the bistro is back

With its humble exterior Le Café des Delices merges into the beige, more rugged Belleville establishments. The red tiles remain, though now, the terracotta flooring dazzles and the zinc-plated bar sparkles. The man behind the magic? Édouard Lax - also owner of beloved Boulangerie Le Petit Grain down the road and bistro Le Grain Bain next door. Transforming the Rue Denoyez, Rue Lemon crossroad one cluster at a time, C.D.D. is Lax’s next big haunt. Catch the morning sun and settle into one of the maroon and cream wicker chairs scattered across the terrace and join the locals in ordering un café allongé with take-out viennoiseries in tow. Come lunch, the dish of the day varies from buckwheat arancini bursting with gorgonzola, candied pork cheek to the classic moules frites. A few Negroni’s down the line and we’re settling in for the small, sharing plates on the evening menu as the vinyl jam booms on the DJ decks. 

En formule: €23

Straddling the corner of Rue Camille Desmoulins, a remarkably sleepy junction of the 11ème, is the wooden-paved entrance of Café du Coin, whose iconic blue duck logo sparkles against the white-painted front. “Coin”, translated to “quack”, sums up the light-hearted air of this Voltaire hangout. Inside, is a contrasting clutter of excitement. Brush shoulders with fellow food fanatics as the Formica table and chair settings fill up throughout the lunchtime serving in a steady flow - booking for midi is essential. Laurence Dufour’s marvels are served alongside carafes of Alsace’s Pirouettes riesling: there’s the smoked fish croquettes, the devilled-egg classic overhauled with a candied ginger crunch, linguine flowing in a cockle beurre and sardines swimming in a rich labneh dip. Though, it’s the Pizzettes that have become the icons; these 10-inch flatbreads arrive as sizzling bundles of joy topped with the likes of pear and gorgonzola and molten taleggio. The much-awaited opening of its next-door sibling, La Joie, is a similar sensation overload. It's here that  Minod Dilakshan takes to the kitchen cooking up his hometown Sri Lankan classics in a former boucherie. 

En formule: €21-24

In a roundup of bistros it sizzles down to an aptly named “Eleventh Heaven”. Belleville cradles the 11ème, sandwiched by the relentlessly cool 19ème and 20ème, where the corner side hangouts spiral into an inexhaustible huddle. So much so, that a huge concentration of north eastern Paris is littered by deliciously good restaurant revamps. Thomas Chevrier’s former L’Orillon is no exception. Now under the helm of bistro maestro Florent Cicolli, it becomes part of the restobar stronghold (Café de Coin, Recoin and Jones included). Don’t be fooled by the prospect of a quiet mid-week lunch, book a table in advance to avoid the disappointment of not joining Belleville’s cool and tucking into a three-course feast. Though really if you want to blend in, order a bottle of winemaker Philippe Châtillon’s crisp La Grande Chaude from Poligny in eastern France - even if it’s a table for one. 

En formule: €24

Believing there was a shortage of bar-tobacco-esque restaurants with an FDJ license in Goncourt, chums Paul Henri and Bertrand Chauveau, opened Le Cornichon. A floor-to-ceiling renovation by Claves Architecture paved the way for a cinematic design haven. There the 30s speckled mosaic floor, an Italian 50s gloss-lacquer ceiling rim, a 20th-century laminate travertine counter and the typical bistro red, green, white-washed walls. Custom-designed velvet banquettes offset the jet-black and silver stools and the space is cluttered with knick-knacks; there’s a retro pinball machine in one corner, an LED-lit reclining pickle-man (Le Cornichon’s logo and name) propped amidst the liquor and a love-letter filled postcard holder. The breakfasts and celery-topped Bloody Marys are epic, though it’s at midi that Le Cornichon gets its skates on: endive salad topped with parmesan hunks and croutons, pickles and coleslaw with a side of hake & chips and a raspberry, vanilla swirl whirl dessert that begins a sugar frenzy. The entertainment doesn’t end there: head to the loo to capture Mauro Ferreira’s painted smoke frieze, an honorable ode to Cédic Klapisch, Un Air de Familie. Thankfully Le Cornichon slings down its shutters well into the night. 2am to be exact. 

En formule: €22

As formulas go, Recoin edges on the more refined and so naturally comes with a slightly heavier price tag. Albeit, for a couple of euros more we have what can only be described as a sensationally, flavorsome feast. Potato rosti is topped with a creamy shallot and chive dollop and bump of caviar, red mullet is drowned in a rich fennel flower broth and pud takes the form of a vanilla chiffon tart served alongside ribbons of rhubarb sorbet. Fine dining, bistrot de quartier style. Despite the more polished air than Florent Cicolli’s other ventures, Recoin is equally groovy. There are the orange maceration bottles that circulate at €30, the chef of the moment is the self-taught, fashion design student, Julie Della Faille and as soon as the sun sets, Le Marais kitted-locals come marching in seeking a spicy marg with a chipotle-spiced rim. 

En formule: €27

Rooted on the corner of Jouye-Rouve Street since 1987 Le Baratin is a simple, no frills institution; don’t expect to be mollycoddled, the focus solely lies in the food. Daily specials are uniformly scribed in white chalk on the impeccably neat blackboard menu propped up against the cream and emerald-licked walls whilst Argentine chef, Raquel Carena rustles up the slightly dubious sounding, though utterly delicious dishes. Vegetarians forewarned though fish-eaters can nibble on remarkably flakey fillets, it’s the calf brains dunked in a creamy beurre blanc and the oozingly rich côte de boeuf that sets this spot apart. Thankfully, carnivores and herbivores can unite with one mouthful of the Paris-Brest to finish, that is until you find yourself bickering over who takes the last bite. 

En formule: €23

An exception has to be made for the hot-ticket newbie about the block, Dandelion, a neo-bistro with top-gun names at the helm. Morgane Souris (former sommelier at Parcelles) and Antonine Villard (former chef at Septime and Double Dragon) are paving the way for relaxed fine-French-fare. So, whilst there’s no lunchtime set-menu, the day’s dish is a set-in-stone price. A cost we’ll happily pay for the uncanny consumption of œufs de truite served upon Laurette Broll ceramics and Ten Belles bread for dunkage. The hexagonal hugging façade paves the way for Italian hanging light fixtures, unfinished brickwork walls and the marble-slabbed bar surface. Upon each of the Bauhaus-style table settings, spills a bunch of the next-door florist, Ortie, brilliant bouquets. Exquisite, glorious and Parisian-approved. 

En plat: €20

Entrée, plat, disco is the drill here. The midi set menu swaps out for à la carte come nightfall which in turn transforms into an audiophile bar post supper servings. Corrugated iron wall mounts line the walls and ceilings, record covers become the artworks and a stainless steel reflective bar becomes the glaring centerpiece. Oak-wood tables become chock-a-block with plates as the remarkably friendly small kitchen whips up sardines marinated in a whisky broth, laden onto smoked-ricotta smothered toasts. And that’s just to start. As soon as the Fromagerie Goncourt “cheese of the moment” is swept to the table, Cadence has delivered enough to become your everyday watering hole. 

En formule: €17-22