Where to Eat

This is definitely the post I was more excited to write! Last week I published a post about where to stay and visit in Paris, but today I’ll be sharing some of my favorite eateries and bakeries around Paris. Please leave your suggestions below — I’m planning on going back and I’d love to try more foods!

Bakeries / Cafe

Maison Eric Kaiser: Ok ok I know what you’re thinking – this bakery chain has expanded to New York! But hear me out. There’s something just different about eating croissants in Paris that elevates the whole experience and even the pastries taste better with your café au lait. Our Airbnb was three doors down from an Eric Kaiser so we frequented it often, grabbing a pain au chocolat to go or enjoying some pastries inside the shop. A lot of bakeries in Paris don’t have a seating area, so we liked that Eric Kaiser had a whole area for people to sit and enjoy their breakfast. They do not have wifi, probably because they don’t want guests to linger too long. Try any of the pastries here or even a salad or sandwich for lunch – you can’t go wrong.

Pierre Herme: Hands down the best macarons I’ve ever had. We stopped by here multiple times to try as may flavors as we could. My personal favorites were the passionfruit chocolate, the earl grey, the pistachio raspberry, and the salted caramel. The macarons are moist, chewy, and have the right amount of filling. Even better than Paris! I can’t stress this enough. This is an absolute must try place if you’re going to Paris.

Poilane: We stopped by Poilane after we already ate breakfast, so we were only able to pick up an apple tart. The tart was incredible, with a very flaky crispy crust and sweet apple filling. Their pastries are supposed to be amazing, and several friends told me this was their favorite Parisian bakery. Definitely stop by and try a sampling of their goods.

Phillippe Gosselin: This is another delicious bakery that we stumbled upon on our way to the Champs Elysees. Try their raisin croissant with custard – so good.

Café du Flore: An institution in St. Germain, this café was once home to famous creative types like Picasso and Hemingway. Personally I thought it was quite overpriced and there were so many tourists that the servers were overwhelmed and it took 20 minutes just to get an order in. Great spot to people watch and spend an afternoon though

Cafe’s around the Eiffel Tower: M and I picked up a sandwich and pastry lunch and brought it to picnic on the grass by the Eiffel Tower. I cannot for the life of me remember the name of the cafe we went to, but there are several located just on the outskirts of the gardens, so plan on bringing a picnic lunch!

Real food

L’As du Fallafel: I very sadly wasn’t able to take M to this spot in Le Marais this time around but I had a shawarma here five years ago and I STILL remember it to this day! It was that. Good. This is definitely worth a stop for a midday snack while you’re browsing the cute cobbled streets of Le Marais doing some vintage shopping and snacking on macarons. The Musee Carnavalet is in the neighborhood, as we as the Place des Vosges which is a great place to sit, people watch, and eat a little snack.

Le Bistrot de Paris: friendly restaurant in St. Germaine where we had dinner one night. The olive spread with the complimentary bread is great, and I had an amazing pork confit here. Very good comfort French food.

Le Comptoir: This restaurant was highly recommended to me by several friends (and Anthony Bourdain) and it did not disappoint. Located in St. Germaine, the restaurant reserves half of its tables for hotel guests and the other half for walk-in’s. M and I waited about 30 minutes for a dinner table, but a family of 5 with children waited for about an HOUR in line (in the rain I might add) after us, so I don’t recommend coming in groups larger than 4 max. We had a foie gras salad followed by Boeuf bourguignon and . Everything was well cooked, didn’t feel too heavy, and the service was wonderful.

Mon Vieil ami: This was my favorite meal of the trip. This restaurant is a real gem, an elegantly decorated, comfortable space in Ille St. Louis. They have a farm to table-like approach where they offer seasonal menus depending on what fresh ingredients they have on hand. M and I had a long and relaxed meal here, with plenty of freshly baked bread, delicious risotto and cod, and several glasses of their apertif wines. I was a big fan of their red wine mixed with raspberry syrup. I would highly recommend a dinner.

Berthillon: Ille St. Louis is filled with places to order Berthillon ice cream. Take an ice cream break while doing some people watching and enjoy a scoop or two of delectable ice cream (my faves were the hazelnut and the chocolate).

Take me back to Paris! I’m getting so hungry writing this post!