Modern French restaurants in Paris
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A
Guillaume
Some of the starters at this sophisticated venue near place de la République make an ideal light lunch – try the tomato Tatin and the samoussa d’escargots (samosa with snails) – and there’s a two-course formule (set menu) for €15.50. You can eat either in the front bar or in the spacious dinning room behind. There’s a lovely art gallery on the 1st floor and, if you’re a group (something unusual in Paris), there’s a huge round table available for seating at least a dozen people.
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B
Les Cocottes
Cocottesare casseroles and that is precisely what Christian Constant’s chic space is about. Day in day out, its contemporary interior is jam-packed with a buoyant crowd feasting on inventive seasonal creations cooked to perfection in little black enamel, oven-to-table cocottes (casserole dishes). Seating is on bar stools around high tables and the place doesn’t take reservations. Get here at noon sharp or 7.15pm (or before) to get a table. If the queue’s out the door, nip two doors down for a drink at Café Constant.
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C
Café Constant
Take a former Michelin-starred chef, a dead-simple corner café and what do you get? Another Christian Constant hit with original mosaic floor, worn wooden tables and a massive queue out the door every meal time. The café doesn’t take reservations but you can enjoy a drink at the bar while you wait. Cuisine is creative bistro, mixing grandma favourites like purée de mon enfance (mashed potato from my childhood) with Sunday treats such as foie gras-stuffed quail and herb-roasted chicken.
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D
58 Tour Eiffel
If you’re intrigued by the idea of a meal in the Tower, this is a pretty good choice. It may not be the caviar and black truffles of Jules Verne (on the 2nd level), but Alain Ducasse did sign off on the menu, making it far more than just another tourist cafeteria. For lunch, go first to the restaurant’s outside kiosk (near the north pillar); for dinner, reserve online or by telephone.
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Hôtel du Nord
The setting for the eponymous 1938 film starring Louis Jouvet and Arletty, the interior of this vintage café feels as if it was stuck in a time warp with its zinc counter, red velvet curtains and old piano. Food is definitely modernist though. From the metro station walk five minutes east along rue de Lancry until you hit the water and quai de Jemmapes (the other side of the bridge).
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E
Les Ombres
This sexy, glass-enclosed rooftop restaurant atop the Musée de Quai Branly is named The Shadows after the patterns cast by the Eiffel Tower’s webbed ironwork. Dramatic views are complemented by Sébastien Tasset’s elegant creations. We love his roasted turbot and cantal cheese with a buckwheat crêpe, or chicken stuffed with lemon confit.
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F
L'Office
Don’t be misled by The Office’s name. All part of its underground charm, this is more a place for creative types than white-collar workers. Its market-inspired menu is short – just two choices at lunchtime but often outstanding (seafood ragout with red rice and blood oranges, gnocchi with braised lamb and smoked ricotta).
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G
Le Café qui Parle
The Talking Café’s wall art and ancient safes below (the building was once a bank) is lovely, but not as lovely as its weekend brunch (€17).
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