Hello!

Two part question:

1) I'll be in paris in two weeks, and was wondering if anyone could recommend a restaurant with a great view. Would love to find something with a view like La Tour D'Argent. Been searching these boards like crazy but couldnt come up with one that sounded right. Budget is around $200 Euro for 2 people (or less of course!!) I know its late to be making a reservation at a great place, but I know my fellow Fodorites will have some great suggestions!

2) If I wanted to spend an afternoon outside a cafe and just "take it all in" ... what cafe would you recommed? you can interpret that however you interpret it ... just let me know why you chose the one you did!

Thanks in advance for the help. (And thanks to all of you who's posts I have read and have already helped me plan my trip1! I cant thank you enough!)

If you are looking for a view and a nice little lunch go to the Printemps Department Store on Blvd Haussman to the 9th floor. There is a little self serve restaurant there and you can sit out on the terrace and it has amazing day views of Paris. There is also a fashion show every Tues at 10 am also. Would make a nice morning.

Isn't there a café at the top of the Musée d'Orsay?

I love the Cafe Marly in the courtyard of the Louvre. Very good food and unbelievable people-watching. Have fun!

There's a lovely restaurant in D'Orsay, but it has no real view (other than its own pretty interior). There is a cafe there too, more of a sandwich/salad cafeteria, but yes it has great views at very casual first come-first served tables.

Has anyone here ever eaten at the top of the Kenzo Building near Pont Neuf on the right bank? It's a place called Kong and looks fascinating, but I know nothing about it, other than probably too "trendy" for me and it is a spectacular dome room with spectacular views.

Cafe des Capucines, near the Opera Garnier, offers tables in an enclosed window area. They have good food, prices not bad, and you can order light food and desserts, or larger meals. However, seating is not outdoors.
In the Marais, an interesting and historic area, is Au Bistro de la Place, Place Marche St Catherine. Good food, great terrace, they serve practically all day starting at lunchtime, if you want a terrace table you should reserve.

Thank you for the tips everyone! Some great suggestions I'll add to my list. If anyone else wants to add, please feel free!

Chez Francis on Place de l'Alma. Has a view of the Seine and the Eiffel Tower. In nice weather, sit outside and enjoy the people watching, the twinkling tower, and the Seine.

www.chezfrancisparis.com

For your view make a lunch reservation at Jules Verne in the Eiffel Tower. Call now. I think the restaurant on the roof of Printemps or Galeries will be closed at this time of year maybe?

Wasn't the view at the rooftop café at the Orsay from the outside deck? That was closed last time we were there.

What about the restaurant at the top of the Tour Montparnasse?

Hi jay,

This was suggested by another poster:

Le Ziryab Rooftop resto In the Institute du Monde Arabe Very good views. +33 (0)1 53 10 10 16
Open 12:00 – 14:30, 19:30 – 21:30

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Thanks again everyone ... I'll make sure I post a trip report when I get back!!

Yes, the balconies of the Orsay have always been off limits when we have been there.

They do have great views from the outside deck at the Orsay and I've been out there when it wasn't closed. I don't know what balconies are being referred to, it's just a roof where I was. There are also views from that crowded cafeteria place in the Orsay, but just because it's inside and the windows aren't humongous, the views aren't that much. Of course, the best restaurant in there doesn't have any particular views, as Neapolitan says.

I don't know that I'd spend an entire afternoon in a cafe, but there are so many of them all over, and it kind of depends what neighborhood and kind of clientele you want to watch. Some of my favorites are the Rotonde, Select or Odessa in Montparnasse, the Phares in Bastille, Chez Francis around place d'Alma. I have some others but they're more off the beaten track. For St Germain, I guess maybe the Mandarin or Mabillon right on the blvd. are ones I might stop at, or the Bonaparte or Cafe de la Mairie if I get desperate, but I like cafes in St Germain that much because they are too crowded a lot of the time and it's too noisy and hectic around there for me (and expensive).

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Saving for my next trip. Thanks.