Paris Restaurants Recommendations
 

Hi All,

I tried the PAris board but did not have much success.

Does anyone have any restaurants recommendation in Paris?
Especially for NY Eve as I am still trying to research which restaurant will be good on that night.
My AMEX Centurion concierge came back with a list (eg. Le Fouquet, but the menu is a bit limited).

Pref, all seafood course and no venison and other types of exotic red meats.

Also check out Chowhound.com - International board - and get your concierge working on a New Year's reservation right now!

I personally love Les Ambassadeurs in the Hotel Crillon. Excellent food, and even better ambiance.

I seem to have the best luck going to places that are not famous. I was less than impressed on my last trip in July with Tailevent and Le Cinq.

QL

The latest buzz seems to be about small and not so expensive restaurants such as L'Avant Gout. I've also heard good things about Au Bon Accueil, Le Petit Machon, Violin D'Ingres among others. Check out www.chocolateandzucchini. The authoress often talks about her favorites.. and she knows food!

A variety of recommendations, to suit various prices & tastes.
If money's no object, go to Le Cinque at the Hotel Georges V. It's brilliant: the room is stunning, the service is perfect, and the food is inventive and delicious.

I like to eat at ambitious little neighbourhood places off the beaten tourist track. My current faves are Le Villaret (13, rue Ternaux, 11e) and the rather more rustic Le C'Amelot (50, rue Amelot, 11e).

If you want cheap, touristy Parisian fun (but the best kind), go to Cremerie Polidor (41, rue Monsieur-le-Prince, 6e). New Years Eve--more properly, St-Sylvestre--is a big deal there, and the back wall is decorated with huge jeroboams and methuselahs (or something--I'm lost above a magnum) of champagne finished off on previous St-Sylvestres.

I'm sure any of the major bistros & brasseries would be a hoot on St-Sylvestre. I like Bofinger and Balzar, personally.

I second both Le Cinq in the Four Seasons and Taillevant for 2 outstanding Michelin 3 star places. However, it may be interesting to consider:

L'Astrance in the 16th; L'Atelier de Joel Robuchon; La Table de Joel Robuchon; or Hiramatsu. Doing a search on these restaurants in this forum, the Paris forum and websites mentioned by other posters should yield good information on these places generally. Specific information on New Year's Eve is likely best from your hotel concierge.

Good luck

I belong to a food forum called eGullet, and there is an extensive weekly run-down on Paris restaurants there.

Paris Restaurants News & Reviews is part of the larger section devoted to the food of France. Hope that is helpful.

I was just in Paris last week and we went twice to this restaurant because it was so good. Les Viex Bistro right across the street from Notre Dame. Its small but the atmosphere is awesome and the food, incredible! The staff is fantastic as well. We even got free glasses of champagne and chocolates after dinner the second night we were there, compliments of the owner (I think because we told him how much we enjoyed the place that we decided to come again).

Out of all the places we ate at, this was my favorite.

Is it Les Vieux Bistro? I did a google search and came up with a different spelling. Going to Paris in Jan. and looking for good places.

Yea that might have been it (my French isn't good at all). All I know is it's address is 14 and its on the street to the left of N.D. (as you look at N.D. from the front).

Sorry if my opinion offends, but finding a superb expensive restaurant in Paris is effortless and incredibly mundane.

The real enjoyment is finding that great little bistro with superior cuisine at profit-defying prices. MJLogan's suggestion of Le C'Amelot is a bulls eye. Some others are Chez Grisette (14 r Houdon near Montmartre), Macis et Muscade (110 r Legendre 17th), Les Zygomates (7 r Capri 12th), and Le Bistrot du Peintre (116 av Ledru Rollin 11th).

I'll put your picks in my address book, and try at least one on my next trip! I think that, even if I could afford to eat at Le Cinq on my own dime, I'd do it very rarely, and stick to places like these.

Chez Flottes
2, rue Cambon
75001 Paris

It's a terriffic Paris bistro - great food and atmosphere. Have the l'Alligot - mashed potatos with cheese and garlic! MMMMMMMMMMM!

Early pre-theatre dinner?
 

I'm also looking for a restaurant in Paris for NY Eve, but my problem is that we're seeing an opera and therefore need to have an early dinner. However, none of the restaurants seem to open until 7pm, which will be too late for us. Any suggestions? I don't think the opera will finish until about 11, so I wouldn't want to even try to get a table at that point.

If anyone has any particular recommendations, we're looking for something good and French, but not over-the-top expensive.

I wouldn't recommend any French dinner you could find at 6pm, so I suggest you either a) have a late multiple course lunch where you can linger well into the afternoon, or b) have a nice dinner after your opera; it shouldn't be too difficult to reserve a nice table in Paris for that time.

For example, out of curiosity, I just phoned one of my favorite resto's in the neighborhood around the Bastille opera (I assume that's where you'll be), who told me they will be open for new year's eve and will accept reservations for 11:15pm. They will have a special menu, but the cuisine will surely be southwest French (think canard, foie gras, truffles, etc.), and the prices are reasonable. The place is Baracane: 38 r Tournelles (4th): +33 1 42 71 43 33. Feel free to PM me if I can lend a hand.

My recommendation is the Michelin 3-star (highest) Pierre Gagnaire. After eating in at least 7 3-stars on my last trip (many for more than one night) including Troisgros, the restaurant rated best in France by Gault Millaut in 2003 (the year I was last in France), Pierre Gagnaire was one of my favorites. They serve at least 20 different plates in several courses and everything is very creative/modern. One of the most fun restaurants we went to in all of France. It is in some hotel near the Champs-Elysees, but I can't put my finger on the name. The website is http://www.pierre-gagnaire.com If you go, I suggest a menu because (I speak fluent French) the menus are quite confusing. It is quite expensive, but if you go for lunch they have a bargain:90euro menu.

But a word of warning if you're eating late on New Year's Eve. We did last year and it was impossible to find a cab when we finished, We asked the restaurant to call and even they came up empty. It was a long walk back to the hotel, with very unhappy wife in high heels. Couple we were with had same experience going back to their hotel. Have fun!

Good point, Chapel Hill. Hailing a taxi is extremely difficult on new year's eve in Paris. Many taxi co's also suspend their advance reservation option at this time. FWIW, the metro stops running around 1am and restarts at 5:30am.

I posted somewhere else already but if you are interested:

These restaurants are good for pre-theater dinner without breaking the bank as well as other info:


Les Brasseries Flo are all open Dec 24th-25th-26th. They have a common carte for Christmas and New Year, I have a copy for those who wish to receive it.

http://www.flobrasseries.com/

Other Restaurant open: Le Bistrot des Deux Théâtres, Rue Blanche in Paris.

As for Dec. 27th, expect quite a run in all the shops as it will be the day where many people bring back presents they received and don't like and wish to exchange...

The metro runs normally at Christmas accordng to the RATP. Last train as usual, around 00'30 hours.

Dec 31st-January 1st: Metro 1,2,4,6,9,14 will run the whole night as well as RER A&B. They warned me that they would post something on their web sites during December.

I agree with PaulasPain's strategy. You can even have a snack at a cafe near the Bastille Opera (like an omlette or croque monsieur) before attending the opera, and then eat like a king after the show (11 pm reservations are not difficult to make). The cab situation will be tricky though. Getting a cab that late at night is always difficult in Paris ... perhaps it would be easier to cab back to your neighborhood after the show and dine there. Then you can just walk back to your accomodations. Feel free to email me with any additional questions.

Completely agree with this. Probably the most fabulous meal (and seemingly never-ending meal I've ever had). Each course is one surprise after the next.

Another good one - far less pricey - is Tallivent's sister restaurant L'Angle. blairvanhorn recommended this one to me and I've been back a few times. Service and food are superb.

Have a big, glamourous lunch someplace where lunch is MUCH cheaper than dinner, like Le Grand Vefour. Then drinks at the Opera and, if you're hungry again, a big shellfish platter or a choucroute garnie at one of the Flo brasseries.