Anyone know of some decent vegetarian restaurants in Paris?

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Something of an oxymoron, no doubt, but I live in hope. All I can find on the web that looks attractive is Piccolo Teatro and Le Grenier de Notre Dame, and that's just based on random review sites where the main complaint people have is that the staff can't speak English.

Am trying to build up a list to work through on Friday night until I find one that's not full/closed/moved etc.

― Hello Sunshine (Hello Sunshine), Tuesday, 27 September 2005 07:52 (twenty years ago)

It's pretty tricky being a vegetarian in Paris. There are a few vegetarian restaurants - I can think of a couple in the Marais - but they're not very good and they're overpriced. You'd do much better going to good French restaurants, and ordering two entrées, cheese platter and dessert. Failing that, pizzerias abound, almost always run by Italians, so you can get good pizzas, pasta, vegetarian lasagnas etc. But I'd give your actual vegetarian restaurants a wide berth - it's not in the French culture, so they don't know how to do it properly.

― random parisian, Tuesday, 27 September 2005 08:19 (twenty years ago)

main complaint people have is that the staff can't speak English.

Bloody foreigners!

If you're ovo-lacto vegetarian (or whatever you call it), you should be OK. Pity a vegan in Paris, though.

― M. White (Miguelito), Tuesday, 27 September 2005 14:18 (twenty years ago)

L'As du Falafel is a cheap falafel place recommended by Lenny Kravitz. (There are pictures of him on the wall.) I couldn't tell you where it is, though.

― jaymc (jaymc), Tuesday, 27 September 2005 14:21 (twenty years ago)

It's inside the building.

― mark grout (mark grout), Tuesday, 27 September 2005 14:31 (twenty years ago)

All the falafel joints are centred around the rue des Rosiers in the Marais. In fact, that area's probably your best bet for good vegetarian food. I recommend Chez Marianne, although it's pretty popular so you'd have to book first.

― jz, Tuesday, 27 September 2005 14:37 (twenty years ago)

we went to Le Grenier de Notre Dame a few weeks back, and it was ok. the service was friendly, it's a good idea to have a reservation since the place is TINY. food was what i'd imagine vegetarian food was like in restaurants in the UK and US in the 80's...i had a seitan thing that i think was supposed to be like a breaded veal thing and some fantastic roasted sweet potato and carrots and things. starters were better than mains. we were pretty happy with it, but it wasn't amazing or imaginative or anything.

i'd take RP's advice and stick to normal restaurants, although it couldn't hurt to think in terms of moroccan (couscous and stuff) and we ate crepes for lunch.

time out suggested terminus nord as a place that had a decent veggie selection and we'd planned on eating there on the way to the eurostar, but it had little (if any) veggie options, so rule that one out!

― colette (a2lette), Tuesday, 27 September 2005 14:42 (twenty years ago)

Vegetarian food is almost an impossibility in Paris. There are a couple of Tibetan places. The Italian suggestion upthread works. Also, any of the patisseries and sandwich shops for the almighty sanwich au fromage. And this is kind of out of left field, but vegetarians can eat pretty damn well in any of the department store cafeterias.

― ng-unit, Tuesday, 27 September 2005 15:51 (twenty years ago)

I don't know that it's an IMPOSSIBILITY. It probably just depends on if you want to eat well. When I was there, I was a poor student, so I did fine with falafel and reasonably priced Moroccan restaurants and street-cart crepes.

― jaymc (jaymc), Tuesday, 27 September 2005 15:56 (twenty years ago)

I ate at a good tiny vegetarian restaurant there, but can't remember the name; I'll look it up tonight.

Also, Aperge, possibly the most expensive restaurant in Paris, is now vegetarian. But it'll cost you something like $250 per person for dinner.

― kyle (akmonday), Tuesday, 27 September 2005 16:44 (twenty years ago)

god, i'm trying to remember... i LIVED in paris as a vegetarian so i should be more helpful (though i rarely ate out).

and haha living in paris is what killed my vegetarianism. so maybe, not so helpful.

― s1ocki (slutsky), Tuesday, 27 September 2005 16:47 (twenty years ago)

there was a place called UniversalBurger near Les Halles that had good veggie burgers

― kyle (akmonday), Tuesday, 27 September 2005 16:55 (twenty years ago)

Kyle, I think you mean L'Arpège.

http://www.newyorker.com/online/content/articles/050905on_onlineonly01

*mumbles* Eating burgers in Paris. Quelle idée! /*mumbles*

― M. White (Miguelito), Tuesday, 27 September 2005 17:01 (twenty years ago)

Dude, just order the souffle.

― Aimless (Aimless), Tuesday, 27 September 2005 18:00 (twenty years ago)

I keep reading this thread as ... vagina restaurants. If I'd reply then I'd probably piss off Hello Sunshine because it's not really veggie, right?

― nathalie, a bum like you (stevie nixed), Tuesday, 27 September 2005 18:06 (twenty years ago)

yeah that's what I mean, whatever! Like I could afford it when I was there...

― kyle (akmonday), Tuesday, 27 September 2005 18:48 (twenty years ago)

Let's be cool, mec. Just a bit of divertissement.

― M. White (Miguelito), Tuesday, 27 September 2005 19:04 (twenty years ago)

My bf and I found some very nice vegetarian restaurants when we visited Paris, but we did a lot of research ahead of time so we wouldn't be caught hungry in a foreign city. Some of them were more ethnic, others were more health conscious.

― Kittens Licking Cakes (coco), Tuesday, 27 September 2005 19:15 (twenty years ago)

I can't remember the names of the places we went (this was a few years ago) but there are some nice sites online with reviews like this one:
http://www.nwfolk.com/vegparis.html

― Kittens Licking Cakes (coco), Tuesday, 27 September 2005 19:22 (twenty years ago)

i'm pretty sure l'arpege still uses meat in reductions etc, so probably doesn't count as vegetarian anyway.

― toby (tsg20), Tuesday, 27 September 2005 20:11 (twenty years ago)

Le Petit Légume
(tel 01 40 46 06 85, 36 rue des Boulangers, 5e, metro Cardinal Lemoine). This tiny place is a great choice for homemade vegetarian fare, with menus. It's open for lunch and dinner to 10pm, Monday to Saturday.

Check it out, it's great.

― dar1a g (daria g), Tuesday, 27 September 2005 20:17 (twenty years ago)

If I recall it was only open for dinner? But I can't be sure. Very tiny, awesome food.

There was a wonderful Japanese vegetarian restaurant on a quiet side street in the Latin Quarter but I can't remember the name!

Here's another (I haven't been there):
Le Grenier de Notre Dame, 18 rue de la Bûcherie, Métro: St. Michel. +33 1 43 29 98 29. A vegetarian restaurant with a great selection including a number of vegan items, the Grenier is, as the name suggests, just around the corner from the cathedral. The English-speaking staff is super friendly. Dinner menus start at 12 €.

― dar1a g (daria g), Tuesday, 27 September 2005 20:25 (twenty years ago)

one year passes...

OK, can someone recommend some decent FULL OF MEAT restaurants?

We're like 6 20-somethings and we're all around Le Marais. Want to spend like 20-30 euro per person. And I want some foie gras. And some oysters? Please someone, something good!

― phil-two (phil-two), Tuesday, 3 October 2006 17:27 (nineteen years ago)

If being a vegetarian is difficult in Paris, shouldn't it follow that finding "full of meat" restaus is really easy? Just avoid the big crappy chains like Hippopotamus and Leon de Bruxelles and you can't do TOO badly.

As for being a veggie, going to l'as du falafel all the time sounds like a pretty great option! The entrée or salad option also seems good, I don't know why my vegetarian would just sit and starve while everyone else ate, as if the chef was liable to slip in some lardons into the bruschetta on a malicious whim.

This makes me want to start up the Paris FAP (fagow) thread! It's about time...

― richardk (Richard K), Tuesday, 10 October 2006 08:40 (nineteen years ago)

Chez Janou, right in the Marais for Provencal cooking, lots of meat and many many varieties of Pastis.

Cafe De L'Industrie near place de Bastille for Meaty Bistro goodness

― Ed (dali), Tuesday, 10 October 2006 08:46 (nineteen years ago)

ooh i've wanted to try cafe de l'industrie for awhile.

― richardk (Richard K), Tuesday, 10 October 2006 08:49 (nineteen years ago)

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