Michelin Star Dinner- Paris
 

Hey everyone. My husband and I will be travelling to Paris at the end of March into early April. We are looking to check out a Michelin star restaurant (heck, Im good with just 1 star!) for dinner and was wondering if anyone had any suggestions.

Also, I have done my research some and looked up a handful of places but there is just soooo many. I also know that lunch is cheaper. However, we would like to do dinner. The rest of our stay, we just plan on wandering, menu hopping, and picking a place (ie. this will probably our only reservation restaurant). While we travel a lot internationally, we have never been to France nor to a Michelin restaurant, which is why it is on our list.....well, also because we live in North Carolina and with all due respect to the pig pickins and hog, I am excited to try something unique!

Thanks for any help ya'll can give!

Hi! Am originally from NYC but now live in Charlotte. Our favorite Michelin restaurant in Paris was L Astrance in the 15th. Many innovative small courses and they were paired with wine. It was a 3 *- not sure if that has changed. It is a bit formal for my liking but service and food were impeccable.

If you head to Provence you can eat at Michelin starred restaurants that are much less formal, fyi, but with the same level of food and service.

I always thought it was funny how stuffy some of the formal restaurants in Provence can be, just doesn't seem to fit.

Astrance is not in the 15th arr. It's in the 16th near the Trocadero. It is still a 3* and isn't normal restaurant, it has "surprise" menus (meaning you can't decide what you eat). At least that's what Michelin says. I hate surprises, I want to eat what I choose.

some ideas
https://theculturetrip.com/europe/fr...ants-in-paris/

I don't really spend that much for dinner nor eat at Michelin star places, although I think I did eat at Benoit once and liked it, but that was many years ago, so can't speak to now.

I is quite easy to eat well in Paris without any stars, just as it is possible to get microwaved meals originally distributed from a commercial meal factory. The Fork (la Fourchette) is a useful tool for finding restaurants in Paris, and, once found, will make it easy to get reservations, although I doubt any stars are on their app. You should do better than random walk ins.

I have reviews of restaurants we enjoyed last September )and a researched list of selections we did not have time to try) in my trip report. Click:

https://www.fodors.com/community/eur...is-2017.cfm?29

Eat well!

>>> The rest of our stay, we just plan on wandering, menu hopping, and picking a place (ie. this will probably our only reservation restaurant).

Just a warning, in Paris, many sit down places rated well in reviews would require a reservation for dinner even if they don't carry any Michelin stars. You might snag a table set aside for walk-ins if you arrive there near the opening time, but you might end up getting a table at the entrance or next to the kitchen entrance. Even making a reservation earlier in the day would reduce chances of getting stuck at a dreaded table.

A meal at a Michelin starred restaurant is an event even for lunch. You would need to set aside close to 3 hours. When you order items, you get many "surprises" throughout the meal. Your dessert might be proceeded and followed by five other surprise sweet items.

We tend to rely on Patrica Wells' "The Food Lovers Guide To Paris" when looking for someplace interesting to have lunch, Michelin starred or not.

Many of the posh places (especially 2 and 3 Michelin star) book up quite far in advance so get on that right away.

Greg is right, you likely want to book most of your dinners at least the morning of if not earlier - unless you just want casual bistros/cafes and/or eat early.

We visit Paris for 2-3 weeks about 4 times every 10 years. We normally stay in the 7th and and always dine at Christian Constant's Violon d'Ingres. A few times we've dined there twice on a trip. It's a 2 knif&fork place (not formal) and a one star. Christian Constant was formerly the head chef at the Crillon and a mentor to many of the 3 star chefs today - including Pascal Barbot at Astrance (we dined there about 20 years ago before it became too expensive). we'll dine at Violon d'Ingres this Sept.

In 2015, we dined at the 1 star and 2 knif&fork Les Climates - also in the 7th but close to the 6th. It is in a Art Nouveau building which was originally constructed as housing for women working for the French postal & telecommunications services. The interior is fascinating. They have an outside dining area - but don't dine there. The interior is much more interesting. We'll dine there again this Sept.

Stu Dudley

Ok, I will recommend three. The first La Table d'Eugene in the 18eme. One Michelin star, excellent chef's menu, with wine pairings even better. http://latabledeugene.com/

Second is Chef Julien Rocheteau (whom I had the honor of spending a day in his kitchen!) at La Scene Theleme www.lascenetheleme.fr

Two stars L'Abeille at the Shangri La Hotel. Maybe the best restaurant I've ever been to in my life but the chef's menu with wine pairings will set you back 1,000 euros for two.

We,too,very much enjoyed Les Climats and plan to return in the Spring.........also, consider Helene Darroze......very good food and quiet, romantic atmosphere......

As mentioned, you want reservations. Especially if there’s a time you like to eat. A lot of restaurants are small, no bar, and hours aren’t as extensive as in the US. You can usually find alternatives, of course, but ime those are places you don’t want to eat, like tourist oriented restaurants on the main drags.

Easy way to make reservations, especially in English, is The Fork/La fourchette, now part of Trip Advisor and in my brief experience quite efficient. Its website may ask for your hotel telephone number, and often solicits remarks after the meal. I reserved at one very good place somewhat away from my usual neighbourhoods, which did indeed phone on the morning to confirm the reservation. I could see why; it was tiny, and needed to fill every seat.

Yes, the Fork is very useful. You can search by restaurant type, review rating, etc., see pictures, read reviews, get lists of similar nearby restaurants, and, of course, make reservations. As a bonus, some of the restaurants give discounts for reservations made through the Fork, and the discount (restrictions apply) is (usually) made automatically on the bill.

Our favorite Michelin restaurants have always been the one-stars: wonderful food in a somewhat relaxed atmosphere as a rule.

I wanted to add Restaurant David Toutain. I have not yet been but will definitely go soon. Everyone who goes loves it.

Thanks for everyone's comments. I am very familiar with The Fork but am a Yelp girl, personally.

I'll take a look into some of the restaurants recommended.

We spent two weeks in Italy recently and I am assuming that hours are similar...ie. 7-10 or so. Aka. short time frame combined with small restaurants.

If you arrive at 7 you are likely to be the only one in the restaurant. I usually book for 8 and it's not surprising to see people showing up at 10.

Belinda, I went to lunch at David Toutain solo a few years ago (2015?). Really good experience in terms of food and service at that time. Go do some recon!

Just wandering around perusing menus is a pretty bad idea for Paris. So many places serve really bad food at unwarranted prices. If a place can seat you at the last minute, chances are it's not very good, just trying to take advantage of tourist dollars. Even reserving the day of is a better idea than not doing anything at all. The good places fill up.

If you don't know French food (and it sounds like you don't), then spending money on a starred restaurant is not a very good idea. Many places get stars for the inventiveness on how they depart from traditional French cuisine. Many have a Japanese influence, which is quite fashionable right now.

My only recent experience in Paris is Domaine de Lintillac. Tradiitonal Perigord cuisine at surprisingly low prices. They have their own farm in the southwest of France. Go for the cassoulet, confit de canard with pommes salardaise, pate de monbazaillac.

I surely will, Leely. I'll consider it my obligation (and honor)!