Five Michelin-Starred Restaurants You May Not Know About

In 1900 the Michelin brothers, who had started out making bicycle tires in France, printed a small guide for the country's few motorists to tell them where to get service on the road, where to buy tires, where to stay, and also where to eat. They even threw in a few simple maps. Their logic was simple. The more people traveled, the faster their tires would wear out. More travel = more tire sales. It was from this simple beginning over a century ago that the Michelin Red Guide to restaurants and hotels evolved.

As we discovered during our visits with two dozen Michelin-starred chefs in France, the Red Guide is the one that matters most to the country's top chefs. "The others," as Chef Frédéric Robert told us, "do not matter." While doing research for a book on the one-star Michelin restaurants of France, we had the good fortune to spend time in the kitchens with some of the most renowned chefs of Paris and France… and to eat in their restaurants. We'd like to share with you our favorite Michelin-starred restaurants in Paris.

La Grande Cascade

One Michelin Star

The Bois de Boulogne hangs off the west end of Paris. It's sometimes referred to as the lungs of Paris, due to all of the trees that supply oxygen to the city. We also like to think of it as the belly of Paris, for the Bois is where you'll find one of our fave dining experiences, La Grand Cascade.

We write about La Grand Cascade in a dedicated review, but it's worth repeating, since a dinner or lunch here is not only an amazing gourmet delight but an elegant, darn near perfect occasion.

• Allée de Longchamp, Bois de Boulogne
• 16th Arrondissement
• tel: 01 45 27 33 51
• Website…

Nomicos

One Michelin Star

Jean-Louis Nomicos has been cooking around the Paris food scene for a long time. He won the star for La Grand Cascade when he headed the kitchen there, he maintained the two stars at Laserre, and here, at his own restaurant, he quickly gathered up his own star. Originally called Les Tablettes de Jean-Louis Nomicos, Chef Jean-Louis' eponymous restaurant is worth a trip to the 16th Arrondissement

He's also famous for inventing the dish we like to call the world's most expensive macaroni — Macaroni, truffes noires, foie gras de canard, céleri, jus de veau, parmesan gratinés. That's right, pasta stuffed with black truffles and foie gras. It's something you must eat at least once in your life.

• 16 Avenue Bugeaud
• 16th Arrondissement
• 01 56 28 16 16
• Website…

L'Atelier de Joel Robuchon – Étoile

One Michelin Star

This may be the best one on this list. At least if you believe Eric Ripert. Chef Ripert, who knows a thing or two about great restaurants — his Le Bernardin in New York City holds three stars — has called L'Atelier de Joel Robuchon "the best restaurant in the world".

In an interview, Chef Ripert told us that Joel Robuchon was, "In my opinion the best chef we've seen in the last century." And that certainly shows in the food at L'Atelier. How Joel Robuchon was able to run a number of restaurants and still maintain the high level of cooking is a mystery many chefs would like to solve.

For us, we're just content to be able to eat this amazing food in the convivial space Robuchon has created. This restaurant lost one star for a year or two, but has since regained the second. Another not-to-be-missed meal.

• Lower Level of the Publicis Drugstore
• 133 Avenue des Champs Elyséées, Entry at 30 Rue Vernet
• 8th Arrondissement
• 01 47 23 75 75
• Website…

Jacques Faussat Regains His Star !

One Michelin Star

Tucked away in the 17th Arrondissement, on a small street wandering tourists are unlikely to find, is Jacques Faussat, a restaurant owned by one of the kindest chefs we're ever met. The exterior of the restaurant is unassuming, but the dining room has a simple, pleasing elegance to it. The star, however, is Chef Faussat's food. Among the exceedingly delicious dishes we ate was Pigeon a la Pastilla, inspired by the Andulusian meat pie later adopted by Moroccans. His flavor combinations simply are not to be missed.

Oddly. Chef Faussat lost his star for a couple of years. (We kept telling Michelin they were wrong!) But, in recent editions of the guide his star was restored, and rightly so. By the way, if you read about a restaurant called La Braisiere, it's the same place — that was the name Chef Faussat originally gave his restaurant.

• 54 Rue Cardinet
• 7th Arrondissement
• tel: 01 47 63 40 37
• Website…

Les Climats

One Michelin Star

Not only did we proclaim that the cooking at Les Climats was worthy of two stars, we also named it one of The Best Restaurants in France 2020. There's a new chef here — thirtysomething Emmanuel Kouri — and in our review we called him a "keeper."

The wine list here (it's literally a book — a coffee-table-book size book) is a sonnet to the wines of Burgundy. Les Climats may well have the best Burgundy wine cellar in the country. But, even with those great wines, it was the cooking that shone for us. Visually, each course was a work of art. The homard bleu was delicately seasoned with curry and broiled avocado slices and finished with a buttery foam. The belles sardines Bretonnes sparkled with brilliance; the trio was grilled, stuffed with smoked ricotta cheese, fresh herbs, and nasturtium leaves.

We could go on… in fact, we do — in our full review. You don't want to miss this place, set in the street just behind Musée d'Orsay. Be sure to opt for a wine pairing with your meal.

• 41 Rue de Lille
• 7th Arrondissement
• tel: 01 58 62 10 08
• Website…