The Best Belleville Restaurants According to My Friend Marissa

She’s not a restaurant critic. She’s not a food writer. She’s my friend Marissa, and she knows her shit.

At Cendrillon, extra points if you order the shot of vodka with a side of caviar.

Marissa and I first met at Liquiderie, a bar in lower Belleville known for its natural wine and craft beer on tap. Earlier that night, I had been eating bacon cheeseburgers with English cheddar at Le Saint-Régis on Île Saint-Louis with my friend Sulekha. Just as we were finishing our dirty martinis, my journo friend Lane texted, inviting me to meet her and a few friends for a post-din drink. Newly single and off mom duty for the evening, I figured why not, and drifted unhurriedly from the 4th arrondissement to the 11th. The most serendipitous nights are always unplanned.

At Liquiderie, while waiting in line to order, I struck up a conversation with a guy. He had a bushy, John Oates mustache. He laughed at my jokes. We’d only exchanged first names, but a few days later, he found me on LinkedIn—Tinder with a résumé. We ended up dating for a bit. He wrote formal text messages with careful punctuation.

Voudrais-tu retourner à la Liquiderie demain soir?

He belonged to a young French hunters’ club. One time, he shot a bunch of pheasants, and we prepared two of them together. Plucking those poor birds was as unappetizing as the tiny metal BBs buried in the meat. He slept with a little wooden-framed portrait of Jesus beside his bed. It didn’t work out.

My relationship with Marissa, however, is still going strong.

Back to the night we met—we wandered up the hill to La Cale, a natural wine bar that looks like the inside of a ship. The owner has big, blue-green eyes and is always generous with recommendations. Seated at the central table, with her adopted Moldovan street dog Misha curled under her chair, Marissa talked about her belief in psychedelics for psychotherapy, and I found her candid nature refreshing. For Americans—or at least for this American—genuine vulnerability is like extending a hand: an invitation to really know someone. In my experience, the French tend to hold their cards closer to the chest. I’m drawn to the open books who aren’t afraid of being read.

Two years later, I’ve come to realize that Marissa has a bit of a superpower. Though she seems quiet at first, she has a way of becoming a regular at all the best places in Paris—buzzy new restaurants, longstanding favorites, cool natural wine bars. She tips well. She remembers people’s names. She’s turned solo lunches and long dinners into an intricate web of industry contacts. When she recommends a restaurant, I believe her.

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And you should believe her, too! In the spirit of sharing the wealth of tuned-in friends I’ve accumulated over the years, I asked Marissa to compile some of her favorite restaurants in Belleville—the eastern Paris district that spans the 10th, 11th, 19th, and 20th arrondissements, and also, her home.

It’s the hottest quartier for eating right now. It’s fun, it’s tasty, and it’s still a little bit grungy. It’s Courrèges vinyl jackets and ripped tights. It’s restaurant bathrooms scented by Santal 26 and toilet seats dusted with white powder.

Here are the food spots where you’ll often find Marissa (and Misha).

The hottest sandwich in Paris right now is the meatball sub from Vandal. (Photo credit: Mickael Bandassak)

The secret ingredient at Vandal is variety: flavors, textures, colors, and herbs. (Photo credit: Mickael Bandassak)

Aux Mandarins de Belleville

📍12 Rue Jules Romains, 75019 Paris

Favorite neighborhood spot for Chinese fare, including a spicy cauliflower and lotus wok that is to die for.

Vandal

📍56 Rue des Alouettes, 75019 Paris

New on the Belleville scene, Vandal serves up excellent sandwiches—including a meatball sub I’ve missed deeply since moving from the U.S. Hours and quantities are limited, so show up early.

Dinapoli

📍17 Bd de Belleville, 75011 Paris

My favorite hangover food: a traditional Tunisian chapati sandwich and a cold Coke for around 10 euros.

Soces

📍32 Rue de la Villette, 75019 Paris

My go-to spot for Sunday afternoons on the sunny terrasse—especially during Oyster Happy Hour: 6 oysters for 10 euros, from 3–7 p.m. every weekend (Saturday and Sunday).

ROND - Sarrazin et Calvados

📍21 Rue du Transvaal, 75020 Paris

Delicious buckwheat crêpes with inventive fillings—think fig, goat cheese, and walnut chutney—make this a perfect Sunday brunch option.

Cendrillon

📍50 Rue Piat, 75020 Paris

Lovingly described by Time Out as “Junk Deluxe,” Cendrillon serves bold small plates, a funky playlist, and natural wine. Bonus points if you order the vodka shot with a side of French caviar.

Lim Sept

📍7 Rue Jules Romains, 75019 Paris

Spicy, satisfying Sichuan noodles at friendly prices—plus, it backs onto a billiards hall for post-dinner fun.

Le Vieux Belleville

📍12 Rue des Envierges, 75020 Paris

A Belleville institution for traditional French fare. Expect sing-alongs with live musicians (Edith Piaf nights every Tuesday!), and don’t hesitate to share songs from your own country, too.

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The 75 Shouts & Whispers

• It’s TERRASSE SEASON in Paris.

• Nonette Bánh Mì & Donuts recently inaugurated their terrace (and hosted an insanely good pop-up with Dango—I nearly lost my damn mind over the donut filled with red bean paste and topped with pats of salty butter).

• La Cale is opening its brand-new terrace, likely some time next week, and it’s going to be something to behold. In keeping with the natural wine bar’s nautical theme, it’s designed to look like a ship. Expect to find me, all aboard.

• Proving that the best nights are truly impromptu, I was invited to dinner at Le Fouquet’s brasserie, smack dab on the Champs-Élysées—a neighborhood where Parisians rarely go (though I’m currently working on a story to argue more people should go there). The Dish and I had the best dinner—dirty martini for me, old fashioned for him; spring’s greenest asparagus with tender leeks; sole meunière prepared tableside for me, entrecôte Angus with au poivre sauce for him; amazing Meursault (white wine from Burgundy) and Saint-Émilion red; and flaming Crêpes Suzette to finish it all off. Afterward, we Uber’d to Rosa Bonheur to meet my New York friend Aaron, and it was mobbed. Like, at one point inside, it was so packed we were literally moving like a wave with the crowd. But it was so fun. I ran into Alex Teaches French, and we were all chatting and smoking outside until they closed. Then we moved en masse up the hill and ended up at Soces, which was hosting an after-party for some book launch (I think?), and it felt like all the restaurant people were there. Kevin was behind the bar, and Bertrand from Septime was there, and Manu and Cristina from Tarantula, and Noah from Magnolia, and more and more. The next day, I woke up swearing off alcohol—but it was a great night. I felt like, man, I love Paris.

Text by: Caitlin Gunther and Marissa Burkett

Edited by: Mary Alice Gunther