Live Like a Local: The Best Coffee Bars in Paris

Le Peloton Café
Le Peloton Café

Even though Paris is known for its cafés where people linger for hours drinking espresso and watching life go by, it’s never been about the quality of the coffee but more about the experience. In response to the more sophisticated coffee palate trend, Paris has seen a new wave of artisanal coffee bars in recent years. Here is a selection of our favorites. 

Le Peloton Café 

Christian and Paul, two congenial guys who also run Blue Bike Tours of Paris, have opened up a true neighborhood coffee bar in the Marais district. Locals swarm the attractive café during the day that serves aromatic coffee sourced from Belleville Brulerie, a nearby Parisian company that imports and roasts its own beans from Honduras, Ethiopia, Guatemala, Kenya, and Rwanda. Another highlight is the home made sweet and savory waffles served on the weekend in flavors such as ham and cheese, arugula, whipped cream and Nutella. 

11 rue du Pont Louis Philippe, 75004 
Open Tuesday to Sunday, 9AM-6PM

Fondation
Fondation

Fondation 

Australia is currently the most obsessed coffee nation on the planet, so much so that they travel with their own coffee when leaving home. Thankfully coffee obsessive Aussie Chris Nielson has solved the problem for his fellow countrymen by opening Fondation. Located in the trendy Northern Marais, Fondation is the size of a postage stamp or small Paris studio apartment, approximately 150 square feet. Nielson diligently learned his coffee barista trade by working at Prufrock Coffee in London and Mecca Espresso in Sydney and is proud to have the only steel Kees van der Western Spirit coffee machine in Paris. Fresh granola and tartines with avocado and sea salt or ricotta and honey are served at breakfast. 

16 rue Dupetit-Thouars, 75003 
Open Monday to Sunday 8AM-6PM 

Holybelly 

Not only does Holybelly serve up a great cup of java, it is also has the best breakfast in Paris, with serious foodies queuing up on weekends for their legendary brunch. Besides using beans from Brulerie de Belleville, Holybelly’s secret behind their excellent coffee is using a reverse-osmosis system to calibrate the water. 

The breakfast menu changes monthly but some staples include homemade granola, fluffy pancakes with seasonal fruit, hazelnuts, and Piedmont syrup, a bread basket from the award winning bakery Du Pain des Idees and a selection of egg dishes including bacon, secret recipe hashbrowns, baked beans, and mushrooms roasted with thyme and garlic. 

19 Rue Lucien Sampaix, 75010 
Open Monday to Friday 9AM-5PM, Saturday & Sunday 9AM-5PM 
http://holybel.ly/

Café Coutume

Starting off as a pioneer of artisanal coffee in Paris in 2012, Café Coutume has a loyal following with three outlets in Paris and also extending its brand internationally with six coffee bars in Tokyo. The café in the seventh arrondissment near Le Bon Marche is spacious enough to linger for hours enjoying an exotic brew with blends from Brazil, Burundi and Ethiopia. Café Coutume offers an extensive breakfast and lunch menu plus home baked pastries. 

47 Rue de Babylone, 75007
Open Monday to Friday 8AM- 6PM, Saturday & Sunday 9AM-6PM 
http://coutumecafe.com/