu
The tight list of natural wines is a constant. Hanging shelves filled with wine bottles and potted plants line the walls and diners sit at rustic farmhouse tables set with dripping candles. The restaurant is walk-in only, save for large groups, but you can linger in the street with a juicy glass of natural red or stroll the nearby Canal Saint-Martin while you wait.
Bistrot Paul Bert
Bistro Paul Bert is one of Paris’s most beloved restaurants, and for good reason. Tightly packed tables, moody lighting, and an open-door breeze make it the quintessential Parisian dining experience. The husband-wife team Bertrand Auboyneau and Gwenaëlle Cadoret opened the restaurant in 1997, intent on serving traditional French food made with the very best ingredients. Since then, its popularity has exploded. Reservations are only available via phone, which amounts to a long wait–you should set aside 30 minutes for redialing. Popularity has done little to diminish the experience, and each dish still hits like you’ve stumbled upon a hidden gem. Expertly prepared plates celebrate Paris’ seasonal bounty and are free of fancy garnishes, including rosy-pink roast beef with velvety mashed potatoes and a glossy boeuf bourguignon with hunks of tender vegetables. I didn’t leave a trace of creamy pepper sauce behind as I cleared my plate of Paul Bert’s beloved steak frites. Despite my admiration for that dish, the dessert was the real standout: a scoop of vanilla ice cream with strawberries and currants that was comically simple but executed without a single flaw. Seasonal, local fruit paired with well-made ice cream.
Le Chardenoux
This 116-year-old French bistro on a quiet street in the Marais for a three-course prix fixe with salt-crusted sea bass, lobster ravioli, or supple lamb confit. The menu comes with a choice of extraordinary desserts, such as the baba rhum with whipped cream. A favorite of my Parisian friends who drop by for lunch or early dinner, the cozy dining room sits on a corner square of restaurants owned by celebrity chef Cyril Lignac, including a bakery-cafe and a chocolaterie. The restaurant is also an architectural destination for its gorgeous marble and pewter bar and the sage and gold frescoed ceilings. The bar is perfect for a cocktail respite between museums and shopping, where you’ll encounter a few adventurous tourists sipping martinis and enjoying the American-style burger or steak frites
Les Enfants du Marché
Marché des, 39 Rue de Bretagne, 75003
Les Enfants du Marché is far from ordinary. You’ll have to wait for a seat at this no-reservations spot, but when the first plate hits, you’ll be glad you came. Dishes lean French with Japanese influence—tempura-battered sardines, mussels in a sea of gorgonzola, or perfectly cooked duck breast with figs and foie gras. To drink, the knowledgeable staff will happily guide you toward a bottle that is worthy of your meal. The restaurant is open from noon until the market closes, but the best time to grab a seat is during lunch to witness the market bustle. Cap your meal with a ruby-red pint of strawberries from a vendor on the way out.
Caractére de Cochon
Step outside the Enfants Rouges market and hunt for the maroon building with gold lettering and cured meats hanging in the window. This is Caractére de Cochon that makes one of the best sandwiches I’ve ever had. The jambon, beurre, and fromage sandwich is as simple as described: ham, butter, and cheese layered with the highest quality of each ingredient. Aged ham is carefully sliced in front of you and stacked with a creamy slab of rich French butter and a layer of hard fragrant cheese inside a top-notch baguette whose crusty outside gives way to a soft center. The pâté sandwich is equally simple and exquisite, boasting a generous wedge of foie gras enveloped by that same baguette.
L’As du Fallafel
You’ll have to stand in a long line of tourists to secure the famous (and famously overstuffed) pita sandwich from L’As du Fallafel, but your trip to Paris wouldn’t be complete without it—especially if you’re trying to maximize dining on a budget. The green storefront is situated in the Marais, the city’s cafe and bar-packed historic Jewish quarter. While there is some indoor seating, it’s minimal and a bit cramped, so takeout is the move. Instead of a platter, order a hand-held sandwich loaded with tender eggplant slices, shredded cabbage, and unforgettable falafel; you’ll appreciate being on the street as the tahini and red sauce ooze down your arms with each bite.
Le Moulin de la Galette
Situated in the heart of Montmartre is a restaurant with a giant brown windmill on the roof. Housed in an old mill, Le Moulin de la Galette serves homey French classics in a space replete with cozy couches and woven bistro chairs. The occasional flicker of a flame sets the mood as a waiter navigates the room with a tableside crepes Suzette cart. Coq au vin comes in a rustic mini black cast iron Le Creuset pot, flush with meat that falls off the bone, and a dark, rich broth that’s perfect to spoon over the accompanying tagliatelle. Each dish is further proof that some restaurants are in no need of updating.
Aux Deux Amis
The restaurant is known for its busy hum in the evenings—music, cool clientele, thoughtful dishes, and plenty of wine—but we were rewarded midday with a more relaxed bistro environment. Alongside a roster of cool natural wines, the restaurant serves small plates without a lot of fuss or pretension: ribbons of cured meat, piles of fresh seafood, and slices of Spanish tortilla served alongside crusty baguette. A plate of marinated zucchini, charred and topped with herbs and hunks of salty cheese and silky red peppers, was as delicious as it was simple.
Gravity Bar
The scenic Canal Saint-Martin neighborhood is stacked with bakeries, making it an ideal spot to spend an afternoon. But return at night for Gravity Bar, and your reward will be an inventive cocktail in a lovely room with an open facade that looks out on a quiet block. The menu is robust, with drinks that are balanced and exciting. Take the Combattante: a savory Aquavit and stout cocktail that’s served foamy after being shaken with an egg white, served with a spoonful of ruby red tobiko on the side. On a recent visit, when the clock struck midnight, a server hopped on the bar to commemorate her birthday by pouring everyone shots, a delightfully raucous sight in the otherwise mellow and chic space.
Restaurant Pages
4 Rue Auguste Vacquerie, 75116
This white-washed restaurant in a minimal setting is my ideal of fine dining, a seasonal tasting menu rooted in French gastronomy and honed with Japanese technique and finesse. You’ll find chef-owner Ryushi Teshima (known as Teshi) and chef de Cuisine Kenichi Handa showcasing butchery mastery from an open kitchen. Beef and seafood were on full display during my visit. Melting sheets of wagyu carpaccio, a mainstay on the menu, were kissed with heat and salt and dramatically draped over a slender bone. In the spring, a single spear of jumbo green asparagus came wrapped in a green leaf, lightly charred on the binchotan. A succulent lobster tail was served atop a brown butter sauce highlighting sherry from the Jura. Cockles adorned cuts of monkfish in a dashi broth. When in France, dessert is not to be missed, and Restaurant Pages delivers classics with a seasonal accent, like a honey tart dressed with edible flowers. For a special meal, Restaurant Pages delivers.
La Buvette
A natural wine bar with no kitchen, La Buvette still ended up being one of the most memorable, romantic meals during my nine-day trip to France. Tucked in the 11th Arrondissement and helmed by chef-owner Camille Fourmont, this teeny-tiny spot offers effortlessly chic dishes like gigantic beans with citrus zest, pink pickled eggs with furikake, and olive oil-drowned burrata with crusty bread.
Reyna
Reyna’s approach meld French and Filipino techniques and ingredients to create dishes that are bold and thrumming with assertive flavors. Kinilaw features raw scallop and a creamy base of coconut energized by the sharp edges of calamansi and trout roe. Pungent bagoong adds bracing energy to butter-draped grilled asparagus, while pillowy eggplant clings to skewers, cloaked in vegan XO and kare kare sauces. I could have happily made an entire meal of the crackling-crisp fried chicken, if only for the sake of experiencing the three glazes available with it. Pandan-scented yogurt with first-of-the-season strawberries and tuiles are highly recommended.
