Paris restaurants in the 14th / Montparnesse area
 

We usually stay in the 7th and have several favorites we may take the metro to but we might also like to try something new near where we will be staying on this trip in Montparnesse. Not too pricey (prix fixe? 25E?), not trendy, just traditional French favorites. Merci

No charm but delicious fish: La Criee, 54, Boulevard Montparnasse

Great charm of a different kind and delicious food, Chez Bebert, 71, Boulevard Montparnasse. This is a large Moroccan restaurant that is usually packed with French families. Large portions of well-prepared couscous and tagines. The charm is in watching the French doing their thing.

We really enjoyed Parnasse 138 where we had dinner last Fall. Very reasonable prices, reservation is a must. The following was what I wrote in my trip report:

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Dinner We ate at Parnasse 138, which is listed as a favorite in Pudlo guide. We had a reservation for 8pm (we asked the hotel staff to call for us earlier in the day) and were seated promptly. I don't think we could have gotten in without a reservation as the place was full even though it was a Monday night. It definitely is more popular than many other restaurants that we walked past. They offer serveral menus of various prices, ranging from €15 to €23.

DH had french onion soup, followed by sliced duck breast w/potato au gratin and hericot vert. I started with a smoked salmon over risotto, then calamari Provencale style. The food plus 25cl wine and 2 coffees came out to just €46. The food was very good and the price was right.

Parnasse 138
138, Boulevard du Montparnasse, 75014

We have enjoyed La Coupole and Le Select, though we have only had breakfast at Le Select -- they have a very good, reasonably priced prix fixe menu that includes a croissant, portion of baguette, tea or coffee & orange juice. We enjoyed it enough to go back two more times. We have also gone to the creperies in Montparnasse a couple of times and enjoyed them both. The first one we went to was the Crêperie Saint-Malo located at 53, Rue Montparnasse, but our favorite was Crêperie de Josselin, located at 67, rue du Montparnasse. There were more creperies on that street.

Um, we thought Chez Bebert was the worst Moroccan restaurant we'd ever been to (and we've been to a lot). Overpriced, underspiced, totally ho-hum flavors, and waiters who just wanted you to hurry up, eat, and get out of there. Its location also kind of screams tourist, too.

La Coupole is a classic, and overpriced because of it. One goes there for the history and to say one's done it. The food is good, but not remarkable.

To add to your list: La Closerie des Lilas, Le Dome (great seafood), L'Epi Dupin, and Le Chaméléon.

Thanks for the tip on Parnasse 138 -- sounds great.

If you like creperies, the Montparnasse area is replete with them. My favorite is Josselin, 67 rue du Montparnasse (not to be confused with Boulevard du . . . ), but not the best place if you don't like crowded and noisy (I do, so I'm good to go!).

I would highly recommend La Cerisaie @ 70 boulevard Edgar Quinet and Les Fils de la Ferme @ 5, rue Mouton-Duvernet. You could get meals at both within your budget.

THANK YOU for the suggestions (referring to a recent post, I don't always post a thank you but I do always check back). I spent the evening looking at some of the websites for the suggestions - I'll have a tough time choosing for a meal or two.

There's an excellent range of restaurants in this area. We particularly liked La Rotonde (105, Boul. Montparnasse). La Coupole across the road looked much more touristy IMHO, with lots of tour buses dropping off and collecting groups from the restaurant.

Another famous local institution is Le Relais de l'Entrecôte (101, Boul. Montparnasse). The menu is as "prix fixe" as you could possibly imagine! Every diner gets the same salad starter then steak frites with their famous sauce - that's all they do. Only dessert and of course the wine is individually selectable. An unusual but enjoyable experience.

For fish, the Bistrot du Dome on rue Delambre, across the street from the much more expensive Le Dome.

Suec1 - We had a lovely relaxed lunch at Chez Papa in the 14th. The nice thing is it was close to Rue Daguerre and that too has a lot of nice places to eat!

Here you go:http://www.chez-papa.info/

Ah, St Cirq, please read more carefully. I did not suggest that Chez Bebert was an authentic Moroccan restaurant. I have certainly never seen a Moroccan there. It is probably to Moroccan food what Olive Garden is to Italian food and PF Chang's is to Chinese food in the US. If not authentic, it has not been my experience that the food was less than well-prepared or plentiful, and it fits well within the OP's price range, which La Coupole or Closerie des Lilas are not likely to do.

What I did emphasize, perhaps poorly, is that it is interesting because it is full of French families. As Robespierre has been showing us with photos, the French just refuse to act according to the way we think they should act. I suppose they should be wearing berets and tearing apart batards in bistros, and they do. Well, tear apart batards. But they also go to big inexpensive restaurants. Yes, of course, it is a tourist restaurant, but the tourists are French, not American or British. It has not been my experience that either they or I felt in any way rushed by staff, even on a holiday. God help any waiter who tried to rush a French family out with grandmere for a treat! :-)

I can recommend Le Bal Bullier, catty corner from the lovely Port Royal RER station. We had an early dinner there and the other patrons were mostly regulars from all appearances. I had a lovely duck with wine and plum sauce and my sister had a nice roast chicken. The server was very pleasant and the prices were modest, less than 20 Euros each.

Le Chaméléon closed about two years ago - it was a favorite of both me and DW. Would love to know who took over the space and if they kept the original bar, ceiling, etc.

I too would pass on La Coupole for the reasons St. Cirq mentioned. Eh.

Also want to second the La Closerie des Lilas rec: great food/service/wine and a drop dead gorgeous place. Expensive.
http://www.closeriedeslilas.net/closerie_fr.html

Just saw your price range - You should definately explore Rue Daguerre - a block south of the Montparnasse Cemetary. It's packed with restaurants and just outside the heavy tourists zone. It should be easy to find places that fit your needs there.

But Ackislander, the food's bad. I don't care who's eating there. You can find "authentic" French people in restaurants all over Paris without having to stomach bad food and suffer poor service.

Agree with rue Daguerre for lots of options.

I'm sorry to hear about Le Chaméléon. Now that was a place packed with French locals that delivered.

I stayed a few blocks from Montparnasse in December.

The first night I had Moules Mariniere and a beer at Leon de Brussels on the corner of Blvd. Montparnasse and Rue du Montparnasse. Cost €21. It is a chain but good.

The second night I had couscous and a split of Pinot Noir at Chez Bebert. It was fantastic. More than anyone could eat. I was not rushed out. € 33.20.

The next night it was restaurant Montparnasse 1900 across the boulevard from the shopping center on Blvd. Montparnasse. This is a classic beautiful place. I did it up with oysters and steak with wine. The steak was still bleeding. They recooked it, but then way overdone. Service was poor. Bring a whistle. But the price was a bargain, €33.

Out of the neighborhood but easily reached.
I bought picnic fixings -- wine, cheese, meat, salad, and bread -- at the stores at Place Maubert, then ate in my room.
Lunched one day at the BHV cafe, Rue de Rivoli. Good buffet. Great department store.

Bookmarking for my trip in October - I'll be staying in Montparnasse, too. Glad to see these suggestions.

Forgot this very good one:
Right on the Metro stop Alesia is the corner restaurant Le Zeyer, 62 Rue Alesia. It's a large brasserie with continuous service as far as I'm aware.
You could easily walk up Avenue du General Leclerc from Rue Daguerre.