Traditional French restaurants in Europe
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Les Vieilles Luges
Like a scene from a snow globe in winter, this childhood dream of a 250-year-old farmhouse can only be reached by slipping on skis or taking a scenic 20-minute hike from Maison Neuve chairlift. Under low wood beams, Julie and Claude spoil you with their home cooking – dishes such as grand-mère's beef bourguignon and creamy farçon (prepared with potatoes, prunes and bacon), all washed down with vin chaud (mulled wine) warmed over a wood fire. Magic.
reviewed
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Aux Vins des Pyrénées
Tucked in a former wine warehouse, this is a lovely place to enjoy an unpretentious French meal with much fine wine. The fish, meat and game dishes are all good, but the foie gras and pavé de rumsteak (thick rump steak) are both worth a special mention – as is the wine list that features both celebrated and little-known estate wines.
Local bobos (bohemian bourgeois) love the old-world charm.
reviewed
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Le Coupe-Chou
This maze of candlelit rooms inside a vine-clad 17th-century townhouse is overwhelmingly romantic. Ceilings are beamed, furnishings are antique, and background classical music mingles with the intimate chatter of diners. As in the days when Marlene Dietrich et al dined here, advance reservations are essential.
Timeless French dishes include Burgundy snails, steak tartare and bœuf bourguignon, finished off with fabulous cheeses sourced from fromagerie (cheese shop) Quatrehomme and a silken crème brûlée.
Le Coupe-Chou, incidentally, has nothing to do with cabbage (chou); rather it’s named after the barber’s razor once wielded with a deft hand in one of its seven…
reviewed
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Le Chéri Bibi
Taking its name from the series of detective novels by Gaston Leroux (1868–1927), this odd little place can be found on a little-visited side of the Butte de Montmartre. There’s no sign outside, so just look for the thick black drapes in the shopfront window and enter what feels like the 1950s, with its postwar decor and excellent ‘family’ cooking.
reviewed
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Roger la Grenouille
Nine varieties of frogs’ legs are served at the time-worn institution ‘Roger the Frog’. À la Provençale is with tomato, Orientale sees the pin-sized legs spiced with pine kernels and fresh mint, while Indienne has a splash of curry. If you’re squeamish about devouring Roger and his mates, dishes like roast pheasant with dried figs are also on the menu.
Frog sculptures and statues scatter throughout the restaurant, along with B&W pictures of 1920s Paris on the whitewashed walls and an array of old lamps illuminating the low sepia-coloured ceiling.
reviewed
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E
Georget (Robert Et Louise)
This ‘country inn’ with red gingham curtains offers simple and inexpensive French food, including côte de bœuf (side of beef 2/3 people; €42/63), cooked on an open fire. Arrive early to snag the farmhouse table next to the fireplace – the makings of a real jolly Rabelaisian evening.
reviewed
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La Capitainerie
Enviably nestled beneath the vaulted stone ceiling of the château kitchens, La Capitainerie captures history's grandeur and romance. Fare is traditional and includes crème Chantilly at every opportunity. Its weekend formule buffet à volonté (help-yourself buffet deal; €24) allows unlimited starters and a plat du jour or the latter plus unlimited desserts. The lot costs €31.
reviewed
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Ambassade d’Auvergne
Truly hungry carnivores with a fetish for only the best products, the Auvergne embassy – an easy walk from the Centre Pompidou – is the place to head. Traditional cuisine from the Auvergne has been the restaurant’s mantra for more than a century and dishes like salade tiède de lentilles vertes du Puy (warm green Puy lentil salad) and saucisse de Parlan à l’aligot (feisty pork sausage) will make you want to trip it straught to this tasty rural region in central France.
reviewed
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La Salle à Manger
With a sunny pavement terrace beneath trees enviably placed at the foot of foodie street rue Mouffetard, the ‘Dining Room’ is prime real estate. Its 360-degree outlook – market stalls, fountain, church and garden with playground for tots – couldn’t be prettier, and its salads, tartines (open-faced sandwiches), tarts and pastries ensure packed tables at breakfast, lunch and weekend brunch.
reviewed
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Chalet la Pricaz
On its fairy-tale perch above Lake Annecy, this is prime romantic sunset material. Only locally sourced organic ingredients feature on the menu. Tangy tartiflettes (Reblochon cheese with potatoes, crème fraîche, onions and diced bacon) and farm-fresh charcuterie go brilliantly with the first-rate selection of Savoyard wines. The tucked-away restaurant is off the D42, 13km south of Annecy.
reviewed
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Le Dôme du Marais
This place serves classic French dishes in a sublime, a pre-Revolution building and former auction room with a glassed-in courtyard and knock-out, octagonal-shaped dining room. Brunch (€33) is help yourself to as much as you can eat.
reviewed
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A Braïjade Méridiounale
In a beautiful stone-walled dining room framed by heavy wooden beams, A Braïjade is the only restaurant in the old town and has made the best of it. The house speciality is flambé skewers (the kebab is flambéed at your table). The menu, which includes an aperitif, glass of local wine and digestive, is good value.
reviewed
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Les Antiquaires
The cuisine is as traditional, reliable and mature as both the clientele and the splendid line of vintage bottles displayed above the fireplace. Portions, such as the two huge dollops of chocolate mousse for dessert, are mightily generous.
reviewed
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Le Grand Véfour
This 18th-century jewel on the northern edge of the Jardin du Palais Royal has been a dining favourite of the Parisian elite since 1784; just look at who gets their names ascribed to each table – from Napoleon to Victor Hugo and Colette (who lived next door). The food is tip-top; expect a voyage of discovery in one of the most beautiful restaurants in the world.
reviewed
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Makoto Aoki
In an arrondissement known for grandiose dining rooms and superstar chefs who are often elsewhere, this intimate neighbourhood favourite is a real find. Don’t let the name confuse you – the chef, although Japanese, is an haute cuisine perfectionist who trained with Alain Senderens and Lucas Carton. Lunch might include an extravagant bacon-morel brioche; dinner a heavenly risotto with John Dory or truffles.
reviewed
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Le Hide
A reader favourite, Le Hide is a tiny neighbourhood bistro serving scrumptious traditional French fare: snails, baked shoulder of lamb with pumpkin purée or monkfish in lemon butter. Unsurprisingly, this place fills up faster than you can scamper down the steps at the nearby Arc de Triomphe. Reserve well in advance.
reviewed
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Brasserie Thoumieux
An old-school institution, Thoumieux was founded in 1923, and has been worshipped by generations of diners ever since for its menu of duck thighs, veal and snails and its smooth-as-silk service.
reviewed
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Au Jardin Gourmand
Elegant without being overly formal, this intimate restaurant – with a summer terrace – uses only the freshest ingredients for its classic French and champenois dishes; among the latter are no fewer than 11 varieties of andouillette. About 20 vintages from the estimable wine list are available by the glass.
reviewed
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Mon Vieil Ami
Alsatian chef Antoine Westermann is the creative talent behind this sleek black neobistro where guests are treated like old friends (hence the name) and vegetables get royal treatment. The lunchtime plat du jour (dish of the day) is especially good value and a perfect reflection of the season.
For dinner try artichokes and potatoes cooked with lemon confit and pan-fried skate-fish. Unusually for Paris, Mon Veil Ami opens for dinner at 6.30pm – handy for those seeking an early dine.
reviewed
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Chez Paul
Paul’s pad is a classic in Butte aux Cailles. Soak up the relaxed, chatty feel and indulge in Frencher-than-French dishes cooked to perfection. Despite its name gras double (double fat) is not fatty; rather, it’s belly pan-fried with garlic and parsley, as the friendly note on the menu explains.
reviewed
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La Serrurerie
Showcasing local art, sculpture and a fantastic collection of retro toys, this mosaic-and-steel bistro-bar is Poitiers' communal lounge-dining room. A chalked blackboard menu lists specialities like tournedos (thick slices) of salmon, pastas and a crème brûlée you'll be dreaming about until your next visit.
reviewed
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Le Temps des Cérises
Run by a workers’ cooperative for over three decades, the ‘Time of Cherries’ (ie ‘days of wine and roses’) is an easygoing restaurant (provided you switch off your phone, lest there be hell to pay) serving faithfully solid fare in a quintessentially Parisian atmosphere. Buy their coton-bio T-shirt upon departure.
reviewed
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Le Clown Bar
A wonderful wine-bar-cum-bistro next to the Cirque d’Hiver (1852), the Clown Bar is like a museum with its painted ceilings, mosaics on the wall, lovely zinc bar and circus memorabilia that touches on one of our favourite themes of all time: the evil clown. The food is simple and unpretentious traditional French.
Parmentier de boudin à la normande (black pudding Parmentier with apple) is its most popular dish.
reviewed
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Les Arcenaulx
Whet appetites with a meander around this cavernous former Louis XIV warehouse with antiquarian/contemporary bookshop and artist studios and galleries. Afterwards dine in grandiose style on sensational dishes evoking old Marseille or visit the neighbouring salon de thé (tearoom) for savoury tarts, cakes and ice cream.
reviewed
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La Cantine de Quentin
A bewitching combination of gourmet food shop and lunchtime bistro, La Cantine de Quentin stocks quality products from the countryside (cassoulet, charcuterie, wine, tapenade, vinegar, mushrooms), many of which find their way into the back-room kitchen. You won’t leave empty handed.
reviewed