citytripo

Paris

What to eat in Paris

  • Croissant and café crème
  • Jambon-beurre
  • Steak frites
  • Soupe à l'oignon

Data checked on October 4, 2026

Croissant and café crème

The usual breakfast, bought at a bakery counter and eaten standing or on a bench. Weekday mornings are the best time, because the trays are fresh and the lines are short.

Jambon-beurre

A baguette with ham and butter, simple and cheap, and the standard lunch to eat in a park or by the river.

Steak frites

Grilled steak with chips, on the menu in almost every brasserie. Ask for the cooking you want: saignant is rare and à point is medium.

Soupe à l'oignon

Onion soup with melted cheese on toast, served in brasseries in cooler months and late in the evening.

Galette and crêpe

A savoury buckwheat galette first, then a sweet crêpe, usually with cider. Crêperies are easy to find around Montparnasse and the Latin Quarter.

Plateau de fromages

A cheese course after the main dish and before dessert. A small plate is plenty for two.

Every itinerary on this site keeps a lunch break after 12:30, so there is room for a proper meal in the middle of the day.

Besides the sights

  • Seine quays at duskWalk the lower quays from the Île Saint-Louis toward the Louvre in the hour before dark, when the bridges light up and the benches fill.
  • Covered passagesThe 19th-century glass-roofed arcades near the grands boulevards hold old shops, tea rooms and bookstalls, and they are dry in rain.
  • A market morningParis has street markets on most days, with cheese, bread, fruit and cooked food. Go before noon, when the stalls have everything and the crowds are thin.
  • The Eiffel Tower after darkThe tower sparkles for a few minutes at the start of each hour after nightfall, and the Trocadéro terrace or the lawns of the Champ de Mars make a free viewing spot.
  • Parc des Buttes-ChaumontA hilly park in the north-east with a lake, a cliff and a small temple, good for an afternoon away from the central crowds.

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