30 editor picks across France.
30 french bistro restaurants worth the trip across France, editor-ranked. All cuisines in France.
Bertrand Grébaut's Septime in Paris remains the room every neo-bistro in the city compares itself to. Reservations open 21 days ahead and burn within an hour.
OrderThe cured mackerel starter and whatever fish is on the second course.
TipEasier on a Tuesday lunch than Friday dinner. Same kitchen, same wine, half the wait list.
La Mercerie in Marseille's 1er opened in 2018 from the Paris Popup trio Harry Cummins, Laura Vidal and Julia Mitton, a stripped-concrete room.
OrderThe set tasting; the kitchen reads as a tighter Septime cousin south of Paris.
TipClosed Sunday and Monday; book the terrace on Cours Saint-Louis for warm nights.
Raquel Carena cooks Argentine-French intuition food at Le Baratin, the Belleville room every Parisian chef calls their favourite when no one is listening.
OrderThe sweetbreads if they are on, and a glass from Philippe Pinoteau's natural list.
TipClosed Sunday and Monday, often Saturday too. Phone bookings only, no website.
Regain in Lyon's 1er sits at the foot of the Croix-Rousse slope, where the kitchen runs a Mediterranean-leaning author menu paired with the city's tighter.
OrderThe carte changes weekly, take the chef's tasting at lunch for value.
TipLunch is the easier seating; book the natural-wine pairing for the full effect.
Regain at the foot of the Croix-Rousse in the 1er is Benjamin Sanchez and Thomas Rolland's neo-bistro, with raw walls, globe lighting. Priced at €€€.
OrderThe panisse fries with black-olive powder and aioli, then the daily set.
TipLunch is the easier seating; lunch formulas €25-59, dinner menus €55-75.
La Mercerie in Marseille's 1er opened in 2018 from the Paris Popup trio Harry Cummins, Laura Vidal and Julia Mitton, a market-driven bistronomic tasting menu.
OrderThe set tasting; the kitchen reads as a tighter Septime cousin south of Paris.
TipClosed Sunday and Monday; the terrace seats are the prize on warm nights.
Gregory Marchand's Frenchie sits on Paris's Rue du Nil, the alley he and his suppliers turned into a four-shop street: bistro, bar, wine cellar.
OrderWhatever the bavette is dressed with that week, and the pavlova for dessert.
TipIf the bistro is booked, the Frenchie Bar à Vins across the alley takes walk-ups and runs the same kitchen.
Tomy Gousset's Tomy & Co in Paris's 7e earned a Michelin star in 2018 and still runs the seasonal kitchen everyone in the embassy quarter books for a long.
OrderSweetbreads in winter, pithivier of game in autumn, the soufflé to finish.
TipClosed Sunday and Monday. The five-course tasting at €98 is the deal of the room on weeknights.
Soif in Bordeaux's Saint-Pierre is Cecile Lambre and Nico Lefevre's natural-wine and small-plate bistro on Rue du Cancera, with around 350 low-intervention.
OrderPate en croute, Calf's head ravigote, Charcuterie boards
TipPull up a stool at the windowed wine collection; the chalkboard menu changes daily and runs until they sell out.
Symbiose in Bordeaux's Chartrons is the bistronomic dining room and speakeasy on Quai des Chartrons, run by four young partners with seasonal small plates.
OrderTasting menu, Sea-driven small plates, Speakeasy cocktails
TipBook the dinner sitting; the cocktail bar behind the bookshelf takes walk-ins only and stays open until 01:00.
Au Petit Raphaël is a couple-run bistro on Rue des Hauts Pavés in Nantes, careful cooking on regional produce at €27 for three courses at lunch.
OrderBeef tataki, Mushroom bisque
TipDinner happens only from Wednesday to Friday and runs €36 to €43; the Monday and Tuesday lunch is the cheaper entry point.
Bistrot d'Antoine on Rue de la Prefecture in Vieux Nice has cooked Armand Crespo's two storey neo bistrot since 2006 in the shell of a 1904 cafe.
OrderThe blackboard plat du jour; Crespo writes a new menu every day from the morning market.
TipClosed Sunday and Monday. Book at least three days ahead, even at lunch.
Bistrot d'Antoine in Vieux Nice is Armand Crespo's two storey neo bistrot from 2006 in the shell of a 1904 cafe, a Michelin Bib Gourmand for honest French.
OrderThe blackboard plat du jour; Crespo writes a new menu every day from the morning market.
TipClosed Sunday and Monday; book at least three days ahead even at lunch.
Tatiana and Katia Levha's Le Servan in Paris reads the seasonal-French rulebook through a Filipino lens. The dining room is loud, the menu changes weekly.
OrderWhatever short-rib or pork shoulder dish is on, with a glass of côtes-du-rhône.
TipLunch is a third of the price and almost as good as dinner. Booking opens 30 days out.
Iñaki Aizpitarte's Le Chateaubriand in Paris invented the modern neo-bistro tasting menu in 2006. A fixed five courses, no swap, runs €85 a head.
OrderThere is no a la carte. Trust the menu and order a bottle from the natural list.
TipBookings 09:00 the day prior; or take a 21:30 walk-in slot at the second seating.
Une Table a Deux in Toulouse's Carmes is Morgane and Nicolas's Bib Gourmand bistronomic room with French cuisine threaded with Korean and Malaysian.
OrderLine-caught hake, Grilled octopus, Beef with cherries and Madagascar pepper
TipThe 3 or 4-course lunch menu is the value entry; book at least a week ahead, the room is small and runs fully booked.
Le Chien de Pavlov in Bordeaux's Saint-Pierre is the cozy bistronomic room on Rue de la Devise with antique furniture, Tiffany lights and a market-driven.
OrderDaily market tasting menu, Seasonal small plates
TipSunday brunch from 11:30 is the easiest walk-in; the kitchen rewards diners who order the surprise menu over a la carte.
La Cape in Cenon, across the Garonne from Bordeaux's Bastide, is Nicolas Magie's bistronomic dining room with classic French luxury cuisine and a terrace.
OrderFoie gras, Pigeon, Souffle
TipOrder the souffle course for dessert; the tasting menu prices climb but the lunch formula stays under €50.
Chez Dupont on Rue Notre-Dame in the Chartrons is the rustic stone-walled neighbourhood bistro run by the same couple since 1988, with retro posters.
OrderDaily plat du jour, Magret de canard, Aquitaine cheese plate
TipContinuous service Monday-Saturday from 12:00-23:00; Sunday lunch only.
Bleu Canard is a long narrow canteen on Rue Pierre Mauroy in Lille, floral wallpaper and moleskine banquettes around Ryo Nakamura's market cooking.
OrderCrispy pork breast with white peach.
TipChildren get adapted portions and something to draw on, which is rare in a room cooking at this level.
Café Bellot on Rue Jeanne d'Arc in Lille is a neighbourhood bar and bistro in one, chalkboard plates at lunch and natural wine into the small hours.
OrderPotato croquettes stuffed with smoked trout, in trout roe cream.
TipLunch runs on reservation only. A Burgundy red starts around 7 euros a glass.
Brigand on Rue de l'Hôpital Militaire in Lille is blond wood and brick, a bistro of comfort cooking and natural wine run by a chef and sommelier pair.
OrderMussels in haddock cream, from the evening sharing plates.
TipLunch is a weekly menu at 25 to 30 euros. Evenings switch to plates built for sharing.
Becbec in Lyon's 3e is the small-plates room on Rue Paul Bert where a young couple runs the kitchen and a tight natural-wine cellar from a 12-cover counter.
OrderWhatever is on the daily chalkboard, with a glass of natural Beaujolais.
TipWalk-in only; arrive at 19:00 for a counter stool.
Becbec in Lyon's 3e on Rue Paul Bert is the 12-seat counter bistro where a young couple runs the kitchen and the tight natural-wine cellar by hand.
OrderWhatever is on the daily chalkboard; the cellar is the order.
TipWalk-in only; arrive at 19:00 for a counter stool.
Cinq Mains at 12 Rue Monseigneur Lavarenne in Vieux Lyon is the Saone-front table that Gregory Cuilleron runs with his brother Thibault, awarded a Michelin.
OrderThe €41 evening tasting set, paired by the half-glass with the natural Beaujolais.
TipOpen Tue-Sat lunch and dinner; book the €28 lunch a week ahead for the value play.
Lulu le Bistrot is Ludovic Pouzelgues's relaxed second room on the Île de Nantes, bistro classics and Vendée snails under six-metre ceilings.
OrderOeufs mimosa, Sole meunière, Gâteau nantais
TipThe €25 lunch is the value play; the house closes for summer congés from 15 August to 1 September.
Le Reflet, founded by Flore Lelièvre in 2016 in Nantes, staffs half its bistro team with people with Down syndrome, Luna Vicariot leading the kitchen.
OrderShort seasonal bistro card
TipBook ahead, the room is small and the project draws a loyal crowd; the seasonal card stays short and changes often.
Les Chants d'Avril is a 1950s corner bistro by Champ de Mars in Nantes, Christophe François's mystery menus set against Véronique's Loire cellar.
TipDinner happens only on Thursday and Friday; lunch menus start at €20, dinner runs €38 to €48.
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.
OrderThe pâté en croûte for two and whatever offal main is on the chalkboard.
TipLunch and weekend service runs walk-in; dinner Mon-Fri needs a booking six weeks out.
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.
OrderSteak frites cooked saignant, île flottante for two, a pichet of house red.
TipClosed Sunday and Monday. Book two weeks ahead for a weeknight or take the 19:30 first seating.
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