Septime - now with a Michelin star

Septime is arguably one of the best tables in Paris right now as far as we're concerned - and we're certainly not the only ones to think that: the three-year-old restaurant also features on the World's Best Restaurant list (this year at number 52), won cult restaurant guide Le Fooding's "Fooding d'Honneur" in 2012, and has now received accolade of all accolades - its first (of many?) Michelin star. Chef Bertrand Grébaut concocts fresh flavour combinations with seasonal ingredients - for example, tender bonito with tart rhubarb and aniseed notes of fennel - beautifully and simply presented (there's nary a fancy coulis-squiggle in sight), with the colours and textures of superlative raw ingredients taking centre stage. Knowledgable, non-pretientious sommeliers are on hand to explain the extensive wine list, which includes interesting offerings such as orange wine (referring to its tannic robe) as well as excellent reds and whites, by the glass or bottle. The atmosphere is - in keeping with the food - devoid of all pomp and circumstance, with a pared-back, light-filled decor featuring wood, glass and grey metals a-plenty and not a single starched white table cloth to be seen. Lunch comes in at an unbelievably reasonable €30 for three courses (with two choices for each course), or €55 for a five-course no-choice menu at lunch and €60 at dinner. So what's the catch? With all these selling points, it's not easy to get a table. Log on to their website three weeks in advance for your best chances at scoring a reservation and persevere. Also keep in mind that Grébin's new restaurant next door, the seafood sharing plate Clamato, is for walk-ins only and the the equally charming Septime La Cave is just around the corner for wine, cheese and aperitif fodder - so if you have no luck getting a table at the mothership, you can at least get a glimpse of the greatness that is Septime. 

Septime

80 rue de Charonne, 75011 Paris

Tel: +33 1 43 67 38 29 

www.septime-charonne.fr

all photos copyright Kim Laidlaw / Unlock Paris

Septime La Cave

The team behind the much-lauded restaurant Septime (which featured again this year on the World's Best Restaurant list) has opened a wine shop cum wine bar just around the corner from their main address in the 11th arrondissement. Pop into the charming Septime La Cave to pick up a bottle from their vast selection from not just France, but also Italy and elsewhere in Europe, no matter what your budget (prices start from around just €6) or take a seat at the small bar in the vintage-retro feeling shop, complete with metro-style tiles and cinema-type lettering on the wall menus, to sample some of the wines by the glass, soaked up with fresh and simple small plates. On the seasonally changing menu are tapas-sized portions of high-quality olives, cheeses and cold meats and simple fish (we had delicious sardines served with herbed butter, and peppered goat's cheese on our visit) of between around €4-14 each, to go with a superb selection of wines from by the glass from between €5-7 (we enjoyed the Sicilian SP68 Bianco, and the sparkling Chenin from La Grange Tiphaine).  The incredibly friendly and knowledgeable staff are on hand to advise and the general atmosphere of this cosy space make for a convivial setting for an afternoon or evening drink - perfect for a light bite or an aperitif.

Restaurant Pierre Sang

Pierre Sang Boyer (pictured centre), one of the charmismatic stars of French culinary TV show Top Chef, has opened his own eponymous restaurant in Paris' 11th arrondissement. The young chef, who was a semi-finalist in the 2011 edition of the television programme, opened Restaurant Pierre Sang on the buzzing, bar-lined rue Oberkampf in mid 2012. The no-reservation corner space is full to capacity daily - and has already been honoured with a prestigious award from French food guide Le Fooding - with a mixed clientele packing in to the laid-back setting with counter seating looking on to an open kitchen to sample the multi-course, no-choice menu of modern, eclectic cuisine (from €35 for the prix-fixe). State any allergies or dietary requirements to the knowledgeable waiters and then leave yourselves in the hands of the capable and daring team to bring you dish after dish of original Pierre Sang creations, which fuse French and South Korean influences to reflect the chef's mixed heritage. We particularly liked the pudding of tarte tatin with a sharp raspberry mousse laced with vinegar on our visit. Wines are also topnotch and the friendly sommelier is on hand to advise on what tipples to pair with your meal.

Restaurant Pierre Sang

55 rue Oberkampf

75011 Paris

Open Tues-Fri lunch and dinner; Sat dinner only. 

No reservations 

photos copyright Unlock Paris and cannot be reproduced without permission

L'Echappée Urban Spa

Oberkampf, an area of Paris best known for its restaurants and bars, is also now home to the capital's first urban spa: l'Echappée. With natural light, exposed brick-work and polished concrete floors, l'Echappée anchors itself in a tasteful, contemporary luxury, providing a calming zen-like sanctuary for those seeking refuge from the bustle of the city.  

Le Dauphin

Wine bar and tapas restaurant Le Dauphin is the latest venture from the team behind Paris' highly praised restaurant Le Chateaubriand, and was much anticipated by the gastronomic world when it opened last year - and has since been awarded Le Fooding's "Best Decor" accolade for 2010. Just a few doors down from the mothership, Le Dauphin exudes a similar easy-going charm to Le Chateaubriand, but with an altogether less classic decor. Here the interior features floor-to-ceiling polished grey marble walls, an abundance of mirrors and white flourescent lights - creating a maze of reflections in which Paris' beautiful people can check each other (and themselves) out - designed by none other than international starchitect, and Pritzker prize winner, Rem Koolhaas.  But don't let that fool you in to thinking Le Dauphin is all style and no substance - like we said, chef Inake Aizpitarte is involved and the food is very much the same delicious standard as Le Chateaubriand. Here however, you don't have a fixed five-course menu; you order small-plates and share with your table (much in the same vein as Au Passage and Aux Deux Amis) and then re-order some more depending on just how gluttonous you are feeling. The fare ranges from simple one note dishes - burratta, (live) prawns - to more complex offerings (which change depending on the season and the inspiration of the chef) like squid-ink risotto or mushrooms and smoked mozzarella, and the excellent wine list features a judicious selection of top natural wines. Prices vary from around €5-€12 for each small plate - and you probably need about three-four plates per person if you have a normal sized appetite and can resist the temptation to keep on ordering more...  One of our current Paris favourites. 

Le Dauphin

131 avenue Parmentier, 75011 Paris

Tel: +33 1 55 28 78 88 

Metro: Goncourt / Parmentier / Republique

Open: Tues-Sat, lunch and dinner (but closed Tuesday for lunch)

All photos copyright Kim Laidlaw

Le Chateaubriand

If you only go to one restaurant in Paris, make it Le Chateaubriand. Young Basque chef Inake Aizpitarte's Parisian bistro has been much lauded (it repeatedly features on the 50 Best Restaurants of the World List, ranking number 9 for 2011) and yet it's not what you'd necessarily expect from a feted restaurant in the capital of the country of Michelin stars, snooty waiters and a national gastronomy that has been awarded UNESCO world heritage status.

Au Passage

There's a brand new wine-bar/restaurant in town, and we've got a feeling it's going to be a great success. Serving small plates to share and with an excellent wine list, Au Passage is very much in the same vein as two other success stories that have opened over the last couple of years in Paris, Aux Deux Amis and Le Dauphin. Down a quiet passage way off the Rue Amelot in the 11th is this former workman's bistro, taken over by a group of French friends who also own a couple of other restaurants around town (the Peres Populaires in the 20th and the Caves Populaires in the 17th). Being run by two wine and food aficionados from the group, who are self-confessed fans of Le Chateaubriand's Inaki Aizpitarte, this latest venture looks set to be their most fruitful yet. The setting retains a shabby-chic charm - "populaire" has been the team's keyword until now, afterall - with the original zinc bar and floor remaining intact,  and the local workmen from the nearby Renault garage still patronising the place (only now they rub shoulders with bobo foodies, too). The decor is shabby-chic, with atelier-style windows, battered old leather club chairs, simple tables and chairs and retro 60s lights. Old meets new at the exterior of the restaurant too, with murals by French street artist Mass Toc adorning the original mosaic front. The evening menu of small plates features simple options with a focus on the quality of individual ingredients, such as anchovies with piment d'espellette, burrata and home-made rillettes. Slightly more innovative offerings which show off the skills of the chef include trout with exotic cucumber, and courgettes with ricotta. Diners are recommended to choose three plates per person (which generally range from €4-€9) and to get stuck in and share amongst themselves. The very amiable staff are happy, nay positively thrilled, to advise on wine by the glass or bottle from the judiciously chosen list featuring natural wines from independent and small producers. We tried the very reasonably fixed-price lunch menu, which comes in at €9 for just the main, €13 for two courses or €16.50 for all three. The no-choice starter of the day, tuna confit served with tomatoes, capers and red onion, was a light, refreshing option for a hot summer afternoon. There is a choice of two dishes for the main course, which change daily depending on the season, the market and the inspiration of the chef. On our visit, a fillet of whiting cooked a la plancha and veal were on the menu, both served with a selection of cool, summer courgettes. Pudding was iced grapefruit served with fromage frais. Au Passage is a laid-back and friendly place with honest, good, seasonal food and a superlative wine list, in a charming setting - and all this for a very reasonable price. Like we said, we have a feeling that this place might just be a big success...

Au Passage1 bis, passage Saint Sebastien, Paris 75011+33 1 43 55 07 52  Au Passage Facebook Page 

Open: Lunch Mon-Fri, Dinner Tues-Sat. 

All photos copyright Kim Laidlaw 

Paris-Feni

Just off the well trodden track of rue Oberkampf is the Paris-Feni cafe, located in the charming Village Popincourt, a little pedestrianised square which is also home to some antique shops and the trendy pizza joint Al Taglio. Named after the the city in Bangladesh from which the two founders hail and the capital of France in which they now reside, Paris-Feni was aided by ADIE, an organisation which provides micro-credit to small companies who would ordinarily be unable to apply for more traditional loans, and which itself was founded by fellow Bangladeshi Dr Muhammad Yunis (who won the Nobel Peace Prize for the initiative in 2006). But not only is Paris-Feni good for the soul and the greater good of mankind in general, it's also good for the body and the wallet too. Seasonal, fresh fruit juices and salads, colourful and flavoursome Bengali-inspired dishes fill you up nicely whilst swiftly completing your five-a-day requirements, and the whole lot will set you back less than €15. The biryani, which comes in a vegetable, chicken or mixed variety, is particularly good. Delicious, virtuous and cheap - you'll leave feeling entirely cleansed (and with enough change to buy a packet of fags on your way home, should you wish to redress the balance). 

Paris-Feni 

15 bis rue Ternaux, 75011 Paris

Open Tues-Sun, midday - 11.30pm

All photos copyright Kim Laidlaw