Best Restaurants in Paris

Last updated: October 17, 2026

Best For

• A once-in-a-lifetime dinner: Plénitude at Cheval Blanc Paris, overlooking the Seine
• A plant-based tasting menu: Arpège, where Alain Passard cooks only from the plant world
• A Michelin-starred lunch on a budget: Auguste in the 7th arrondissement
• Modern, relaxed Paris: Septime in the 11th, if you can get a booking

Paris has more great restaurants than any visitor can try in one trip, and the hardest part is often choosing the right kind of meal. The 2026 MICHELIN Guide France, revealed on March 16, 2026, lists nine three-star restaurants in the city. It also brought real changes: L'Ambroisie lost its third star, and Virtus, Hakuba and Alliance each earned a second.

This guide picks ten restaurants that cover the range, from palace dining rooms to a neighborhood table near the Aligre market, with what each costs and how to book.

How We Chose These Restaurants

This is an editorial selection, not a scientific or absolute ranking. We started from the 2026 MICHELIN Guide, checked each restaurant's own menus and booking pages, and chose places with different styles and budgets, so the list works for more than one kind of evening. The restaurants appear by style, not in order of preference.

The guide is compiled from published sources, not from personal visits. Menus, prices and hours change often, so check the restaurant's own channels before you book.

Paris Restaurants at a Glance

Price symbols follow the MICHELIN Guide, which rates all ten restaurants €€€€. Figures are per person, before drinks, and come from 2025–2026 menus and listings. In France, service is included in menu prices by law, so a tip is optional.

Three-Star Icons

These six restaurants hold the MICHELIN Guide's highest rating in 2026. They share a level of cooking and service, but the experience differs a lot, from a riverside room built around sauces to a counter of vegetables grown by the chef.

Plénitude – Cheval Blanc Paris

Address: 8 Quai du Louvre, 75001 Paris

Plénitude sits on the first floor of Cheval Blanc Paris, the hotel inside the former La Samaritaine department store, with windows facing the Seine and the Pont Neuf. Chef Arnaud Donckele builds every course around a sauce, jus or broth, often served in its own small bowl. The restaurant opened in September 2021 and earned three stars within months.

Price and booking: early-2026 listings show a four-course menu you compose yourself at about €475 and a six-course menu at about €495, with wine pairings on top. The room is small, so book well ahead through the hotel. Choose Plénitude when the occasion matters more than the bill.

Kei

Address: 5 Rue Coq-Héron, 75001 Paris

Kei Kobayashi trained under Alain Ducasse and in 2020 became the first Japanese chef to win three Michelin stars in France. His cooking is French in its produce and structure, with a Japanese eye for color, balance and precision. One of his best-known dishes is a garden of vegetables arranged like a mosaic. The dining room, between the Louvre and Palais-Royal, is compact and quiet.

Practical details: lunch offers five or eight courses and dinner six or eight. A 2026 listing put the dinner menu at about €260 per person. The restaurant is closed on Sundays and Mondays and at Thursday lunch. Lunch is the more affordable way in, and diners often single out the service as warm rather than stiff.

Arpège

Address: 84 Rue de Varenne, 75007 Paris

Alain Passard has run Arpège since 1986 and has held three stars since 1996. His produce comes from his own kitchen gardens outside Paris. In July 2025 he went further and made the menu entirely plant-based, a first for a French three-star restaurant. Expect vegetables, fruit and herbs treated with the same seriousness as luxury ingredients elsewhere, and desserts that diners often remember as highlights.

Price and booking: 2026 listings put lunch menus from about €175 per person, with dinner menus costing far more. The restaurant usually opens Monday to Friday only, so check before planning a weekend meal. Choose it if you want one of the most distinctive meals in the city.

Épicure – Le Bristol Paris

Address: 112 Rue du Faubourg Saint-Honoré, 75008 Paris

Épicure is the flagship restaurant of Le Bristol, the palace hotel on Rue du Faubourg Saint-Honoré, and its dining room looks onto the hotel's garden. Arnaud Faye, a Meilleur Ouvrier de France, took over the kitchens in April 2024 after Éric Frechon's 25 years here. The cooking is classic French with a lighter, modern hand: think sole, Bresse chicken and turbot. A plant-based version of the menu is available.

Price and booking: recent reports put tasting menus from about €380 per person before wine. Book through the hotel, and dress smartly. Choose Épicure for a grand-hotel evening that feels elegant without being cold.

Le Cinq – Four Seasons Hotel George V

Address: 31 Avenue George V, 75008 Paris

Le Cinq's high-ceilinged, gilded dining room inside the Four Seasons George V is one of the most formal settings in Paris. Chef Christian Le Squer, from Brittany, has held three stars here since 2016. His cooking leans on seafood and refined sauces, and his gratinéed spaghetti with truffle has become a signature. Service is quiet, attentive and traditional.

Practical details: Le Cinq sits at the very top of the price scale, and wine can easily double the bill. Recent listings show dinner only, Tuesday to Saturday. Book several weeks ahead for weekends, and plan on dressing up. This is the choice for palace luxury in its classic form.

Le Gabriel – La Réserve Paris

Address: 42 Avenue Gabriel, 75008 Paris

Le Gabriel is the main restaurant of La Réserve Paris, a 19th-century mansion near the Élysée. Chef Jérôme Banctel, who grew up in Brittany, earned a third star here in 2024. One menu draws on Breton land and sea. Another follows his travels and borrows techniques from other cuisines.

Price and booking: a 2026 listing put the lunch menu at €98 and the seven-course dinner menu at €278, which makes lunch here one of the more accessible ways to try three-star cooking. The hotel's site lists service Monday to Friday and asks for smart attire, with no shorts, sportswear or caps. Book through La Réserve.

Classic French

L'Ambroisie

Address: 9 Place des Vosges, 75004 Paris

Set under the arcades of the Place des Vosges, L'Ambroisie held three stars from 1988 until 2026, longer than any other restaurant in Paris. After founder Bernard Pacaud retired in 2025, Japanese chef Shintaro Awa took over the kitchen. He spent a decade alongside Éric Frechon at Épicure. In March 2026 the MICHELIN Guide moved the restaurant to two stars. The cooking stays rooted in classic French technique and sauces, served in a room that feels like a private townhouse.

Price and booking: listings put the à la carte bill at roughly €210 to €360 per person before wine. Lunch and dinner seatings are short, so arrive on time. Choose it for traditional French dining in one of the most beautiful squares in the city.

Modern Paris

These three restaurants show a different side of Paris dining: smaller rooms, seasonal cooking and bills that are lower than at the palaces, even when the stars are not.

Virtus

Address: 29 Rue de Cotte, 75012 Paris

Virtus is a few steps from the Marché d'Aligre, behind a navy-blue façade and an Art Deco interior that feels like a Parisian apartment. Chef Frédéric Lorimier worked with Arnaud Donckele in Saint-Tropez before taking over here with his partner, Camille Gouyer, who runs the dining room. In 2026 Virtus earned its second Michelin star, and Gouyer received the guide's national Service Award. The cooking is precise and seasonal, built around deep, aromatic sauces.

Price and booking: Gault&Millau's 2026 guide puts the bill at roughly €90 to €195 per person before drinks. Dinner runs Tuesday to Saturday, with lunch on Fridays only. The restaurant handles its own bookings. Choose Virtus for two-star cooking at well below palace prices.

Septime

Address: 80 Rue de Charonne, 75011 Paris

Septime opened in 2011 and helped define modern Paris dining: an industrial-style room with bare wood and a glass roof, a young team, a natural wine list and a set menu that changes with the market. It has held a Michelin star since 2014, and Michelin describes the cooking as modern and largely plant-led. Co-founder and chef Bertrand Grébaut died in July 2026, and the restaurant has remained open under its team.

Price and booking: in September 2026, the restaurant's site listed a five-course lunch at €85 and a seven-course dinner at €135, with wine pairings at €60 and €75. Bookings open daily at 10 a.m., exactly three weeks ahead, and go fast. A card is required, and there are no walk-ins. Report allergies when you book, as there is a single menu.

Auguste

Address: 54 Rue de Bourgogne, 75007 Paris

Chef Gaël Orieux opened Auguste in 2005 on a quiet street near the Musée Rodin. He serves only fish from species that are not endangered, and seafood leads the menu, though meat dishes such as crisp sweetbreads also appear. The contemporary dining room seats about 30, which keeps the mood calm.

Price and booking: Auguste is one of the most affordable starred lunches in central Paris, with a set lunch reported at around €47 to €52. The Signature menu was €120 in 2026, and cheeses from a well-known Paris affineur are included. Michelin lists service Monday to Friday, closed on weekends. Lunch can usually be booked about a week ahead.

Other Three-Star Restaurants in Paris

The 2026 guide also gives three stars to Alléno Paris au Pavillon Ledoyen and Pierre Gagnaire, both in the 8th, and to Le Pré Catelan in the Bois de Boulogne (16th). Each deserves a look if you are planning a top-tier meal.

How to Choose

• For a milestone celebration: Plénitude, Le Cinq or Épicure.
• For a lower bill at a starred table: lunch at Auguste, Septime or Le Gabriel.
• For vegetables first: Arpège, with Septime as a more relaxed option.
• For classic Paris in a historic setting: L'Ambroisie on the Place des Vosges.
• For a neighborhood feel: Virtus near the Aligre market or Septime in the 11th.

Practical Tips

• Lunch costs less. Many starred restaurants offer shorter lunch menus at a fraction of the dinner price.
• Watch the calendar. Arpège, Auguste and Le Gabriel are listed as weekday-only, and Kei closes on Sundays and Mondays.
• Book on the right day. Some restaurants open bookings at a fixed time; Septime releases tables exactly three weeks ahead.
• Service is included. French menu prices include service, so tipping is a personal choice.
• Share dietary needs early. Set menus are planned in advance, so tell the restaurant when you book.

Frequently Asked Questions

How many three-Michelin-star restaurants are in Paris in 2026?

Nine: Kei, Plénitude, Arpège, Épicure, Le Cinq, Le Gabriel, Alléno Paris au Pavillon Ledoyen, Pierre Gagnaire and Le Pré Catelan.

Did L'Ambroisie lose a Michelin star?

Yes. In the 2026 guide it moved from three stars to two, after Bernard Pacaud retired and Shintaro Awa took over the kitchen.

What is the cheapest way to eat at a Michelin-starred restaurant in Paris?

Go at lunch. Auguste's set lunch has been reported at around €50, Septime's at €85 and Le Gabriel's at €98.

Is there a plant-based Michelin-starred restaurant in Paris?

Yes. Since July 2025, Arpège has served an entirely plant-based menu while keeping its three stars.

How far ahead should I book?

For three-star restaurants, several weeks ahead, and more for weekends. Septime opens bookings exactly three weeks ahead at 10 a.m.

Is there a dress code?

The palace restaurants expect smart dress, and Le Gabriel asks guests to avoid shorts, sportswear and caps. Septime and Virtus are more relaxed.

Do I need to tip in Paris restaurants?

No. Service is included in French menu prices. Leaving a little extra for good service is appreciated but optional.

More Paris Dining Guides

Explore more places to eat, drink and stay in the city on our Paris city page.