PARIS, my second favorite city.

“Most of us are lucky to see Paris once in a lifetime. Please, make the most of it by doing as little as possible. Walk a little. Get lost a bit. Eat. Catch a breakfast buzz. Have a nap. Try and have sex if you can, just not with a mime. Eat again. Lounge around drinking coffee. Maybe read a book. Drink some wine. Eat. Repeat. See? It’s easy.”

- Anthony Bourdain

Food 

  • Chez Prune 10e - a cafe overlooking the canal with incredible food and wine. Great for lunch.

  • Bofinger 3e - charming brasserie.I had the most delicious prix fixe lunch - salad, entree, dessert, and wine for like 20-25 euro.

  • Brasserie Des Pres 6e - classic Parisian brasserie in St Germain, I had escargots, frites, beef tartare and champagne and sat on the terrace.

  • Huguette 6e - Seafood in St Germain, huge patio

  • Au Pied de Cochon 1e - Old school relaxed brasserie in Les Halles. The [french] onion soup is :chefs kiss: Open (almost) 24 hours (closed between 5-8a)

  • Miznon or L'As du Fallafel 4e - Delicious Falafels and Stuffed Cabbage Pita

  • David Toutain 7e - 2* Michelin 

  • Bouillon Pigalle 18e - very popular bistro, get the french onion soup (or as they call it, onion soup) and a glass (or carafe) of wine.

  • Shinjuku Pigalle 9e - Japanese food in Paris, oui!'

  • Le Train Bleu - 2 Michelin Starred Food in a stunning train station setting. Don’t skip on the rum baba.

  • Bulot Bulot - incredible oyster/seafood bar in Montmartre.

  • La Mascotte - old school seafood restaurant with wood paneling and seafood towers. Don’t miss the moule frites.

  • Sushi Shunei - delicious omakase sushi in Montmarte.

Markets

  • Maison Plisson 3e - my favorite little market for groceries and snacks, located in Le Marais. It's beautiful and just fun look at all the things. They also have a little cafe next door.

  • La Grande Epicerie de Paris 7e - epic massive food hall with restaurants, groceries and gifts across from Le Bon Marche. Highly recommend eating at the Truffle Stand (for lack of a better word.)

Drinks

  • Bar Hemingway at The Ritz 1e - incredible cocktails complete with lots of fun bar snacks. I definitely ordered little hot dogs last time I was here. 

  • Experimental Cocktail Club 2e - great place for a cocktail or ten. Super tiny.

  • Rooftop bar @ Hôtel des Grands Boulevards 2e - owned by the Experimental Cocktail Club team. Amazing drinks in a beautiful space. 

  • Prescription Cocktail Club 6e- another great bar for cocktails, located in St Germain

  • Le Comptoir General 10e - bar/restaurant/sometimes nightclub depending on the night

  • Sister Midnight 9e - tiny charming cocktail bar in Pigalle, sometimes they have drag shows

  • CLASSIQUE 9e - next to Sister Midnight - great place for cocktails and dessert

  • Le Très Particulier 18e - magical bar in Montmartre with live music inside the very hidden Hotel Particulier (formerly the home of the Hermes family;) AB approved and you may have to ring a bell to get to the entrance of the hotel.

Gardens for Picnicking and people watching

  • Jardin De Tuileries 

  • Jardin du Luxembourg

  • Champs De Mars - amazing view of the Eiffel Tower. If you’re there when it’s warm-ish, grab a picnic and eat on the lawn of CDM.

Shopping

  • Le Bon Marche 7e - my favorite department store in Paris. 

  • Chanel 31 Rue Cambon 1e - the OG Chanel store, Coco Chanel lived upstairs (not to be confused with the other Chanel on Rue Cambon like 50 ft away.) Highly recommend making a reservation if you want to shop here, otherwise it’s probably an hour+ wait for an SA.

  • Fabric Shopping in Montmarte - a new discovery as of my last trip. If you sew or know someone who sews, they have several fabric stores within a few blocks of each other. Some of them are “coupon” shops, where they sell 3 meter pieces of fabric at a discount.

Cooking Classes

  • Le Cordon Bleu -  Incredible cooking classes. My class had real chefs from around the world, butchers, you name it! And also home cooks like me. I’ve taken the two day bread making workshop, sauces and cooking like a chef courses. I couldn’t recommend them more. They are taught in French w/ an English translator.

  • Cook'n with Class Paris - I took a croissant cooking class here years ago and it was very intense but incredible. I’ll never be making croissants because it is incredibly labor intensive, but it was a fun class and you go home with lots of goodies. They also have classes where you go to the market and cook with what you find there. Highly recommended and all classes are in English

The tourist things.

  • The Louvre - it’s HUGE and gets hot/crowded, but don’t miss Mona Lisa, Venus de Milo among another things. I recommend going on one of the evenings they are open late, as there are less tours going on. Here’s a great way to get through the masterpieces in 90 minutes or less.

  • Eiffel Tower at night - watch it sparkle! A cruise on the Seine is always magical.

Museums

Outside of Paris:

  • Versailles - Louis XIV’s palace, a short train ride away from the city. It gets very hot and crowded so be prepared. If you can ($$$), stay the night at this hotel and you’ll get a private tour of the palace after hours. Otherwise, highly recommend joining a skip the line tour such as this one.

  • Champagne Region - I have taken this tour and this tour to the Champagne region and they were both magical. We went to Nicolas Feuillatte and Moet & Chandon and had free time in Epernay for lunch.