help i’m overwhelmed. instagram food blogs etc. yall look to be experts here. family of 12 staying in 6th. 6kids 6 adults. from new orleans so we all have refined taste buds. we are not looking for michelin star restaurants but also love to avoid touristy places too. local quaint delicious. i personally love colorful light healthy delicious food. can be local french fare, italian (kids love pizza pasta) seafood. can sit at 2 tables of 6 next to each other if a table for 12= eating at paris version of applebee’s. my dad is requesting le vent d’amour for an adult only dinner. what else?? brasserie de pres? L’oliveto? thank you in advance!!
A lot of Paris restaurants (especially local’s favorites) are very small and probably won’t be able to accommodate a party of 12; especially including 6 kids. Also a good rule of thumb when travelling is if a place is famous on Instagram or TikTok it is likely terrible, or maybe OK (best case scenario) but still filled with tourists and wannabe influencers. The only restaurant I’m familiar with that you mentioned is the Brasserie de Pres as it is part of a local chain which is quite serviceable and a good bet for family groups. So that should work.
I agree Michelin level dining is likely not going to be the right choice for your family but I’d look at the Gault & Millau listings which are a little more across the spectrum price and experience wise. They even have a section of recommended spots for families, though I have no idea what criteria they are using but it is a solid place to start. https://fr.gaultmillau.com/fr/search/restaurant?places=Paris&moment=En+famille
I have no experience with such large parties in Paris, sorry.
My one suggestion is the touristy (pretty much the only touristy place we regularly return to) Le Relais de L’Entrecôte.
If you line up sufficiently early for their initial seating at lunch or dinner - I’d say 35-45 minutes before opening - they can likely give you tables near each other. They don’t take reservations, and they are always packed.
The sauce for the steak is great, the frites good, the prices are very fair, the house red bottled wine quite good, and it’s fun. The tourists are mostly other Europeans, not overwhelmingly American.
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I recommend joining the ‘Les Frenchies’ Facebook group and asking there. That group’s membership may not be as hardcore about food as the folks on Hungry Onion, but there are many more families with kids participating in the discussion.
We went to Chez Denise in the 2nd about 10 years ago and we were able to reserve a small room in the back of the restaurant. I think there were 10 of us. It’s very traditional with lots of meat but there was at least one youngish picky eater who found stuff to eat. Also check out the bigmammagroup.com More casual places that would probably be kid friendly.
