Next summer we're taking a family trip (boys age 11 & 13) to Europe. One of my son's is a bit of a foodie and wants a classic French dining experience. I don't need this to be Michelin-Star, $100/plate white tablecloth dining. But I want something that feels unmistakably French, in terms of atmosphere and menu.
Any ideas?
You will find lots of good options for this in Paris of course, and I think some of the better ones are on the less formal side.
A few favorites that fit in that category, in no particular order:
There's thousands more of course, people who are locals on this board may have some great suggestions.
Enjoy!
Our favorite multi course tasting menu is L'Initial in the 5th not far from Notre Dame. I think it is about 60 Euro now. We have eaten here half a dozen times and never been disappointed. they will accommodate allergies with advance notice but the menu is set otherwise. An amuse, two starters, a fish course, a choice among 3 meat courses, a dessert and mignardises whether you order coffee or not (drinks are separate and like anywhere you can get a carafe of tap water.)
a more homely but excellent experience is Chez Dumonet where you can get really good boeuf bourguignon, or steak frites or duck confit etc and they have a really amazing Grand Marnier souffle.
There are loads of places. Do you have a neigborhood preference? I know $100 per plate is too high but what is your budget? I second most of the places mentioned except Cafe Saint Regis which I have not been to. Another option is Les Philosophes in Le Marais. I had a very classic French meal at Les Antiquaeres on rue du Bac las November. For a really classic, traditional French dining experience maybe try one of the bouillons in Paris. I have never had a good meal at one so I hesitate to mention them but it is a very French experience and will not be expensive.
Perhaps you should consider L'Orangerie & Auberge de la Reine Blanche which is on the main street of the Ile Saint-Louis. Also St. Regis mentioned above on the same street. We had a small plate of cold cuts and wine one evening and it felt very french.
Try looking at some of the top brasseries in Paris. In a city of thousands and thousands of restaurants, walking out the door and reading a few menu boards can get you in a nice place. Be spontaneous…..better yet if your kids are foodies…..let them search.
It's not terribly traditional, but my 12yoa son had a lot of fun on Bustronome. The adults in our group did, too. We did it on Xmas Eve. Maybe not as fun in the summer.
Le Procope for the historical significance, Jules Verne in the Eiffel Tower for the experience.
Conde Nast is always a good travel resource:
https://www.cntraveler.com/gallery/best-restaurants-in-paris
So just throwing out a different idea of unmistakably French… we did an EatWith experience last month and really enjoyed it. There are several to choose from but we did one called SEASONAL FRENCH LUNCH AND STROLL THROUGH MONTMARTRE. It was wonderful. Claudine hosted my husband and I, along with another couple, to a lovely lunch and then after we talked and ate, we walked around areas of Montmartre that we never saw during our first trip to Paris. Claudine used to be a children’s English teacher so I’m sure she’ll know how to engage your kids in the conversation. Since her place is small, it would likely be just your family and her.
as someone mentioned a 'planche' or cheese/charcuterie board with drinks for apero is a very French experience. Lots of places have them -- get a mixed planche that has both meats and cheeses which will be served with a basket of bread. For us, we don't get dinner on days we do this with friends. We get drinks, probably a basket or two of French fries depending on the size of the group and the planche. There are plenty of soft drink options for the kids that are not cokes. Fruit juices, or a diabolo which is flavored syrup with what is essentially 7 up -- they call it lemonade, but it is like sprite or 7up. I often get citron diabolo but there are other flavors.
A planche laden with cheese and charcuterie is not a French dining experience. It's something started in recent years in bars for the younger generation who don't want to or can't afford to spend the money for proper meals. It's sometimes served in a home nowadays when people want to imitate what you can get with a drink in a café, but it's not really French, nor is it a dining experience.
It's store-bought cheese and charcuterie laid out to look pretty with some jamy stuff and a bit of fruit. It's a salt, nitrate, and cholesterol bomb. In my fifty years of cooking for French family and friends, this is not something I'd serve. In a normal meal, charcuterie, if served at all, is in small quantities as a starter. The cheese comes after the salad but before the dessert.
We took American friends to a local restaurant here in France for lunch yesterday. The man ordered a planche while the rest of us ate real food. The waiter asked him three times if this was really what he wanted. Needles to say, he didn't finish it. The rest is in my fridge.
Go someplace that makes real food, something with a sauce, like Chez Dumonet, as Janet suggested. Janet's first suggestion of the I'Initial is excellent too. This Montmartre meal in a private home with stroll sounds intriguing. The others are very good, too.
All suggestions are subjective but my choice that meets your criteria would be Le P'tit Troquet at 28, rue de l'Exposition in the 7th. It has one of the best boeuf Bourguignon in the city. Doesn't get anymore classic dining & atmosphere than that & the prices are very reasonable.
Bets -- I just disagree on the planche. Of course it is not fine dining but they have suggestions for that -- but it has become a very standard apero experience for young French people and quite a few old ones. A drink at a cafe in the early evening with a planche and good friends is a very French thing to do these days.
Beef Bourguignon at Cafe Varenne was delicious when we were there in April.
