Itineraries for Your Trip to Paris
3 Days in Paris for Foodies
Ah, Paris. It’s one of the world’s most gastronomically beloved cities, a paradise for foodies. It’s also a place where if you don’t know where to go, you could easily spend your vacation eating overpriced steak frites in ho-hum brasseries. I know this first-hand, having spent nearly half my twenties living in Paris. It took a little digging, at times, to find the best restaurants. But, trust me, incredible places abound.
The city’s melting pot food culture speaks to the French capital’s colonial and immigration history. You’ll find incredible Moroccan, Senegalese, and Vietnamese options, as well as traditional French cooking. Space out your meals and indulge in as many cuisines as you can. Here's how to enjoy three food-filled days in Paris.
Paris can be gray and rainy, even in summer—dress in layers and bring an umbrella.
Paris can be gray and rainy, even in summer—dress in layers and bring an umbrella.
Stretch your legs with a walk through the Marché couvert des Enfants Rouges, a circa 17th-century covered food market. It’s stacked with produce and artisanal products, plus an international array of food stalls, from Lebanese to West African.
From there, walk through the Marais toward the Jewish quarter. For something quick there's Rue des Rosiers for a falafel pita to-go at L’As du Fallafel. (The Jewish quarter closes Friday–Saturday sundown for Shabbat.) For a sit-down meal, stop at Le 404, a lounge-y, Berber-inspired restaurant with tagines. Plenty of food-related tours are available to explore the Marais with a guide.
Amble along the Seine toward Ile Saint Louis for ice cream at Berthillon. Or, stop at the Institut du Monde Arabe for wine or a Kir Royal on the museum’s terrace. Then, hop on the metro line 5 and get off at Oberkampf. End with a steaming hot bowl of pho or other Vietnamese classics at BANOI Amelot bistro.
Save room for a heavy French lunch at Le Train Bleu, an ornate, chandelier-festooned Belle Epoque-era restaurant within Gare du Lyon train station. Its time-warp decor is reminiscent of a museum, and the food—foie gras, pigeon mousse, cheese plates—is decadent.
Work up an appetite climbing Montmartre. Then, eat a hearty lunch at Le Potager du Père Thierry, a quintessentially Parisian restaurant with duck confit, warm goat cheese, and crème brûlée on offer. To go deeper into Montmartre’s gastronomy and meet shopkeepers, take a small-group neighborhood food tour.
For dinner, take the line 12 metro from Abbesses to Concorde and walk through the Jardin des Tuileries to Nodaïwa. Located a stone’s throw from the Louvre Museum, it’s a sleek, wood-paneled Japanese restaurant specializing in grilled eel, or unagi—likely the best eel you’ve had this side of Tokyo.
