Eating my way around Montmartre

French food is renowned for being delicious, rich and of very high quality. It is no surprise then that, as a self-confessed food-obsessive, one of my main pastimes whenever I pass through Paris is eating. One of my favourite districts to indulge in this hobby is Montmartre, home to the Moulin Rouge, the Sacré-Cœur and hundreds of restaurants hiding away from the beaten track.

Café des Deux Moulins

Each time I visit, I drop off my suitcase and head straight to the Café des Deux Moulins on Rue le Pic. It may ring a bell for some of you, having featured heavily in the Audrey Tautou film Amélie as the café where the titular character worked as a waitress. Personally, I know it best for its fabulous meat-and-cheese board and rosé wine.

(My moody nighttime shot of the café, immediately before entering and - joyously - eating)

The first time my mother and I walked into the café, in June 2014, it was raining torrentially in one of those early summer storms. We had walked up from the Gare du Nord train station, dragging our little cases behind us. Luckily, our hotel was only a minute’s walk from the Deux Moulins, so we flung our cases into our little room and – still dripping – when straight back out to find a seat. We sat by the open window and ordered the plate of arranged meats and cheeses and a bottle of wine, served with gloriously chewy stone-baked baguette. Blue cheese, creamy cheese, hard cheese, gherkins, sausage … perfect. When Billie Holiday came on over the radio, it was a moment that felt as if it were straight out of a film … except I probably looked far from glamorous with my rain-soaked hair and enthusiastically stuffing my face. I did notice that many tourists took photos from outside the café (fortunately without venturing in and preventing us from getting a seat), and dread to think how many pictures my mother and I must feature in, eating, drinking and cackling with delighted abandon. At least we were having fun. It has now become tradition to go to this exact café, order that exact board and drink that exact wine – and it never gets old.

(Enjoying bread and wine after walking in the rain. This is my happy face)

La Midinette

La Midinette is located on a side street just off Rue le Pic, and features yet another delicious sharing board. I do enjoy a sharing board. I also enjoy that here, as with many restaurant-bars in Paris, one can sit outside and watch the world go past. I love to do this in any city, and particularly enjoy it in Montmartre. The locals give reason to the cliché that Parisians look effortlessly chic, relaxed but sombre, always intensely in conversation. The ‘beige or navy trench coats and jeans worn by make-up free city-people carrying baguettes and/or walking small dogs’ is a look that lives and breathes every day in the Paris streets. It makes for a very different people-watching experience than in London or Barcelona, but is fascinating in its own way.

Anyway, back to the sharing board. A departure from the variety of meats and cheeses in the previous platter, La Midinette has one specialising in salmon – smoked, moussed, and poached, served with prawns and that wonderful French bread and butter again. If you hadn’t guessed, bread is a big part of my life. Each form of salmon was tasty, but the smoked salmon really stood out. Instead of coming in fine layers, it was served as a whole smoked fillet, complete with the rope used to hang it over the smoker. Original – at least to me – and tender, and so very good.

Since the platter was light (but not at all stingy), we even stayed for dessert – almost unheard of in my family, in which the salt-tooth is hereditary. Between two of us, we shared a crème brûlée and a dark chocolate mousse, washed down by a shot of espresso and coffee liqueur. Moderately portioned heaven even for those normally unconvinced by desserts.

Relais de la Butte

This restaurant sits near the top of one of the hills, overlooking the city. I have had two experiences here, one fantastic and one a bit less-than-fantastic.

(Attempting to capture Parisian terrace culture)

The first time I went, it was a blisteringly hot day and I had just dragged my mother (on foot) from Montmartre to Montparnasse in search of the Cimetière de Montparnasse. This expedition was to find the grave of the writer Julio Cortázar, of whose work I am a fan. We got lost various times getting there, then lost again inside the cemetery – but it did mean we also came across the graves of Simone de Beauvoir, Jean-Paul Sartre and Serge Gainsbourg. By the time we found the grave I was searching for and left a gift (only a glittery hairpin on the basis that it was pretty and the only expendable thing I had on my person, being chronically underprepared), we were hot, thirsty and tired. We caught the metro back (which, it turns out, only takes about five minutes – mum still hasn’t forgiven me) before trekking up to the top of the hill, when we found Relais de la Butte. We immediately grabbed a shady table and ordered two large freezing cold beers, and nearly wept in gratitude. We shared pasta with a simple chive sauce and a king prawn risotto, which were just the balm for our aching, sweating souls and were served by a friendly waiter. Rosé followed the beer, once we had had time to recuperate and when Mother was no longer on the brink of wringing my neck.

People say that lightening doesn’t strike twice. I generally disagree, as Les Deux Moulins is consistently perfect, but in this case, it may have been true. To be fair, the second time we went for lunch at this restaurant, the following year, it was a great deal busier than the first time and the waiters did seem quite overrun. The beer was still icy cold, the wine was still lovely, and the view was still idyllic. But the service was that bit less friendly and both of our previously delicious dishes were now off the menu; I can’t remember what we had instead, and that probably speaks for itself. I always remember an outstanding meal. So, my advice would definitely still be to try it, but perhaps off-season, and more to enjoy the view and cold drinks than anything else. The first time was truly memorable – to get the full experience, spend at least two hours getting lost in Paris, then walk up a hill in the summer sun. You will absolutely appreciate that beer.

Paris is home to countless lovely restaurants, cafés and bars – if I were to list each of the ones I would recommend, you would be reading for a very long time. Honey and almond cake near the Jardin de Luxembourg, hot chocolate and lemon meringue pie in a hidden café near the Rue de Rivoli, truffled ravioli on the Left Bank, there’s no end to the treats. I hope you have enjoyed my three recommendations for Montmartre, and perhaps you will be inspired to find your own favourite haunts!

À bientôt!

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