Paris Restaurant help

I know there are plenty of Paris dining threads out there, but they seem to all be focused on higher end options & I need some help with some ideas for non-foodies.

We’ll be in Paris for a week with my entire family- wife & our two boys, sister & brother-in-law & their daughter, & my parents. The kids are 10, 12 & 12. While everyone will be interested in decent food, my wife & I are the only two who have any genuine interest in higher end dining. For the most part, we’ll all be going out together & I’m looking for quality bistro recommendations that are relatively easy on the wallet- my Dad is funding this trip & he is mostly mystified by the notion of spending large quantities of cash on meals. All three kids are very well-behaved & would be fine anywhere. Nobody has any dietary issues other than my 10 year old is a bit of a picky eater.

We’ll have an apartment, so I can envision going out to lunches & staying in & cooking at night. Well priced, interesting wine lists are a bonus, but not essential.

Any and all suggestions are appreciated. Thanks in advance…

There are lots of options for low to middle end dining that won’t shock the wallet, especially now that the euro is almost even with the dollar. Here are several that I’ve been to.

Le Petit Pontoise
Marty
Au Petit Marguery
Moissonier
La Rotisserie (du Beaujolais)
Atelier Maitre Albert
Le Bar a Huitres
Mon Vieil Ami
Chez Julien
Au Bourguignon du Marais
Les Philosophes
La Coupole
Benoit
Bofinger and Le Petit Bofinger
L’Enoteca
Maison Courtine
Ambassade d’Auvergne
Auberge Bressane
Florimond
Chez les Anges
D’ Chez Eux

There are many more, I ran out of time and have to run to work.

Okay, here are some more. I didn’t include places that are super pricey, even if they’re excellent, or places that I went once and decided not to return.

Caves Petrissans
Le 14 Juillet
Auberge Dab
Bistro Paul Bert
Au Bougnat
Au Trou Normand
Auberge Pyrenees Cevennes
Brasserie Flo
Terminus Nord
Julien (different from Chez Julien)
L’Epi Dupin
Drouant
Chez Pento
Garnier
Spring
Willi’s Wine Bar
Maceo
Juveniles
Chez Jenny
Pizza Pino

Ed, do you ever spend time in this country??
:slight_smile:

Great lists, Ed.

Just returned from Paris last night. With your criteria in mind, I’d recommend Juveniles (which Ed recommended above). It’s a wine bistro, very casual, and two families with children were there on Saturday for lunch. Our food was fantastic. We also had delicious wine. The prices were great. And it’s only about a 5-10 minute walk (North) from the Louvre. Highly recommended. If you want to go, I’d suggest making reservations; it’s not a big place.

Not sure where your apartment is located, but lots of little places around Rue Mouffetard that have decent food. And you can get your fish, pasta, cheeses, fruits and veggies here, too, for your dinners. It’s a lovely market street. Oh, and there are a couple of wine shops there, as well.

+1 on Rue Mouffetard for picnic supplies. There’s an awesome fromagerie (can’t remember the name, but you’ll see it) that is basically heaven, if you are into cheese.

+2 on rue Mouffetard. I have such wonderful memories of that street. On my first trip to Paris, 22 years ago, one of the places I stayed was the Young and Happy Hostel at 80, rue Mouffetard. What a place! It’s definitely an excellent street for food shopping, and equally great for drinking at outdoor bars/cafes and late night eats.

Also, on my first night in Paris on that same trip, I went solo to a restaurant just off of rue Mouffetard called La Truffiere. They have a gorgeous dining room in a cave down below. I didn’t put that on my list because it has gotten fairly expensive over the years. I think they have one Michelin star this year. Definitely a suggestion if you have one “date night” away from the rest of the family. Good wine list too.

Thanks for the suggestions guys. Our apartment in in the Marais, so not too far from rue Mouffetard. I’ll definitely add Juveniles to the list & will peruse the rest of Ed’s list. I’m hoping there will be one night for my wife & I to get away & have a nicer meal. We’ll see…

Mouffetard is not that close to the Marais, at least not what I’d consider close. Would take you 30min or so to get there depending on where you are.

There is a pretty good butcher in the Rue du Nil called “Terroirs d’avenir”, pretty pricey but good stuff and things you might not get in the US. They also propose fruits and vegetables on the other side of the street.

For wine, Les Caves Legrand are not far and have a good selection, correct pricing. You can eat there too, never tried it.
Another good wine shop is Cave Bossetti in the rue des Archives.

Alain

This is true. On the other hand, the walk from the Bastille Metro to Rue Mouffetard through the Marais is great. We did it on Sunday. It’s probably a 20-25 minute walk with no stops, but if you are interested in strolling through the Marais, I’d budget more like an hour and a half.

After I posted, I realized that it looked more like a 30 minute excursion from our apartment to rue Mouffetard. Still doable though.

Rue Montorgueil is close to le Marais and offers similar food shops, restaurants, etc

We got back yesterday & had a great trip. Recommendations were spot on. Thanks to everyone for their input.

We ate at Brasserie Julien (very good classic bistro; solid service; outstanding decor), Bourgignon du Marais (food was decent classic bistro fare, service very good), Juveniles (best meal of the restaurants that we all went to by a wide margin; much more than simple bistro food at a very reasonable tariff; extremely friendly service; strongly recommended). We had planned on Astier for lunch one day but ran too late with our sightseeing and missed out.

The wife and I went out one night without everyone else and ate at Spring, which was fantastic. Michelin star level food without the price. They also have a really solid wine list. Though the wine list isn’t cheap, prices were reasonable enough- '02 Nikolaihof vom Stein Riesling for about 80€ and an '08 Domain d’Arlot NSG Clos de l’Arlot for about 130€. Both drank really well, especially the Nikolaihof.

Additionally, in another thread here, someone had mentioned the boulangerie ‘Du Pain et des Idées’ as having the best bread in Paris and being worth the trek. I can’t tell you if it’s the best bread in Paris or not since it was only a block from our apartment and we didn’t try anyone else’s bread. If I lived a block away from this place I would become a Painaterian.

Once again, thanks to everyone for your recommendations!