French regional€€Vieux-LilleWed 19:00-22:00; Thu-Sat 12:00-14:00 and 19:00-22:00; Sun 12:00-14:00; closed Monday and Tuesday
L'Estaminet Lillois on Rue de la Barre in Lille pours around twenty regional beers and cooks carbonade, potjevleesch and chicken in maroilles.
Signature: Poulet maroilles, Welsh pain d'épices
Order: The welsh made with pain d'épices instead of plain bread.
Tip: Closed Monday and Tuesday. Wednesday is dinner only and Sunday is lunch only.
Seafood€€Lille-CentreDaily 12:00-15:00 and 19:00-22:00
Aux Moules de Lille works Place Rihour in Lille as a mussels-and-frites brasserie, with oysters, prawns and seafood platters alongside the pots.
Signature: Moules-frites, Plateau de fruits de mer
Order: Moules-frites, which is the reason the room exists.
Tip: Mussels are best from September onward. The kitchen also runs daily specials and a vegetarian plate.
French€€Lille-CentreMon-Tue 11:45-14:00; Wed-Sat 11:45-14:00 and 18:45-21:30; Sun 11:45-14:00
Au Quai du Wault looks onto the old dock basin in Lille, a 28-cover room with a 32-seat terrace serving regional and traditional plates from 15 euros.
Signature: Plat du jour, Regional produce plates
Order: The plat du jour, chalked up each morning.
Tip: Dinner runs Wednesday to Saturday only. The terrace is the reason to come.
French bistro€€GambettaMon-Thu 11:45-22:00; Fri-Sat 11:45-22:30; Sun 11:45-22:00
Les Casseroles Lilloises hangs hundreds of pans from its ceiling on Rue Solférino in Lille, cooking bourguignon, duck parmentier and tête de veau.
Signature: Tête de veau sauce gribiche, Parmentier de canard
Order: Tête de veau with gribiche, if you want the bistro classic done straight.
Tip: The kitchen runs non-stop from 11:45, which is rare in Lille.
French€€Vieux-LilleMon 12:00-15:00 and 18:30-22:00; Tue 12:00-15:00 and 18:30-22:30; Wed-Sat 12:00-15:00 and 18:30-23:00; Sun 11:30-15:00 and 18:30-21:30
L'Arrière Pays on Rue Basse in Lille builds open-faced sourdough tartines and regional plates, with a lunch formula that still lands under 14 euros.
Signature: Tartine en boîte, Regional cheese boards
Order: The tartine en boîte, cured ham under melted camembert with walnuts and raisins.
Tip: Two tartines run 10.90 euros and three run 12.90, which is about the cheapest sit-down lunch on this stretch of Vieux-Lille.
French bistro€€Bois-BlancsMon 12:00-22:30; Tue-Thu 12:00-23:00; Fri-Sat 12:00-23:30; Sun 10:45-22:00, non-stop
Péniche Archimède is a moored barge on the Deûle by the Esplanade in Lille, serving generous bistro plates with the water on both sides of the room.
Signature: Plat du jour, Bistro plates
Order: Whatever the day's plate is, eaten on deck.
Tip: Sunday opens at 10:45, earlier than anywhere else on this list.