using "forks" for Paris reservations
 

I will be going to Paris this summer. I ran across a web site "Forks" which appears to offer some discounts. Is this useful? I don't plan on using my iphone (other than with wifi) while in Paris.

thx

We’er off to Paris next month after a 4 year absence and I’ve found that many restaurants now have online reservations. I’ve booked for 4 of our nights online on the restaurants website. I did some restaurant research over at hungryonion.org and checked out a bunch of online food people I trust. I think the Fork has been around for awhile and functions like an opentable reservation system. I just knew exactly where I wanted to eat so went to the restaurant directly. Of, course like everywhere there are a few places that don’t take reservations. We usually just show up at 7 when most restaurants in Paris open and get a spot. The actual residents eat much later!

I have used that for years, but the French site (La Fourchette). The discounts usually don't work for me.

FYI it is fork, not forks. If you are looking at some website named forks it is not the real one, maybe an imitator, I would avoid it.

Used these for reservations well before we went in the Fall. Never got discounts, but was easy to make reservations, which the Parisians will want confirmed day or so before. Easy and convenient.

The Fork or, especially the French version, was quite useful in our last visit to Paris. You can sort restaurants by type and location, some have nice discounts if you reserve via the site, and you don't need to speak/understand French over the phone. The restaurants also have reviews by recent users, plus menu prices for a selection of menu items. Google Translate will make la fourchette site usable. It has more information than the English version, too.

Just FYI, La Fourchette/The Fork is owned by TripAdvisor. It is widely used, and I use it many times (especially the app). It is very similar to OpenTable but more widely used in France, and with occasional discounts (especially down south in the offseason, off days, or off hours)

macdogmom, I would love to know which restaurants you have chosen. I will be in Paris this summer also. Thanks!

We’re staying in the haut Marais (3rd arrondissement) so most of the places I reserved are within walking distance. So far I have Parcelles, Bistrot Tournelles, Cho Cho and Kubri (in the 11th). May add on Le Servan or Double Dragon both in the 11th and Les Enfant du Marche a no reservation sitting at the counter place in the Marche des Enfants Rouge, a great covered market in the Marais. Also will try to check into Le Mary Celeste and Le Barav which are fun wine bar/drinks place with small plates.

We just got back from Paris last week and ate at two of the restaurants you mention- Kubri & Bistrot Des Tournelles. I highly recommend Kubri. It's a hip & trendy (and loud) but unlike here in the states the service was very friendly (a hip spot like that in my city would usually have servers who are too cool to smile). The menu when you go will likely be different then when we were there as it changes often but the labneh seems to always be available and is a must order in my opinion. Everything we had was good and I'd go again in a heartbeat.

We didn't love Bistrot Des Tournelles. It was one of two places we ate at in Paris that we wouldn't return to (the other being Juveniles). It was not bad at all (we both loved our deserts and my starter of pan fried mushrooms was great) but seemed overpriced (and overhyped). For example my husband had the steak au poivre and while he said it was the best sauce he'd had the steak itself wasn't as good as he'd had other places on our trip (and it was the most expensive one he had). Of course a lot of people seem to love it on the boards & Instagram so perhaps it was a bad night.

If you are willing to travel you might look at Les Canailles Menilmontant (I think I got it from the hungryonion boards), il bacaro (Italian with a Venetian touch as they say on their site) and Au Vieux Comptoir. We enjoyed our dinners at all of them. And we had a nice lunch just down the street from Bistro Des Tournelles at Bistrot de l’Oulette. We had some other great lunches as well but they were more casual like Aux Bons Crus & La Sifflotte or further from you like at Ripaille. But if in the area they are all worth visiting.

Interesting about Bistrot des Tournelles since that dish is what I was going to order. I love the steak au poivre at bistro Paul Bert in the 11th but had read so many negatives things I decided to not go back this year. Parcelles is getting a lot of attention and I’m excited about that place and Kubri sounds perfect (David Leibovitz favorite also). We’re not that interested in tasting menus and we like more casual and there’s definitely more of that in Paris than there was 10 years ago. I got a great list of places from Parnparis on the Hungry Onion board (he’s the expert on all things Paris and happily moved over from Chowhound when they closed down). My husband will be working during the day so we need places that don’t take alot of time to get to so I usually pick places within a 10-15 minute walk from where we are staying.

SF Carole on the HO France board was in Paris for 6 weeks and did amazing writes up of all the restaurants she went to and it’s definitely worth reading through to get ideas for all over the city. Here’s the first week.

https://www.hungryonion.org/t/our-fi...rre-sang/31783

That post is where I got the recommendation for Les Canailles Menilmontant actually.

Yes, she liked Parcelles and Chocho so that was two good recommendations. I’m annegrace on HO.

I've used Fork previously, discovered it when doing research through TripAdvisor. Found it easy to use.

We've used The Fork (and La Fourchette, the French version) successfully in Paris and Lyon a number of times. Never had a problem.

ssander