The best southern restaurants in Paris

© Les Niçois - Le Petit Bal Perdu - Roch Debache for Baieta

"If you won't come to Provence, Provence will come to you..." Holidays can wait: right in the heart of Paris, several Mediterranean restaurants have absolutely nothing to envy of the tables, markets, and beach canteens of the South. Where can you savor the best pan-bagnats, pissaladières, bouillabaisses, zucchini flower fritters, and petits farcis without leaving the capital? Here is a roundup of the spots that smell beautifully of the garrigue...

Halfway between the Panthéon and the Jardin des Plantes lies Le Petit Bal Perdu, the little sister of the mythical restaurant Janou. A true Provençal bistro par excellence, its red and white awnings shelter the terrace, while checkered tablecloths invite you to linger over a glass of rosé, and dozens of multicolored bulbs illuminate the terrace like a Southern guinguette.

We start with ultra-generous mussels au gratin with garlic and parsley (€12), browned to perfection, or a pea and mint gazpacho (€12), perfect for heatwaves. Then comes the moment to choose between the duck breast drizzled with acacia honey and spiked with a touch of Banyuls vinegar (€28), meltingly tender and beautifully caramelized, or the sea bass fillet with preserved lemon (€26). And because it would be a real shame to stop there, we finish with the morello cherry clafoutis (€9), a chocolate mousse (€12), or a cup of red berries topped with a mountain of decadent whipped cream (€9), to share... or not.

Le Petit Bal Perdu, 32 rue Tournefort, Paris 5th. Open every day, lunch and dinner.

A sun-drenched crush for this lovely restaurant on Boulevard de Charonne that smells of the South, the sea, and holidays! Led by Patrick Sacchetti, a native Marseillais, this good-vibes haunt decorated like a Provençal beach cabin ticks all the cool boxes.

The novelty? It takes place in the kitchen with the arrival of the highly promising 28-year-old Bastien Veziat, trained by the greats (La Monnaie, Taillevent, Drouant...) who twists Mediterranean classics with beautiful audacity. Among the hits of the weekly changing menu, we loved the Marseille panisses with Espelette pepper (€9), the summer melon-cucumber gazpacho (€13), and the roasted pork tenderloin with fig leaf (€29). The ultimate pleasure? The collection of Pastis, which even includes a vintage version from Château des Creissauds (€9). As a bonus, a grocery corner offers a selection of 100% Southern products sourced from the finest producers.

Kalank, 52 boulevard de Charonne, Paris 20th. Open Tuesday to Saturday from 12 pm to 3 pm and from 7:30 pm to 11 pm. 01 43 73 60 96.

The sunny new address from the creators of Gargouille and Zinzin takes Paris on a gourmet road trip around the Mediterranean. In the kitchen, Jules Behar and Félix Barthe bring together the culinary expertise of Italy, Greece, Turkey, and Provence around shared plates of focaccia, hummus, or zucchini fritters and blinis (€9-13), as generous as they are fragrant, to be washed down with a well-chosen glass of Assyrtiko or Arak. All this in a retro-chic Mediterranean bistro decor, perfect for a chilled lunch or a dinner that feels like holidays. A very special mention goes to the ultra-regressive rice pudding (€11) which you can always find room for!

Cagnard, 5 rue des Petits Hôtels, Paris 10th. Open Monday to Friday, lunch and dinner. Lunch set menu from €25.

A trip to the Prado in the middle of the Batignolles: this is the bet of Frédéric Duca, former head chef of L'Instant d'Or (Paris) where he earned his first star, and then Racines in New York, where he settled for four years. Despite his travels, his heart belongs to Marseille, his hometown, to which he decided to pay tribute by creating his Provençal restaurant Rooster, opened in 2019 with his wife Céline.

We settle onto the summer terrace, nibbling on the essential panisses (€7) and seafood starters like bluefin tuna with red pepper sorbet (€30) or those zucchini flowers sublimated with tomato and marjoram sauce served with cuttlefish (€28). Then, head for the old port with a John Dory on octopus stew, white asparagus, and citrus condiments (€48) or the roasted duck breast and its confit leg in pastilla, cherries, and samphire (€49). For dessert, let yourself be tempted by the greek yogurt with vanilla, rhubarb, zaatar crumble, and a killer raspberry sorbet (€15). For the wines, we follow the sommelier's advice after cracking during the aperitif for "Le Big Apple" cocktail made with cinnamon-vanilla infused rum (€16).

Rooster, 137 rue Cardinet, Paris 17th. Open for lunch Monday to Friday from 12:15 pm to 1:45 pm and for dinner Monday to Friday from 7:15 pm to 9:45 pm. 

© Florian Domergue

Head for the French Riviera at Les Niçois, a trendy hotspot run by the ambassadors of the "pastis, pétanque, pissaladière" lifestyle. Here, we happily eat a killer pan-bagnat with our fingers (€8), a real salade niçoise (€8), a cone of panisses (€5), zucchini fritters (€7), and chichis for dessert (€6) before throwing the jack in the secret petanque room downstairs, all washed down with their house rosé made in collaboration with José Garcia (€5). And at the weekend, we enjoy a relaxed brunch with the whole family.

Les Niçois, 7 rue Lacharrière, Paris 11th. Open Tuesday to Saturday from 6 pm to 2 am. Reservations at 09 84 16 55 03

Baieta means "kiss" in Nice dialect. It is indeed a declaration of love that Julia Sedefdjian offers to Parisians, reconciling author's cuisine with Nissart home cooking. The young starred chef has made the Bouillabaieta, an irresistible haute-couture bouillabaisse, her signature dish. A must-try once in your life, just like her aioli, which can be found in her 3 (€65), 4 (€100), 5 (€130), or 7 (€155) course menus.

Baieta, 5 rue de Pontoise, Paris 5th. Open Tuesday to Saturday from 12 pm to 2:15 pm and from 7 pm to 10:15 pm. Info and reservations online or at 01 42 02 59 19.  

© The Travel Buds

Founded by a true Southerner, the Paris-Nice canteen brings a snacking spirit to the Turbigo district, evoking memories of those little cravings satisfied after a raid on the Cours Saleya market. On the menu, delicious homemade dishes: the Saleya menu with pan bagnat and dessert (€13), pissaladière (€5), pichade (€5), zucchini tian (€8), the Nissart assortment featuring pissaladière, petits farcis, zucchini tian, and panisses (€16), Nice-style beef stew served with polenta (€16), or tarts with rose and violet jam by Florian, of course.

Paris-Nice, 223 rue Saint-Martin, Paris 3rd. Open Monday to Saturday from 11:30 am to 3:30 pm.

Discover also the terrace with a view of the Eiffel Tower you absolutely must check out, and the best waterfront drinks.