Pot-au-feu is the long-simmered French boiled-beef-and-root-vegetable supper: beef brisket, marrow bones, leeks, carrots, turnips, celery in a clear bouillon. Served in two courses with mustard and cornichons.
Pot-au-feu is the dish that anchors the French kitchen; the historian Raymond Oliver called it la marmite éternelle (the eternal pot). The two-course form (clear broth poured over toasted baguette as a starter; the meat and vegetables plated with mustard and cornichons as the main) was codified in Paris bistros by the 19th century. La Poule au Pot in the 1er has plated it since the 1930s; Polidor in the 6e keeps the dish on the lunchtime carte. Chez Georges and Bistrot Paul Bert both run a Sunday-only pot-au-feu. The dish requires the cheapest cuts (jarret, paleron, plat de côtes) and four hours of patience.
5 editor picks for Pot-au-feu in Paris, ranked by editorial score. All Paris signature dishes · Pot-au-feu across every city.
Bistrot Paul Bert ★ 4.4
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.
La Poule au Pot ★ 4.3
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.
Chez Georges ★ 4.3
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.
Bouillon Chartier ★ 4.0
9e · 7 Rue du Faubourg Montmartre, 75009 Paris
Bouillon Chartier has run a workers' canteen of a brasserie in Paris's 9e since 1896. The menu still puts œuf mayonnaise on for less than €3.
Polidor ★ 3.9
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.