Paris small museums and restaurants

I was just looking at the Paris Museum Pass website, and in addition to listing the major museums (the Louvre, d’Orsay, Pompidou, etc., it lists a number of small, highly specialized museums. Although there most likely are a lot of places that might interest you that aren’t on the Pass, reading their brochure would at least be a start to your quest. You wouldn’t have to buy the pass if you’d rather not - you could just price it out to see whether it would be worth it rather than paying individual admission fees.

Hmmm, well I've done quite a few of the smaller museums the last couple of visits to Paris. Here are some that might interest you:

• Musee Jacquemart-Andre - which has a really lovely cafe so if timing works out, have lunch here and yes, have dessert!
• Musee Nissim Camondo - this is a private home, turned into a museum. Plan to visit the Parc Monceau afterward as it backs up to it
• Museum of the LIberation of Paris - this is a City of Paris Museum, is free
• Archeological Crypt - located under the pavement in front of Notre Dame. It is open at present. They have a short Virtual Reality program but I have a fear of heights and had to take the glasses off when you wound up perched on the roof of the cathedral.
• Musee Cognacq-Jay - this is another private home, Very small collection. Has your requisite 1 Rembrandt and 2 Canalettos, lol
• Musee des Arts et Metiers - this may be bigger than you are interested in. It's the museum of technology and quite interesting and not busy
• Musee de la Architecture and Patrimony - this was interesting because the originals of the statues from the Notre Dame spire were on display here. Not sure how long they can be seen but they were amazing!
• Cluny Museum is back open. I missed it this spring as it was opening a couple weeks after my visit. It's not really small but it is wonderful
• Musee Guimet - good if you enjoy Asian art.
• Shoah Museum - History of the Holocaust
• Museum of Jewish Art and History

Can you tell I like museums, lol!!

Not sure if any of these have collections that would be of interest to you. The one I missed this last time (and the time before) is the Museum of Hunting and Nature.

I recently visited the Musee Marmottan Monet. A very nice museum with, as the name suggests, a large collection of paintings by Monet. The museum is located in a nice residential area of Paris. Even though the areas around the Eiffel Tower and other popular sights were absolutely packed with tourists, the part of Paris where the museum is located was relatively quiet.

Also, please be mindful of your spelling. By adding a “e” to Germain, you turned the male saint the boulevard is named after, into a female. I’ve seen some French get really annoyed by that on another forum. The correct spelling is Saint-Germain-des-Prés.

Another small museum that I enjoyed was the Musée Delacroix. it is just a block or so from the Saint-Germain-des-Prés metro stop.

I really enjoyed visiting Victor Hugo's House. Very nicely done and I learned he also liked to make furniture. Fascinating visit.

Kathleen

Not in your area, but . . . The Carnavalet Museum has reopened. It's free, a guided tour is 5E. Very interesting museum on the history of Paris.

More importantly - will you be in Paris on the weekend of Sept 17-18? That weekend is European Heritage Days (Les Journees du Patrimoine). All the government museums are free, but more than that, many of the govt. buildings that are generally closed to the public are open - don't think of your city hall, or even state capitol - in Paris they are some of the most beautiful palaces and mansions in Europe. Some embassies also open their doors (yes, they are also in those grand buildings) and have special exhibits. The year I was there, the Russian embassy had a terrific exhibition of the last tsar including some Faberge eggs and other jewels. Don't expect that this year, though. I went to the Hotel de Ville (Paris city hall), the Luxembourg Palace (home the the senate) and the Assemble Nationale (home of their equivalent of the house of representatives). All were stunning. There are others I didn't get to, like the Macron's current residence (the Élysée Palace).

in the 15th is a Memorial to the victims of the Vel d'Hiv Roundup - Plaque commémorative de la rafle du Vélodrome d'Hiver. It's at 8 Bd de Grenelle, 75015 Paris, France. It's small, but moving, and is on the site of the Velodrome. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vel%27_d%27Hiv_Roundup