Tag: paris 1st

Le Tout-Paris retains some of the coldness of a hotel restaurant, which means that while I liked it – a lot –, I did not quite fall in love. While the food here is quite nice, the ambiance, with its technicolor décor, does not scream Michelin Guide. If I return, it will be to sit on the terrace in fair weather to enjoy one of Frédéric’s pastries and the majestic views.

A l’Epi d’Or’s prices merit a better mastery of its food, but the ballet of service and beautiful dining room may well make it worth a stop.

This excellent-value prix fixe restaurant overlooking the back end of the Louvre offers delicious, creative, slightly lighter French-Swedish fare, served by efficient and smiling servers in a gorgeous dining room. In short: I’ve found you the perfect lunchtime destination in central Paris.

There’s a reason people keep coming back to Verjus. It’s cozy and warm and welcoming, and while this ambiance – and its cozy location just steps from the Jardin du Palais Royal means it doesn’t need to go so hard on the food, it does.

If you’ve seen Midnight in Paris, you know all about Woody Allen’s ode to a particularly American brand of nostalgia for a certain kind of Paris you’ll never see. But if there were somewhere to see it… it would undoubtedly be Chez Denise. This resolutely old-school bistro is raucous and convivial and dyed-in-the-wool. It’s a place where the landline still rings, and they still take your coat; where you can be turned away if the maitre d’ doesn’t like the cut of your gib and Tuesday is tête de veau day. It’s a place where you can still chat to your neighbors and even share their dessert.