Best Cafes in Paris 2026 — Top Coffee Shops, Traditional Cafés de Flore Style Venues and Specialty Coffee in Paris

Best Cafes in Paris 2026

Paris has one of the world's most culturally significant café traditions — the Parisian café as literary salon, political forum, and artistic incubator is a foundational myth of modern French culture (Sartre wrote at Café de Flore, Hemingway at La Closerie des Lilas). The traditional Parisian café has evolved but endures, while a modern specialty coffee scene has grown substantially over the past decade, led by pioneering roasters like Belleville Brûlerie and Ten Belles. This guide covers the best cafes in Paris in 2026.

Paris Cafe Culture Overview

• The traditional Parisian café serves un café (espresso), un crème (café au lait), croissants, and tartines in a setting designed for extended lingering at terrace tables; the Rive Gauche (Left Bank) cafes of Saint-Germain-des-Prés remain the most famous but are heavily touristified; the Canal Saint-Martin and Belleville neighbourhoods have Paris's best specialty café scenes with a younger and more local clientele; Paris café culture maintains the tradition that you are never rushed from your table regardless of how long you stay

Best Paris Cafe Neighbourhoods

• Canal Saint-Martin (10th arrondissement) has Paris's best specialty café concentration with roasters like Ten Belles and Café Oberkampf; Belleville and Ménilmontant (11th-20th) have Paris's most affordable and authentic café culture; the Marais has excellent café culture in a beautiful historic neighbourhood setting; Montmartre's lower slopes have neighbourhood cafes popular with Parisian residents rather than tourists

What to Order at a Paris Cafe

• Un café (espresso — the standard order in Paris); un crème (café au lait or café crème — specify size, default is small); croissant au beurre (always plain butter at a quality boulangerie-café); pain au chocolat; café gourmand (espresso with mini desserts — popular at traditional cafes); tartine beurrée (buttered toast, the simplest and most Parisian breakfast)

Paris Cafe Prices 2026

• Un café (espresso): €2-3.50; Un crème: €3-5; Croissant: €1.30-2.50; Specialty filter coffee: €4-6.50; Brunch at Canal Saint-Martin café: €20-38 per person

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