Paris is one of my favorite city's! Last week I was in Paris to visit the 'Dior: Couturier du Rêve' exhibition in Musée Les Arts Décoratifs. It's one of the most beautiful fashion exhibitions I've ever seen. But that's not what I'm going to talk about in this blog. Today I'm going to tell you about my favorite café's, restaurants and neighborhoods in Paris!
Neighborhoods
I love strolling through le Marais, Quartier Latin, Montmartre and Saint-Germain-des-Prés. All have their own charm.
Let's start with le Marais: a vivid hipster neighborhood and the old Jewish quarter. Perfect for shopping and drinking coffee in fancy coffee bars. It's also home to a few good flea markets which sell regular clothes and some designer goods. Not cheap, but not too expensive either. If you're there: don't miss Place des Voges with its beautiful fountains.
Quartier Latin in the student neighborhood and it's the ideal place to find nice bars and affordable restaurants. The Rue Mouffetard is also close-by. Most restaurants in the Rue Mouffetard are tourist traps, but it's worth your time to check out the shops that sell cheese, wine and other French delicacies.
Montmartre is very touristic near the Sacre-Coeur, but the rest of the neighborhood a bit more quiet and I love the French vibe here. It also has some amazing views over the city and you can find great vintage shops in the area. If you dig well, you might find some real vintage treasures.
Saint-Germain-des-Prés: the very very fancy neighborhood. This is the place for people watching. Grab a chair at a sidewalk café, order a café crème and watch all the fancy French people go by. It's a mix of nouveau-riche and older French ladies who have probably lived there all their lives and stroll to the market wearing their Hermes scarves and Chanel handbags. Also, visit Jardin du Luxembourg. Probably the most beautiful park in Paris, especially in spring and summer when it's filled with flowers.
Café's and Restaurants
Le Jardin du Petit Palais Café
The Petit Palais has a garden and the garden... has a café! It's one of the most beautifully situated café's in Paris.
Judy's : for a healthy breakfast with good coffee (has vegan options).
Chez Ginette de la Côte d'Azur: hipster, good cocktails, amazing tartare.
Au Delices du Liban: the best Libanese food in town! (good vegetarian options).
Chez Mademoiselle: classic French food with a modern twist in a classy atmosphere.
La Maison Blue: modern French quisine with good vegetarian options and great wine
My Paris secrets: places most tourists don't know about
Musée de la vie Romantique and it's garden teahouse
This museum it completely dedicated to the Romantic age (roughly 1810 - 1860). The museum is lovely and so is the garden with a little teahouse!
The house of Victor Hugo
The house of the famous French author who wrote The Hunchback of the Notre Dame. It's situated at Place des Voges and really takes you back in time.
The Botanical gardens and Zoo
Did you know that Paris has a very cute 19th century Zoo and Botanical gardens right in the heart of the city?
The rooftop bar of Les Printemps
You probably know the department store Printemps, next to Lafayette. But did you know it has a rooftop with the most amazing view at the Eiffel Tower? Just walk the stairs all the way up. Go there around sunset and order a glass of Chardonnay while enjoying the view (the wine is surprisingly affordable here!).
That's it for now!
Love,
Anna