Everything I Ate in Paris!
- Anne Lam Music
- Jul 12
- 11 min read
Updated: Jul 15
Hello, fellow travel enthusiasts! In this blog post, I'm going to be showing and honestly reviewing everything I ate during my short trip in Paris. I was only there for a few days, but I did get to try plenty. So, without further ado, let's get right into it!
C'est Comme À La Maison (CCALM)
Address: 6 Rue Geoffroy l'Angevin, 75004 Paris, France
This restaurant was SO CUTE! Although it was small, it had a very cozy feel to it, and tables filled up FAST. There were about 15 tables total, one chef, and one server, so if you do want to visit, I would highly suggest that you book a reservation in advance. The online reviews I saw for this restaurant were overwhelming positive, and after dining here, I could understand why. The server and the chef had this infectious enthusiasm that made you feel comfortable, and you could tell that they both really wanted you to have a good dining experience at the restaurant. The menu was explained clearly and in detail by the server, who also attended to each table with care.
For my appetizer, I chose the Parisiens à la crème, which consisted of raw mushrooms in a cream sauce, mixed with parsley and other seasonings. Usually, the mushrooms in this dish are cooked, but they were served raw at this restaurant. It was a light and refreshing appetizer to begin the meal, but I will admit that eating raw mushrooms might not be for everyone, and I have the impression that most people I know would prefer the mushrooms to be cooked.
My rating: 3/5
For the main dish, I decided to go with the Rougail saucisses, which the server explained to me is a typical dish from La Réunion. The dish consists of smoked sausages in a tomato sauce that is spiced with onions, garlic, and chilli. It is served with rice. The flavour was extremely rich, although a touch too salty for my taste. After the first few bites, the chef came out to ask me if I thought the dish was spicy because of the chilli pepper in the rice. I told him that I barely thought it was spicy at all! So, he gave me a bottle of hot sauce that I had never tried before, and let me tell you - this was probably the spiciest hot sauce I have ever had in my life. I'm glad I started with only a few drops that I put on the side of the dish. However, it definitely provided the extra little kick I needed to really make the dish pop.
My rating: 4/5
Finally, I couldn't leave without getting dessert. I settled on the classic crème brûlée, which was always been one of my favourite desserts. The only small critique I would have is that the burnt layer on the top was a little bit more bitter than I would have liked, but other than that, it still hit the spot for me.
My rating: 4/5
Overall rating of the restaurant: 5/5
Boulangerie Brocco par Landemaine
Address: 180 Rue du Temple, 75003 Paris, France
This was a boulangerie that was just across my hotel, so naturally, I made a few visits there when I needed something quick to have in the morning. The service there was always quick and efficient, and the staff members were quite friendly overall, too!
During my first visit there, I ordered La Formule Parisienne, because I wanted to experience the typical set breakfast that's offered in so many Parisian cafés and restaurants. La Formule Parisienne at this boulangerie came with a coffee, a glass of orange juice, two tartines with jam on the side, and two pastries of your choosing. I chose a croissant and a pain au chocolat - two classic French pastries that I had to try. I am going to be very honest here - the only thing I kind of liked was the pain au chocolat. There was nothing really that special overall. I think I overhyped the experience of having real, authentic French pastries in my head, and got underwhelmed upon actually trying them. However, I will say that this did fill me up for a good while.
My rating: 2/5
On another occasion, I went to this boulangerie in the evening to pick up two pastries for the next morning, since I knew I would have to be on the road very early the next day for my day trip to Brussels, Belgium. The first pastry I got was a chocolate brioche bun, and the second was a matcha cookie with white chocolate and black sesame. These were SO MUCH better than La Formule Parisienne. I liked the cookie more, beacuse it was more unique than the chocolate brioche bun, but I really enjoyed both.
My rating for the chocolate brioche bun: 3.5/5
My rating for the matcha cookie: 4.5/5
Even though La Formula Parisienne did not really wow me, I wanted to give this boulangerie a second chance, since I enjoyed the chocolate brioche and matcha cookie. So, on a different morning, I decided just to order a croissant and an espresso. Unfortunately, this second croissant was no better than the first. It was, in no way, badly made, but it just didn't impress me like I thought it would.
Overall rating of the boulangerie: 2.5/5
Social Square
Address: 165 Rue du Temple, 75003 Paris, France
This was such a lively little eatery! The menu featured a lot of bistro classics, but I went with something a little more out there. I got the Thai-style beef tartare, which came with a side of fries and salad. The flavour of the beef tartare was excellent, and the portion size was very reasonable for the price as well. I actually couldn't even finish it all! Somehow, the side of fries and salad also made me feel less like I was in Paris, and more like I was in North America. I also ordered a mojito, which was very refreshing after a full day of exploring the city.
My rating: 3.5/5
I did really enjoy the vibe of the place, and I would have stayed longer and ordered more drinks if it wasn't for the fact that all the cigarette smoke from people at the outdoor seating kept coming into the restaurant. Although there was both inside and outside seating, all the windows and doors were kept open, so it was inevitable that the second-hand smoke would find its way inside. This truly was the only reason I didn't stay longer.
Overall rating of the restaurant: 3.5/5
Bouillon de Paris
Address: 17 Place de la République 75003 Paris
Okay, so this actually turned out to be one of my favourite restaurants out of the ones I've visited. Like Social Square, it had a very lively atmosphere and great vibe. The staff was extremely courteous and polite, but because the venue was so packed and busy, it took them a while to attend to me. Good thing I wasn't in a rush! It was definitely a great place to people-watch too.
I started with the egg mayonnaise, which was so simple but so satisfying. This appetizer consisted of three halves of hard-boiled eggs, each with a dollop of mayonnaise mixed with mustard. Sometimes, less is more.
My rating: 4/5
For my main dish, I got the ratatouille, which I was SO excited to try, and it did not disappoint in the slightest!! Since ratatouille is made with just vegetables, I didn't expect it to be so filling, but I left the restaurant feeling quite full. I think part of the reason may be that the ratatouille was topped with a good amount of parmesan, which made the dish feel a little more dense. However, the parmesan did add a bit of the saltiness that helped to complete the dish. I was extremely happy with this dish and with the restaurant overall.
My rating: 5/5
Overall rating of the restaurant: 4.5/5
Carette
Address: 7 Pl. du Tertre, 75018 Paris, France
After seeing this place pop up everywhere on my Instagram feed, it was CLEAR that I had go and try it for myself. There are a few locations, but I went to the Montmartre one because that was where I happened to be on that day, and it didn't make sense to travel all the way to the most Instagram-popular location at the time. This café offers a variety of drinks, sandwiches, and pastries, but the one item that it's most known for on Instagram is the Viennese hot chocolate. So naturally, that's exactly what I ended up getting, especially since I wasn't even hungry anyway. It was delicious for sure, but didn't exactly blow my mind. It tasted like a lot of the other hot chocolates I've had in my life time, but I will say that the texture of the whipped cream was very smooth, and it looked aesthetically pleasing.
My rating: 4/5
I don't think it's fair for me to give an overall rating of this café, when I only tried the one item. However, if any of you have been here or are going to visit, please let me know what you think in the comments! I would love to read your reviews!
Maison Noura
Address: 40 Bd Haussmann, 75009 Paris, France
This Lebanese restaurant is situated in the Galeries Lafayette Haussmann department store, which is a GORGEOUS mall unlike any other I've seen.
Since I came here with a friend, we decided to try a tasting platter along with an appetizer. To be completely honest, I don't remember what each item in the tasting platter was, even when I look back at the photos, but I do remember everything tasting fantastic and really enjoying the meal. The price was very reasonable as well, especially since we were splitting the cost. I don't know much about Lebanese food, so I cannot comment on the authenticity of the restaurant, but if I lived in Paris, I would definitely visit this restaurant again. They were quite strict about not filming videos in the restaurant, but they did let us take pictures of our food.
My rating: 5/5
Overall rating of the restaurant: 4.5/5
Les Parigots
Address: 5 Rue du Château d'Eau, 75010 Paris, France
This was a restaurant that I was really looking forward to trying, because so many of the menu items seemed so good! My friends and I got the grilled octopus and the rib steak. I absolutely LOVED the grilled octopus dish, which came with polenta, pico de gallo sauce, and roasted almonds. I didn't expect the octopus and polenta to work so well together, but it was such a satisfying combination. It was definitely one of the more unique dishes I had in Paris.
My rating: 5/5
The rib steak was fantastic as well - cooked exactly the way we wanted. It came with a side of French fries and sauce for you to pour. You could choose between a pepper or blue sauce. Honestly, I didn't think I would be coming to Paris to eat steak and fries, but I wasn't disappointed by this dish at all.
My rating: 5/5
The food was excellent, and the service was quick as well! However, I did note that the staff was not as willing to speak English with my friends, who were from the States. One of them even said that he would only talk to me because I speak French, but my friends don't.
Overall rating of the restaurant: 4.5/5
Café Mélia
Address: 39 Rue Beaubourg, 75003 Paris, France
This was a cute little café that I stopped by at one morning for coffee and breakfast. The server was very friendly, and seemed to know a lot of people in the neighbourhood who I'm guessing were regulars at this café. I got a hazelnut flavoured coffee, which was served with a little biscuit on the side, as well as two sugar crêpes. Everything was served very quickly, which I appreciated. Just looking at the crêpes, I actually wasn't sure if I would like them or not, but they turned out to be quite good. Nothing super special or anything, but better than I thought they looked.
My rating: 3.5/5
Since I didn't get much here, I don't think it would be fair for me to give an overall rating for this café. Again, if any of you have been here, please let me know what you think in the comments!
La Terrasse de Madame
Address: 138 Rue de Médicis, 75006 Paris, France
This restaurant is located in the beautiful Jardin du Luxembourg. Honestly, since it was a restaurant in a tourist attraction, I didn't expect much in terms of the food quality, and also thought it would be way overpriced. However, the food turned out to be better than expected, and the prix fixe menu with starter + main dish was reasonable. For my starter, I got the ravioles du Dauphiné, which was surprisingly one of the best dishes I had in Paris! It was ABSOLUTELY DELICIOUS, and I gladly savoured every single bite. This is a specialty dish from Dauphiné, which is a historical region in France. The ravioli was smaller than the normal Italian ravioli I'm used to, and they were stuffed with cheese and herbs. As you can see in the image below, they did not skimp on the cheese at all.
My rating: 5/5
As for my main, I settled on the classic fish and chips - another dish I did not expect I would be eating in Paris. It wasn't bad, but nothing special either, especially after having the ravioli starter. The form of the fish was curious - it wasn't the typical filet that you would usually get when you order fish and chips. Instead, it was more similar to fish fingers. The tartare sauce was good, but again, nothing that blew me out of the water.
My rating: 3/5
Overall rating of the restaurant: 3.5/5
Le Refuge des Fondus
Address: 17 Rue des Trois Frères, 75018 Paris, France
This was probably the BEST way to spend my last night in Paris! This small restaurant specializes in meat and cheese fondues, and also lets you drink wine out of a baby bottle! The décor is very eclectic, and when I say that the restaurant is small, I mean that all the clientele sits RIGHT next to each other. This can definitely encourage conversation with people you don't know, making the atmosphere very friendly. My friends and I decided to share the meat fondu, since we had only ever tried cheese fondus before. We also ordered white wine, which came in a baby bottle for each of us. It was a very interesting experience for sure.
Before the meat fondu, we were also served an appetizer platter, which consisted of a variety of meats, black olives, green olives, pickle slices, and cheese cubes. The appetizers were okay, nothing extraordinary - just something to nibble on while we waited for the fondu. My rating: 2.5/5
When the meat fondu came, we were served with a bowl of meat, various types of sauces, a bowl of potatoes, and of course, a pot of oil to cook the meat and potatoes. Honestly, what made the meat fondu good was the different sauces. Without them, it wouldn't have been anything great at all. The experience of cooking the meat and potatoes in the oil reminded me of hot pot.
My rating: 3/5
Even though the food here wasn't AMAZING, the EXPERIENCE was. It was one the most fun nights I had in the city, and I don't regret visiting this restaurant at all. The staff were all really friendly and energetic as well.
Overall rating of the restaurant: 4/5
If you visit any of the places I've mentioned in this post, be sure to let me know in the comments! I would love to read about your experiences at these restaurants, as well as your opinions.
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