I first visited Café du Coin in 2020 and it’s been a firm favourite ever since. This quaint little neighbourhood bistro-café in the 11th arrondissement is distinctly modern Parisian – small sharing plates, natural wine and a really friendly vibe.
They recently enlarged the café and with it, substantially increased the size of the kitchen. I went back for lunch with a friend to see if it’s still as good as before – is it? Yep, it’s definitely worth the detour.
Go out of your way Modern Parisian dining at its most likeable. Small sharing plates, pizettes and a killer natural wine list. Service & Ambiance
I’ve always loved the vibe at Café du Coin – it’s effortlessly Parisian café cool without stuffy service and rigid service times. Don’t expect ironed tablecloths and polished silver here – it’s a very laid back style of restaurant.
The ambiance is more café than restaurant, with tables of locals catching up over coffee in the day and bottles of wine and sharing plates flying around the room in the evening.
The recent expansion has made it even lighter and airier than before, the huge windows making it a lovely place to be. Old school Parisian bistro chairs matched with retro tables keep it very 11th arrondissement – it’s a very cool place to spend the evening.
Service is friendly, rapid and very casual. The staff are knowledgeable about the wine, with the manager acting as sommelier if you’re after advice on their bottles.
Wine List
Café du Coin have a fantastic, tightly chosen natural wine list. It runs region by region and it’s France only, with no Bordeaux and no Champagne. There’s a real focus on where the natural wine world actually lives now: Jura, Savoie, Bugey, Auvergne, the Loire and the south.
Most bottles land between €35 and €50, which for a list with some of the best natural winemakers in the country on it is genuinely fair. There’s a Cinsault from Le Temps des Cerises at €32, a 2009 Carignan from Sylvain Saux at €47 (a sixteen-year-old bottle), and L’Anglore’s Tavel Vaucrose at €63 if you want to push the boat out.
The by-the-glass sheet changes often, but the shape stays the same and it’s remarkably kind: nearly everything sits at €7, across whites, reds, rosé, orange and bubbles. We had a glass of Jacques Perritaz’s Le Vulcain poiré from Normandy, served as a galopin (a small pour) for €6, which was lovely, and the Flor, an oxidative Carignan Blanc and Grenache Blanc from Banyuls at €8.
The Food
I’ve always loved the menu at Café du Coin – it’s consistently made up of two sections. The first is their small, seasonal sharing plates that change almost daily. Expect croquettes and charcuterie up to larger plates of fresh pasta, at around €8 to €16 per dish.
We kicked off with two brilliant sharing plates – watermelon with stracciatella (€9), doused in a chilli oil dressing and finished with fresh mint. This combination really works – heat from the spicy oil tempered by the cooling watermelon. Especially delicious on a very warm day.
Next up was a clever charred black mullet dish, served with crispy skin and raw flesh alongside mango, dashi and samphire. This was really light, and the crispy, charred skin paired well with the firm flesh and fresh mango.
Two boudin noir (black pudding) croquettes served on a bed of house sweet chilli sauce followed. Although not for everyone, these were killer. They were on the denser side but the acid from the chilli sauce cut right through them. I devoured these.
Then a lovely beef tartare with a very light tonnato sauce (there wasn’t much of a tuna flavour) arrived. Perfectly seasoned, with kicks of acidity from the pickles and cornichon. The thick tonnato sauce actually worked very well here and every bit of it was mopped up with bread.
The second section of the menu covers their pizzettes – small pizzas varying between €6 and €8 that are extremely well done. There are a few seasonal variations, but some mainstays don’t move, such as their tomato, mozzarella and nduja pizza (€8), which is absolutely delicious.
Our last bite was a seasonal courgette pizzette with mozzarella. Thin slices of courgette were baked onto the pie and came out lovely and sweet.
Is Café du Coin Worth Visiting?
Café du Coin is certainly in my top 25 of the best restaurants in Paris list. It’s consistently good, fun and, for me, really embodies the modern Parisian dining scene.
With a great wine list to boot, it’s a superb spot for a casual lunch or a long dinner with friends. It’s not a restaurant for fussy eaters or for those who want bistro classics. Trust the staff on the wine, order a bottle or two and enjoy. I’ll keep going back.
I paid for this meal in full — no freebie, no press invite. This review is entirely independent.What to know before you visit
- Open every day, food served all day
- They only take reservations for lunch between 12-1:30pm
- The room gets busy from about 8pm, so go early or be prepared to wait at the bar.
- Small plates €8–16, pizzettes €6–8, most bottles €35–50, glasses from €6. Expect around €50-60 a head with wine.
Address: 9 rue Camille Desmoulins, 75011
Tel: 01 48 04 82 46
Website: https://www.instagram.com/cafe_du_coin
Photos From Previous Visits
Here are a few photos from previous visits across the years. All photos are my own.
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