Where to Find a Great Hamburger in Paris
For those of you who don’t live here, you’re probably scratching your heads as who in their right minds would want a hamburger in Paris. If you’re a visitor, you probably don’t come to Paris in search of a burger (unless you’ve got kids in tow). But Parisians, as well as the rest of us, often get the craving for a nice, juicy patty on a big, fluffy bun, and I’m happy to help in our quest to find the best of the lot.
Here’s a list of the places that were suggested by helpful readers in the comments of my post on the burgers at Hippopotamus. I was pretty bowled over with the choices out there and look forward to trying some, or all, of them out.
Please note that I haven’t been to all of these places (yet), and I can’t personally vouch for them.
Hence I’m trusting you guys on these…so they’d better be good! : )
UPDATE: Since I started this list, the number of places in Paris, including many cafés, now serve hamburgers. So in addition to this list, you’ll likely find many around town. Not all are great, but I’ve been adding to this list as I go and included reader suggestions.
Two locations in Paris
(I’ve been a few times and they burgers aren’t bad, but not exceptional either. Still, it’s a pretty authentic place. Think the burgers & fries that you get in a basket at the beach.)
PDG
20, Rue Ponthieu (8th)
Tél: 01 42 56 19 10
and
5, rue Dragon (6th)
Tél: 01 45 48 94 40
(Just off the Champs-Elysées. Le Parisien newspaper named these “les meilleurs hamburger de Paris” in 2006.)
Charlie Birdy
Four addresses in Paris
(I was surprised to see a huge selection of les burgers on their menu, online. Live music, too.)
Le Murmure
108, rue Convention (15th)
Tél: 01 45 54 40 18
Henry’s
189, rue de la Pompe (16th)
Tél: 01 47 27 25 75
(I couldn’t find anything about this place online, then reader TJ sent coordinates, but noted that they’ve changed owners since the initial recommendation.)
Coffee Parisien
4, rue Princesse (6th)
Tél: 01 43 54 18 18
and
7, rue Gustave Courbet (16th)
Tél: 01 45 54 17 17
(A few readers recommended this place, one saying the burgers were “incroyable!” You can read about my visit to Coffee Parisien, too.)
Joe Allen
30, rue Pierre Lescot (1st)
Tél: 01 42 36 70 13
(Rumor has it Joe Allen has great ribs, too. But I think they can’t be better than mine.)
Tropical Café
5, Place
Parmentier, 92200 Neuilly-Sur-Seine (Near Porte Maillot)
Tél: 01 47 45 15 55
(A French reader suggested this, and said I should look at the menu, which I did. Twenty four burgers! From the Curnonsky burger to a “cream” burger, which I’ll skip. But the rest sound good, and each is available as a beef or chicken burger.)
Restaurant le Floors
100 rue Myrha (18th)
Tél: 01 42 62 08 08
(Picture here. Ashalama, the commenter, said, “It’s quite expensive but everything is handmade and the choice is amazing so it’s worth paying for!”)
Le Camion Qui Fume
The first hamburger food truck rolls into Paris, with great burgers and fries. Check website for locations.
L’authre Bistro
22, rue des Ecoles
Tél: 01 43 54 44 57
(A helpful hint was left on my Flickr page about this place, with a link to a picture of their burgers.)
Le Hamburger
(Couldn’t find any info online about this place. Googling ‘hamburger’ and ‘Paris’ only brought up pictures of Paris Hilton eating a burger—which isn’t exactly appetizing.)
Le Café Marly
93, rue de Rivoli (1st)
Tél: 01 49 26 06 60
(Just across from the Louvre, the terrace overlooks the museum.)
Le Castiglione
235, rue St. Honore (1st)
Tél: 01 42 60 68 22
(One website noted the hamburger was 22€. Just a head’s up.)
Cool’in Irish Pub
15, rue Clément (Marché St. Germain)
(Found nothing about this place online, but we know they have good beer.)
Frog and Rosbif
Four locations in Paris: St. Germain, Bercy, Les Halles & Biblioteque.
Hard Rock Café
(I’ve never been into a Hard Rock Café, and am not sure I’m ready to start. But who knows? After all, I did go to l’Hippo…)
L’Envol Pub
rue Lacépède (near place Monge)
(Hmmm. I hope none of you are trying to send me on a wild goose chase. I couldn’t find anything about this place, either.)
Le Palmier de Lorette
19 Rue Châteaudun (9th)
Tél: 01 48 78 34 41
(Christophe, the reader who recommended this place, noted how good the burger was, in spite of the “unusual” sauce.)
Indiana Burger
Several locations in Paris.
(I’ve walked by the one in my neighborhood a gazillion times but have never been tempted. Too many ‘taco salads’ in tortilla bowls on the tables. One reader wrote that it was one of the few places in Paris he got a decent gin and tonic, which to me, begs for cucumber sandwiches with the crusts cut off. Still a burger might not be a bad second choice.)
La Montagne
13, rue du Pot de Fer (5th)
Tél: 01 43 36 61 52
Respectable burger with outstanding house-made French fries, cooked until deep-golden brown. My burger could have used a bit more salt but it was served juicy and almost rare.
Café Charlot
38, rue de Bretagne (3rd)
A decidedly bobo café, which I was miffed about since they took over where a lovely old bread bakery was. But their redeeming quality is a very good (American) cheese burger with excellent, crisp thin-cut fries.
Hôtel Amour
8, rue Navarin (9th)
Tél: 01 48 78 31 80
The burgers in this hip restaurant are quite good, and juicy! Edmond Fallot mustard shares the condiment shelf with Hellman’s mayonnaise and Heinz ketchup, and the fries are a good accompaniment. The outdoor terrace is packed during the warm months, so reserve.
Schwartz’s Deli
16, rue des Ecouffes (4th)
Tél: 01 48 87 31 29
Trying to be a New York-style Jewish deli, most of the guests are eating the piled-high pastrami sandwiches or the burgers, made of good quality beef (rather than the usual frozen patties). The hamburger was enormous, and good, but the buns were standard. (This visit made me wonder why, in a city full of great bread, people use packaged supermarket rolls?) Decent fries.
Le Floréal
73, rue de Faubourg du Temple (10th)
Tél: 01 42 08 81 03
I haven’t tried this one yet, but a trusted source recommended it (linked here) and it’s next on my list.
UPDATE: A few excellent burger places opened in 2011-12 worth noting!
Le Mal Barré
47, rue Lucien Sampaix (10th)
American Bistrot
74, rue de la Folie Mericourt (11th)
Big Fernand
55, rue du Fabourg Poissonière (9th)
Tél: 01 47 70 54 72
Great burgers and friendly service. Excellent fries, too.
Blend
44, rue d’Argout (2nd)
Housemade buns and sweet potato fries are specialties here, along with excellent desserts.
If you’re in Paris, and looking for a good, honest beef and fries fix, I recommend le Relais de l’Entrecôte (20, rue St. Benoît). There’s no choices on the menu: just tell the no-nonsense serveuse how you want your meat cooked, and enjoy a leafy salad with walnuts while you await your slices of beef, which are served tableside with herbed butter sauce and some of the best frites in town. Seconds are offered, on the house. The profiteroles and vacherin are textbook examples of classic French pastries, and big enough to split. I always stick with the house red which, like most house wine at moderate restaurants, is well-matched to the cuisine.
Related Links and Posts
Burger Cravings in Paris (Gridskipper)
Is American Food Better Than French?
Where to Find the Best Steak Frites in Paris
My Burger (In French)
Favorite Paris Dining & Travel Guides
