Parisians eat in small neighbourhood bistrots and natural wine bars, and at lunch in sandwich shops and bakeries. Our picks run from the heights of Belleville through the 10th and 11th to Saint-Germain. The rules are simple. Order from the blackboard and book the small rooms. Eat when the locals do, which often means a weekday lunch formula.
The short list
12 places, in the order they appear below.
- 1Le BaratinOffal from the daily blackboardBelleville
- 2Le Grand BainSmall plates and natural wine with friendsBelleville
- 3Aux Petites OignonsEveryday French classicsGambetta
- 4Au PassageMarket menu and natural wine at dinnerOberkampf
- 5Le Verre VoléWine chosen by the team, at the barCanal Saint-Martin
- 6À La RenaissanceBreakfast through to late drinksRoquette
- 7Chez AlineWeekday sandwich lunchRoquette
- 8Les ArlotsSaucisse-purée at lunchFaubourg Poissonnière
- 9Les CanaillesGood-value lunch formulaPigalle
- 10Boulangerie UtopieBaguette de traditionOberkampf
- 11Le Bon Saint PourçainMarket blackboard, Wednesday lunchSaint-Sulpice
- 12Chez Fernand ChristineLong wine list, slow-cooked classicsSaint-Germain-des-Prés
Where do locals eat in Belleville and the 20th?
Expect small rooms and menus that change often. Le Baratin has been the reference up here for a long time, while Le Grand Bain is looser and built around small plates. For everyday cooking, Aux Petites Oignons is the bistro its street has relied on for years.
Raquel Carena has run Le Baratin, a thirty-seat room on the Belleville heights, since 1987. It is still an unofficial canteen for the city’s chefs. Regulars come back for the offal, so order whatever she has chalked up that day and trust it.
Le Baratin
Hours: Mon closed · Tue 19:30–23:30 · Wed 12:00–14:00, 19:30–23:30 · Thu 19:30–23:30 · Fri–Sat 12:00–14:00, 19:30–23:30 · Sun closed
Address: 3 Rue Jouye-Rouve, 75020 Paris, France
On a side street, Le Grand Bain serves shared small plates and pours natural wine freely. The menu never sits still. Order one fermented vegetable plate per person, and hope the liver parfait with brioche is on.
Le Grand Bain
Hours: Mon–Tue closed · Wed–Sun 19:00–23:30
Address: 14 Rue Denoyez, 75020 Paris, France
Aux Petites Oignons is a classic French bistro on a Gambetta side street. Portions are honest, and the room has fed the same neighbourhood for years. Start with the house terrine and look for pot-au-feu on the weekly menu.
Aux Petites Oignons
Hours: Mon–Fri 08:00–01:00 · Sat 09:00–02:00 · Sun 10:00–01:00
Address: 11 Rue Dupont de l'Eure, 75020 Paris, France
Where do Parisians go for natural wine and a late plate?
In the 10th and 11th, the wine bar doubles as the dinner table. Au Passage rewrites its menu from the market every day, Le Verre Volé on the Canal Saint-Martin is where wine people spend their nights off, and À La Renaissance, a century-old corner bistrot, stays open from breakfast into the small hours. Book ahead for the smaller rooms and take a seat at the bar when there is one.
Au Passage is a narrow room near the Oberkampf metro. Its menu is rewritten every day from the market, and the natural wine list reaches into obscure French regions. Start with the anchovies on toast, which never leave the menu. When bone marrow with anchoa dressing appears on the chalkboard, the regulars pounce.
Au Passage
Hours: Mon closed · Tue–Sat 19:00–01:00 · Sun closed
Address: 1 bis Pass. Saint-Sébastien, 75011 Paris, France
Sommeliers, importers and winemakers spend their nights off at Le Verre Volé, on the Canal Saint-Martin. The food gets as much care as the bottles. Sit at the bar to follow the wine talk, and drink whatever the team is opening for themselves.
Le Verre Volé
Hours: Mon–Sun 12:30–14:00, 19:00–00:00
Address: 67 Rue de Lancry, 75010 Paris, France
The new owners of À La Renaissance, a corner bistrot by Voltaire, restored it instead of reinventing it. They kept the red neon and the infinity mirrors, and uncovered a painted fresco that had been hidden for decades. The kitchen cooks bistrot classics with real technique, down to a properly made floating island. Most people overlook the morning tartine of Prince de Paris ham, egg and Comté. The kitchen shuts well before the marble bar does, so if you arrive late, eat first.
À La Renaissance
Hours: Mon–Wed 08:30–01:00 · Thu–Fri 08:30–02:00 · Sat 10:00–02:00 · Sun 10:00–01:00
Address: 87 Rue de la Roquette, 75011 Paris, France
Where do Parisians eat a quick weekday lunch?
Sometimes that means the daily special at Chez Aline, a sandwich shop in the 11th, and sometimes the lunch formula at Les Canailles near Pigalle or the saucisse-purée at Les Arlots. A baguette de tradition from Boulangerie Utopie in Oberkampf also counts.
Chez Aline makes its sandwiches in a converted pharmacy in the 11th, with baguette from a nearby artisan baker and fillings prepared that morning. Order the chalkboard special, which follows the market. Come at opening for the freshest bread.
Chez Aline
Hours: Mon–Thu 11:30–15:00 · Fri 11:30–14:30 · Sat–Sun closed
Address: 85 Rue de la Roquette, 75011 Paris, France
Les Arlots, a tiny bistro on the Faubourg Poissonnière, has a cult following for its saucisse-purée. It comes off a short blackboard, next to a natural wine list. Lunch is the easiest way in without a fight for a booking.
Les Arlots
Hours: Mon closed · Tue–Sat 12:00–14:00, 19:30–22:00 · Sun closed
Address: 136 Rue du Faubourg Poissonnière, 75010 Paris, France
Near Pigalle, Les Canailles is the regular table for residents of the 9th. The cooking is classic bistronomie, priced for repeat visits. Nothing in the neighbourhood beats the lunch formula for value. Order the charcuterie plate first: it shows off the kitchen’s sourcing before the cooked dishes arrive.
Les Canailles
Hours: Mon–Fri 12:00–14:00, 19:00–22:00 · Sat–Sun closed
Address: 25 Rue la Bruyère, 75009 Paris, France
Boulangerie Utopie bakes for its Oberkampf neighbourhood. The attention its baguette drew in 2024 has faded, and the baguette de tradition has kept its standard. To beat the queue, come early in the morning or late in the afternoon. On Saturdays, look for the fruit tarts. Hardly anyone talks about them.
Boulangerie Utopie
Hours: Mon closed · Tue–Sun 07:00–20:00
Address: 20 Rue Jean-Pierre Timbaud, 75011 Paris, France
Where do Parisians eat in Saint-Germain?
Le Bon Saint Pourçain, on a pedestrian street behind Saint-Sulpice, serves a short market menu. Chez Fernand Christine has an old Left Bank room and a wine list of more than two thousand references. At both, book ahead and order the classics.
Le Bon Saint Pourçain seats thirty, and its blackboard changes twice a day with the market. Look for whichever classic is running (quenelle, ris de veau or pot-au-feu, for example). On a Wednesday, the two-course lunch formula is worth planning around.
Le Bon Saint Pourçain
Hours: Mon closed · Tue–Sat 12:00–14:00, 19:30–22:00 · Sun closed
Address: 10bis Rue Servandoni, 75006 Paris, France
Chez Fernand Christine cooks slow classics, among them a boeuf bourguignon simmered for hours, in a room that still looks like an old Left Bank bistro. Hand the long wine list to the waiter; the pairing will beat a guess. Weekday lunch has its own menu.
Chez Fernand Christine
Hours: Mon–Sun 12:00–14:30, 19:00–23:00
Address: 9 Rue Christine, 75006 Paris, France
Most of these rooms are small. Book dinner wherever bookings are taken. Several close one or two days a week, so check each card before you set out. It helps to plan by neighbourhood. Most of the list sits across the 10th, 11th and 20th, and the two Saint-Germain tables make a separate outing on the Left Bank.
