Steak tartare is hand-chopped raw beef seasoned at the table with capers, cornichons, shallot, egg yolk, mustard and Worcestershire. Served with a green salad and a heap of hand-cut frites.
Where to eat it: 5 restaurants across 1 city.
Steak tartare became a Parisian bistro classic in the early 20th century; Larousse Gastronomique 1938 records the dish in its modern form (the apocryphal Tatar-warriors-under-saddle story is invention). The hand-chopped version (couteau, not minced) is the canonical preparation; the mixed-at-the-table service style (waiter chops shallots, capers, egg yolk, hot sauce, Worcestershire and seasoning into the meat before plating) is the Parisian bistro signature. Le Comptoir du Relais in the 6e keeps the tableside chop; Bistrot Paul Bert and Le Cinq Mars both plate hand-chopped versions every lunch. The dish is a barometer of bistro quality; if the kitchen will not hand-chop, walk out.
Common allergens: Egg, Gluten
Tip from the editors. Buy the freshest fillet from a butcher who knows you are eating it raw; same-day primal cut. Nervous? Freeze 14 days at -18C; parasites die, no texture loss.
Bistrot Paul Bert is Paris's textbook bistro: zinc bar, chalkboard menu, steak frites cooked rare with hand-cut fries, île flottante for two on a single.
Signature: Steak frites, Île flottante
Order: Steak frites cooked saignant, île flottante for two, a pichet of house red.
Tip: Closed Sunday and Monday. Book two weeks ahead for a weeknight or take the 19:30 first seating.
Yves Camdeborde's Le Comptoir du Relais in Paris helped invent the term bistronomie in the 1990s and still serves the dining-room version every weeknight.
Signature: Pâté en croûte, Têtes de veau
Order: The pâté en croûte for two and whatever offal main is on the chalkboard.
Tip: Lunch and weekend service runs walk-in; dinner Mon-Fri needs a booking six weeks out.
Le Cinq Mars in Paris's 7e plates a €24 weekday lunch set: endive salad with Roquefort, plat du jour, dessert. The same kitchen runs the €60 dinner carte.
Try: Lunch set
Tip: Lunch is open to walk-ins; arrive at 12:30 to skip the gallery crowd that fills by 13:00.
Le Bon Georges in Paris's 9e cooks farmer-named meat and a tarte tatin worth ordering before the main: the kitchen prep includes a 12-hour rest on the apples.
Signature: Côte de bœuf, Tarte tatin
Order: Côte de bœuf for two from a named Limousin farm, tarte tatin with crème fraîche.
Tip: The wine list is small but well-chosen; ask the waiter rather than the sommelier.
Robert et Louise in Paris's 3e has grilled côtes de bœuf over an open log fire in the dining room since 1958. Booking required for the fireside tables.
Signature: Côte de bœuf grilled on log fire, Aligot
Order: Côte de bœuf for two grilled in the room, aligot from the Aubrac.
Tip: Two seatings only, 19:30 and 21:30. Closed Sunday. Sit close to the fire in winter.
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