From intimate bistros to stylish brasseries, these restaurants in France are perfect for enjoying a memorable meal on your own.
Ducasse sur Seine, Paris
@ducassesurseine
Dining cruises through the French capital have long been a tourist staple, but when Alain Ducasse launched Ducasse sur Seine in 2018, he revolutionised the experience. On a bright day, the sunshine dazzles from both the water and the tableware’s silver, and appetisers such as lightly smoked salmon, citrus and crushed dill are served as you cruise past the Louvre, followed by mains of roasted guinea fowl or steamed brill. The route takes a loop around the Ile de la Cité and Ile Saint-Louis, so you’ll snag front-row views of the recently restored Notre Dame.
Paul Bocuse, Lyon
@paul_bocuse_le_restaurant
(Image: Aurelio Rodriguez)
Taking a seat in this hallowed dining room is enchanting in its own right, but as a solo diner, you’ll see world-class service in motion. Here, diners are told the story of classic French cuisine, from pike perch and lobster quenelles drizzled in a champagne sauce through to classics such as poulet en vessie, or chicken cooked in pig’s bladder. Meanwhile, the cheese trolley is so vast, with bijou rounds of rocamadour and stately columns of fourme d’ambert, that it needs two waiters at the helm.
Au Crocodile, Strasbourg
@aucrocodile
(Image: Bastien Seon)
Tucked down one of Strasbourg’s spindly streets, Au Crocodile is named after the stuffed beast mounted in its dining room: a tribute to the building’s 19th century owner, who brought the animal back from a Napoleonic campaign to Egypt. In the 1980s, Au Crocodile became the restaurant of chef Émile Jung, who earned it three Michelin stars and held them for 12 years. These days it’s the pride of Romain Brillat, who uses locally sourced ingredients for dishes such as the decadent half blue lobster with ravioli and buckwheat risotto. Station yourself beside the towering Adolphe Grisons masterpiece and you won’t need a plus-one: the detailed 19th-century country fair it depicts bursts into life, with characters jostling and laughing in paint.
Riviera Restaurant, Roquebrune-Cap-Martin
@themaybourneriviera
(Image: Elise Quiniou)
Dining solo or en compagnie, a meal at Maybourne Riviera’s casual dining restaurant guarantees spellbinding views. The five-star hotel is set high on a promontory above Monaco and Menton, where floor-to-ceiling glass walls look out across the coastline, delivering the Cote d’Azur’s soul-soothing light direct to your tableside. Reopening for the summer season in June, the laid-back eatery showcases Provençale ingredients, from purple artichokes to locally caught seabass: don’t miss the langoustine tartare, which comes with a confit of leeks, and the red prawn carpaccio, doused in a zesty vinaigrette.
Bistrot André, Valence
@annesophiepic
(Image: Serge Chapuis)
For diners anxious about dining tout seule, the kitchen counter seat will allay all fears. At Anne-Sophie Pic’s casual Bistrot André, you can be part of the action as toque-touting chefs dream up modern iterations on classics. Here, Pic pays tribute to her grandfather André's legacy with decadent land and sea dishes, such as grilled cod with sweet onion ravioli, sorrel and mussels and beef rib sizzling under parsley butter with fries. You can opt for a table rather than the counter for views of the polished wood ceiling and hanging family photos which chart the Pic dynasty’s history.
La Butte, Brittany
@labutteplouider
Those in the know will have discovered that Finistère, in Brittany’s far northwestern corner, is a gastronomic hotspot thanks to the quality of ingredients grown and caught on its shorelines. At La Butte, an eco-friendly, luxury hotel-restaurant, chef Nicolas Conraux is all about local produce, from strawberries grown in the Plougastel-Daoulas commune to buckwheat, artisan-made butter and artichokes from Saint Pol de Léon. Solo diners are welcomed into the modern dining room, which is decorated in Breton tones and textures (dark blues and greys, with crisp white linen) with window views stretching down the hillside to Keremma beach.
Le Suquet, Lagioule
@brasofficiel
Greeted with warm but unintrusive chat, you’ll feel completely at home dining solo at Le Suquet, Sebastien Bras’ restaurant outside the country town of Laguiole. Set on a hillside, the restaurant’s vast picture windows gaze south-west across the landscape, and on a clear day you’ll be able to spot the Pyrenees, some 300km away. Dishes celebrate the volcanic terroir: don’t miss the famous gargouillou – a medley of young vegetables, leaves and flowers, gathered every morning from the potager garden. And make sure to save room for the aligot, a puréed potato and cheese dish taken from Bras’ grandmother’s recipe book.
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