Over the past few years, les Batignolles has been gradually getting hipper and hipper thanks to a steady stream of contemporary restaurants, cool cafés, and creative concept stores. It might be its less-than-central location in the 17th arrondissement, or possibly a secret oath locals take to keep this village-like neighborhood for those in the know, but the area is one of the best places to get a taste of authentic Paris. Sample it by seeking out these new additions to the district.
Start your Batignolles wanderings with a superior coffee from Dose. The Right-Bank branch of a trendy coffee shop in the 5th arrondissement, Dose’s coffee is made with their roasted-in-house beans and is some of the best in the 17th. In addition to coffee, they have a range of homemade pastries, lunch items, and a highly coveted Sunday brunch.
If it’s a relatively “healthy” snack you need to get fueled up, stop in Sitron, the second address of a popular Montorgueil gluten-free bakery. The tiny shop presents exquisite cakes, financiers, madeleines and a variety of tarts, like their signature tartelette citron—the inspiration for the shop’s name.
Snack or coffee in hand, take a tour around the main square, Place du Docteur Félix Lobligeois, home to the Sainte-Marie des Batignolles church and a number of cafes and shops. On its north side is beautiful Square des Batignolles park, one of the prettiest small parks in Paris which definitely merits an amble.
From here you can meander your way through the neighborhood’s streets. Rue Legendre has plenty of boutiques such as French Touche, a quirky concept store featuring stylish bags, designer houseware, hip accessories, and fun paper products—all 100% Made in France. Further down on the street is the atelier-boutique of Wenhua Duvergé, a talented Paris-based Chinese designer who focuses on eco-conscious slow fashion. Her perfect Parisian basics are all made of 100% organic cotton or recycled materials.
After shopping you might have worked up an appetite. Since you’re down in this end of the neighborhood, pop into Interfabric, a predominantly vegetarian lunch spot. A young, trendy crowd is drawn to its minimalist decor and extremely reasonably priced lunch menus. They change daily and include creative vegetarian mains, salad, and soup. Or opt for one of their sandwiches made on homemade buns and filled with a changing variety of meat, fish, and veggies.
Work your way back down rue des Dames, packed full of antique dealers, vintage clothing shops, and other nice boutiques like L’Atelier Haut Perché, the studio and store of Aliénor Frolet, a talented young jewelry-maker who has funky creations for all budgets. The gastronomically inclined should veer into the Fédération Française de l’Apéro. The second branch of this great speciality food shop, it helps you master the art of the apéro, offering an excellent range of artisanal pâtés, tapenade, fromage, saucisson, wine, and craft beer—but if it’s the latter you’re interested in, drift a few blocks further to rue des Moines where you’ll find La Société Parisienne de Bière. A temple to la bière, they stock over 30 French and foreign artisanal beers, including their own Bière Batignolle, which they started brewing in 2018. You can sample any of these at the shop’s few tables or take a selection of bottles with you, to add to your previous purchases for a DIY apéro in the area’s contemporary Martin Luther King Park. A stark contrast to the manicured Square des Batignolles, the natural and eco-friendly green space has plenty of laid-back corners to enjoy your goodies.
Otherwise, if you’re looking for a cool Frenchie dinner in this part of les Batignolles, you’ll find plenty of choice near the up-and-coming rue Brochant, which is now buzzing with an abundance of cool venues like Formaticus, a chic cheese bar, restaurant, and shop that is already very popular with the area’s growing bobo residents. Or for some equally cheese-ilicous Italian, head down the street to Sette, a pizzeria with a friendly, young vibe serving excellent and extremely reasonable pizzas.
Related Links
- Batignolles is also home to the Big Mamma Group’s Mamma Primi.
- Read about the international cuisine on offer in neighboring Montmartre.
- For the top 6 things to do in Batignolles, head to Tripsavvy.
Written by Lily Heise for HiP Paris. All photographs courtesy of Lily Heise except where noted. Looking for a fabulous vacation rental in Paris, London, Provence, Tuscany, Umbria or Liguria? Check out Haven In.
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