French cuisine is the most famous in the world due to its variety and the imagination used to prepare its dishes. Paris is a place where you can try haute cuisine prepared by the great chefs at top restaurants, explore the regional cuisine of all of France or even venture into French avant-garde cuisine.

A traditional French menu has three courses: hors d’oeuvres, the plat (entree) and cheeses to finish. French cuisine is too complex to try and describe it in just a few lines, so we’ll just provide a few tips so that you can enjoy a traditional Parisian brasserie.

The most common hors d’oeuvres are salad with goat cheese or cubes of bacon, omelettes with herbs or various soups, like soupe a l’oignon (French onion soup) and potage parisien (soup with potatoes and leeks).

The entree is meat or fish, always served with vegetables or rice, and the ubiquitous sauces which French cuisine is famous for. Paris offers some excellent dishes like entrecot bercy (entrecot with white wine sauce), chateaubriand, andouilettes (grilled tripe sausages), and the delicate canard à l’orange (duck with orange sauce) or jambon à la Porte Maillot (ham cooked with a long, complex preparation).

The cheeses are a true delight, France has more than a hundred, but the best known are camembert, brie, roquefort and strong flavored herb cheeses, without forgetting the excellent goat cheeses.

Desserts are a joy for the palate and some are famous throughout the world: chocolate St Honoré, crème caramel, crepes flambées and many more.

The amount of restaurants is unlimited: you can choose from a traditional or trendy restaurant or be tempted by the ambiance of an old-fashioned bistro. Brasseries are valid alternatives. They are traditional taverns which offer the more common dishes of French cuisine served with beer or wine. Since Paris is an international city, it offers a wide range of foreign restaurants, primarily Asian and Middle Eastern. Don’t leave without trying one of the traditional cafes which have greatly contributed to making Paris famous throughout the world and are excellent for breakfast or a snack.