Restaurants in France
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Graindorge
The name of this stylish restaurant, with its soft lighting, burgundy chairs and banquettes and Art Deco touches, means ‘barleycorn’ – it alludes to the great breweries of Flanders (check out the list of beers on offer). The signature dish is potjevleesch (€12), four kinds of meat cooked slowly together and served in aspic, though you’ll find plenty of other dishes that hint at the Low Countries, including waterzooi de homard (lobster poached with shredded vegetables and served in a creamy broth) and bintje farcie de morue en brandade (potatoes stuffed with cod purée).
reviewed
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La Crèmerie du Glacier
In 1926 Georges Ravanel started selling drinks to hikers from a little wooden hut at the foot of the Argentière's glacier. In the 1950s his son added home-made tarts and croûtes aux fromages (chunky slices of toasted bread topped with melted cheese) to the repertoire, and by the 1980s when the next son took charge of the business La Crèmerie - at a heady height of 1300m in Argentière - was known far and wide for its cheesy croûtes (around €5 to around €1050), fondue and other Savoyard staples. It still is today. Ski to it with the red Pierre à Ric piste in Les Grands Montets.
reviewed
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Waly Fay
This easygoing ‘loungin’ restaurant’ attracts a rather hip crowd for African food with a West Indian twist. Dishes to sample include Senegal’s national dish, tiéboudienne (rice, fish and vegetables), and the beef n’dole with wild greens; you might also consider the copious mafé (beef simmered in peanut sauce) served with rice and aloko (fried plantain bananas). The ginger ice cream goes down a treat.
reviewed
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Cojean
Cojean is one of the places that redefined the Parisian idea of a quick lunch. Where are those buttered baguettes with processed ham, hi-cal saucisson and chicken slathered in mayonnaise? Gone, gone and gone. Instead you get a Champs-Élysées chic interior and health-conscious fare (salads, quiches, soups) that probably would have met with bewildered looks a mere decade ago.
reviewed
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Paris Main d’Or
The unprepossessing, cafélike ‘Paris Golden Hand’ serves authentic Corsican dishes to an appreciative audience, many of them coppers (traditionally the preferred form of employment among Corsicans in the capital). Sturza preti (spinach and fine brocciu cheese; €9) and traditional omelette with brocciu and jambon sec (dried ham, matured for two years) are some of the appetisers on the menu. For mains, favourites include the tian d’agneau aux olives (lamb ragout with olives; €18) and the caprettu arrustini (roast kid; €21). Pasta dishes come in at about €11, the plat du jour is €9.50.
reviewed
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Jadis
This upmarket neo-bistro on the corner of a very unassuming street in the 15e is one of Paris’ most raved about (ie reserve in advance). Traditional French dishes pack a modern punch thanks to the daring of rising-star chef Guillaume Delage, who braises pork cheeks in beer and uses black rice instead of white.
The lunch menu is extraordinarily good value and the chocolate soufflé – order it at the start of your meal – is divine.
reviewed
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La Cabane à Huîtres
Wonderfully rustic, this wooden-styled cabane (cabin) with just nine tables is the pride and joy of fifth-generation oyster farmer Françis Dubourg, who splits his week between the capital and his oyster farm in Arcachon on the Atlantic Coast. The fixed menu includes a dozen oysters, foie gras, magret de canard fumé (smoked duck breast) or smoked salmon and scrumptious desserts.
reviewed
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Z Plage
Lunch at the beach restaurant-bar of Hôtel Martinez is an unforgettable experience. Languish on white-cushioned teak seating beneath white colonial-style umbrellas and sip unusual freshly squeezed juices (fancy a pineapple, litchi and raspberry juice? or how about strawberry, lemon, basil and pineapple, Madame?) and fusion frappées (smoothies). The Zen orange and peach purée with Chaï spices is Zen indeed.
Swedish massages and reflexology sessions (cost involved) can be indulged in before or after lunch. In July and August, tapas is served in the company of cocktails and electro lounge jazz with DJ Max Léonidas & Sax from 18:00.
reviewed
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Le Casier à Vin
The bottle-lined walls, ham-cutting machine, wood-slat blinds and tatty mustard façade promise great things. Indeed, this much-loved bistro is a dining staple in most 15e Parisians’ daily lives. Titillate your tastebuds with a signature assiette de dégustation (tasting platter; €12.50) of fromage (cheese) or charcuterie (cold cuts), or go for a classic like pot au feu de canard (duck stew) or tartare de bœuf (steak tartare). After the main course, sweeten your tastebuds with a bowl of riz au lait à l’ancienne (old-fashioned rice pudding) and leave in love with the place.
reviewed
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Les Pipos
A feast for the eyes and the senses, this bar à vins is above all worth a visit for its food. Its charcuteries de terroir (regional cold meats and sausages) is mouth-watering, as is its cheese board, which includes all the gourmet names (bleu d’Auvergne, St-Félicien, St-Marcellin etc). No credit cards.
reviewed
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Chez Papa
Chez Papa serves all sorts of specialities of the southwest, including cassoulet (€17.95), pipérade (€15.40) and garbure (€18.05), but most diners are here for the famous salade Boyarde, an enormous bowl filled with lettuce, tomato, sautéed potatoes, two types of cheese and ham – all for the princely sum of €8.90 (or €9.75 if you want two fried eggs thrown in). There’s a Grands Boulevards branch ([tel] 01 40 13 07 31; 153 rue Montmartre, 2e; [metro] Grands Boulevards) and a 8e branch ([tel] 01 42 65 43 68; 29 rue de l’Arcade, 8e; [metro] St-Augustin), which open noon to midnight Sunday to Thursday and till 1am at the weekend.
reviewed
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Le Coquillage
Super chef Olivier Roellinger’s latest project is his sumptuous restaurant Le Coquillage and hotel housed in the extremely impressive Château Richeux, 4km to the south of Cancale. Roellinger’s creations have earned him three Michelin stars and you won’t have trouble seeing why if you’re lucky enough to get a table here. The Maritime Adventure menu (€90) takes in many culinary highlights of both Brittany and Normandy, from fresh scallops to the region’s dishes, all beautifully cooked and imaginatively served. Booking well ahead is essential. As well as offering rooms at Château Richeux, Roellinger offers a range of cottages and other deluxe accommodation around…
reviewed
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Passage De Pondicherry
Joining rue du Faubourg St-Denis and blvd de Strasbourg in the 10e, this old-style covered arcade could easily be in Calcutta. Its incredibly cheap Indian, Pakistani and Bangladeshi cafés offer among the best-value lunches in Paris (meat curry, rice and a tiny salad €5 to €9.50, chicken or lamb biryani €10.50 to €14.50, thalis €7 to €9.50). Dinner menus are from €12.50 to €24 but it must be said that most of the eateries here offer subcontinental food à la française, There are lots of places to choose from, but the pick of the crop are Palais des Rajpout, Passage de Pondicherry and Pooja.
reviewed
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Pooja
Joining rue du Faubourg St-Denis and blvd de Strasbourg in the 10e, this old-style covered arcade could easily be in Calcutta. Its incredibly cheap Indian, Pakistani and Bangladeshi cafés offer among the best-value lunches in Paris (meat curry, rice and a tiny salad €5 to €9.50, chicken or lamb biryani €10.50 to €14.50, thalis €7 to €9.50). Dinner menus are from €12.50 to €24 but it must be said that most of the eateries here offer subcontinental food à la française, There are lots of places to choose from, but the pick of the crop are Palais des Rajpout, Passage de Pondicherry and Pooja.
reviewed
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Palais Des Rajpout
Joining rue du Faubourg St-Denis and blvd de Strasbourg in the 10e, this old-style covered arcade could easily be in Calcutta. Its incredibly cheap Indian, Pakistani and Bangladeshi cafés offer among the best-value lunches in Paris (meat curry, rice and a tiny salad €5 to €9.50, chicken or lamb biryani €10.50 to €14.50, thalis €7 to €9.50). Dinner menus are from €12.50 to €24 but it must be said that most of the eateries here offer subcontinental food à la française, There are lots of places to choose from, but the pick of the crop are Palais des Rajpout, Passage de Pondicherry and Pooja.
reviewed
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Michelangelo
A one-man show, chef Michelangelo does it all – the shopping, the chopping, the table waiting, the cooking, the sitting down with guests for a glass of wine while the pasta is boiling…it is, in fact, the equivalent of being invited over to a Sicilian’s house for dinner. Michelangelo chooses the menu (three courses, cash only), so you’ll have to be somewhat adventurous. Reservations essential.
reviewed
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Alef-Bet
A tricky one to categorise, this bold red-and-white food space named after the first two letters of the Hebrew alphabet is a kosher café and cooking-school-cum- épicerie. The essential principle sees a cultured crowd mingle in an open kitchen for a one- to three-hour cooking course, after which they share the fruits of their labour around a beautifully laid table. Be it lunch, brunch, dinner, a Friday-night Shabbat or thematic evening soirée, Alef-Bet screams design and innovation. The café sells fruit cocktails and light snacks; the shop sells designer kitchen utensils and gadgets; and the cooking sessions sell out like hot cakes – book in advance online. Opening hours…
reviewed
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Chef Michelangelo
Chef Michelangelo takes the meaning of one-man show to new extremes. The shopping, the chopping, the table-waiting, the cooking, the sitting down with guests for a glass of wine while the pasta is boiling… Michelangelo does it all. Dining here in fact is tantamount to being invited to a Sicilian chef’s house for dinner. There are things to know, of course: 1) there are only 14 chairs (everyone eats at a long table in front of the open kitchen) so reservations are mandatory; 2) Michelangelo chooses the menu (three courses, about €25, cash only), so be prepared to eat anything; and 3) all the products – the olive oil, the wine (from €28 per bottle), the cheese – come from…
reviewed
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La Fondue
Gorge on so-smooth fondues laced with kirsch, Génépi and chartreuse or (double gorge) chocolate. An assortment of raclettes and tartiflettes completes the mountain cheese feast.
reviewed
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Nissa Socca
This inexpensive joint in Nice's ambient old town is a good bet for authentic niçoise cuisine, from the eponymous socca to a slice of pissaladière (a thick crust covered with puréed onions and garlic, topped with anchovies and olives) or its Italian ancestor, the pizza.
reviewed
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Au Pied de Cochon
This venerable establishment, which once satisfied the appetites of both market porters and theatre-goers with its famous onion soup and pieds de cochon (grilled pig’s trotters), has become more uniformly upmarket and touristy since Les Halles was moved to the suburbs.
But it still opens round the clock seven days a week as it has since the end of WWII, and its pig’s trotters, tails, ears and snouts are definitely worth writing a postcard home about. Children’s menu €7.90.
reviewed
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Crêperie Bretonne Fleurie de l'Épouse du Marin
Head to the ‘Sailor’s Wife’ if you fancy savoury buckwheat galettes – try the ham, cheese and egg complète – or a sweet crêpe and wash it down with dry cidre de Rance (Rance cider; €6.50 for 50cL) served in a teacup (as is traditional). The Breton paraphernalia and B&W photos will keep you occupied if there’s a lull in the chatter.
reviewed
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Chez Marianne
Absolutely heaving at lunchtime, Chez Marianne translates as elbow-to-elbow eating beneath age-old beams on copious portions of falafel, hummus, purées of aubergine and chickpeas, and 25-odd other zakouski (hors d’œuvres; €12/14/16 for plate of 4/5/6). Fare is Sephardic rather than Ashkenazi (the norm at most Pletzl eateries), not Beth Din kosher, and a hole-in-the-wall window sells falafel in pita (€6) to munch on the move.
reviewed
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Four des Navettes
Marseille's iconic boat-shaped, orange-flower Navette biscuits.
reviewed
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Marché & Halles Notre Dame
Indoor and outdoor food market.
reviewed