Paris - Reservations for Dinner on Christmas day

This thread might be helpful: https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/france/christmas-eve-dinner-in-paris

Does your hotel (landlord) have any suggestions?

In London the only places we found open on Christmas Day were in hotels; perhaps Paris has a similar situation. Reservations filled up months in advance.

I'm staying at an Airbnb. I've asked, but haven't heard back yet.

Do you mean Christmas day (25th) or Christmas Eve? The big event here is Christmas Eve (unlike in London for example!), and that requires prior planning. Dinner on the 25th should be available in many places, especially larger brasseries - still worth inquiring, but perhaps not this early. 24th is trickier!

It is not too early if you can find one. In our experience (twice) the vast majority of restaurants will be closed mid-day Christmas eve through Christmas Day. Some restaurants associated with major hotels will be open but jam packed. We purchased enough bread, cheese, meats, wines, to get us through Christmas Day. Great picnic time. OUr hotel had a nice rooftop garden that was terrific for our Christmas dinner.

For a very special, though expensive, dining experience, make a reservation at Le Train Bleu, the Belle Époque restaurant in the Gare de Lyon. Transport yourselves to the past. Friends and I had Christmas dinner there a few years ago and it was an unforgettable experience.

In 2016, my husband, son and I had Christmas Eve dinner at D'chez eux in the 7th A. It was a delightful bistro with photos of several US and French Presidents who had dined there, however, the prices were very reasonable and the venue, unpretentious. For Christmas Day dinner, we ate at Le Violon d'Ingres for a lovely meal. It is also in the 7th A.

Originally, we had had reservations at other restaurants for Christmas Eve and Day only to receive emails weeks later that they had decided to close for the holiday. It appeared that there was a sweet spot for not reserving too early or too late to get a reservation.

Btw, on Christmas Day, we visited both Notre Dame and Sacre Coeur (both extremely busy, naturally) and noticed that the streets around each were very festive and merry with musicians on the streets, crepe carts, etc. and plenty of bistros open. I just felt more secure with reservations.

Original poster, here, Thank you all for these insights! We're novices when it comes to Paris, so this is all very helpful. I have two teens with me and one is a very picky eater on the autism spectrum, so we won't be doing anything too fancy.