• Choose a category
• All
• Classic-Fiction

A younger cousin of the chic L’Oulette in Bercy, this bistrot bustles by day and night with a mix of locals and tourists who are here for the capable southwestern provincial cooking. Duck features heavily – try the foie gras de canard (€17) or the magret de canard (fillet of duck breast; €19). Wines include almost a dozen from the southwest.

AU PETIT MONSIEUR Map French, Bistro €€

01 43 55 54 04; 50 rue Amelot, 11e; starters €10-20, mains €18-24, menus €11-22 (lunch only) & €35; lunch Tue-Fri, dinner to 10.30pm Mon-Sat; St-Sébastien Froissart

We’re still out to lunch, as it were, on this new avatar of the much missed C’Amelot, but ‘At the Little Guy’ looks like it might win some hearts with starters like risotto aux deux artichaux, caviar de tomates confites (risotto with two types of artichokes with glazed tomato) and mains like millefeuille de rouget et sa ratatouillle (red mullet in flaky pastry with Mediterranean vegetable ‘stew’). The atmosphere is less staid than C’Amelot was too.

PITCHI POÏ Map Eastern European, Jewish €€

01 42 77 46 15; www.pitchipoi.com; 9 place du Marché Ste-Catherine & 7 rue Caron, 4e; dishes €16-24, menu €23; lunch & dinner to 11pm daily; St-Paul

This convivial Eastern-European Jewish restaurant on one of Paris’ most picturesque squares serves traditional dishes such as tchoulent (cholent; slowly simmered meat with beans and vegetables) at lunch and dinner and lighter fare such as smoked salmon and chopped chicken liver at its Sunday buffet (€27; noon to 5pm).

À LA RENAISSANCE Map French, Café €€€

01 43 79 83 09; 87 rue de la Roquette, 11e; starters €8.50-14.50, mains €16-24; lunch & dinner to 11.30pm daily; Voltaire

This large, café-like bistro de quartier has a huge bar (open 8am to 2am) with large plate-glass windows looking onto the street. Food is reliable if unadventurous – herring fillets on a bed of warm potatoes, mackerel rillettes, steak tartare and that all-time favourite, œufs à la coq aux tartines (soft-boiled eggs with toast). Sunday brunch is €25.

404 Map North African, Moroccan €€

01 42 74 57 81; 69 rue des Gravilliers, 3e; starters €7-9, couscous & tajines €14-24, menus €17 (lunch only) & €21 (brunch); lunch Mon-Fri, dinner to midnight daily, brunch 10am-4pm Sat & Sun; Arts et Métiers

As comfortable a Maghreb (North African) caravanserai as you’ll find in Paris, the 404 not only has excellent couscous and tajines but superb grills (€12 to €22) and pigeon pastillas. The brunch berbère (Berber brunch) is available at the weekend. You’ll just love the One Thousand and One Nights décor with real antiques and curios, but the tables are set too close to one another.

L’AUTOBUS IMPÉRIAL Map French €€

01 42 36 00 18; www.autobus-imperial.fr, in French; 14 rue Mondétour, 1er; mains €14-23.50; menus €16.50-23.50 (lunch only), €28-43; lunch & dinner to 2am Mon-Sat; Les Halles

This wonderful find just north of the unspeakable Forum des Halles shopping centre boasts a vintage Belle Époque dining room beneath a wonderful glass dome. It’s elegant and the food traditional; try salade de filets de caille braisés au vinaigre de truffle noire (quail salad with black truffle vinegar) and the Parmentier de jambon confit (ham confit in mashed potatoes).

AU VIEUX CHÊNE Map French €€

01 43 71 67 69; 7 rue du Dahomey, 11e; starters €10-16, mains €18.50-23, menus €13 (lunch only) & €29; lunch & dinner to 10.30pm Mon-Sat; Faidherbe Chaligny

Along a quiet side street in a neighbourhood full of traditional woodworking studios, ‘At the Old Oak’ bistro offers an excellent seasonal menu and some well-chosen wines. The surrounds are fabulous and very retro. Three of the cast-iron columns holding the place up are registered monuments.

CHEZ RAMULAUD Map French €€

01 43 72 23 29; 269 rue du Faubourg St-Antoine, 11e; starters €9-13, mains €18-23, menus €15-17 (lunch only) & €29; lunch Mon-Fri, dinner to 11pm Mon-Sat; Faidherbe Chaligny

With its peaceful, retro atmosphere, this enormous establishment