38 french bistro rooms in Paris we have eaten in, sorted by editor score. All cuisines in Paris | French Bistro across every city.

The bistro is the heart of how Paris eats: small rooms, a short chalkboard menu and a tight wine list, often passed between generations of cooks. The 11th arrondissement has become the modern centre of gravity for the form. Septime on Rue de Charonne and Le Chateaubriand on Avenue Parmentier lead the contemporary wave, while Bistrot Paul Bert nearby keeps the traditional style alive.

Septime ★ 4.8

French Bistro · €€€

11e · 80 Rue de Charonne, 75011 Paris

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.

Frenchie ★ 4.6

French Bistro · €€€

2e · 5-6 Rue du Nil, 75002 Paris

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.

Le Servan ★ 4.5

French Bistro · €€

11e · 32 Rue Saint-Maur, 75011 Paris

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.

Le Comptoir du Relais ★ 4.4

French Bistro · €€

6e · 9 Carrefour de l'Odéon, 75006 Paris

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.

Le Baratin ★ 4.7

French Bistro · €€

20e · 3 Rue Jouye-Rouve, 75020 Paris

Raquel Carena cooks Argentine-French intuition food at Le Baratin, the Belleville room every Parisian chef calls their favourite when no one is listening.

Bistrot Paul Bert ★ 4.4

French Bistro · €€

11e · 18 Rue Paul Bert, 75011 Paris

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.

Le Chateaubriand ★ 4.5

French Bistro · €€€

11e · 129 Avenue Parmentier, 75011 Paris

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.

Le Cinq Mars ★ 4.2

French Bistro · €€

7e · 51 Rue de Verneuil, 75007 Paris

Le Cinq Mars is the kind of Paris room a gallerist takes a writer to: red banquettes, chalkboard, an endive salad with Roquefort and walnuts that has not.

Chez Georges ★ 4.3

French Bistro · €€€

2e · 1 Rue du Mail, 75002 Paris

Chez Georges has run the same Paris bistro menu since 1964: sole meunière, oeufs en gelée, profiteroles. Located in 2E. Kitchen leans french bistro.

Le Bon Georges ★ 4.4

French Bistro · €€

9e · 45 Rue Saint-Georges, 75009 Paris

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.

Le Saint-Sébastien ★ 4.2

French Bistro · €€

11e · 42 Rue Saint-Sébastien, 75011 Paris

Le Saint-Sébastien is the Paris 11e wine-bar bistro that pours a tighter natural-wine list than its size suggests, with smoked herring and beef tartare.

Le Bistrot Flaubert ★ 4.3

French Bistro · €€

17e · 10 Rue Gustave Flaubert, 75017 Paris

Le Bistrot Flaubert in Paris's 17e is the Michel Rostang bistro annex now run by Nicolas Baumann and the Groupe Éclore team. Kitchen leans french bistro.

Tomy & Co ★ 4.6

French Bistro · €€€

7e · 22 Rue Surcouf, 75007 Paris

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.

Le Mermoz ★ 4.4

French Bistro · €€

8e · 16 Rue Jean Mermoz, 75008 Paris

Le Mermoz in Paris's 8e is the neighbourhood bistro chef Thomas Graham took over after Manon Fleury: a single chalkboard, fish-forward small plates at lunch.

Le Bistrot de Paris ★ 4.1

French Bistro · €€

7e · 33 Rue de Lille, 75007 Paris

Le Bistrot Paris in the 7e runs a classic carte where the lunch menu rotates daily and dinner stays close to the Lyonnais playbook. A regulars' room.

Le Petit Vendôme ★ 4.2

French Bistro · €

2e · 8 Rue des Capucines, 75002 Paris

Le Petit Vendôme in Paris's 2e makes the city's most-cited jambon-beurre and feeds the Place Vendôme jeweller staff at lunch from 11:30 every weekday.

Chez Paul ★ 4.0

French Bistro · €€

11e · 13 Rue de Charonne, 75011 Paris

Chez Paul in Paris's 11e has run a corner bistro at the same Charonne address since 1908. The carte changes by season; the bistro chairs do not.

Le Petit Cler ★ 3.9

French Bistro · €€

7e · 29 Rue Cler, 75007 Paris

Le Petit Cler in Paris sits on Rue Cler, the embassy market street, and runs an all-day bistro carte of croque-monsieur, steak frites and Lyonnais salads.

La Poule au Pot ★ 4.3

French Bistro · €€€

1er · 9 Rue Vauvilliers, 75001 Paris

La Poule au Pot in Paris's Les Halles cooks the Henri IV chicken-in-the-pot at its historical address. The menu of grand-mère bistro classics has not changed.

Le Relais de l'Entrecôte ★ 4.0

French Bistro · €€

6e · 20 Rue Saint-Benoît, 75006 Paris

Le Relais de l'Entrecôte in Paris's 6e runs one menu: salade aux noix, contre-filet steak, fries, secret-recipe butter sauce. No menus, no choice, no booking.

Le Petit Marché ★ 4.0

French Bistro · €€

3e · 9 Rue de Béarn, 75003 Paris

Le Petit Marché in Paris's 3e Marais is the locals' off-the-Place-des-Vosges bistro: an Asian-tilted twist on French staples, run by the same family.

La Rôtisserie d'Argent ★ 4.2

French Bistro · €€

5e · 19 Quai de la Tournelle, 75005 Paris

La Rôtisserie d'Argent in Paris is La Tour d'Argent's bistro annex on the Seine. The Bresse chicken comes off the rotisserie in the room, no a la carte.

Polidor ★ 3.9

French Bistro · €€

6e · 41 Rue Monsieur-le-Prince, 75006 Paris

Polidor in Paris has run a Latin-Quarter bistro at the same address since 1845. The carte still holds bœuf bourguignon, blanquette de veau, tarte tatin.

Chez Denise (La Tour de Montlhéry) ★ 4.3

French bistro · €€

5 Rue des Prouvaires, 75001 Paris

Chez Denise (La Tour de Montlhéry) in Paris's 1er is the all-night bistro that fed Les Halles porters until 1969 and now feeds the night-out crowd.

Le Relais de l'Entrecôte ★ 4.0

French bistro · €€

20 Rue Saint-Benoît, 75006 Paris

Le Relais de l'Entrecôte in Paris is the 6e steak-frites room that queues until 23:00. At 20 Rue Saint-Benoît. Booking recommended. Reservations advised.

Bouillon Pigalle ★ 4.1

French bistro · €€

22 Boulevard de Clichy, 75018 Paris

Bouillon Pigalle in Paris pours classic bouillon dishes until midnight. At 22 Boulevard de Clichy. Booking recommended. Reservations advised.

La Poule au Pot ★ 4.3

French bistro · €€

9 Rue Vauvilliers, 75001 Paris

La Poule au Pot in Paris's 1er Les Halles cooks classic grand-mère bistro until 02:00. At 9 Rue Vauvilliers. Booking recommended. Reservations advised.

Le Petit Bouillon Pharamond ★ 4.0

French bistro · €€

24 Rue de la Grande Truanderie, 75001 Paris

Le Petit Bouillon Pharamond in Paris keeps its 1879 dining room running until midnight. Tripes à la mode de Caen, Camembert flambé, Norman dishes after 23:00.

6 Paul Bert ★ 4.5

French bistro · €€

6 Rue Paul Bert, 75011 Paris

6 Paul Bert in Paris is the unsigned annex of Bistrot Paul Bert two doors down. Seafood and natural wines, 20 seats, the same group's quieter sister room.

Chez Julien ★ 4.2

French bistro · €€

1 Rue du Pont Louis-Philippe, 75004 Paris

Chez Julien in Paris's 4e sits on the Seine quai opposite Île Saint-Louis. At 1 Rue du Pont Louis-Philippe. Booking recommended. Reservations advised.

Bouillon Pigalle ★ 4.1

French bistro · €

22 Boulevard de Clichy, 75018 Paris

Bouillon Pigalle in Paris reopened the bouillon model in 2017 and now seats 300 daily with no booking. At 22 Boulevard de Clichy. Booking recommended.

Le Petit Vendôme ★ 4.3

French bistro · €

8 Rue des Capucines, 75002 Paris

Le Petit Vendôme in Paris pulls baguette tradition split lengthwise, butter and Bayonne ham, for under €6. The classic Parisian counter sandwich.

Chez Alain Miam Miam ★ 4.5

French bistro · €

Marché des Enfants Rouges, 75003 Paris

Chez Alain Miam Miam in Paris is the Marché des Enfants Rouges galette window. €13 buys a laminated-baguette galette built to order with farmer-named.

Phở Bánh Cuốn 14 ★ 4.5

French bistro · €

129 Avenue de Choisy, 75013 Paris

Phở Bánh Cuốn 14 in Paris's 13e plates a €12 bowl of phở and a €14 bánh cuốn-and-rolls set. The broth runs 14 hours; bánh cuốn comes off the morning steamer.

Miznon ★ 4.3

French bistro · €

22 Rue des Écouffes, 75004 Paris

Eyal Shani's Miznon in Paris's 4e plates roasted-cauliflower whole-head pita at €14 and a slow-cooked lamb shoulder pita at €18, with fries and a sit-down.

Le Cinq Mars ★ 4.2

French bistro · €

51 Rue de Verneuil, 75007 Paris

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.

Le Bistrot Paris ★ 4.1

French bistro · €

33 Rue de Lille, 75007 Paris

Le Bistrot Paris in the 7e plates a €24 lunch set Mon-Fri: steak tartare, plat du jour, profiteroles. At 33 Rue de Lille. Booking recommended.

Le Baron Rouge ★ 4.5

French bistro · €

1 Rue Théophile Roussel, 75012 Paris

Le Baron Rouge in Paris's 12e shucks oysters on the pavement Saturdays for €2 each. Glasses of cru Beaujolais run €4; the cheapest serious oyster set in town.