Paris Restaurants Where they don't serve everything swimming in cream sauce, drenched in butter or stuffed with cheese?
 

Can't wait for our 20th anniversary celebration in Paris in September, but after reading the raves about favorite restaurants, I am nervous that my husband won't find one thing he can eat -- he can't tolerate cheese, cream, butter (or any other richly prepared foods). Will we be able to find simple but tasty grilled fish and meats, or if we ask for them without cream or butter sauce, will they look at us like we are crazy (or worse, ugly americans)?

I think you'd find that a lot of, shall we say, "ordinary" French folks do not routinely eat the sorts of "rich foods" that travelers seem to rave about...at least not to the extent that might be suggested by trip reports, etc.

Nobody is going to perceive you to be an "ugly" anything but I suspect you are on the right track by trying to find out the kinds of places where a wide(r) variety of food preparations and types might be employed.

I'll be interested to read the sort of reactions you get to this one.

We just came back from France in the beginning of July. I am also sensitive to fat and cream, but not lactose intolerant. Almost the entire time I had indigestion. The food was very rich and high in fat.....tasted good though. If you ask for no gravy when ordering, that may help. But we ordered a grilled steak and it came with a huge glob of butter sitting on top. ICK. Don't worry about looking stupid, just ask for what you want. Salads were good.

Thanks! I am also going to contact the concierge at our hotel, for advance recommendations of restaurants where we will find the types of food that my husband can eat, and I'll post if I get any recommendations from them.

Hi Barbara,

Where will you be staying? Perhaps we can help with suggestions.

Keep in mind every ethnic food known is available in Paris. I already have on my list for possible choice a Tibetan, Eygptian and Morrocan restaurant, for our trip this fall.

Look for restaurants that specialize in the cuisine of Provence (and therefore more use of olive oil than cream or butter), such as Bastide Odeon in the 6th and Chez Janou in the 3rd. Avoid any place that focuses on the cuisine of Normandy or the Auvergne.

Places that have the word "Rotisserie" in their names (such as "Rotisserie D'en Face) will have dishes that are grilled or spit-roasted and not too complicated. And there are plenty of places that specialize in simple preparations of seafood (Le Dome, L'Arbuci, Fish).

If it's a spontaneous visit, not a restaurant that you need to reserve ahead of time, check out menus before you enter. You will almost always be able to find a simple roasted chicken or steak. A lot of restaurants have sample menus on the Internet now (Auberge Nicolas Flamel, L'Impasse) so you can check them out before you go and see if there's anything your husband can eat.

This is great, thank you. In fact we love almost every type of ethnic food, and in my email to the concierge at our hotel, the D'Aubusson (chosen at the recommendation of contributors to this board), I asked for ethnic restaurant recommendations, as well as those serving grilled fish and meats.

If your husband must avoid certain ingredients, and you don't speak French, you might want to ask the concierge at your hotel to write an instruction to the waiter that you can show when ordering. It can be as simple as "no sauces, please".

If you're not planning to reserve in advance of your arrival, you can make your dining choices by reading the menus posted outside each restaurant to be sure there's something that will work for you.

In very general terms, brasseries will have seafood platters with no sauces and less elaborate preparations than will restaurants. Traditional bistros will serve richer foods than more "modern" ones. Grilled meats may come with butter on top, but again, you can ask that it be left off or removed. Cafés will have salads, sandwiches and omelets.

French people also have dining preferences, restrictions, and diets, and asking for a reasonable accommodation isn't crazy. Just do it politely. You'll be fine and will enjoy your trip.

If you let us know where you'll be staying and some of your favorite foods, we might be able to offer specific suggestions.

Hi Barbara,

Not far from your hotel on the Rue de Buci, the Rue Seine and the Blvd St Germaine are uncounted Greek and Italian restaurants.

Vesuvio, 1 Rue Gozlin (Across Boul St Germain from the church) is a very good Italian restaurant with a wood-burning pizza oven.

If you like mussels, go to
Léon de Bruxelles, 131 bd St Germain

Also look at the Flo Brasseries. If you reserve online you get 20% off your total bill.

http://www.flobrasseries.com/en/

Wonderful, thank you so much.

I honestly can't remember the last time I had a plat in Paris that was creamy and cheesey--EXcept, of course, onion soup. Roast meats, braised lamb, foie gras, cassoulet,roast chicken, duck confit, eggplant, salade, mussels, fish, skate, calves liver. La Florimond, Bistrot du 7eme, Clos des Gourmets, La Fontaine de Mars, La Coupole.

By chance we ate at a lovely place called Bouillon Racine off St Mich, where their specialty preparation was fish, poultry, etc. in broth in a bowl with vegetables (maybe obvious to some from by the name of the place, but I didn't realize until after the wonderful meal).

Also, keep an eye out for places serving meals in the "Montignac" style--this means no sauces, simply prepared and lots of steamed veg (no pommes frites), named after chef and author Michel Montignac. Sounds similar to Atkins to me, although I imagine there might be some differences.

We agree about the richness of French food, and generally prefer Provencal or Italian. For a good Italian meal, go to Mezza Luna in the St. Germain area (I think it's on Boul' St. Mich). We especially loved their arugala pizza.

Well my dear as for being perceived as an "ugly American", if you're ugly that's a label that cannot be shaken off regardless of race.

As for being American - stop being so tied up about it, people really couldn't give a damn about your race - most people in France and indeed the entire European continent, aren't racist!

I agree with Gretchen, few restaurants serve the rich creamy sauces anymore.
Those were popular way back;time have changed French cooking.

Its great to know that my husband will be able to find plenty to eat, but frankly, I wasn't so sure of that as I read a lot of the trip reports posted on this site, raving about the creamy this and that. So I am glad I asked, and thanks for the constructive replies. And MKingdom, sorry if you twisted my statement -- that was a bit of a stretch of what I said, wasn't it. Guess you just had to blow off steam and vented it in my direction.

If your husband can't tolerate rich foods, things like foie gras and cassoulet should be on the "not!" list. I second the recommendation for searching out restaurants that do Provençal food, which tends to be on the light side--rarely do you see cream and butter. A good restaurant for that is Les Olivades, in the 7th.

Barbara, I wonder if your impression might be due in part to what people choose to post about? For instance I might rave over a creamy rich something French I'd had 1 night, but less likely to bother mentioning the nice roasted chicken or broiled fish I had the other 9 nights.

Hello
In all restaurants called "Courtepaille" for example, you can find meat only on the grill (excellent travers de porc). It's simple, good, and not expensive.
Bye and have a good trip in Paris

LOL, I am reading this and wishing I were in Paris so I could have something drenched in butter :)

We enjoyed many a seafood dinner in Paris, with no sauce, just the good broth of the fish and wonderful vegetables.
They make chicken in all restaurants that is roasted off the bone.
There is no shortage of places to have good food any way you like it.
Bon Appetit!

Does this mean no creme brulee? Ouch!! I go to Paris in search of the best creme brulee. ((a)) ((b))

Highly suggest Le Grand Cafe near the old Opera house...they don't cook in butter--they use olive oil, which is more the Southern (healthier) syle. They have a website you can check out...Legrandcafe.com.

Happy anniversay.

Barbara, after reading MKingdom (that would be in his own mind, I guess)'s less than rational reply, I looked for what he might have been imagining and looked for "race". Give him a break--as in, just don't bother to read his stupid replies. It wasn't a "stretch"--it was a major brain f___t. To get back to your need for "plain" food. The restaurants we love have WONDerful food--no sauces, etc. You're gonna love it. Oh, and we also celebrated our 20th in Paris a number of years ago (that would be another 20)--with our then teenagers. It is the "china" anniversary and we celebrated by buying a set of china at Villeroy&Boch near the Madeleine. Not that you need to do that but think about a memorable piece of china to commemorate your anniversary.
We will celebrate our 40th this October with those same teenagers and their spouses--in Paris--for a week.

Barbara,
Sometimes m_kingdom goes way too far and this was just an example of not having to be an American to be Ugly.

The French love to cook, they love to talk about food and of course, they love to eat it. The waiters are usually very good at their jobs and I have to say that , as an American who does not eat red meat, I have never had a problem in any restaurant, no matter how many stars, or if it was just a cafe.
They go about food in a much more serious and dedicated manner.
I think you will be pleasantly surprised to find how much there will be for you to eat.
Your neighborhood is perfect, as someone has already mentioned, rue de Buci is nearby, food wherever you turn !
There is a place called Leon nearby where you can get mussels any way you like.
Have you a list of restaurants? If you would like, let's see it and we can give you our opinions..because there is nothing a true Fodorite loves more than giving opinions LOL
((F)) Scarlett

Thank you everyone, now I am going to compile my list with your excellent recommendations -- we do love most ethnic food, seafood, meat (try to avoid red meat, but not totally) veggies, and desserts -- again, no cream (yes, that means no creme brulee, Budman, although I may well have to double my indulgence to compensate for his inability), and will post it for comments. I've also poured over the "100 Great Things to do I Paris" - or something to that effect- post, and am compiling proposed itinerary, which also will include a (very long) day trip to Normandy (Bayeaux?) to see WWII sites.

Gretchen, double congrats to you for reaching 40 years together indeed worthy of celebrating with your entire family. And that is a wonderful suggestion to purchase a special piece of china. For this celebration, we are leaving our teens home (with grandmere)as our trip is during the first month of the school year.

Barbara: We found the best salads at "pizzarias". Well, at least one, where we ate lunch several times. It's in Rue des Canette just off plaza St. Sulpice---not far from you---behind Cafe Marie.

Unfortunately, your husband will probably have to pass on sidewalk crepe vendors. One of my favorite memories of Paris is of a cold, rainy afternoon. We stood under our inadequate umbrellas with those hot drippy ham and cheese crepes....mmmmmm. Don't miss this small pleasure.

I'd just quibble a bit about cassoulet being on the "not" list. What's not healthy about it--beans, duck, lamb. No cheese, milk. And while foie gras is "rich" in a different sense, it has no cheese or cream associated with it.

Hi
I lurk about here a lot and I don't recall seeing a lot of trip reports about food swimming, drenched, or stuffed. Yes, occasionally someone mentions a rich dish, but the stereotypes about French food are just not current. For every menu item that is richly sauced, there are usually at least two simply grilled or broiled items, and wonderfully prepared veg or salads. And many of the 'rich' sauces are simply reductions of natural juices, perhaps with a splash of wine for flavor--not as many uses of cream or butter in sauces as there were, say, 30 years ago.


If a sauce is mentioned and you're hesitant about what's in it, you can always ask for it plain. Or better yet, order something else, as that particular dish may not be flavorful enough if it was meant to go with a sauce.
Enjoy your trip.

Well, I admit that "swimming, drenched and stuffed" may have been hyperbole to grab someone's attention, but nevertheless, I have been searching for a few days on this site for restaurant recommendations, and the lion's share mentioned favorite meals with cream, cream sauce and/or cheese. We are well experienced in asking waiters to describe preparations and to eliminate cream, butter sauce and cheese, but in order to maximize the meal choices for my DH in a city with world-renowned restaurants, we'd prefer to go restaurants where he won't have to settle for something that has to be stripped of flavorful additives. We tend to avoid most French restaurants in the DC area because we've had some bad experiences (not that the food was not very tasty, but just too rich -- so please no flaming on that remark). We've had no trouble in England, Spain, Italy, Greece, but in Austria and in CZ, it was more difficult. Now I know we won't have any trouble in Paris, and that is a relief. While some may think this is no big deal, believe me, it has the potential to ruin a trip.

Gretchen, beans are a very healthy source of fiber and protein, so you probably shouldn't include them in the list of "unhealthy" items in cassoulet.
Of course, if you eat too many, it might be unhealthy for your neighbor :-<

You could try as well the Bastide de L'Odéon - very near to the jardins de luxembourg. The food is provencal style and the atmosphere is lovely. I was with French friends but I noticed that the staff were very friendly and helpful towards the English and American customers. Its a nice place for a special occasion.

Hey, Travelnut, you definitely need to read my post more carefully. I am rebutting the post by Underhill who says cassoulet is NOT healthy. I am saying the opposite.

BarbaraF

Don't pass up the crepes - I have a similar problem as your hubby, but always have had the crepes with a sprinkle of powdered sugar and a squeeze of fresh lemon or lime...mmmmmmm!!

I didn't say that cassoulet wasn't healthy, just that for someone who needs to avoid rich foods the duck confit and goose fat typically used in the dish would probably not be a good idea.

I hate beating a dead horse but cassoulet is a hearty peasant stew that is sublime when done well. Confit is not fatty. Beans are healthy. There may be some fat in the crumb topping. Have you ever looked at the recipe or made it?

Barbara, I understood your OP to have a touch of hyperbole in it... and I can commiserate with your husband on the dairy issue. I gave up all dairy (and chocolate) about 15 months ago when my newborn started showing signs of a dairy allergy in my milk. It was the hardest thing to do since I LOVE LOVE cheese. I have added back in a few things like yogurt and a cookie here or there and noticed now that I can barely tolerate milk or butter myself. But there's no way I won't be eating croissants in the morning, and I can't wait to get to the fromagerie at Buci market and grab some yummy funky smelly cheeses.

I second the idea of eating in Provencal restaurants... Bastide D'Odeon is a great one. And I'll try Les Olivades as someone here recommended. And I wish I could remember the name of this little place I stumbled on near St Sulpice... a little tiny place that had a few seats upstairs and exposed beam ceilings... nothing fancy. it was on a tiny street with a dozen other little places. Looked a lot like locals eating there. But it was also provencal.

And I wanted to say, If your husband can't have dairy, just tell your server. They can make recommendations of what you might be able to order, though they may not make substitutions or changes to a specific dish. The French take their food seriously, but most of all they want you to enjoy it. So be adventurous, try new things, take your time, enjoy the meal and the wine and the company of your sweet husband, and you'll have a wonderful time.

There are other choices lik Nobu. the French Japaneese restaurants are very good.

skatterfly, are you thinking of rue des cannettes? I love walking past all of the different restaurants on that tiny street and trying to choose just one for dinner.