Au Pied de Sacre Coeur

85 rue Lamarck, 75018

01 46 06 15 26

Metro: Lamarck-Caulaincourt 

Au Pied de Sacre Coeur is one of our favorite restaurants in Paris. It serves delicious French cuisine and adds original ideas to traditional platters.

Soupe a l'oignon gratinee

Located in Montmartre, it has a lovely ambiance of a small romantic restaurant, with warm lighting and mirrors on one wall - giving it the ideal "French" look. The menu reflects traditional French countryside cuisine with duck, rabbit, and beef. A favorite is their 'foie gras' which they do 'poele' (sauteed) and which you can also take as a main dish instead of an entree (just ask!). I love their 'soupe a l'oignon gratinee,' a classic and their 'magret de canard' - sweetened with orange. My partner loves the rabbit and their blackboard suggestions are always a good choice.

Magret de Canard

Foie gras

The service is friendly, just one waitress, and they don't snap at you if you ask for specific things. I asked for a side salad with my soup one time and there was no problem at all, she didn't even charge us for it! They also seem to have as large a English-speaking clientele as French so no worries if you haven't mastered the language.

Creme brulee

I suggest to make a reservation just in case as the restaurant is quite small and can fill up fast on the weekends. They are open everyday, except Monday afternoons. Prices are a bit more expensive then your normal weekday dinner, so you might want to save it for special occasions. Main dishes range from 15-20e (the foie gras at 13e) and desserts between 6-12e.

Tarte au pomme et poire

I would definitely recommend this restaurant for anyone looking for good French cuisine in Paris! It is quite a gem if you are looking to get away from the touristy places.

Pause Cafe

41 rue de Charonne, 75011

Metro: Ledru-Rollin

Pause Cafe is one of our favorite places to take friends who are visiting, with some exceptions. Located in the 11th just next to Bastille, it's tucked away in a smaller street away from the madness.

Tartare

Pause Cafe has a diverse menu and their food has never disappointed us, unlike their service. The reason we keep going back is because their food is consistently good. Some favorites include: thon a la plancha, piccata de veau, tartare, rumsteak, even their hamburger is good. The only thing I would stray away from is their risotto (small portion, just as expensive, and not exceptional impressive.) Everything else though is delicious and well presented! They have a "hands-down best" tiramisu (quoted from one of my visitors) which I must agree with.

Carpaccio

Prices range between 12-16e for a main dish and their blackboard suggestions are usually your best bet if you aren't sure what to get.

The only big downfall is their service. After they changed owners more than a year ago, their service has been inconsistent. Slow, forgetful, kinda racist (some dude bowed to my friend and I - definitely 'not OK') - their service is not the best. But hey! It's Paris so it's not the worst. Just something to be aware of before you go in case you are in a rush or are trying to show a good example of polite and efficient French restaurant service.

Piccata de veau

Plus, on Sundays, they offer a filling brunch for 19e (a bit pricey in my opinion but you do get a lot of food). I haven't tried it personally, but one of my friends has and said it was lovely. You start with bread and viennoiserie with the most amazing chocolate hazelnut spread (that is NOT Nutella) that I must go find for myself in a BIO food shop; then you get eggs benedict and salmon and fruit and bunch of other tasty dishes. Bref, worth a try!

Overall, I would recommend Pause Cafe to a friend because the food is tasty, they have a good variety of plates - including some French classics if you have visitors, their prices are reasonable and they are open everyday!

Leon de Bruxelles

30 boulevard des italiens, 75002

Metro : Opera

How many times have I seen posters for this restaurant? A dozen. Everyday actually in the metro. Has it interested me? Of course! Advertising does work! So we went!

Leon de Bruxelles is a chain restaurant, available in now three different countries - Belgium, France, and recently - the UK. They serve typical Belgium dishes and are most known for their mussels. That's what I got!

It wasn't alot, but it was good. The fries were decent and bottomless - which I haven't seen since I last was in America. I got a classic, moules a la mariniere whilst my partner got something not very classic, moules gratinee with a very strong cheese (sorry, I don't recall what it was). I had nothing to complain about but maybe it's because I am not a grand connaisseur of mussels.

The ambiance reminded me very much of an American restaurant. Themed. Large bathrooms, very clean, and home-like. It was odd to be in France and to have this kind of themed dining experience. I guess it's the classic "chain restaurant" trend.

Would I recommend this to a friend? Eh. If you seriously have nothing else to eat in the area and you find it, sure! It's not bad nor is it amazing. It's a good mussels and fries place, but nothing to get dressed up for or excited about.

Le Bar a Soupes

33 rue de Charonne , 75011

Metro: Ledru-Rollin

It has been some time since I have been going to "Le Bar a Soupes," but I am just now getting to my review because I finally remembered to take pictures of the soup before gulping it down in a matter of minutes.

Le Bar a Soupes is found in the 11th arrondissement, just off of  rue de Lappe near Bastille (the infamous bar-filled street). It is also next to another favorite restaurant, Pause Cafe (blog post to come).

This delightful and quaint restaurant may not seem to be much from the outside, but don't be fooled by it's modest outer appearance. The creativity and flavor will astound you.

As you can probably guess, this restaurant specializes in soup. And actually, only has soup (with the exception of a small choice of dessert or cheese). They make 6 soups daily from scratch, following their sacred book by Anne-Catherine Bley. I have never met this mysterious Anne-Catherine Bley I must admit. Each time I go there, there is the courteous server hailing from South Africa who greets us.

A real treat is to go during the evening to benefit from their menu of 3 soups. For around 7e, you can have three cups of soup with a bread. Not a bad deal! Plus, the soup is incredibly delicious, not to mention original. My favorites includes the bloody mary, anything with lentilles, gazpacho, and courgette au Boursin . Super yum. Basically, you will not be disappointed with anything you take.

For dessert, you can choose from cheese or they sometimes have fruit salad or chocolate cake. We are prone to take the chocolate cake which is served slightly warmed.

This very down-to-earth restaurant has been one of our favorites which we share when we have visitors. They have never been disappointed and have even walked out with purchasing their "bar a soupes" recipe book. 

I would definitely recommend to friends for a light evening meal in a animated quartier.

For more information, you can check out their website!