Bistro du Midi
Is that the Jardin des Tuileries before you? Well, non, but the Public Garden will do. In addition to the views, this two-story bistro offers seasonal, French-inspired fare from chef Robert Sisca and team; Bistro du Midi’s sister restaurants include the Banks, Grill 23, and Harvest. Upstairs, it’s an occasion-worthy dining room serving seafood plateaux, foie gras torchons, bouillabaisse, filet mignon with pommes purees and black truffle bordelaise, dark chocolate souffles, and more. Downstairs, there’s a more casual vibe, with tuna niçoise salads, croque-monsieurs, and moules frites. Weekends bring le brunch; the patio is a fine place to rosé the day away.
Get Winter Soup Club
A six-week series featuring soup recipes and cozy vibes, plus side dishes and toppings, to get us all through the winter.
272 Boylston St., Back Bay, Boston, 617-279-8000, www.bistrodumidi.com
Co-owner Anaïs Lambert at Café Sauvage.Handout
Café Sauvage
Perfect timing: On the last Wednesday of each month, this cute, plant-festooned cafe becomes a language-immersion experience during its French Touch dinners, where everyone enjoys a prix fixe meal while speaking French and only French. Opened by Parisian couple Anaïs and Antoine Lambert, Café Sauvage showcases the multicultural city. Tagines, harissa, and coconut milk are as likely to appear on the menu as onion soup, bone marrow, and cream. Come in the morning for coffee and croissants, afternoon for sandwiches and brunchy fare like duck confit eggs benedict, or evening for ratatouille lasagna, roast chicken, and steak frites.
25 Massachusetts Ave., Back Bay, Boston, 857-226-4799, www.cafesauvage.com
Items at Colette Bakery in Medford include (clockwise from top): tarte choco caramel, baguette de campagne, tuna sandwich, vegetable quiche, eggplant sandwich, and chouquettes.Sheryl Julian
Colette Bakery
Originally from Toulouse, Nathalie and Franck Beddiar first opened their French bakery in Medford, then expanded to Melrose and the South End (in the former Cafe Madeleine space). Colette will serve you all the canneles, croissants, Paris-Brests, and baguettes your heart desires. But there are other local French bakeries to try, as well, including Le Petit Four in Needham, Mamadou’s in Winchester, and Michette in Somerville.
509 Main St., Medford, 781-396-2313; 465 Main St., Melrose, 781-620-2743; 517 Columbus Ave., South End, Boston, 857-449-6121; www.colettebakery.com
At Deuxave, chef-owner Chris Coombs serves beautifully composed, sophisticated French dishes.David L. Ryan/Globe Staff
Deuxave
For beautifully composed, sophisticated French dishes, visit Deuxave. Chef Chris Coombs and company have a particular way with duck, from crisp confit to unctuous pâté to spiced breast with buckwheat spaetzle, peach puree, foie gras, cabbage, and pistachio. The food, splurge-worthy wine list, and sleek, fireplaced dining room make this a spot at which to celebrate. Or grab a seat at the bar for a drink, frites, and some prime people-watching.
371 Commonwealth Ave., Back Bay, Boston, 617-517-5915, www.deuxave.com
In the Fenway, D.W. French looks just how you want your French restaurants to look.Josh Reynolds for The Boston Globe
D.W. French
This Fenway brasserie looks the way you want a French restaurant to look: black-and-white tiles, red leather banquettes, and the name on the burgundy awning out front. If you’ve enjoyed chef-owner Douglass Williams’s Italian fare at Mida, you might want to try his French cooking too; he’s worked at restaurants such as Corton and Radius, so he knows his way around the cuisine. The menu at D.W. French is stocked with classic fare: escargots en croute, frisee aux lardons, steak frites, and crème brulee (with a few local touches thrown in; see: clam chowder and Fenway sausage).
1391 Boylston St., Fenway, Boston, 617-865-9900, www.dwfrench.com
At the Elephant Walk in the South End, Cambodian dishes sit alongside French ones on the menu. Loc lac features peppery, caramelized beef tenderloin with rice, lettuce, and lime-garlic dipping sauce.The Boston Globe/Globe Freelance
The Elephant Walk
The Elephant Walk has been serving French-Cambodian fare in the Boston area since the first branch opened in 1991 in Somerville. This decade-old South End spot continues that legacy, reflecting the culinary heritage of founders Longteine “Nyep” de Monteiro and daughter Nadsa; their family relocated to France from Cambodia after the Khmer Rouge took power. On the menu, lemongrass chicken and loc lac, the peppery tenderloin stir-fry, sit alongside scallops in lemon-butter cream sauce and boeuf bourguignon. Early to acknowledge gluten-free, vegan, and vegetarian diets, the restaurant continues to serve those needs. In 2017, longtime manager Richard Pile and Jean Temple took ownership when Nadsa moved with her husband to Italy. Nyep still visits from time to time, says Temple in an e-mail, “checking on the ‘sauces’ that are long-held family recipes and visiting with our cooks, many of whom have been with us for 20+ years and were originally trained by and worked with her.”
1415 Washington St., South End, Boston, 617-247-1500, www.elephantwalkboston.com
The lunchtime patio scene at La Voile on Newbury Street.John Tlumacki/Globe Staff
La Voile
There are two of these very French, sailing-themed brasseries to enjoy: the original on Newbury Street and a follow-up in Brookline. Come for foie gras, onion soup, plump mussels in fragrant broth, roast chicken, whole sea bass with ratatouille, and plenty of French wine. The two La Voile menus are slightly different, so check to see which you like best; if sweetbreads are ever on offer, don’t miss them.
261 Newbury St., Back Bay, Boston, 617-587-4200; 1627 Beacon St., Brookline, 617-277-1260; www.lavoilerestaurants.com
At MA France, a buckwheat galette with smoked salmon, brie, mushrooms, and tomatoes.Joanne Rathe/Globe Staff
MA France
The name of this cafe/épicerie/boulangerie/etc. is both a possessive and a recognition of the two geographies it straddles: this state, that country. Where better to get your fix of sweet crepes and savory buckwheat galettes, baguettes and croissants, French farm cheeses, jambons and saucissons, and assorted pantry goods? Perigord natives Francois and Cecile Attard opened MA France in 2013; just about everyone working here speaks French.
46 Massachusetts Ave., Lexington, 781-862-1047, www.mafrancegourmet.com
Ma Maison chef-owner Jacky Robert has been shaping French food in Boston for decades.Josh Reynolds for The Boston Globe
Ma Maison
Chef-owner Jacky Robert has been shaping French food in Boston for decades: working at uncle Lucien’s famed Maison Robert, founding Petit Robert Bistro (he is no longer involved), helping open Pierrot Bistrot Francais, which occupied this Beacon Hill space before Robert took it over nearly a decade ago and made it his house. That’s what Ma Maison feels like — homey, genuine, with mustard-colored walls, white tablecloths, and daily specials on the chalkboard. Try Uncle Lucien’s country pâté, cream of asparagus soup with smoked trout, coq au vin with buttered noodles, or steak frites. The Sunday lamb chops at this quintessential bistro could become a tradition.
272 Cambridge St., Beacon Hill, Boston, 617-725-8855, www.mamaisonboston.com
The bouillabaisse at Marseille.Jonathan Wiggs/Globe Staff
Marseille
From the restaurant group behind Petit Robert Bistro, PRB Boulangerie, and Batifol, Marseille is a departure from the purely Parisian, offering the flavors of its namesake port city on the Mediterranean. This means panisse (chickpea fritters), grilled octopus, and bouillabaisse join the menu alongside the escargots, onion soup, and steak frites. This space was long Gaslight, beloved for brunch, and Marseille keeps up that tradition with oeufs en cocotte, quiche du jour, and more. Sip a pastis cocktail or something sparkling.
560 Harrison Ave., South End, Boston, 857-277-0366, www.marseilleboston.com
Devra First can be reached at devra.first@globe.com. Follow her on Instagram @devrafirst.