Morning and bread: three bakery classics
1. Croissant and pain au chocolat. Two viennoiseries made of leavened puff pastry with plenty of butter; the pain au chocolat contains two bars of chocolate. Eat them in the morning, fresh from the oven, at the bakery or with a coffee at the counter. Expect roughly €1.30 to €1.80 each in a good bakery, according to our guide to the best bakeries in Paris. Look for all-butter: the layers should be visible and the crust slightly shiny.
2. Baguette tradition. The "tradition" baguette is the classic loaf: flour, water, salt and sourdough or yeast, with no additives and no freezing, a crackling crust and an irregular crumb. Its average price in France is €1.25 (see our guide How much Paris really costs), a little more in wealthy neighbourhoods. Buy it at the bakery, warm if possible, and eat it the same day.
3. Jambon-beurre. Half a fresh baguette, butter and boiled ham: nothing else, and it is one of the best-selling sandwiches in France. It is the quintessential Parisian quick lunch, to take away from a bakery or café for a picnic by the Seine. There are versions with comté, gherkins or higher-quality ham, usually a little more expensive.
Bistros and brasseries: the classics on a plate
A bistro offers a short chalkboard menu, often of home-style cooking; a brasserie is bigger, with a longer menu, generally served without a break between noon and evening. To avoid traps, read our guide to tourist traps in restaurants.
4. Croque-monsieur. Two slices of sandwich bread with ham and grated cheese, baked until golden; with a fried egg on top, it becomes a croque-madame. It has been in Parisian cafés since the early 20th century and is still ordered today at a café or brasserie, with a green salad.
5. Soupe à l'oignon. Onions slowly caramelised in broth, topped with a crouton and melted cheese. It is a winter dish, associated with the night and the old Les Halles district, eaten in a brasserie or a traditional bistro. It is often made with beef broth, which matters for vegetarians (see below).
6. Steak-frites. A grilled cut of beef (bavette, entrecôte or faux-filet) served with fries, sometimes with a pepper sauce or maître d'hôtel butter. You ask for the doneness like this: bleu, saignant, à point or bien cuit. It is the most common dish in bistros and brasseries; the Bouillon Chartier, opened in 1896 at 7 rue du Faubourg-Montmartre (75009), is a historic restaurant of traditional bistro cooking.
7. Escargots de Bourgogne. Snails baked in their shells with garlic-parsley butter, served six or twelve at a time as a starter. You eat them with tongs and a small fork, and dip bread in the butter. They are offered in traditional bistros and brasseries.
8. Cuisses de grenouille. The frog legs are pan-fried in butter, garlic and parsley, and the white meat resembles chicken. This old dish is getting rarer: you find it mainly in a few traditional bistros and brasseries, often as a starter.
9. Bœuf bourguignon. Beef simmered for hours in red Burgundy wine with bacon, onions, carrots and mushrooms. It is an autumn and winter dish, served with potatoes or fresh pasta in bistros serving home-style cooking. The bacon makes it a dish to avoid for anyone who does not eat pork.
10. Confit de canard. A duck leg cooked slowly in its own fat, then roasted so that the skin is crisp. This speciality of the South-West is very common in Paris, served with garlic sautéed potatoes (pommes sarladaises) or a salad. You eat it at the bistro, often in the menu du jour.
11. Tartare de bœuf. Raw beef chopped by knife, seasoned with shallot, capers, gherkins, an egg yolk, mustard and Worcestershire sauce. It is served with fries and a salad. Ask for it "préparé" (already seasoned) or "à assaisonner vous-même" to control the spice.
12. Moules-frites. Mussels cooked à la marinière (white wine, shallot, parsley) or in cream, served in a pot with fries. The dish is mostly associated with the North and Belgium, but it is among the classics of Parisian brasseries, more often offered in autumn and winter.
Cheese and oysters: two French pleasures
13. Plateau de fromages. Cheese is eaten at the end of the meal, before dessert: camembert, brie de Meaux, comté, roquefort, goat's cheese. In a restaurant, the platter is ordered after the main course; to taste without hurrying, go to a neighbourhood fromagerie, where the cheesemonger advises you and cuts small portions, or to a market.
14. Huîtres. Raw oysters served on ice with lemon, shallot vinegar and buttered rye bread. Their size runs from number 0 (the largest) to number 5 (the smallest); they are best eaten from autumn to spring. Choose an oyster bar (écailler) or a brasserie that makes them its speciality, or a market stall.
Crêpes, galettes and falafel: street food
15. Crêpes and galettes. The galette is a savoury buckwheat crêpe (ham, egg, cheese), while the wheat-flour crêpe is sweet (butter and sugar, chocolate, Grand Marnier). They come from Brittany and are drunk with dry cider; Paris has many, especially around Montparnasse station (rue du Montparnasse), where Breton migrants arrived. Go to a crêperie for a sit-down meal, or to a street stand for a crêpe to take away.
16. Falafel in the Marais. Fried chickpea balls served in a pita with salad, raw vegetables, fried aubergine and tahini sauce. Rue des Rosiers (75004), in the Marais, is the classic address, with L'As du Fallafel at number 34, for example. Many shops on the street close on Saturday (Shabbat), and you should expect a wait at mealtimes. Read our complete guide to the Marais.
Pastries and desserts
17. Macarons. Two almond-based shells, slightly crisp outside and soft inside, filled with ganache, cream or jam. Ladurée (rue Royale) and Pierre Hermé are the best-known houses; a neighbourhood pâtisserie sells them too. Eat them within a few days of buying.
18. Éclair. An elongated choux bun filled with crème pâtissière (coffee, chocolate, vanilla, pistachio) and glazed with fondant. Parisian pâtisseries sell classic and very creative ones. Eat it by hand, at the café or in the park.
19. Paris-Brest. A ring of choux pastry filled with praline mousseline cream and sprinkled with flaked almonds. Its wheel shape recalls the Paris-Brest-Paris cycling race: the dessert was created in 1910 by the pastry chef Louis Durand, in Maisons-Laffitte, for that race. You find it in all good pâtisseries, whole or as an individual portion.
20. Mille-feuille. Three layers of crisp puff pastry stacked with crème pâtissière and glazed with fondant, streaked with chocolate. It is eaten at the pâtisserie or in a tea room, preferably the same day, because the pastry softens.
21. Crème brûlée. A vanilla custard baked in the oven, topped with a thin layer of sugar caramelised with a blowtorch that you crack with the spoon. It is a classic dessert of bistros and brasseries.
22. Île flottante. A beaten egg white, poached, floats on crème anglaise, with caramel and sometimes almonds. It is a family dessert, light, found on the menu of traditional bistros.
23. Tarte Tatin. An apple tart caramelised in butter and sugar, baked upside down and then turned over, served warm with crème fraîche. It is named after the Tatin sisters, who ran a hotel in Lamotte-Beuvron (Loir-et-Cher) in the late 19th century. It is on the menu of many bistros.
24. Chocolat chaud. In Paris, it is made with real melted chocolate, thick, often served with a pot of whipped cream. The historic tea rooms of rue de Rivoli, such as Angelina (at number 226), are famous for theirs. To go further with chocolate, see the Musée du Chocolat and the Salon du Chocolat.
L'apéro
25. Kir, pastis and wine. The apéritif is taken at the end of the day, often with olives or peanuts. A kir mixes white wine (traditionally a Burgundy aligoté) with a little crème de cassis; with champagne, it is a kir royal. Pastis is an aniseed drink to be diluted with five times its volume of cold water, from the South; wine is ordered by the glass, by the carafe or "au ballon". It is easily enjoyed on a café terrace; see the best cafés in Paris.
Summary: what to eat, where and when
| Dish | Place | When |
|---|---|---|
| Croissant, pain au chocolat, baguette, jambon-beurre | Bakery | Morning, lunch |
| Croque-monsieur, onion soup, steak-frites, tartare | Café, bistro, brasserie | Lunch, dinner |
| Snails, frog legs, bœuf bourguignon, duck confit | Traditional bistro | Lunch, dinner |
| Moules-frites, oysters | Brasserie, oyster bar | Lunch, dinner |
| Cheese platter | Fromagerie, market, restaurant | End of meal |
| Crêpes and galettes | Crêperie, street stand | Lunch, afternoon snack |
| Falafel | Rue des Rosiers, Marais | Lunch |
| Macarons, éclair, Paris-Brest, mille-feuille | Pâtisserie, tea room | Afternoon snack, dessert |
| Crème brûlée, île flottante, tarte Tatin | Bistro, brasserie | Dessert |
| Hot chocolate | Tea room, café | Afternoon snack |
| Kir, pastis, wine | Café terrace, bar | End of the day |
Prices observed in October 2026: only the prices of pastries and the baguette were verified, as menus vary a lot from one restaurant to another.
How to order: menu du jour, formule and meal times
Many restaurants display a menu du jour or a formule at lunchtime: a starter and a main, or a main and a dessert, sometimes all three, at a fixed price lower than the à la carte menu, with a limited choice written on the chalkboard. It is the most economical way to eat a traditional dish. The bill does not arrive by itself: ask for it by saying "l'addition, s'il vous plaît".
- Times. Lunch is generally served from 12:00 to 14:30 and dinner from 19:00 or 19:30 until about 22:00. Many bistros close their kitchen between the two services; brasseries and cafés on main avenues often serve continuously.
- Booking. Book for the evening, especially at weekends, and in small bistros.
- Water and bread. A carafe of tap water is free with a meal: ask for "une carafe d'eau". Bread is provided at the table.
- Coffee. You order it after dessert, not at the same time.
- Tipping. Service is included in the prices; read our guide to tipping in France.
- Brunch. At weekends, see our selection of brunches in Paris.
Vegetarians and special diets
Classic Parisian cooking relies on meat, but the situation is improving. A few reflexes:
- Say it clearly: "I am vegetarian" is not always enough, because bacon and meat stock hide in many dishes. Ask: "Est-ce qu'il y a de la viande, du lard ou du bouillon de viande dedans ?" (Is there meat, bacon or meat stock in it?)
- Often vegetarian dishes: cheese platter, warm goat's cheese salad, omelette, galette with cheese and mushrooms, falafel, tarte Tatin and all the desserts in this guide (unless otherwise stated).
- Dishes to check: onion soup (beef broth), composed salads (bacon) and fries (sometimes cooked in animal fat).
- Allergies: a restaurant must be able to tell you, on request, which allergens are in each dish.
- Vegan: viennoiseries contain butter and eggs; favour restaurants and pâtisseries specialised in plant-based food.
Going further
To find the best baguettes and viennoiseries, read our guide to the best bakeries in Paris; for a coffee break, the best cafés in Paris; to avoid inflated bills, the tourist traps in restaurants; to plan your budget, How much Paris really costs.
