The museums are fine and the history is cool, but let’s be honest: You really go to Paris for the food. So if you have only a few days there, you don’t have one meal to waste. Here, the best restaurant in the City of Light for every occasion.
BEST CREPES: BREIZH CAFÉ
Join the queue at this trendy spot in Le Marais—the buckwheat crèpes are always worth the wait. Call us purists, but we can’t resist the classic ham and Gruyère with a runny sunny-side-up egg. And don’t miss the page-long list of pear and apple hard ciders.
109 Rue Vieille du Temple;
MOST OMG CHEESE PLATE: RESTAURANT ASTIER
It’s not hard to find fromage in Paris, but holy Camembert, these guys aren’t messing around with their cheese board. The heaping, all-you-can-eat tray with creamy Brie, pungent Roquefort and rich chèvre is enough to send you into a dairy-induced coma.
44 Rue Jean-Pierre Timbaud; restaurant-astier.com
BEST EGGS: HOLYBELLY
This Australian-run coffee shop may not be the most authentic French meal (in fact, everyone who works there speaks English), but you’ll go to heaven with one bite of the “Savory Stack,” a whopping plate of pancakes topped with fried eggs, bacon, bourbon butter and maple syrup.
19 Rue Lucien Sampaix; holybel.ly
TASTIEST FRIED CHICKEN BRUNCH: ELLSWORTH
You probably thought you came to Paris for the escargot and steak frites…but don’t let that stop you from popping into Ellsworth for buttermilk fried chicken served with pickles and cabbage.
34 Rue de Richelieu; ellsworthparis.com
BEST OYSTER BAR: HUITRERIE REGIS
In Paris, oysters are a cuisine of their own. Sit down at this tiny eatery in the 6th arrondissement and order a tower of briny, plump oysters from the beds of Marennes-Oléron. (Tip: Wash them down with a glass of Muscadet.)
3 Rue de Montfaucon; huitrerieregis.com
THE BEST QUICK SPOT TO GRAB LUNCH BETWEEN SIGHTSEEING: FRENCHIE TO GO
When you only have a few days in Paris, there’s a lot to see and no time to waste. Pop into this offshoot of the popular Frenchie wine bar for a quick Reuben or heaping pastrami on rye (you won’t find anything like it in the Big Apple).
9 Rue du Nil; frenchietogo.com
MOST TO-DIE-FOR PASTRIES: DU PAIN ET DES IDEES
It’s worth a trip to the neighborhood of Canal Saint-Martin just for a famous escargot bun from Du Pain et des Idées. (And don’t worry, there’s no snail involved—just rings of chocolate and pistachio between flaky puff pastry.) Everything from the basic croissants to the apple tarts is out of this world.
34 Rue Yves Toudic; dupainetdesidees.com
