Paris_ City Guide (Lonely Planet, 7th Edition) - Lonely Planet [187]
AGUA LIMÓN Map Spanish €€
01 43 44 92 24; 12 rue Théophile Roussel, 12e; tapas €5.50-15; menus €13 (lunch only); lunch & dinner Tue-Sat; Ledru Rollin
Considered by some to have the best tapas in Paris, ‘Lemon Water’ is an attractive bar-restaurant within easy walking distance of Bastille. Go for the boquerones (whitebait) in vinegar, the octopus Catalan-style and the excellent patatas bravas. There’s decent selection of Spanish wines, including Riojas.
LA PARTIE DE CAMPAGNE Map French €€
01 43 40 44 11; 36 cour St-Émilion, 12e; dishes €10.90-13.50; 8am-2am daily; Cour St-Émilion
Located in one of the old chais (wine warehouses) of Bercy, ‘The Country Outing’ serves some of the best food in the area. Business people and strollers from the Jardin de Bercy sit cheek by jowl at a large communal table set up at the back of the room, and order from a menu that includes soups, tartines and pies. It’s also a great place for breakfast, and the inviting terrace is open in the warmer months.
LINA’S Map Sandwich Bar €
01 43 40 42 42; www.linascafe.fr; 102 rue de Bercy, 12e; soups & salads €4.50-6.10, sandwiches €3.90-6.90 8.30am-4.30pm Mon-Sat; Bercy)
This branch of a popular chain of lunch spots across Paris (some 17 outlets so far) has upmarket sandwiches, salads and soups. Other outlets include an Opéra branch (Map; 01 42 46 02 06; 30 blvd des Italiens, 9e; Richelieu Drouot) and La Défense (Map; 01 46 92 28 47; parvis de la Défense; La Défense).
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SELF-CATERING
West of Parc de Bercy there’s a Franprix (Map; 3 rue Baron le Roy, 12e; 8.30am-8.30pm Tue-Sun; Cour St-Émilion) that’s open on Sundays.
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13E ARRONDISSEMENT & CHINATOWN
With the Simone de Beauvoir footbridge Click here making Bercy footsteps away from the 13e, foodies are hot-footing it to Paris’ Chinatown in search of authentic Asian food: Av de Choisy, av d’Ivry and rue Baudricourt are the streets to try.
North around the Bibliothèque Nationale de France and MK2 entertainment complex Click here, stretching north along av Pierre Mendès to Gare d’Austerlitz, is the land of opportunity where a new cutting-edge dining or drinking venue seems to open every day. Westwards is Butte aux Cailles, a gritty, real-life ‘village’ within Paris, likewise chock-a-block with interesting, fun-guaranteed addresses.
To penetrate the absolute heart of this unexpectedly varied neighbourhood, consider an alternative evening of culinary and artistic entertainment at L’Atoll 13 (Map; www.atoll13.org, in French; 175ter rue Tolbiac, 13e; Bibliothèque François Mitterand), an artists’ squat symbolic host to concerts, bands, happenings and – each Tuesday evening – an atmospheric repas de quartier.
CHEZ JACKY Map French €€€
01 45 83 71 55; www.chezjacky.fr, in French; 109 rue du Dessous des Berges, 13e; starters & mains €20-29, menu €35, with wine €45; lunch & dinner to 10.30pm Mon-Fri; Bibliothèque
In the shadow of the national library, Chez Jacky is a serious, traditional restaurant with thoughtful service and a nice, old-fashioned provincial atmosphere. The brothers in charge know how to find good regional produce and present it with great panache, even if originality isn’t their cardinal virtue.
CHEZ NATHALIE Map French, Contemporary €€
01 45 80 20 42; 41 rue Vandrezanne, 13e; starters €10-15, mains €15-24; lunch & dinner to 11pm daily; Corvisart or Place d’Italie
Refreshingly different with summertime tables on car-quiet rue Vandrezanne, this pocket-sized dining spot is a lovely spot to dine tête à tête. A transparent Kartell chair and potted bamboos stand outside, and inside black lacquered tables ooze modernity. On the menu, traditional French fuses with world food in the guise of a pressed artichoke heart with foie gras, wild boar with celery puree, squid pan-fried with chilli and so on.
CHEZ PAUL Map French €€
01 45 89 22 11; 22 rue de la Butte aux Cailles,