An Italian in Paris!

Ok...Everyone on Trip Advisor was great with suggesting off the beaten track experiences for my first EVER trip to Paris this July. My husband, born and raised in Italy, is accompanying me on MY Parisian dream trip. Although he is %26quot;open%26quot; to trying all things French...he retains an understandable, but particular, fondness for things Italian! Since I am doing all the planning for this trip, I would love to surprise him with at least one really terrific Italian meal in Paris. I have found recommendations online, but I trust you guys more...Anybody have any suggestions?

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Ciao Maybee - I%26#39;m currently living with my husband in Paris, after 2 years living in Italy (Liguria). We have talked with numerous Italian friends here in Paris, and the consensus among them is not to bother trying to find a good Italian restaurant in Paris - there isn%26#39;t one that really does it right. so far, after 4 months in Paris, we still haven%26#39;t found an Italian restaurant that makes food like we had in Italy, either. Our Italian friends love the following things in Paris; eating Thai/Vietnamese food, French food, and visiting the Buddha Bar for lunch or dinner.

sorry to put a damper on the idea - I realize that there are highly regarded Italian restaurants in Paris - they may be %26quot;gourmet%26quot; but they aren%26#39;t authentic..at least in my experience (so far).

maybe you could post this on the Italy forum, and ask for recommendations from Italians? That might be your best shot. I%26#39;ll be watching this thread, as I would love to have a traditional Italian meal in Paris.

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Thank you Mauna Kea Lady...I was afraid that might be the case! Good idea to post on the Italy forum, I will do that. He loves loves his olives, olive oil $ garlic, so I%26#39;ll try to find him a really great, down-home Provencal or even Sud Ouest restaurant...if you and your friends have any good recommendations please let me know....Thanks again!

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why don%26#39;t you try :

Veramente, 2 rue Sédillot, Paris 7

Le Jardin d%26#39;Hugo, 2 rue de Sontay, Paris 16

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Dear Maybee520,

You will be glad to know the French like good olive oil, too! There%26#39;s a great, but tiny shop on the Rue Jacob, which sells estate bottled olive oils, and other delicacies.

Hope you have a wonderful trip with the Italian in Paris.

Bon chance and bon voyage.

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MayB. - what area in Italy is your husband from? perhaps we can find something excellent in Paris that has his regional foods..!

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Casa Bini in the 6th has great Italian food. The pasta is cooked to order, so it is always perfectly al dente. The owners are Tuscan and return to Italy regularly to fill up on basic ingredients (pasta, olive oil from the family farm, etc...). The cooks are all from southern Italy, so they excel in seafood. The staff is 100% Itai and the crowd is high end. Catherine Deneuve is a regular there and recently I dined just a few feet from Salma Hayek.

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While there are a lot of lousy and mediocre Italian restaurants in Paris, it%26#39;s quite an exaggeration to say that there are no good ones.

I can recommend:

Il Tavoliere

73 blvd de Clichy

75009 Paris

http://www.iltavoliere.com/

It%26#39;s very near the Moulin Rouge, but don%26#39;t let that put you off.

The owners are Italian and make almost everything in house, including the excellent ricotta cheese ravioli. (The only thing I cannot recommend is the pizza, which is primarily on the menu due to the neighborhood and which is not their forte.) The clientele is mixed between tourists and regulars, and many of the regulars are Italians living in Paris.

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On my recent trip to Paris I went to a tiny little Italian restaurant in the 20e called Il Pinocchio. 115 Avenue Gambetta. Take the Metro to Gambetta station. On the way there you can stop at Sucrecacau, 89 avenue Gambetta to pick up some macarons or other luscious treat for dessert. I found Il Pinocchio%26#39;s food to be very good. In fact, I liked it enough that, since I had my first meal of the trip there, I went back and had my last meal of the trip there.

I can understand the dilemna of an Italian. Italian food is so yummy!!! Perhaps with a couple of Italian restaurants in the agenda he will be willing to be adventuresome towards food for the rest of the trip--perhaps.

It is true that the French do use lots of olive oil for dressings etc. There are a number of foods that both countries share (good salads, for example) so all is not lost.

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Santa Lucia on Rue des Canettes in the 6th (a few steps from St-Sulpice Church)

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Thanks to all, I%26#39;ve noted every one of your suggestions..DH was born and raised in the mountains of Calabria, near La Sila...I know he will enjoy the wide variety of French cuisines in Paris, but for one night, I would like to surprise him!

The places mentioned that are owned or operated by Italians would really be great...then the comfort of language would totally seal the deal!