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 changed.
Signature dishes: Endive salad with Roquefort, Pot-au-feu
Must order: The endive Roquefort salad and pot-au-feu in winter; vitello tonnato in summer.
Tip: Lunch is open to walk-ins; dinner books a week ahead, two weeks for a weekend.
Address: 51 Rue de Verneuil, 75007 Paris
Chez Georges has run the same Paris bistro menu since 1964: sole meunière, oeufs en gelée, profiteroles. The handwritten carte still uses the original prices format.
Signature: Sole meunière, Profiteroles
Order: Sole meunière, gratin dauphinois, profiteroles to finish.
Tip: Closed weekends and August. Tables turn twice; book 19:30 or 21:30 a fortnight out.
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.
Le Rigmarole in Paris pairs Robert Compagnon's binchotan yakitori grill with Jessica Yang's hand-rolled pasta. A nightly tasting menu only, no a la carte.
Signature: Charcoal-grilled chicken thigh, Hand-rolled pasta
Order: Trust the kaiseki-style yakitori order; ask for the pasta as an extra course.
Tip: One seating at 19:30 and one at 21:30. Book six weeks out for weekends, four for a Tuesday.
Table Bruno Verjus in Paris's 12e cooks ingredient-first: produce sourced by name, fish breathing that morning, no dish served twice in a row.
Signature: Langoustines, Sea bream
Order: The 7-course tasting menu and a pairing of growers' wines.
Tip: Two Michelin stars and number 8 on The World's 50 Best 2025. Book eight weeks out for dinner, four for lunch.
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 to match.
Signature: Smoked herring with potatoes, Beef tartare
Order: Smoked herring on warm potatoes, beef tartare cut by hand, a glass of muscadet.
Tip: Lunch is the easier ticket than dinner. Closed Mon-Tue, full Wed-Sun service.
Braden Perkins and Laura Adrian's Verjus in Paris's 1er runs a no-choice tasting menu and a bar-à-vins below, both built around growers' wines and seasonal produce.
Signature: Tasting menu, ingredient-led
Order: Whatever course features fermented or pickled produce that night.
Tip: If Verjus is booked, the Verjus Bar à Vins downstairs takes walk-ups and runs the same wine list.
