Local Flavor: where to eat and drink in Paris

Paris may have birthed the concept of haute gastronomy, but over the last decade or so, the local dining scene has loosened up considerably. The influence of social media, globalization and the evolution of dining habits have brought out more irreverent, playful and accessible dining spots. They've also carved out space for international cuisines where there was none previously.

Some of these you may have seen on social media; others will hopefully be new discoveries that pique your interest.

Here's a selection of food and drink destinations that mix old classics with more recent additions that are strong favorites among locals like myself.

Breakfast

Typically, the French don't do heavy, savory breakfasts and will start their day with a coffee, tea and a viennoiserie (croissant, pain au chocolat) or a tartine (baguette with jam and butter).

But over the last few years, Paris has caught on to the concept of brunch with a flurry of all-day brunch restaurants popping up across the city. If you're in the 7th arrondissement, check out Saint Pearl, a small, charming, discreet cafe where exposed beams, wooden tables and rattan light fixtures evoke "rustic modern country house." On the menu, French brioche toast is topped with vanilla ice cream, poached pear, and a generous assortment of berries; and bacon and eggs Benedict is made with caramelized onions and roasted tomatoes.

At Keopi (named after the Korean pronunciation of the English word coffee), brunch is Korean-inspired and takes place in a luminous, bright and airy passageway, Passage Verdeau. Waffles are topped with KFC (Korean fried chicken), eggs Benedict served with bulgogi, and the croffle (a hybrid croissant and waffle popularized in South Korea) is served with vanilla mascarpone, strawberries or injeolmi (Korean rice cakes covered in roasted soybean powder).

But if you want to start the day off lightly, head to the bakery Georges Ducet in the 12th arrondissement, home of the Best Croissant in 2024 as determined by an annual competition organized by the bakers union of greater Paris.

Coffee (and a treat)

You may need a jolt of caffeine or a sugar rush to refuel your long promenades. Bibliophiles may want to bookmark Maison Fleuret, an aesthetic "literary coffee shop" opened in a former bookstore in the Saint-Germain-des-Prés neighborhood, where floor-to-ceiling bookcases are filled with French books, and a spiral staircase leads visitors to a cozy, upstairs nook. Rest your feet and recharge with a matcha, coffee, homemade cookies, or a slice of lemon poppyseed cake.

For a taste of French irreverence, head to any one of the six French Bastards bakeries, founded by a trio of young French bakers who give classic pastries contemporary new twists. Try out a cruffin (a croissant–muffin mash-up) or their dramatic charcoal-blackened roll with pink praline.

If, on the other hand, you're looking for a more sophisticated pastry experience, make sure to stop at either one of Claire Damon's fruit-themed pastry shop locations, Des Gâteaux et du Pain (15th and 7th). Each season, Damon releases a new collection of stunning pastries that elevate strawberries, rhubarb, grapefruit, pears or figs into a luxurious, elegant experience.

Coffee culture has also seen huge growth in Paris with no shortage of options. Look out for coffee shops like Noir, Nuances, Coutume, Artesano and Terres de Café, which all serve artisanal and specialty coffees.

Lunch

Savory buckwheat crêpes or galettes are a great lunchtime meal in Paris. Breizh Café is one of the most popular crêperies in the city (there are several locations), but I have a special fondness for La Crêperie de Josselin in the Breton district in the 14th arrondissement, where I lived for a year when I first moved to Paris 14 years ago. About a dozen crêperies line either side of rue Montparnasse and saturate the air with the maddening smell of melting butter. But while most of the crêperies serve a similar menu, La Crêperie de Josselin (not to be confused with the Crêperie Le Petit Josselin next door) stands out for doubling up on the layers of their savory galettes. The Josselin classic is egg, ham, cheese, and mushroom.

I'm also going to go out on a limb and make this bold declaration: the pork katsu sandwich at the Japanese bakery Carré Pain de Mie is one of the best in the city. Moist, juicy, deep-fried pork cutlets are sandwiched between slices of soft, fluffy Japanese milk bread, while shredded cabbage adds crunch and texture to each bite.

Meanwhile, one of the most outstanding value-for-money lunch experiences in the east end of the city is Paloma, a low-key neighborhood bistro in Belleville, a dynamic food and drink area in the city. Lunchtime at Paloma is often a full house, thanks to its three-course prix fixe menu of €16, which attracts mostly neighborhood locals. It's honest, straightforward home cooking that may start with a red cabbage salad with herbed faisselle (fresh soft cheese) and buckwheat crumble, followed by a risotto-style fregola pasta with spinach and mushroom that ends with a chocolate and cardamom cake.

Aperitivo

Paris has a wealth of wine bars where you can while away some time, people-watching and waiting for your dinner reservation. Check out Le Dénicheur, a casual, neighborhood drinking spot in the 2nd arrondissement popular for its selection of natural and organic wines and small plates menu, or Les Caves Legrand in the covered passageway Galerie Vivienne, a historic wine shop that goes back to 1880 and stocks bottles from 350 winemakers across France.

Dinner

This place is easy to miss – which is why it feels like a delicious secret. Located inside the covered passageway Passage des Panoramas in a former 19th century chocolaterie, is a restaurant that specializes in duck and Champagne pairings, aptly named Canard et Champagne (Duck and Champagne). Choose from tender, flavorful duck breast, duck confit, or duck Parmentier and wash it down with a glass of Champagne for a meal experience that offers (an affordable) sense of occasion in a charming setting.

If you're looking for a more modern French dining experience without the crowds, head to Jouvence in the 12th arrondissement, a restaurant that doesn't get a lot of social media attention (and which, for me, is a big part of its appeal) but has a local, loyal following for its quality, contemporary cuisine at democratic prices. A three-course dinner is €45 and may include mains like grilled Angus beef with potato-lemon gnocchi and mushroom jus or grilled sea bream with hollandaise and saffron shallots.

If there is one cheesy and decadent French dish I can't resist, it's aligot (cheesy, garlicky mashed potatoes) made with Tomme cheese. At Le Plomb du Cantal, the experience is ceremonial, where servers pour elastic mashed potatoes onto your plate from vintage copper pots tableside in a slow-motion cascade. Aligot traditionally accompanies steak, sausage and cabbage rolls.

And when I crave the familiar and comforting flavors of Asian cuisine, I rotate among a few personal favorites across the city. At Mr Zhao, I always order the biang biang noodles – seven feet of chewy, wide, hand-pulled noodles with slow-cooked pork or beef. When I need a hit of spice and heat – flavor profiles that aren't in the French repertoire – I head to TranTranZai for their noodle soups, where noodles are also hand-made, and you can choose your spice level (warning, the spice levels may humble even the spiciest eaters).

Bar

The largest cocktail bar in Paris, Cravan in the tiny 6th arrondissement of Saint-Germain-des-Prés spans three floors of a historic 17th-century building and boasts a drinks list that includes Champagne-based cocktails (the bar is in partnership with Moët Hennessy), and bottled cocktails on the third floor that you can take home with you at the end of the night. The building also houses a bookshop.

Little Red Door is another major cocktail destination and makes regular appearances on the World's 50 Best Bars list for its creative and sustainable drinks list developed with local French farmers and producers.