Dec 21 2009
Vegetarian Paris
For the past few weeks, whenever I told a friend that I was heading to Paris for a vacation, inevitably they would ask: “so… what are you going to eat there?” Some vegetarian friends warned with horror stories of growling stomachs, scouring the streets for someplace, anyplace, with even just a salad without a sprinkling of ham. I decided to prep as much as I could for our lacto-ovo diets by making notes of veggie-friendly restaurants on my maps of the city.
As a result, my Michelin Paris par Arrondissements atlas looked like the plan of attack of some crazed general. Scrawls of fine-point red sharpie noting cheese shops overwrote important tourist locations like Notre-Dame. There was a sub-legend with symbols designating the 1970s sprouts-and-tempeh spots from the foodie restaurants who have a “menu au vert.” Organic and macrobiotic joints were marked with an OM. Wine bars were heavily asterisked, the decided plan of retreat if it came to that.
I can now safely say that the food there for vegetarians is fine. In fact, I think I know more vegetarian restaurants in Paris than in Chicago, the city I live in. We were surprised to find vegetarian sections of menus at some brasseries, and cheese and vegetable sandwiches at a number of cafes. We even found a “croque vegeterien” one day at lunch. On the street you can always find sweet crepes with Nutella or jam, or savory ones with cheese. Certain neighborhoods, like the Marais, are chock-full of 5-euro falafel places. But, it doesn’t hurt to be prepared–especially for dinner, when you could end up hunting for a long time, and then waiting for a table.
If you’re looking for something a bit more fancy, you’ve got to check out Maceo. It’s a traditional French restaurant that happens to have a “menu au vert”, which is apparently a new trend in Paris, and is a fixed-price menu composed entirely of vegetable-based dishes. They served me three of the most delicious courses I’ve ever eaten. We began with an amuse-bouche of pumpkin soup, served with some nutty crackers. We then moved on to the appetizer, a mushroom veloute served with a salad of chantrelles tossed in walnut oil. Yum!
My entrée was a ratatouille of white beans, olives, and tomato. Salty, rich, and delicious. My fiance had a baked pumpkin puree with beets, topped with coconut sauce. For dessert, candied pears, a cheese plate, and an amazing dessert wine from Chianti that tasted intensely like raisins. The staff was wonderful, the sommelier was fantastic, and the setting was great. If you go, definitely make reservations, as we saw many people get turned away throughout the night. Menu au vert runs around 32 euros.
Here is a list of other places of note:
La Grenier de Notre-Dame: two central locations, one on Ile-saint-Louis, and one just over the river. Big servings with tons of veggies, this is healthy vegetarian food that will balance out some of those chocolate croissants you’ll be eating non-stop. Homey, funky interior; the location in the 4th has an aggressive, 1970s-esque indoor garden hanging from the ceiling. All
vegetarian, with vegan options.
Saveurs Veget-Halles: classic French dishes made with excellent imitation meats. Sparse setting, reasonable prix-fixe around 18 euro. All-vegetarian, with vegan options.
Cafe Ruc: near the Louvre, a typical brasserie ambiance with outdoor seating. Not a large vegetarian selection, but what was there was quite good. Friendly, English-speaking staff. Fancy tourist neighborhood prices (20 euro for a veggie burger). Some vegetarian options, none vegan.
Others that were on our list, but that we did not make it to:
Les Deux Abeilles (near the Eiffel Tower)
Veggie (St. Germain-du-pre)
Kate lives and works in Chicago, IL. Her interests include fine arts, food and wine, and baseball.
