Our Insider Guide to the Best Brunches in Paris

The weekend brunch has become a regular thing for Parisians. In the luxury hotels and other top hotels, they are an excellent way to have a special experience and to try out the cuisine at top-end venues, especially when their restaurants (whether starred or not) are beyond the pocket of the average customer.

We have tested for you these hotels which offer to tickle our taste buds on Saturdays and /or Sundays …

What to expect from brunch in a luxury hotel?

Except for a few venues which serve the entire brunch to the table, most of the hotels combine serving drinks and certain dishes to table, with unlimited access to sumptuous buffets.  You’ll find outstanding products (seafood, fish, meat), often organic, always specially selected. Eggs are often cooked to order (hard-boiled, soft boiled, omelets) and there are various bread products. You can enjoy fresh fruit juices and sometimes smoothies by request. There is always a breakfast product area (cereals or pastries), but you also go there to taste the cuisine of a great chef and for the dessert buffets, which are, on the whole, very good. More expensive than a classic brunch, most certainly. But they are still great value for money, and some even include a glass of champagne. The brunches at the luxury hotels are often an opportunity for an excellent and almost unlimited lunch. (Grunch, a gastronomic lunch? Should be added to the dictionary.)

Whatever your budget, you got it

Brunch for less than €50

Brunch at the Murano (4 stars, Paris 3e) is taken in a different atmosphere, more contemporary and “edgy”, but you can treat yourself there for less outlay. However, don’t bother venturing into its little brother, the Kube Hôtel (4 stars, Paris 18e), where the quality has gone down.

Brunch for €50 to €75

For a group, indulge yourselves with brunch at Lutetia (4 stars, Paris 6e), which has the virtue of including unlimited wine in the price. It’s ideal for meeting up with friends or family. A real “institution“ of a brunch, which will offer you oysters, side dishes and a fine dessert buffet.

For seafood, fish and “raw food”, we have totally fallen in love with Brunch at the Hôtel Westin. On the “healthy cuisine” side, it nonetheless offers delicacies of all kinds and unbelievable desserts, although our best surprise was the available selection of scampi, lobster and other fish.

We have no problem recommending the Organic Brunch at Hôtel de Sers (5 stars, Paris 8e) and its succulent organic buffets in an intimate patio area. Its price has risen quite a lot recently, but it is still sound value.

In the close neighbourhood, don’t miss the Brunch at the Hotel Pershing Hall – right next door!

Brunch from €75 to €100

New test! The Brunch at the Café de la Paix (Paris 9e), which is part of the sublime Intercontinental Paris le Grand, is a rosé champagne brunch with sumptuous buffets. Expect an orgy of seafood, shellfish, scampi, sushi and maki rolls, foie gras, sea bream, carvery meats, organic juices, plus an unbelievable dessert buffet. Good jazz entertainment and a glass of rosé champagne included in the price! It goes straight into our top 3! 

This category is filled by the luxury hotels. We are moving up to the level of the gastronomic brunch and stellar service. Brunch at the Hôtel de Crillon (Paris 8e) is eaten by ambassadors. An historic location for a kitchen which has been awarded a Michelin star. Don’t be concerned about that – the service is very friendly. Home-made gateaux and outstanding products: you will look back on it with pleasure and the glass of champagne is included. Warning: this brunch has now ended. 

The brunch de la Bauhinia (Hôtel Shangri-La, Paris 16e) is our finest brunch of the year so far. You can enjoy several à la carte dishes (truffled eggs, remarkable Asian or French dishes) and each of the buffets is more sublime than the others. The dessert buffet must have a very special mention. The 20 members of the hotel’s patisserie team create each weekend a dessert offer which is very, very, gourmande.

Brunching in Paris on a Saturday?

Some hotels do it, with the advantage that dining rooms are calmer. The Shangri-La brunch is available, as is the Park Hyatt (not tested). The Hôtel Bel Ami (organic brunch) and the Crillon have stopped offering it on Saturdays. It’s now also available at the Hyatt Regency Madeleine (in the Chinoiserie), although this is an à la carte brunch only.

Themed Brunches

At the budget end of the market, the brunch at Mama Shelter (Paris 20e) does the job perfectly: fun, convivial and with a Starck-designed interior, it offers a buffet which, although not the height of refinement, is very affordable, and you will leave with a full stomach.

For something part way between gastronomy and home cooking, we strongly recommend brunch at the Metropolitan Hôtel (4 stars, Paris 16e). Just a few tables, pleasant ambiance and service, and a brunch which notably includes the option of a “home-style” dish, tasting of childhood, which should fill you up for the remainder of the weekend (try the chicken and chips).

Last but not least, the very fine Makassar Lounge at the Renaissance Hôtel (5 stars, Paris 17e) offers a number of buffets in a lounge setting (on the terrace on fine days), with activities for the children in a separate area.

The brand new “Brunch Couture” at the W Paris, at Opéra, charges €42, for a menu served at table and changed monthly. Its mission? A new designer each month, and the chef, Sergi Arola, develops dishes around the brand identity… the gamble has paid off!

Last Updated on July 21st, 2013