Hey guys! I rounded up all of my favorite restaurants and places to shop in Paris – this guide is perfect for the aspiring foodie or shopper. I got some great deals on some brand name items in France, and I also meant this as a way to introduce you to some quintessentially French brands that you might not know. Keep in mind, some of them are at higher price points. I also included some things I've purchased for myself and for gifts down below. Happy Eating!
What to Eat
French Pastries
What can I say? French food far exceeded all of my expectations, I can't say that I had a single bad meal while in Paris. Our hotel was located right near the Eiffel Tower and every morning we enjoyed a delicious continental breakfast. Although I had to look up two famous boulangeries (bakeries) for croissants specifically, we didn't have the time to visit because both of them were too out of the way. We crammed in sightseeing, shopping, eating, and we also moved hotels to Marais for shopping. Anyway, my point is, you can stop anywhere for a croissant or pain au chocolate and it's going to be delicious. Flaky butter layers of pure bliss...if you're in New York City, I highly recommend Eric Kayser. He makes amazing croissants and his bakeries are all over Paris. There's even one conveniently located across from the Louvre. |
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Le Montebello
1 Quai de Montebello75005 Paris, France
Our first meal was located right near Notre Dame Cathedral. It was really sad to see how badly damaged it was, there was a lot of scaffolding along the side of it. However, the front was beautiful, and we crossed the Seine River to enjoy the view. We had a course meal, wine included. I ordered the onion Soup, duck a l'orange and had creme brulee from dessert. Lili had onion soup as well, beef bourguignon, and crepe suzette for dessert. The crepes were so soaked in grand marnier that they became mushy...so I wouldn't recommend them. However, both entrees were equally delicious, some diners also ordered ile flottante floating islands of meringue in custard.
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Camille
24 Rue des Francs Bourgeois
75003 Paris, France
My best friend recommended this restaurant to me, she went here a few years ago for her birthday dinner. The best description of this place would be an intimate French brasserie. It was a chilly night and we were starving, so we hurried in from the cold. We were seated immediately without any reservation, and the waitstaff spoke excellent English. It seemed like most of the visitors were foreigners. The ambiance was really cozy and comfortable, and the food was delicious to boot. The mashed potatoes and duck were amazing, the waitress recommended the house red wine. Lili ordered steak (not pictured here).
My best friend recommended this restaurant to me, she went here a few years ago for her birthday dinner. The best description of this place would be an intimate French brasserie. It was a chilly night and we were starving, so we hurried in from the cold. We were seated immediately without any reservation, and the waitstaff spoke excellent English. It seemed like most of the visitors were foreigners. The ambiance was really cozy and comfortable, and the food was delicious to boot. The mashed potatoes and duck were amazing, the waitress recommended the house red wine. Lili ordered steak (not pictured here).
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Auberge Nicolas Flamel
51 Rue de Montmorency
75003 Paris, France
I found this place on Yelp and was intrigued when I found out that it's the oldest house in Paris. The inner Harry Potter fan in me was screaming inside when I found out that it once belonged to the Nicolas Flamel. And when I saw a few people recommending it as an affordable course meal, I hurriedly made the reservation on Fourchette with the aid of google translate. Worry not, the staff spoke perfect English, and we were given English menus. This place was quite a walk, but definitely walkable from the Louvre. It was down a nondescript narrow street with a small round sign, and it was confusing finding the entrance. After mistakenly entering an apartment, we turned back and found the door.
The menu is seasonal, so I decided to go with the three-course meal for 28 Euros. All of the entrees came with the free appetizer trio pictured below.
I chose the squash soup with an egg, fish over rice and a lemon butter sauce, and for dessert, we split a chocolate bomb (it already melted by the time I took a photo, so it's not pictured). Lili got this amazing steak with shredded fried onions and the most delicious chanterelle mushrooms. This was by far my favorite restaurant in Paris, so if you have to choose one splurge meal...come here!
I found this place on Yelp and was intrigued when I found out that it's the oldest house in Paris. The inner Harry Potter fan in me was screaming inside when I found out that it once belonged to the Nicolas Flamel. And when I saw a few people recommending it as an affordable course meal, I hurriedly made the reservation on Fourchette with the aid of google translate. Worry not, the staff spoke perfect English, and we were given English menus. This place was quite a walk, but definitely walkable from the Louvre. It was down a nondescript narrow street with a small round sign, and it was confusing finding the entrance. After mistakenly entering an apartment, we turned back and found the door.
The menu is seasonal, so I decided to go with the three-course meal for 28 Euros. All of the entrees came with the free appetizer trio pictured below.
I chose the squash soup with an egg, fish over rice and a lemon butter sauce, and for dessert, we split a chocolate bomb (it already melted by the time I took a photo, so it's not pictured). Lili got this amazing steak with shredded fried onions and the most delicious chanterelle mushrooms. This was by far my favorite restaurant in Paris, so if you have to choose one splurge meal...come here!
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Glacier Berthillon
29-31 Rue Saint-Louis en Ille
75004 Paris, France
Saint-Louis is nicknamed "ice cream island" and on our walk there we began to wonder if anyone else had the crazy idea to eat ice cream in the middle of winter. There were tons of "Glacier Berthillon" signs and awnings everywhere, so it was a little confusing whether or not we had found the right one. Eventually, we stumbled upon the shop, it was smaller than expected, and down a remote narrow street. There was one foreign couple in front of us, and no seats to be found. So we ordered our ice cream and ate it outside. Berthillon is closed on Mondays and Tuesdays, so we rearranged our plans just for this ice cream place...and it was totally worth it. It was the best vanilla ice cream I had ever tasted, and the salted caramel was made with the richest butter flavor. I highly recommend this place.
Saint-Louis is nicknamed "ice cream island" and on our walk there we began to wonder if anyone else had the crazy idea to eat ice cream in the middle of winter. There were tons of "Glacier Berthillon" signs and awnings everywhere, so it was a little confusing whether or not we had found the right one. Eventually, we stumbled upon the shop, it was smaller than expected, and down a remote narrow street. There was one foreign couple in front of us, and no seats to be found. So we ordered our ice cream and ate it outside. Berthillon is closed on Mondays and Tuesdays, so we rearranged our plans just for this ice cream place...and it was totally worth it. It was the best vanilla ice cream I had ever tasted, and the salted caramel was made with the richest butter flavor. I highly recommend this place.
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L'Eclair de Genie
14 Rue Pavee
75004 Paris, France
This little gem was right near our next hotel in Marais. It's called Hotel Caron de Beaumarchais a quaint little boutique hotel. Although there were only two floors of rooms and two alternating people at the front desk, I really enjoyed our stay. I wish we could have ordered breakfast in our room (I recommend paying a little more for a room with a balcony if you're going to do that) but we had an early flight to catch.
Anyway, I first heard of L'Eclair de Genie from Damn Delicious and I saw quite a few enticing photos on instagram. After visiting, the pastries are not only beautiful–but they're delicious. I'm not sure why, but the cafe area was closed, so we had to eat our pastries at the bar. We were surreptitiously given napkins holding our pastries. On the left side are eclairs (choux pastry stuffed with cream) and on the right were oblong-shaped tartelettes. There's probably a French word for this pastry but I can't recall...either way, it was equally as delicious.
Perhaps it was the winter chill, but by the time we arrived the line went down the street, blocking all the stores along this road close to the Louvre Museum. We had already eaten something, so we were planning on getting the infamous hot chocolate along with a mont blanc (a chestnut pastry) but we weren't about to waste the rest of our afternoon waiting. So we went up to the hot chocolate cart outside of the cafe, paid an arm and a leg for it, and drank said hot chocolate while walking off to our next shopping destination.
The hot chocolate was extremely rich, like liquid chocolatey lava. I'm not a chocolate fan...so it wasn't for me. I read online that their brunch is particularly good, so we'll have to check it out next time we're in Paris. We were allowed inside to look at the shop; they sell some chocolates, cookies, and a hot chocolate mix. However, the space in my luggage was dwindling and the hot chocolate was quite expensive. Around 20 Euros per tin.
This little gem was right near our next hotel in Marais. It's called Hotel Caron de Beaumarchais a quaint little boutique hotel. Although there were only two floors of rooms and two alternating people at the front desk, I really enjoyed our stay. I wish we could have ordered breakfast in our room (I recommend paying a little more for a room with a balcony if you're going to do that) but we had an early flight to catch.
Anyway, I first heard of L'Eclair de Genie from Damn Delicious and I saw quite a few enticing photos on instagram. After visiting, the pastries are not only beautiful–but they're delicious. I'm not sure why, but the cafe area was closed, so we had to eat our pastries at the bar. We were surreptitiously given napkins holding our pastries. On the left side are eclairs (choux pastry stuffed with cream) and on the right were oblong-shaped tartelettes. There's probably a French word for this pastry but I can't recall...either way, it was equally as delicious.
Lili decided on classic chocolate with these interesting chocolate puffs on top. I chose a citron (yuzu) flavor with meringue piped on top. Citron seemed to be a surprisingly popular flavor in Paris, I wasn't entirely sure why.
Angelina
226 Rue de Rivoli
75001 Paris, France
75001 Paris, France
Perhaps it was the winter chill, but by the time we arrived the line went down the street, blocking all the stores along this road close to the Louvre Museum. We had already eaten something, so we were planning on getting the infamous hot chocolate along with a mont blanc (a chestnut pastry) but we weren't about to waste the rest of our afternoon waiting. So we went up to the hot chocolate cart outside of the cafe, paid an arm and a leg for it, and drank said hot chocolate while walking off to our next shopping destination.
The hot chocolate was extremely rich, like liquid chocolatey lava. I'm not a chocolate fan...so it wasn't for me. I read online that their brunch is particularly good, so we'll have to check it out next time we're in Paris. We were allowed inside to look at the shop; they sell some chocolates, cookies, and a hot chocolate mix. However, the space in my luggage was dwindling and the hot chocolate was quite expensive. Around 20 Euros per tin.
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| I found this image on the Angelina website |
Le Relais de l'Entrecote
51 Rue de Montmorency
75003 Paris, France
There was so much hype for this restaurant that I rearranged plans once again to go here. We had planned to go the previous night, but we were so exhausted that we ordered room service (it was Lili's first time, so it was an experience). However, the next night, after checking into our hotel, we rallied and went back out to seek out this place. I first heard about this restaurant from Chase Amie and saw that Shay Mitchell went to this restaurant when she visited Paris during Fashion Week. Both very good reasons for my visit. The restaurant is a chain with a few locations in Paris.
We took the metro to the Champs Elysees. The Christmas lights made this a night to remember. We lined up early, about 6:30 PM and the lined wrapped around the building. The waitress didn't speak much English, but there's only one item on the menu for dinner. We were promptly served salads with a very spicy mustard dressing (Lili hated it) and then we were asked how we wanted our steaks cooked. As soon as your finish your first serving, a waitress comes around with a french fry mountain, refills your plate, and gives you a second steak. If you're worried about the portions, they're quite small. We easily finished both portions and had room for dessert. The sauce was delicious, the fries delightfully crisp...what more could you ask for?
The entree my friend recommended was no longer on the menu, so I chose a cut of steak with onions and mashed potatoes. The food wasn't as good as I was expecting, but the restaurant itself was beautiful and the view outside was nice as well. After a long day at the Musee d'Orsay looking at Impressionist Art, this is a great place to relax and dine at. There were a lot of lunch specials, so the prices weren't bad. It also came with some soup of bread, neither of which were particularly memorable.
There was so much hype for this restaurant that I rearranged plans once again to go here. We had planned to go the previous night, but we were so exhausted that we ordered room service (it was Lili's first time, so it was an experience). However, the next night, after checking into our hotel, we rallied and went back out to seek out this place. I first heard about this restaurant from Chase Amie and saw that Shay Mitchell went to this restaurant when she visited Paris during Fashion Week. Both very good reasons for my visit. The restaurant is a chain with a few locations in Paris.
We took the metro to the Champs Elysees. The Christmas lights made this a night to remember. We lined up early, about 6:30 PM and the lined wrapped around the building. The waitress didn't speak much English, but there's only one item on the menu for dinner. We were promptly served salads with a very spicy mustard dressing (Lili hated it) and then we were asked how we wanted our steaks cooked. As soon as your finish your first serving, a waitress comes around with a french fry mountain, refills your plate, and gives you a second steak. If you're worried about the portions, they're quite small. We easily finished both portions and had room for dessert. The sauce was delicious, the fries delightfully crisp...what more could you ask for?
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Musee d'Orsay
1 Rue de la Legion d'Honneur
75007 Paris, France
75007 Paris, France
The entree my friend recommended was no longer on the menu, so I chose a cut of steak with onions and mashed potatoes. The food wasn't as good as I was expecting, but the restaurant itself was beautiful and the view outside was nice as well. After a long day at the Musee d'Orsay looking at Impressionist Art, this is a great place to relax and dine at. There were a lot of lunch specials, so the prices weren't bad. It also came with some soup of bread, neither of which were particularly memorable.
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WHAT TO BUY
Buly - An old school apothecary-style soap and perfume shop // We shopped at the Louvre location
Debauve & Gallais - One of the oldest royal chocolate shops // Lili's co-workers devoured them
Pierre Herme - Does not have USA locations but the flavors were very exotic
Laduree - We purchased candles and keychains, which make great gifts // I prefer their macarons over Pierre Herme.
Jacques Genin - Famous for jelly, caramels, and chocolates
La Grande Epicerie de Paris - A specialty delicatessen located in Le Bon Marche // We purchased cookies and other treats as gifts. If you have the time, purchase Bordier butter. But they only sell large blocks.
Mariages Freres - My favorite tea, which I first tried in Korea. I recommend the Marco Polo flavor.
Monoprix - A specialty French grocery store. Pick up cheese, bread, wine, jam...etc.
Debauve & Gallais - One of the oldest royal chocolate shops // Lili's co-workers devoured them
Pierre Herme - Does not have USA locations but the flavors were very exotic
Laduree - We purchased candles and keychains, which make great gifts // I prefer their macarons over Pierre Herme.
Jacques Genin - Famous for jelly, caramels, and chocolates
La Grande Epicerie de Paris - A specialty delicatessen located in Le Bon Marche // We purchased cookies and other treats as gifts. If you have the time, purchase Bordier butter. But they only sell large blocks.
Mariages Freres - My favorite tea, which I first tried in Korea. I recommend the Marco Polo flavor.
Monoprix - A specialty French grocery store. Pick up cheese, bread, wine, jam...etc.
MUST SHOP BRANDS
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| Chanel Boutique, 19 Rue Cambon |
APC - They make great denim and leather goods. Their most iconic bag is the "Half Moon Bag" the bags are so much cheaper in Paris and you can get them tax-free.
CHANEL - If you can afford it, visit the Chanel Boutique on Rue Cambon. The original location often has a long queue, but you can see where Chanel's apartment once was. The new boutique (19 Rue Cambon) had a very short wait time and they're able to bring items from the other store over. They also use white packaging here as well. I got my purchases tax free and the refund was quick and easy (you can use the Pablo Kiosk in the airport) I received mine within two weeks. As a side note, they also sell Chanel Cosmetics, Skincare, and Fragrances, all eligible for that tax refund.
DEPARTMENT STORES/UNDERGROUND MALL - I'm just using this as a category because there are plenty of department stores to be found. I recommend Le Bon Marche, Galeries Lafayette, or Carousel du Louvre. This is one-stop shopping, and all of the department stores have duty-free kiosks inside, so you can usually receive your tax refund straight away.
LACOSTE - Pick up polos or leather goods for a loved one or friend, their prices were quite a bit cheaper and if you spend at least 175 Euros.
LONGCHAMP - The "Le Pliage" totes are iconic. I bought a pink nylon one in the L size, the new version comes with a pocket inside. The prices are almost 50% off what you find in the US.
MERCI - Fashion items and design objects in a trendy three-story boutique. I've seen shots of the storefront all over instagram. It reminded me a bit of Anthropologie.
PARIS LOUVRE DUTY-FREE - One of the largest duty-free stores, and it's conveniently located near the Louvre.
POLENE - This brand is all over Instagram. Their only store location is in Paris, if you shop online the shipping is quite pricey. I've been eyeing the Numero Un Mini bag. The leather is great quality and made in Spain.
SEZANE - Two locations, we visited the one in Le Bon Marche, the "L'apartement Sezane" was closed for Armistice Day, and it's quite out of the way. I heard they have a store that sells used items as well, so you can usually get a good deal // Sizes run a little small
Other places to shop...
Balzac Paris
City Pharma
& Other Stories
Des Petits Hauts
The Kooples
ba&sh
Maison Kitsune
SAAJ
Soi Paris
Happy Shopping!
CHANEL - If you can afford it, visit the Chanel Boutique on Rue Cambon. The original location often has a long queue, but you can see where Chanel's apartment once was. The new boutique (19 Rue Cambon) had a very short wait time and they're able to bring items from the other store over. They also use white packaging here as well. I got my purchases tax free and the refund was quick and easy (you can use the Pablo Kiosk in the airport) I received mine within two weeks. As a side note, they also sell Chanel Cosmetics, Skincare, and Fragrances, all eligible for that tax refund.
DEPARTMENT STORES/UNDERGROUND MALL - I'm just using this as a category because there are plenty of department stores to be found. I recommend Le Bon Marche, Galeries Lafayette, or Carousel du Louvre. This is one-stop shopping, and all of the department stores have duty-free kiosks inside, so you can usually receive your tax refund straight away.
LACOSTE - Pick up polos or leather goods for a loved one or friend, their prices were quite a bit cheaper and if you spend at least 175 Euros.
LONGCHAMP - The "Le Pliage" totes are iconic. I bought a pink nylon one in the L size, the new version comes with a pocket inside. The prices are almost 50% off what you find in the US.
MERCI - Fashion items and design objects in a trendy three-story boutique. I've seen shots of the storefront all over instagram. It reminded me a bit of Anthropologie.
PARIS LOUVRE DUTY-FREE - One of the largest duty-free stores, and it's conveniently located near the Louvre.
POLENE - This brand is all over Instagram. Their only store location is in Paris, if you shop online the shipping is quite pricey. I've been eyeing the Numero Un Mini bag. The leather is great quality and made in Spain.
SEZANE - Two locations, we visited the one in Le Bon Marche, the "L'apartement Sezane" was closed for Armistice Day, and it's quite out of the way. I heard they have a store that sells used items as well, so you can usually get a good deal // Sizes run a little small
Other places to shop...
Balzac Paris
City Pharma
& Other Stories
Des Petits Hauts
The Kooples
ba&sh
Maison Kitsune
SAAJ
Soi Paris
Happy Shopping!
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