23 Best Places to Shop in France

Specializing in chocolate sculptures, pastries, and other sinful delights, this enchanting boutique is any chocolate lover's dream. Maverick chocolatier Michel Chaudun was a legend around Paris. Trained at the Maison du Chocolat, the master confectioner was the very first to strike out on his own, long before Paris became a chocolate mecca. He was also the first to introduce granules of cocoa bean into his chocolates to achieve a rich intensity. In 2015, Chaudun passed the baton to Gilles Marchal, who has more than upheld the standard.

The artisan-chocolate master is famous for her pralines (made with fine nuts and ganache), sourced chocolates, delicate flavored chocolate squares with seasonal fillings (cinnamon, mint, lavender, rose, ginger), and other confections. Everything is stylishly packaged, too, so it’s a great place for gifts.

Fancy chocolates are a specialty of the Basque Country, and you can sample some at this store that is also a workshop. Before you decide which kind to take home, go on a tour (€6.80) to watch chocolates being made by the chefs and try some samples.

Some say Bernachon is the best chocolaterie in France. It's a family business that proudly passes the torch from father to son.

With a stunning selection of artisanal chocolate, Bouillet is paradise for chocoholics. It also has stores at 14 rue des Archers and 3 rue d'Austerlitz.

The wide range of gourmet confections made daily here include flavored ganaches, pralines, chocolate-covered almonds or citrus peel, and nougat.

This family of gourmet chocolatiers specializes in elegant versions of local bonbons (Calissons d’Aix, nougats, candied fruit). They use native ingredients (lavender, almonds, Menton lemons, Venasque cherries) to flavor and perfume their single-origin chocolates, truffles, and chocolate-covered nuts and citrus rind.

Founded in 1800, this Parisian chocolatier rose to fame for providing “health chocolates” to Marie-Antoinette (now sold as Pistoles de Marie-Antoinette) and was soon the sole supplier of sweets to the French kings and aristocracy. The Rue des Saints-Père flagship—designed by the architects to Napoléon—may be a classified historic monument but it’s brushed off its fussy image, unveiling a chic range of chocolates to accompany cocktails. Delightful illustrated cards are found inside every chocolate box featuring famous clients, from Marcel Proust to Sonia Rykiel. And you’ll still find their signature Croquamandes (chocolate-covered almonds), truffles, candied chestnuts, and sublime fruit jellies.

The master chocolatier has inhabited this lovely 19th-century boutique since 1977, and has remained the city's top pastry and chocolate maker. Look for traditional Breton cakes, like the Armoricain, Amandine, or boat-shaped barquettes filled with chestnut cream flavored with rum and covered in dark chocolate.

The originator of the renowned caramel au beurre salé, Henri Le Roux pairs a Breton pedigree with Japanese flair. Brilliant confections result.

Genin offers great chocolate: not too sweet, with handpicked seasonal ingredients for the velvety ganaches. The tea salon is a great spot to sample one of Genin's masterful takes on classic French pastries and a voluptuous chocolat chaud.

Master chocolate-maker Jean-Charles Rochoux has several superb collections of artisanal chocolates. His seasonal and holiday sculptures are most impressive with original works for Valentine's Day, Easter, and other chocolate-centric holidays. If you love chocolate-covered strawberries, hit the shop on a Saturday morning. Otherwise, treat yourself to a classic box of everyday favorites.

Forty masterful varieties of chocolate and some of the best pastries in Paris earned Jean-Paul Hévin his world-class chocolatier status. Devotees will be pleased to know that there are several other outposts in the capital, including one nearby at 108 rue St-Honoré. The all-chocolate tartlet is a must.

Although he's known for his creamy ganaches, Joël Durand also offers a range of gourmet chocolates, nut creams, and toffees, as well as marmalades made in Provence from tree-ripened fruit.

You might just be lucky enough to arrive at this old town artisanal chocolaterie on a day when you can watch the confections being made by hand. Specialties include delicately perfumed ganache-filled chocolates, calissons, and chocolate bars laden with dried fruit and nuts.

Less artisanal than the other chocolate shops in this neighborhood, the silky ganaches still have subtlety and flavor. See the website for a full list of Paris locations.

The venerable house of Henri Auer has been selling chocolate and candied fruit since 1820.

At this family-owned confectioner, renowned for Provençal sweets since 1948, you can sample all the regional favorites, including candied fruits (a specialty of the Vaucluse since Roman times), cakes and small pastries, chocolates, calissons d’Aix, guimauves (flavored marshmallows), and more. The charming on-site café also serves tea or coffee, along with savory lunch dishes.

Michel Belin's chocolate delights are deservedly famous.

Paris's bad-boy chocolatier likes to shock with provocative shapes and wicked humor, but it all tastes sinfully good. He designs every detail in his shops, including the presentation tables and futuristic decor. The Boulevard St-Germain shop, his very first, is one of three in the neighborhood and seven citywide. The other two nearby are at  19 rue de Sevres and  2–4 pl. St-Sulpice.

Sourcing his star ingredient from independent farmers, Pierre Marcolini proves it's all in the bean. His specialty saveurs du monde ("flavors of the world") collection of Belgian chocolates are each made with a single cacao from a single location, such as Madagascar or Ecuador—thus, each has a distinct flavor.

Founded in 1925 by Joseph Richart, these fine chocolates have evolved into tiny works of art, now created by the founder's son and grandson. As the name implies, each tiny square of Richart chocolate is a colorful piece that dazzles the eye and elevates the palate. 

For the famous chocolate coussins (pillows), check out Voisin. The confections have become so popular that there are now eight shops in Lyon, including one at 11 place Bellecour, right next to the main tourist office.