Paris restaurants where you don't need reservations
 

We have often found restaurants by observing diners at lunch when visible, and walking in to enquire about dinner that night. Usually they can give us a time to come back. This works just about anywhere in the world.

...but that is a good link. Lots of good ideas there!

that list doesn't make any sense. First, you don't need a reservation in most restaurants, but you may not be seated, of course. And a lot of those are just very cheap places that may even have takeout or cafes, so that goes without saying.

Some of them are inaccurate, otherwise. and others are just places that are open every day, a few that don't allow reservations, but that doesn't mean you'll get a seat there, of course.

But I go to many neighborhood restaurants in Paris where you don't need reservations, I rarely reserve. Out of curiosity, I looked at what they had listed for some of the quarters I stay in a lot, and they list the Petit Marguery in the 13th which is absurd. They are often very busy and you may not be seated without a reservation. YOu may, if you are lucky, of course, but that suggests they don't take them or you would never need one, which isn't true. As with any restaurant, it depends how busy they are and the time and day of the week.

The last time I made reservations as a precaution, the restaurant remained 80% empty throughout the entire evening, and it was a pretty good place.

Many restaurants I tried to visit you did need reservations.
Kerouac, you, yourself said you don't go to restaurants very much. You like to cook.
Christina, you rarely have anything nice to say.

There are very few restaurants in Paris where we dine that do not require a reservation, but thankfully you can generally do that early in the day for dinner, or the next day for lunch. As kerouac lives in Paris, the experience is difference for someone who only visits now and then. We have our favorites and always email them to make reservations when we will be in Paris, but we always leave time to explore new places.

"Christina, you rarely have anything nice to say" I have to agree. Christina is a single traveler who really doesn't fit into the mix of the average voyager.

Calmez-vous, folks. Categorical statements like "you always" or "you never" are demonstrably false since none of us is consistent enough for the adjective always to apply.

We also check out places at lunch for potential dinner reservations. Works for us and lets us see the place and menu on site and distance to walk from our hotel.

Not sure about many of these places but I have never (and I use the word advisedly) been in Fish or L'Epi Dupin when they weren't full with a waiting line. If you don't mind waiting for an inordinate amount of time, sure, you may not need reservations.