A FINE TIME
The edit of the best hotels and restaurants in Paris, ideal for an apéritif or a romantic rendezvous.
The edit of the best hotels and restaurants in Paris, ideal for an aperitif or a romantic rendezvous
GIRAFE
There isn’t a visual moment at Girafe that disappoints. From the second you enter into its golden-toned folds, you are transported into a space that feels somewhere between theatre and fantasy.
Sprung from the visionary mind of Joseph Dirand, the design is a considered revision of Art Deco tropes — brass tubing, low seating, softly dimmed lighting and linear motifs that track from the walls down to the backs of the chairs. It’s the sort of space that could only exist in an Old World metropolis like Paris, recalling revelries in the 1930s, cocktails sipped in corners, Agatha Christie and Tutankhamun.
The restaurant is accessed through the Palais de Chaillot, home to the Cité de l’Architecture et du Patrimoine, so was never going to have a laissez-faire attitude. The generously curvaceous white marble bar sets the tone of the room — we could settle here into the wee small hours snacking on oysters and drinking gin martinis, waiting for Rick Blaine from Casablanca to show up and call us “kid”.
But trust us, you’ll want to spend some time outside on the terrace at Girafe, as it boasts one of the best views of the Eiffel Tower in Paris. The space, flanked by lush greenery and decked out in wicker chairs, white tablecloths and brass detailing, doesn’t try and compete with the Iron Lady. Instead, when the Champagne light that has been drawing artists to this city for centuries bounces off her contours, the fitout seems only to frame her with greater clarity, serving to complement her majestic rise into the sky.
The menu is seafood-led, from lobster and langoustine to sole à la meuniere and, of course, caviar. Order a platter and allow yourself to be transported into the most extravagant of Paris fantasies, because Dirand has created one for your pleasure — and it’s right here. girafeparis.com
Astair
With candied tones, rounded forms and textural contrast in spades, if cake sprinkles morphed into a bistro, that bistro would be Astair in Paris’s 2nd arrondissement. Created by Maison et Objet Designer of the Year in 2017, Tristan Auer, Astair opened last year in the famed Passage des Panoramas, which has recently become a hotspot for uber-hip eateries including Racines and Canard et Champagne. Food comes by way of three Michelin-starred chef Gilles Goujon of L’Auberge du Vieux Puits. astair.paris
CoCo
Ever since it was built and opened in 1875, Paris’s Palais Garnier opera house has needed a dining space befitting of its glittering reputation. Enter CoCo. Designed by newcomer Corinne Sachot, the space seamlessly fuses historic Paris archetypes such as tufted chairs, ornate carpets and tasselled lampshades against cave-like sculptural ceilings in burnt earth tones while allowing plenty of light to filter through. There’s also a garden that’s perfect for leisurely passing the day flâneur-style. In the evenings, live musicians transform this into one of the most magical spots in Paris. coco-paris.com
PNY
Like something out of a Saul Bass opening sequence, PNY’s new Rue du Faubourg Saint-Antoine branch draws you into the space with oval after oval of perfectly cut timber. Designed by Bernard Dubois, the space is trippily Kubrickian — you half-imagine seeing the Clockwork Orange droogs sipping milk with Barbarella and Joan Holloway at the bar. PNY claim to serve Paris’s best burgers — they even have their own organic beef farm in the UK. Your regular burger joint this ain’t. pnyburger.com
It’s the sort of space that could only exist in an Old World metropolis like PARIS
HÔTEL ALFRED SOMMIER
Situated in the chic 8th arrondissement, a mere saunter from the Musée du Louvre, Champs-Élysées and Jardin des Tuileries, is the Hôtel Alfred Sommier. Built by Alfred Sommier and his father as a hôtel particulier in 1860 to showcase the family’s prestige as wealthy sugar refiners, it opened to the public in 2018 as an 80-room boutique hotel.
What is particularly special about this hotel is the feeling that you are staying in the house of a character from a Paris-set period drama. Plates are monogrammed with the family initials, reminding you that you are in someone’s home. You can almost hear the clip-clop of carriage-laden horses on the cobbled laneway that takes you into the courtyard.
The 60 rooms and 20 suites are varied, but if you’re lucky you’ll find yourself in a room decked out in gold-gilded mirrors, marble fireplaces, parquetry flooring and the sort of stucco cornicing that sings of mid 19th-century Paris. Often, the hotel lets the historic features do the talking, keeping furnishings elegantly refined.
The Suite Vaux-le-Vicomte is a visual tribute to one of the family’s other homes — the famed Château de Vaux-le-Vicomte in the Seine-et-Marne département of France, considered one of the country’s most beautiful, privately owned châteaux. The suite’s ornate, white stucco walls and golden details breathe opulence and majesty into the air itself, a fine homage to the 17th-century château Sommier personally restored before his death in 1908.
At the back lies a private garden where guests from the onsite restaurant, Les Caryatids, can choose to dine on balmy evenings. You can even take your meal with owner and descendant of Sommier, Richard de Warren de Rosanbo, should you wish to learn more about the history of the building and his illustrious family. alfredsommier.com
The Peninsula Paris
There is much to recommend this famed hotel, though the spa has to be at the top of the list. With a 20-metre pool, a hammam, sauna and shower experience, not to mention one of the best massages we’ve had anywhere, this is bucket-list stuff. If you can snag a booking, have dinner at rooftop restaurant L’Oiseau Blanc, but drinks on its adjoining terrace, overlooking the twinkling lights of the Eiffel Tower will do just fine, thank you very much. peninsula.com Le Bristol Paris
Walking through the revolving doors of the fabled Le Bristol Paris is like stepping into another century. Established in 1925, the hotel still manages to exude the opulence of the Roaring Twenties — no wonder this was a hotspot for the likes of Charlie Chaplin and Josephine Baker. Have dinner at three-Michelinstarred Epicure or one-starred 114 Faubourg. The breakfast — caviar blinis with some of the best pastries we’ve ever had — is the stuff of Hollywood dreams. Oh, and did we mention the rooftop pool? oetkercollection.com/hotels/le-bristol-paris
Fauchon L’Hôtel
Ever since 1886, when Auguste Fauchon opened a little fine food store on Place de la Madeleine, the name Fauchon has been synonymous with luxury French delicacies. But it’s not until recently that the business has delved into the world of hotels — Fauchon L’Hôtel opened in September 2018. The store’s familiar palette of black, white and pink reigns throughout, with each of the 54 rooms — some with views of the Eiffel Tower — replenished daily with complimentary Fauchon treats, such as chocolate truffles, macarons and foie gras. hotel-fauchon-paris.fr
Belle Étoile Suite at Le Meurice
Over the past few years, Lyon-based design house Lally & Berger have been tinkering away in Le Meurice, the palace-grade hotel in Paris’s 1st arrondissement. Having rejigged some 160 rooms, this summer they unveiled their masterpiece: the Belle Étoile Suite. Taking up the entire seventh floor, 250 square metres is dedicated to the interior, with some 350 square metres made up of exterior spaces. Views encompass every major sight (the Eiffel Tower, Les Invalides, Le Musée du Louvre, Le Jardin des Tuileries) making this one of Paris’s most luxurious suites. dorchestercollection.com/en/paris/le-meurice
Sinner
Situated on rue du Temple in the Marais, Sinner takes its cues from religious eroticism (did someone say “Hot Priest”?). In another design by Tristan Auer, the corridors are darkly lit and stained-glass windows feature throughout. The rooms offer rousing contrast with heritage features like timber panelling set against modern elements such as colourful bulbous furniture and retro light fittings that recall the 1970s hedonism of the neighbourhood. sinnerparis.com
The rooms offer with
rousing contrast heritage features set against modern elements such as colourful furniture bulbous