Food Trends

The undisputed Parisian lunch: a seared cut of beef, often hanger steak, slicked with peppercorn or béarnaise sauce and piled high with thin, crisp golden fries. Found on nearly every bistro chalkboard, simple, generous, and perfectly cooked saignant.

Burgundy's gift to Paris: beef braised for hours in red wine with carrots, pearl onions, mushrooms, and smoky lardons until fork-tender. The sauce turns glossy and deep, best mopped up with crusty bread on a grey afternoon.

The morning ritual of every Parisian. Layered with French butter and laminated by hand, the best croissants shatter into golden flakes and reveal a honeycomb crumb inside. Eaten warm at the counter with an espresso, never on the go.

Duck leg cured in salt then slowly cooked in its own fat until the meat falls from the bone beneath crackling skin. Served with sautéed potatoes and frisée, it is the rich, soulful heart of southwest French cooking adopted by Paris.

Onions caramelized low and slow into a dark, sweet broth, ladled into a crock, topped with toasted bread and a thick blanket of Gruyère, then bubbled under the grill. The classic late-night warmer of Les Halles market workers.

Snails baked in their shells under a molten pool of garlic, parsley, and butter. Served by the half-dozen with tongs and a tiny fork, you swirl bread through the fragrant green butter left behind. Pure unapologetic Parisian indulgence.

Raw oysters from Normandy and Brittany shucked to order and arranged on crushed ice with lemon, mignonette, and rye bread. A briny, glistening fixture of Parisian brasseries, prized through the cold months and washed down with crisp Muscadet.

France's favourite sandwich and the original fast food: a split fresh baguette spread thickly with butter and layered with quality cured ham. Nothing more. Sold from every boulangerie, it is the honest, crackling-crusted lunch of working Paris.

Thin batter swirled across a hot griddle and folded around fillings sweet or savoury, from lemon and sugar to gooey Nutella, or buckwheat galettes with ham, egg, and melting cheese. A beloved street snack from Montparnasse stands citywide.

The famous upside-down apple tart: fruit caramelized in butter and sugar, baked under pastry, then flipped to reveal glossy amber apples. Served warm with crème fraîche, it is the comforting close to countless Parisian bistro meals.